I spend a lot of my time kind of aimlessly drifting. It’s pretty weird that I do this; I think most business people are much more focused than I am on a day-to-day basis. What I do is read a whole bunch of stuff and talk to people. I’m not necessarily specifically looking for an … Continue reading “The gestation of an idea”
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A pretty amazing success story
Yesterday, I got a call from one of the first people for whom I ever brokered a deal. He is in the process of refinancing the mortgage on the small apartment building I helped him buy. He was calling to see if I had any tips for his upcoming appraisal. As I always do before an appraisal, I … Continue reading “A pretty amazing success story”
The problems with retail
I have spent years thinking about trying to apply our design sensibility to the retail asset class. After all, we’re very good at maximizing the value of small spaces. It ought to be possible to do this with stores, too. So, why haven’t we jumped in? Two reasons: 1. The macro-trend towards online shopping. My family buys … Continue reading “The problems with retail”
The kind of regulation that drives me crazy
Hat tip to Adrian over at Curbed for noticing a new, irritating piece of regulation from LA’s city council. Here’s the regulation, in a nut-shell: “The LA City Council … preliminarily pass[ed] an ordinance that will make it illegal to covertly demolish buildings more than 45 years old… The ordinance requires property owners to notify neighbors and their … Continue reading “The kind of regulation that drives me crazy”
Where are interest rates going?
I have no idea and anyone who says they know for certain is either: A liar; or Should be trading interest rate futures on Wall Street That said, having a view on interest rates is pretty important in our business. Why? Because the price of income producing real estate is highly dependent upon the cost … Continue reading “Where are interest rates going?”
Ballpark returns
Had an interesting conversation today with a guy looking at building condos / small lot. One of the questions he had was what kind of returns a developer can expect. I’m far from an expert on ground up, but I’ve run the numbers on a lot of projects. Right now, here’s where I think you … Continue reading “Ballpark returns”
Immigration and real estate
Fellow not-under-rock-dwellers know that Obama issued an executive order yesterday granting a kind of contingent, temporary reprieve from deportation for several categories of illegal immigrants. This blog is about real estate, not politics, so I don’t want to get into debating whether what he did was right or wrong. But it is worth thinking a … Continue reading “Immigration and real estate”
We missed…
Just missed on a deal I really wanted and I’m upset because I didn’t follow my own advice. When I’m brokering deals and people ask me what to bid, here is what I always tell them: It’s impossible to know what others will bid Instead, play with the numbers to figure out the highest price … Continue reading “We missed…”
Concentration vs. diversification
One of the interesting issues with managing other people’s money is having to decide how exactly to allocate that money among projects. At any given fund size, you need to decide whether you should do a small number of big deals or a large number of small deals. All the theory points toward diversifying. After … Continue reading “Concentration vs. diversification”
Apologies for the lack of posts
Didn’t write Friday or Monday because I’ve been slammed. We were finishing up diligence on the first deal for Adaptive Realty Fund 3, our latest investment vehicle. Late last night, we removed contingencies, with closing to come early next week. On top of that, my very capable assistant has been out sick, so I’m doing … Continue reading “Apologies for the lack of posts”