Had breakfast with a really experienced broker this morning, a guy who I think of as kind of a mentor. He started in real estate in the early 1980s and has bought and sold an unbelievable number of properties in the Echo Park area since then. I complained to him that the market feels pretty weird … Continue reading “In the midst of a market disjunction”
Category: Buying
Whole lotta building going on…
In our areas (Silver Lake / Echo Park / etc.), there are tons of small lot subdivision projects in the works. Off the top of my head, I can think of at least four projects going in right now, and there are definitely more that I’m forgetting. So, the question for all of us apartment people, is: … Continue reading “Whole lotta building going on…”
How increasing interest rates are changing the market
Had an amazing thing happen a few days ago: One of my agents was representing a buyer in a deal. When the buyer saw how much interest rates had moved in the last week or so, he changed his mind about the deal. In an effort to try to keep the deal together, my agent … Continue reading “How increasing interest rates are changing the market”
The last 4 weeks
We brokered and / or acquired just under $7.8MM worth of Los Angeles apartment deals in the last four weeks, and there’s a lot more to come. We’ve done small deals (duplexes in Silver Lake and Echo Park), big deals (a 16 unit building in Highland Park), and tons of stuff in-between. We’ve still closing … Continue reading “The last 4 weeks”
Dealing with buyer conflicts
One of the issues I deal with periodically is “buyer conflict”. By buyer conflict, I mean the situation where multiple buyers with whom we are working decide to offer on the same piece of property. As you might imagine, this presents a problem: We always want to help our clients get what they want, and … Continue reading “Dealing with buyer conflicts”
Navigating the broker/principal divide
One of the weird things about our business is that I am both a broker and a principal investor. That means I look at deals for other people and for myself. Who cares? Other brokers. Brokers make money as middlemen. Their goal is to know who’s selling and who’s buying and match the two together. Simple, … Continue reading “Navigating the broker/principal divide”
How to buy an apartment building
Here is how to begin the process of buying your first apartment building: 1. Determine whether you are the kind of person who should own an apartment building. Some people just aren’t cut out to own apartment buildings. Before plunging in, read this to find out whether you’re one of these people. Believe me… better … Continue reading “How to buy an apartment building”
On being a real estate mensch
Since I’ve decided to make my career in one little corner of Los Angeles, I spend a lot of time thinking about how best to preserve and enhance my reputation among the brokers, owners, and tenants who participate in my market. The most important thing I do to get and keep a good reputation is … Continue reading “On being a real estate mensch”
Whither interest rates?
Literally every day, I ponder the following questions: When will the Fed stop buying bonds and allow interest rates to rise?, and When rates rise, how much will they rise by? If you believe that the Fed is going to keep stimulating the economy for several years and/or that, when it stops, rates won’t rise … Continue reading “Whither interest rates?”
Don’t buy apartment buildings if…
1. You don’t like confrontation. Inevitably, you are going to have tenants who screw things up and need to leave your building. No one is going to care about it as much as you do, so you’re the one with whom the buck is going to stop. If you can’t stick up for yourself / … Continue reading “Don’t buy apartment buildings if…”