A Student of the Real Estate Game (ASotREG)

Hard Won Insights and a Single-Minded Focus on Multifamily Real Estate Investing

Oct 19, 2024 | Career, Multifamily

This week, I was sitting in a conference room in Fort Lauderdale, surrounded by prominent multifamily investors. We were having a closed-door, off-the-record conversation about all things multifamily.

I was in heaven.  

I got to ask questions and hear insights from experienced multifamily investors who have been through cycles, grown platforms, and experienced failure.

I feel fortunate that I found my career passion – building a platform for investing in housing.

It consumes most of my headspace and is intertwined in many aspects of my life; I write here, I tweet constantly, and I spend my day-to-day doing at Atlas pursuing and executing deals.

Working in a field that combines my passion, interests, and skills is a competitive advantage.

Charlie Munger’s favorite investor, Li Lu said, “Do what you love to do, so you just naturally do it or think about it all the time, even if you’re relaxing. Over time, you can accumulate a huge advantage if it comes naturally to you. The game is a process of discovering: who you are, what you’re interested in, what you’re good at, what you love to do, then magnifying that until you gain a sizable edge over all the other people.”

That’s my goal.

I spend countless hours touring properties and markets, speaking with onsite team members, underwriting deals, reading reports, listening to podcasts, and speaking with market players, all with the goal of connecting the dots and gaining a few unique insights that will enable me to take big swings on high-conviction bets.

There are no shortcuts to hard-won insights.

In today’s hyper-connected world, “distractions are the assassins of great work. You don’t need more time; you need more focus.”  

I’m not sure who to attribute that quote to, but the sentiment is echoed by successful entrepreneurs.

Bill Gates once had the radio removed from his car. When asked why, he said he didn’t want any distractions from thinking about Microsoft. This level of single-minded focus is what builds empires.

I’ve been investing in and operating apartments for ~15 years, and there are many hard-earned insights I’ve gained over the years:

  • Buy quality assets. You don’t get paid for complexity.
  • Know the end renter inside & out. If you’re designing for everyone, you’re designing for no one.
  • Match capital stack with the business plan. Becoming a forced seller is how you get burned.
  • Older vintage assets are poorly suited for long-term holds.
  • Know your buyer and utilize inversion to understand what could go wrong in the execution of the business plan.
  • Your LPs are your customers. Take the responsibility of managing external capital extremely seriously because you’re going to need them at times when it’s most difficult to raise capital.
  • You can’t fix a bad buy through operations, but you can enhance a good buy through great execution and hands-on operations.

This blog has been the messy behind-the-scenes process of earning these insights.

In a world overwhelmed with distractions, where AI trash is flooding the internet, where multitasking is the norm and people seek to get more done quickly, I’m doing the opposite. I’m slowing down my mind.

There is a saying from the Navy Seals – “slow is smooth and smooth is fast.”

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I've written over 250 articles. Use the search below for any topic having to do with Real Estate and investing.

Try these: passive investing, asset management, real estate

I've written over 250 articles. Use the search below for any topic having to do with Real Estate and investing.

Try these: passive investing, asset management, real estate