The Real Estate Espresso Podcast

On today’s show we’re talking about how to hire. I can tell you that I’ve hired hundreds of employees over the years. We have recently brought several new members into our team and have focused on hiring for character. You can’t train character. People either have the kind of characteristics and attributes that will mesh with the organization or they don’t. You can’t train people to be committed. They either have that or they don’t. I’ve found that whenever there was a bad hire, it’s because we focused too much on skills and not enough on attributes. I’ve heard from so many that hiring is difficult this year. I see the help wanted signs everywhere. I have no doubt that for tasks with low personal development and low impact, hiring will be difficult. There continue to be a lot of people out of the work force. Many of these people are those who have chosen to stay home for family reasons. If you want to be hiring in 2021, consider that you need to offer more than just an hourly rate. You may want to consider engaging the heart, mind, and personal growth of your new team members. ----------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

On today’s show we’re talking about the anxious buyer. The anxious buyer is desperate to get a deal done. They are usually lacking local relationships in the market and are trying to buy using the public MLS. They’re hoping to get a deal, but are finding the environment too competitive. The anxious buyer behaves like the last waffle is about to disappear from the breakfast buffet. But the truth is, there is probably another pan of waffles in the kitchen and a fresh batch will appear in a few minutes. The truth is, the marketplace is truly an all you can eat buffet of opportunity. -------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

On today’s show we’re talking about mineral rights. When we buy property, the mineral rights are usually part of the property itself. However, this is not a given. Often the mineral rights are separated from the property and can be subdivided in any number of ways. For example, you might separate the oil and gas rights and sell those separately from the property to one entity. You could sell the water rights separately. You could sell the coal rights, and the gypsum rights. You might sell the remaining mineral rights to another party. There is no specific rule that says you have to do it any one way. We are involved in the due diligence on a property where the title report consists of 259 pages. Buried deep in those pages are references to dozens of documents contained in the county records that grant certain rights to the holder. ---------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

On today’s show we are talking about the short term energy crisis that has gripped much of Europe and parts of Asia. You might be wondering what energy has to do with real estate. But the economy is inextricably linked to energy, and real estate is inextricably linked to the economy. We have to remember that we are in the shoulder season between the extremes of summer heat and winter cold. This is the time of year where air conditioners are largely turned off, and heating systems have yet to be switched on for winter. So why are we in such an energy pinch? It turns out that energy producers scaled back production during the pandemic. We had such a glut of fuel in 2020 that for a short time, oil prices even went negative as oil futures contracts expired and the owner of the contract had no place to store the oil they just purchased. Global oil storage was at capacity. People were buying or renting rail cars and oil tankers just to have a place to temporarily store their new purchase in the face of collapsing demand and prices. Fast forward a year and global supply chains are out of balance. This includes the energy supply chain. On top of that, unusual weather patterns in Europe reduced the production of renewable energy. Rainy weather in parts of Europe reduced the output of solar systems at the same time that the usually windy North Sea was calm. The massive wind turbines that dot the waters in the North Sea sat idle, shifting demand to the conventional fossil fuel methods of power generation. The problem with wind and solar power is that it helps reduce your average production of energy from fossil fuels, but you still need to supply peak energy the old fashioned way.

Dan Haberkost specializes in development land. Based in Colorado Springs, he finds distressed development projects and resurrects them. This weekend we're talking all about land. Often finding deals means looking off the radar and allow the crowd to keep doing what they're doing. ----------------

Our guest today is Peter Badger with Farm Folio. Peter describes a unique offering in the market that seems aimed at reducing the risk associated with investing in agricultural real estate. They have vertically integrated the entire supply chain and eliminated the middle-man. Today's show is a unique perspective on agricultural land.  To connect with Peter, you can email him directly at peter AT farmfolio.net or visit farmfolio.net.

On today’s show we’re talking about the transition from rural to suburban. We have several projects underway that are making that transition from agricultural land into urban subdivisions. When we think of suburban streets, we often think of tree lined streets with curbs and sidewalks. What we don’t see all the utilities that are buried beneath the ground, each with their own infrastructure. The planning process requires careful attention to each of these. Because they’re hidden, they’re largely taken for granted by the public. But as a developer, each of these require careful planning. The cost of most of this infrastructure is born by the developer and usually dedicated to the city or the utility. In a rural setting, most houses are nearly off-grid. The only true requirement is for electricity. Water usually comes from a well on the property. Wastewater is treated locally using a septic system. Stormwater management relies on surface drainage and gravity. Internet relies on wireless or satellite solutions. Heating is either provided by electricity or by large cylinders of propane gas that get refilled a couple of times a year. On today’s show we’re going to construction a budget for the cost of servicing a typical suburban lot and compare that with the cost of a typical rural lot with well and septic instead of municipal services. So here are the 11 services that are required in almost every setting. 1) Electricity 2) Water 3) Sanitary Sewer 4) Storm water sewer 5) Optical Fiber which has largely replaced telephone 6) Cable TV 7) Natural Gas 8) Street lighting 9) Fire hydrants 10) The road 11) Sidewalks ------------------ Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com

On today’s show we’re talking about how to qualify a waterfront property as having potential for development. This show was the result of several inquiries from a friend who is looking to build a waterfront permanent residence on a desirable body of water near a major city. Waterfront properties have a reputation for being expensive. These properties are in short supply compared with inland properties and they typically sell at a premium to the market. It’s easy to understand why, if you love the water. Many of the existing waterfront homes were built at a time when less regulation existed. Today, protection of inland and oceanfront waterways has quite properly brought additional regulation in order to protect the local ecology and wildlife. Gone are the days when you could bring in a few truckloads of sand and voila you have an instant private beach. Those types of shoreline modifications were common 50 years ago, but are prohibited today in most areas. There are nine considerations that are specific to waterfront properties that inland properties generally don't have to deal with. On today's show we review all nine of these specific items.

Today is another AMA episode (Ask Me Anything). Our question comes from Magin who writes. I have 3 young adult sons (18, 19 1/2 and 21). I'm proud to say They are interested in investing and are all participating in the upcoming Real Estate Investor Summit in June 2022.  I have no doubt that all three of my boys are going to be "rock stars" when it comes to investing!  That being said I was wondering as well connected as you are, if you  could recommend some "low entry" investment opportunities for young adults?  Of course they would all need to do their own due diligence. Thank you so much for your podcast! Magin, this is a great question. We’re going to brainstorm a few ideas on today’s show on how that might be possible. What I’m about to describe probably doesn’t exist. If it does, I haven’t heard about it. But we are literally having a live brainstorming discussion on the air and maybe you will discover some fatal flaws in these ideas. Ot maybe it will stimulate additional ideas that you could implement yourself.

Today’s question comes from Paul in our own development team. Paul asks, When is the right time to hire more people, either inhouse or as consultants to manage projects in order to save time and gain leverage within the business? Working directly on projects has given me such a huge education The value to me in personal growth in doing those projects directly has been huge. I can’t help but wonder that if we had hired a local consultant, would we have experienced the same bureaucratic delays and maybe had fewer iterations of the design? Paul, This is a great question. This is the classic insource versus outsource question that companies the world over deal with on a regular basis. In my view, if the goal is to grow the capability within the organization, you can’t accomplish that with rented talent. ------------------- Host: Victor Menasce email: podcast@victorjm.com