The Real Estate Espresso Podcast

On today's show we are continuing our series on Amazon and the implications of the company's seemingly unstoppable growth. Yesterday we looked at Long Island city, an area of the Queens borough of NYC. Today, we talking about how Amazon also announced that Northern Virginia would be the site of their technology hub expansion. Specifically, Crystal City, a small compact development sandwiched between Reagan National Airport and Highway US 1 is the chosen site. This area has seen major tenants including the department of defence leave the area in the past decade. But employees will not live in Crystal City. The surrounding areas of Arlington, Reston, will be the beneficiaries of this new growth.

On today’s episode we are examining the larger implications of Amazons Second headquarters or HQ2 to the company's expansion plans. Last week Amazon announced that they plan to split their planned Technology hub expansion between two cities instead of one. Key to Amazon growth is access to talent. The 50,000 jobs that Amazon points to create over the next several years are technology jobs. They’re looking to hire software developers, mobile content developers. This isn’t just about hiring. Let’s think ahead. If Amazon is doubling their core technology workforce which makes up the backbone of the company, they are forecasting at least a doubling of the size of the company as well. Imagine a world where Amazon has twice the market footprint compared with today. This week New York City, and Washington DC are celebrating the coming influx of 50,000 high paying technology jobs. Where there is a big winner in this game, there are numerous small losers spread all over the country.

A team of New York City law-enforcement officers swarmed a Manhattan condominium last month, issuing 27 notices of violations for illegal hotel use in one of the largest single crackdowns on short-term rentals. The raid was at the Atelier, a 46-story Midtown luxury tower located on 42nd street near Times Square. This may be a sign of what’s to come. New York and other cities are seeking to limit short-term rentals that can run afoul of local laws designed to limit hotel-style stays in residential buildings. The latest twist in the war on short term rentals is a new bill, which becomes effective in February requiring online rental services, like Airbnb, to disclose the addresses of its listings and the identities of its hosts to the city’s Office of Special Enforcement on a monthly basis. Failure to do so is subject to a $25,000 fine per listing not disclosed. How can you influence your local politicians to implement sensible controls? Listen for some ideas.

Today is another AMA episode "Ask Me Anything". Adam from Riverside asks “You mentioned on previous shows that you are vegan. You seem passionate about it. Would you help us understand your rationale?” That's a great question Adam. In truth, it wasn't a single decision. It was a series of small decisions made over several years. The net result of which I feel better. I have more energy. But there's a resource component to this question that is pretty compelling. Check it out.

Darren Doyle is the General Manager at Agronosotros, the parent company of International Coffee Farms. They specialize in agricultural real estate development where they own a total of 16 farms between Panama and Belize. In this wide ranging conversation, Darren educated me on both coffee and chocolate production. This was a fun and fascinating interview. Enjoy. If you want to learn more, check them out at https://agronosotros.com

Keith Weinhold is the host of the Get Rich Education Podcast and is a contributor to the Forbes Council on Real Estate. His new book is "7 Money Myths That Are Killing Your Wealth Potential". On today's show, we discuss two of the seven myths. Check it out.

On today’s show we’re going to look at the Cannabis industry. Before we jump in, many of my friends outside Canada have asked me if I’ve gone out and bought some weed yet. Sorry to disappoint you. The answer is no. It’s just something I’m not that interested in. In spite of that, the investment community is very interested in cannabis and On today’s show we’re going to look at the industry from a real estate and investment perspective. Whether you are pro or against the cannabis industry, you may feel the economic impact regardless. There is going to be demand for agricultural land and for industrial space as a result of the cannabis industry. If you have any exposure to either of those segments, you will feel the impact.

Today is another "Ask Me Anything" episode. Karla asks "Many syndicators require investors to be “accredited “ . Can you share a few ways to become accredited using real estate investments? I.e . Buying SFH, etc." That's a great question, and has a legal component to it. I'm not an attorney and can't give legal advice. So please consult an attorney who specializes in securities law. But I can offer a perspective that hopefully is helpful. Have a listen.

Last month RealPage paid a $3.3M settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over allegedly failing to take adequate care during criminal background checks for potential tenants. Earlier this year, Ascenda paid $1.1M in a class action lawsuit for failing to get proper consent during employment background checks. Property owners and property managers in Illinois have received judgements against them in the thousands for failing to pay interest on security deposits usually amounting to under $10.00. All of these systems are being managed by the experts that you have hired, often blindly assuming they're doing things properly. What should you do?

On today's show we're showcasing a different way of developing through private public partnerships. Some transportation authorities have control over land without requiring the usual public consultation and zoning process for entitlements. If you have a dream of building a waterfront marquis property, you'd be amazed at what might be possible.