3210 Bellevue is sold

We finally sold the last Fund 1 property yesterday and I thought I’d take the opportunity to share the (unaudited, unofficial) numbers: Purchased 5/23/2013 for $690,000 Spent ~$410k renovating (including all fees to Adaptive) So, all in for $1.1MM Took in ~$40k from rents while we owned it Sold 10/9/2014 for $1.42MM Net sale proceeds of ~$1.32MM … Continue reading “3210 Bellevue is sold”

Only in LA…

…would you have huge buildings on Broadway, where studios rent for $4 sq ft, totally vacant above the first floor. Why haven’t the owners used the adaptive re-use ordinance to re-purpose these interesting old buildings as either condos or apartments? Simple: Prop 13. The owners probably bought the buildings a million years ago for pennies, … Continue reading “Only in LA…”

Why we don’t announce closings

If you’re at all active in real estate, your email account is spammed daily by brokers announcing the closings of their latest deals. Why do they do this? Because doing so: Shows everyone in the market how active the broker is Keeps the brokers’ name in front of potential clients, increasing the chances potential clients call … Continue reading “Why we don’t announce closings”

Good news about our new Highland Park apartment project… and bad news

In our business, you get surprised all the time in ways both great and terrible. Take this new project we’re doing in Highland Park… It turns out there’s a two inch layer of concrete under the floor, meaning we can experiment with doing polished concrete for less than it would cost us to do hardwood. … Continue reading “Good news about our new Highland Park apartment project… and bad news”

Why NELA

Sometimes clients ask me why we’re so focused on Northeast LA (Silver Lake, Echo Park, Highland Park, etc.). After all, LA is a big place and there are plenty of other places to buy apartment buildings. So why the focus on the hipster areas? Hint: It ain’t because we love asymmetrical haircuts, beards and artisanal pickles. … Continue reading “Why NELA”

Do we compete with our brokerage clients?

In a word, “No”. Why? Because we’re not interested in buying the properties our brokerage clients want to buy. Our typical brokerage assignment is to help someone buy: 2-4 units $500k-1MM 20-25% down (so, looking to put out $100-250k in capital) 70-75% LTV mortgage Minimal renovation required Cashflowing (eg priced at 12x GRM or less) The … Continue reading “Do we compete with our brokerage clients?”