The Signet Podcast – Mor Zucker Transcript

In this episode, Eduardo Signet speaks with Denver commercial real estate broker, landlord, and investor Stuart Zall, founder of The Zall Company.

The conversation explores how relationships, tenant selection, networking, mentorship, long-term ownership, and neighborhood-building shape success in commercial real estate. Stuart shares lessons from his career in retail leasing, property ownership, Denver development, international projects, and the practical realities of working with landlords, tenants, brokers, contractors, and emerging brands.

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Podcast transcript

SIGNET: Stuart, thank you for coming. I have so much to ask you. I want to introduce you as the broker and landlord in the Denver market, although you do brokerage and properties everywhere, including a deal in China. You have quite a lot of experience. Do you want to say a little bit about yourself or introduce yourself?

STUART ZALL:

I am Stuart Zall, founder of The Zall Company, which I founded in 2000.
I did not grow up expecting to go into real estate, and I did not come from a multigenerational real estate family.
I studied accounting at the University of Denver, got my CPA, and started at Arthur Andersen, but I lasted only about a year.
I moved into real estate almost by accident after helping Steve Gettleman with accounting on a strip center, then being asked to help lease it by calling people from the phone book.
I learned by u201cdialing for dollars,u201d got results, and eventually moved through Lakeside Mall, Taubman, and outlet-mall projects around the country.
Taubman taught me the art of leasing, merchandising, and building tenant relationships across multiple markets.
In 2000, when my firm was bought, I chose to start my own business instead of moving, and the business grew from hired-gun leasing work into a brokerage company.
Along the way, I started buying properties when opportunities came up, often through partnerships, because I believe successful brokers should have some investment exposure to commercial real estate.
I eventually bought the Larimer building where we are now, partly because I needed space for my own company and could lease the rest to another tenant.
Having a storefront and a sign on the street has changed the business because people now drive by, see the company, and call.

SIGNET: It is so interesting. I love this area. I have been here a few times and have been to the restaurants. I did not realize everything was right on this block, like Barcelona, Federales, and other places. It is a cool part of town. How did you know this was going to become that?

STUART ZALL:

Sometimes you get lucky.
A friend from New York, Stephanie Rubenstein, was representing a concept connected to the founder of Lululemon, and they wanted a gritty part of town for a millennial worker-focused concept.
At that time, Larimer Street was very rough; Denver Central Market was not open, and there was very little there besides Ratio Brewery.
My friend saw something in the area that reminded her of Brooklyn, and I trusted her perspective even though I did not fully see it myself at first.
I made it a quest to find a building in that area, and we got what I believe is one of the best blocks on Larimer Street in RiNo.
When I bought the building, I was nervous enough that I did not tell my wife exactly where it was at first.
The area still has city challenges, but the building has worked out extremely well.
My advice is not to overanalyze real estate; sometimes you have to find it, take the risk, and let time work for you.
Real estate is scary because you are putting a lot at risk, but time can become your best friend if you take the chance.

SIGNET: You hit on so many points I want to talk about. Mentorship is one. First, can you talk about your mentors and the values you learned in your training with Taubman? You have also been a mentor for me in Denver, and I have met many people you have mentored who became incredibly successful. What qualities do you look for in people that lead them to success?

STUART ZALL:

I think it starts with heart.
If you have passion for what you do, then it does not feel like work.
You need drive, passion, and the ability to dream.
I think younger people are missing face-to-face communication because so much is done through texting, Instagram, and efficient digital communication.
When I started, even sending someone a picture of a space took days, and that slower process created dialogue and relationship-building.
Today, information can be sent instantly, but the relationship process can be lost.
Networking begins with meeting people and building relationships.
I try to create platforms, such as breakfasts, where people can meet others who may help advance their careers.
If you want to make deals, you need to put yourself where decision-makers are, such as shopping-center conventions and industry events.
You should not only spend time with people you already know; you should try to meet as many people as possible and then follow through.
Many deals begin with a cup of coffee, a handshake, or simply bumping into someone.

SIGNET: I love the idea of networking outside your own category. Developers often network with developers, and brokers often network with brokers. I have looked at finance events and capital groups because you get exposure to different people and make different links. One thing I have heard you say is that you never know where a deal is going to come from, and it is about being there. Is that one of the ideas?

STUART ZALL:

I learned something from doing business in China: if you are in a room where everyone speaks English, you are less valuable, but if you are the one person who speaks a language no one else speaks, you become extremely valuable.
I apply that metaphor to real estate networking.
If I am in a room full of brokers, everyone already understands leasing, so I am less differentiated.
If I am in a room where no one understands what I do, then I may be able to provide something valuable.
I like working with contractors, architects, finance people, and others connected to real estate but not doing the exact same thing.
I see networking as collaboration, where different people can benefit from different parts of the same opportunity.
I try to pay it forward by connecting general contractors or other professionals with people who may help them, without keeping a strict scorecard.
Those relationships often come back in useful ways, even if not immediately.
Mentoring people is not just telling them what to do; it is encouraging them to go out, network, socialize, talk to people, and learn from events.
As an example, I paid to meet Danny Meyer at an event, got a signed book, introduced myself, and created a connection that later became useful.
You cannot build those kinds of connections if you only sit in the audience; sometimes you need to go to the front and introduce yourself.

SIGNET: You talked about win-win situations. One thing you have said before, and I have seen you do, is that you want your tenants, your clients, and the people you represent to win. You have said that after the lease is signed and the commission is done, that is when you start to work by helping promote them, because if they expand, they are going to call you. What do you do after the lease is signed, since they still have so much to do?

STUART ZALL:

You can go too far and become your clientu2019s outsourced administrative staff, so you should not go looking for trouble.
It is still important to check in and help when there are problems.
I try to guide clients toward good people, such as reliable liquor-license attorneys, contractors, or other professionals.
I prefer to give clients two or three strong referrals rather than just one, so they can do their own homework and choose.
My role is to point them toward people who are tried and true, not to make every decision for them.
Most of the help is needed between signing the lease and opening the store.
After opening, I cannot solve every operational problem, such as labor or marketing, but I can pick up the phone and be available.
Signing a lease can be a multimillion-dollar commitment, so I want the tenant to succeed.
I once helped a restaurant franchisee renegotiate terms and work through problems even though I technically represented the landlord.
A lot of salespeople disappear after they get paid, but we want continuity, repeat business, and clients who know we tried to help.
At the core, I see our work as solving problems.

SIGNET: I love the way your brain thinks. You are very creative. Taking a wider-angle point of view, why commercial versus residential? I love commercial, but I am curious why you chose that path.

STUART ZALL:

Triple-net leases are a major reason.
I had experience with residential early on, including buying condos during a period when banks wanted properties off their books.
At one point, I had about 50 condos with a partner.
Residential was more management-intensive, especially before todayu2019s technology made banking and administration easier.
I do not have the patience for residential.
Commercial is more interesting to me because I am fascinated by businesses, retail, and how those businesses operate.
I moved most of my residential holdings into commercial projects over time.
In commercial, if a store does not work out for an operator with many stores, it is usually not as emotionally catastrophic as something going wrong with someoneu2019s home.
Residential deals involve peopleu2019s shelter and can be more personal and stressful.

SIGNET: In commercial real estate, what trends are you looking out for? We have tariffs, the internet has been affecting retail for a while, and there are other forces in the market.

STUART ZALL:

People have probably been worrying about the future of retail and commerce since ancient times.
Humans will always need commerce in one form or another.
There will be AI, headwinds, and other changes, and the key is to keep pivoting.
If you sit back and do nothing, you are going to be dead.
COVID was a major test for restaurants, and the smart operators quickly moved into patio seating, takeout, and alcohol-to-go where allowed.
Apparel is changing because so much can be bought online, but people still shop when traveling or looking for experiences.
Food still has to be made somewhere, even if DoorDash or another service delivers it.
I think ghost kitchens have mostly been a bust because people still need to see, experience, and trust a restaurant.
Food, entertainment, and apparel will remain, but models may change, stores may get smaller, and department stores need to reinvent themselves.

SIGNET: I am loving these public markets you see everywhere. I drove up and down the coast, and places like San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara have public markets. Here there is The Hangar and Edgewater. I love those developments because they have synergy together if they are done well. Colorado Mills may have been an example of that 15 or 20 years ago.

STUART ZALL:

Denver is often a poster child for jumping on trends harder than other cities.
We probably overdid the public market and food hall concept.
Some public markets and food halls are winners, but others do not work.
It is not enough to build a food hall and assume people will show up.
You still have to put real thought into the concept, location, tenant mix, and execution.
Denver Central Market and Edgewater are strong examples.
Some others have gone out of business, which shows the model is not automatically successful.
If the concept is done right, it can work very well.

SIGNET: Your company has come such a long way. I think it is incredible that you started as an accountant, which uses a certain type of brain, and then went into such a relationship-heavy business. What qualities did you bring from accounting into your current work?

STUART ZALL:

I can understand financial statements, accounts receivable, and the basic mechanics of a business.
That is valuable because many brokers do not really understand the business side.
I understand operating properties and mortgages.
At the same time, I outsource almost everything that is not one of my strengths.
I use an outsourced bookkeeper and outsourced graphic arts help.
I know I need to work within my strengths.
Running numbers and detailed accounting work are not where I perform best now, even though the background helps.

SIGNET: I have a personal question that I think applies well to the podcast. Hiring people and managing people is really a talent. There is a reason CEOs sometimes manage managers, and managers manage individuals. How do you develop the skills needed to manage people? If you do not do that right, your business suffers and you reach dead ends.

STUART ZALL:

Managing people is a real challenge.
I believe there may be some force or timing that helps you find what you need when you need it.
About a year ago, I hit a wall because sales were down and I was struggling to motivate the team.
Our leasing meetings were not productive, and people, including me, were distracted.
I realized I needed a coach.
I met Steve Benoit from Crafted Consultants through my son and later sat down with him for coffee.
Steve explained a structured process for working with people, and I decided to try it even though it was not cheap.
He has become a meaningful part of the team.
We now have mandatory Monday meetings, with no cell phones, where each agent reviews what they said they would do and whether they got it done.
We also have one-on-one status updates and KPIs.
One KPI is getting one positive Google review per month from each person, which helps the company cast a wider net.
We now track deals by quarter instead of just doing deals without tracking them.
The coaching and structure have been important to our growth.

SIGNET: I asked that because I am managing a construction project in Pebble Beach right now, and you manage subs and contractors. Many people I have interviewed say their success is due to the people they hire. A lot of it is finding the right people with drive, quality, and pride in workmanship. It is hard to find those people because everyone wants to present themselves that way, but not everyone is that person.

STUART ZALL:

A lot of hiring is trial and error.
We now have an onboarding sheet and an interview sheet that lists what we are looking for.
You can also overanalyze hiring.
Right now, we are at capacity and do not have room for more people unless we build up or expand.
I am willing to take a chance on a lot of people.
Many people in the industry probably got their start with me.
In the past, I may not have had the tools to mentor and coach people properly, so I probably lost some talented people.
If you love what you do, it is not work.
I work in some form seven days a week because I am always available and always thinking about how brokers can be more productive.
I do not only think about their productivity in terms of my own income; I want them to succeed.
People are giving me their time and part of their lives, especially when they are young.
Even if someone only stays with me for a year, two years, or three years, I want them to leave with skills that help them succeed elsewhere.
At Arthur Andersen, many good accountants eventually went to work for clients, and the firm saw that as creating a friend at that company.
I see former employees similarly: if they leave and succeed, the relationship may help both of us later.
I do not expect anyone to give me their entire life, but I want their time with us to be productive.

SIGNET: You said you are at capacity. Where do you want to go from here? What is really good now, and what do you want your legacy to be? That is a two-for-one question, but they are different intentions.

STUART ZALL:

I am having a lot of fun and enjoying what is happening.
We are working on projects with the Orlando Magic, which has been very cool.
I have partners outside my company, including Dan Nelson and Neil Berkowitz, who help expand our bandwidth.
I like the arena and sports district space and see it as an area for future growth.
Many arenas are moving back into central business districts, which creates opportunities around live music, sports, restaurants, retail, and event traffic.
Time is precious for people, so projects that combine sports, entertainment, food, and retail can create strong commercial environments.
We do a lot of leasing downtown, in RiNo, and in Cherry Creek, and I want us to continue being a leader in those markets.
Downtown Denver still has a lot of opportunity, despite lingering perceptions from COVID, crime, and 16th Street Mall disruption.
When you lease space and bring in a store or restaurant, you can change a neighborhood for better or worse.
A lease such as Mendocino Farms in Cherry Creek changes the everyday experience of a neighborhood by adding a useful commerce point.
My legacy is not about ego; it is about improving the city or the commercial playground I work in.
Early in my career, I was focused on getting paid, but over time I came to care more about the type of tenant and whether they improve the neighborhood.
A street full of banks may pay rent, but it does not create the same neighborhood energy as coffee shops, restaurants, and places to shop.
The goal is to help create neighborhoods where people feel commerce, culture, and activity.

SIGNET: The tenants really give a neighborhood its feel u2014 the restaurants, bars, and different spots.

STUART ZALL:

The right tenant mix creates a good environment.
When neighborhoods improve through thoughtful retail and restaurant leasing, everyone benefits.

SIGNET: I was listening to another interview you did, and you said 2010 was a hard year after the Great Recession. How did you survive that, and what advice would you give to other people in future recessions?

STUART ZALL:

Praying is real.
If you have your health, you should not let your stock account or money account consume you.
Do not listen to all the background noise.
I do not watch much news because it can become distracting and negative.
In our business, the recession showed up late because commissions often take six months to a year to come in.
2009 was still fine, but in 2010 nothing was coming in.
I tried to get exposure by writing articles and appearing in trade magazines.
A partner and I wrote an article about repositioning malls, and someone from China called asking whether we could do that work there.
Our default answer was yes, even when we had to figure out how to execute afterward.
We needed demographic and psychographic data in China, which was difficult to get, but a colleague connected us with someone who did data work in Asia and had gone to the University of Denver.
We partnered with him, created a merchandising plan, and the client then asked whether we could lease the project.
The project was in Xiu2019an, which was connected to the Terracotta Warriors and the Silk Road.
I used my U.S. relationships with brands to find the right international contacts and started leasing the project.
I worked between China and Denver, using a Wi-Fi phone line with a Denver number so clients did not know I was overseas.
The project was ultimately scrapped because housing became more lucrative for the developer, but we had been paid in advance.
By the time that project ended, the U.S. economy had improved.
That experience helped us survive and led to work in places such as Puerto Rico and Hawaii.

SIGNET: I do residential in Europe, but it is interesting because that is another market. Even here, RiNo and Cherry Creek feel like different markets because the tenants are different. You deal with a lot of high-end, popular, and trendy tenants.

STUART ZALL:

I would not call most of our work true luxury, like Gucci or Hermu00e8s, because Denver is not a very luxury-heavy market.
We work more with upper-moderate and emerging brands.
That includes brands like Lululemon, North Face, Birkenstock, and other better brands.
I also love working with immigrants because many of them are fearless.
Some people create businesses because they may not have the same access to conventional jobs, and they are willing to take chances.
Those chances sometimes turn into great businesses.
I have worked with clients from one store to very large store counts, and it is rewarding to watch a brand grow.
It is interesting and fun to see a person or brand evolve from one location into something much larger.

SIGNET: That is part of their story. I think you did that with H&M, where you had the first one in Colorado.

STUART ZALL:

We did the first H&M in Colorado.
H&M has withstood the stress of downtown.
We also brought Uniqlo to downtown Denver, although it unfortunately closed during COVID.
Forever 21 was another example.
No brand lasts forever, but if you can get 15 years or more out of a brand, that can still be meaningful.

SIGNET: Thinking about the 16th Street Mall, coming from Los Angeles, what is the secret? In LA, it is very hard to turn around cities, maybe because of bureaucracy or something else. Here, you have the Downtown Denver Partnership and developers working with political bodies. What is the secret to turning around a place like that?

STUART ZALL:

Comparing Los Angeles and Denver is difficult because Los Angeles County is massive and harder to move.
Denver is smaller and more nimble.
Denver has a lot of downtown history.
Union Station was critical to Denveru2019s growth and connects directly to the 16th Street Mall.
The redevelopment of Union Station was a beautiful project.
Historically, the railroad helped Denver grow because the rail route came through Denver instead of elsewhere.
Larimer Street and downtown Denver developed around rail traffic, travelers, and the commerce they needed.
Denver has historic assets, including Larimer Square and older buildings, that give it a character beyond steel, brick, and glass.
The city has serious struggles, including high minimum wages and permitting timelines, but there are good people who believe in downtown.
With the 16th Street Mall work completed or nearing completion, I expect to see more positive activity in the next couple of years.

SIGNET: It is a great area. I lived near Union Station and would jog through 16th Street. That area has completely changed, with Whole Foods, the train, and a safer environment.

STUART ZALL:

During COVID, Denver dropped its guard and got hit on multiple levels.
The trend is now improving.
Some older office buildings may be converted to residential if conversion is feasible.
There is still a need for housing, even if apartment rents are currently soft.
I expect the need for apartments to continue as the city grows.

SIGNET: Prices have come up a lot since then too.

STUART ZALL:

Prices have come up, and interest rates are another obstacle.
Every generation has something that gets in the way.
I often hear people say something is too expensive and that they will wait for prices to come down.
In the long run, saving a relatively small amount on price may matter less when amortized over decades.

SIGNET: I once heard that it is not timing the market, it is time in the market. It is the same principle.

STUART ZALL:

Jordan Perlmutter once told me that some real estate projects succeed because of timing.
Even if you do not time it perfectly, real estate is a long game.
It is like golf: people focus on individual shots, but real estate has waves.
There are periods when you can make a lot of money quickly, but overall you need a long-term view.
If you take the long view, you have a better chance of being successful.

SIGNET: It seems like that is also what you do with your investments. Originally, the name of this podcast was u201cThe Long-Term Real Estate Investor,u201d because thinking long term removes some of the pressure around things like IRR calculations. If you have a 100-year business plan, it changes the mentality. I feel that in your investing and leasing, it is always long term, and there are also a lot of transaction costs in trying to flip.

STUART ZALL:

In commercial real estate, long-term thinking is important.
Because I did not come from a real estate family, I had to start by planting seeds myself.
It would have been nice to walk into an existing forest, but I had to begin building it over time.

SIGNET: It is tricky too, because when you are starting out, how are you going to buy something without financing? A lot of times the long-term plan is to get rid of financing so you have more stability and the bumps in the road are not as dramatic. Let me ask you the wrap-up questions. What was the number-one deal that changed your career, taught you the most, or had the most impact on you?

STUART ZALL:

The most important turning point was not really a deal; it was going to work for the Taubman Company.
That job was transformational because it taught me how to lease not just to fill space, but to create neighborhoods.
When I was about 27, I met a friend at a restaurant called Fresh Choice, saw a huge line, and asked about the owner.
I had just taken a job involving two malls, and within about 30 days I made two deals with that restaurant operator.
That happened because I asked a question when the opportunity was right in front of me.
Sometimes you are on the one-yard line and only need to ask the question.
Over my career, I did several deals with that operator, so that became an important relationship and an important early lesson.

SIGNET: What are your three key daily habits that have made you successful? I am always curious what time people wake up, whether they meditate, read a certain newspaper, or spend family time.

STUART ZALL:

I do not read a newspaper.
I get up early, usually around five.
My most productive time is between about five and eight in the morning.
I try to filter out negative noise because there is always a lot of it.
I would tell people not to listen to all the noise that is designed to stop them.
I try to stay positive.
I meditate for about ten minutes almost every day.
I use paper and pencil to write things down, even with all the CRMs and technology available.
I try to be thankful.
I remind myself that there are many opportunities available and that people do not need to stay stuck.
I try to wake up with a smile and a mindset of taking on the world, even if some days are harder by the end.

SIGNET: Final question: what would you say to a young individual who wanted to start in the real estate business? They might not know whether they want to be a broker, investor, or what segment to focus on. How would they find their path?

STUART ZALL:

I would tell them not to be afraid.
If they need to live at their parentsu2019 house or drive Uber while getting started, they should do what they need to do.
They should absorb as much information as possible.
There is so much information available now that they do not even have to subscribe to everything to learn.
They should become an expert at something and become the go-to person in that area.
They should not try to do everything.
They should find one area and try to be the best at it.
They need passion for the business.
If they think of it only as a job, they are in the wrong business.
It is always a good time to get into real estate, and bad times can actually be the best times to start.

SIGNET: Stuart, thank you so much. We could do round two another time. Thank you for joining the podcast, and hopefully we will grab dinner soon.

STUART ZALL:

I hope so.

INTERVIEWER u2014 SPEAKER UNCERTAIN: Bonus question: what are your thoughts about the new Burnham Yard deal and what it is going to do for downtown?

STUART ZALL:

I do not know exactly how it will affect downtown, but I think it will be very positive for Burnham Yard.
Burnham Yard feels like one of the last major pieces of Denver that has not really been developed.
A key question is what happens to the area where the stadium is now if activity shifts.
I think the project will not hurt downtown because people will still come downtown, and the distance may not be dramatically different.
Large investments, such as a multibillion-dollar stadium, create a multiplier effect that benefits many people.
I do worry about displacement, especially for people who currently live nearby and may have cheaper rent.
Growth can be positive, but people still need places to live.
Denver has done some work around affordable housing, but development can still affect neighborhoods.
I think developers and stakeholders need to think carefully about who is affected.
Overall, I think the project is good, but I hope there is thoughtful attention to housing and displacement.

00:31 All right, cool.
00:33

00:33 >> All right. Hello, Moore.
00:34

00:34 >> Good morning.
00:35

00:35 >> Thanks for uh coming on the Signit
00:37

00:37 podcast. That means I can’t change the
00:39

00:39 name now. Um I’m really happy to have
00:42

00:42 you on. I’ve been wanting to do this for
00:43

00:43 a while and you’re one of the leading
00:45

00:45 brokers in Denver and I love everything
00:48

00:48 that you do to market yourself. Do you
00:50

00:50 want to introduce yourself? Maybe talk a
00:52

00:52 little bit about what your business is
00:53

00:53 and
00:54

00:54 >> of course. So I’m War Zuker and I’m the
00:56

00:56 team lead of team number homes and we’re
00:58

00:58 a team with Live Southern International
01:00

01:00 Realy and I have four agents on the team
01:04

01:04 and a TC and an assistant and um when I
01:08

01:08 sell real estate I focus on luxury
01:09

01:09 properties and investment properties and
01:12

01:12 uh we sell in all price points though.
01:14

01:14 >> Yeah. I I mean I’ve seen some of your
01:17

01:17 other podcasts and I love how you
01:20

01:20 how you see your clients. you really,
01:21

01:21 you know, you talk about remembering
01:23

01:23 their kids’ names, you know, even their
01:25

01:25 dogs names,
01:26

01:26 >> you know, just so much about that
01:27

01:27 building the personal connection. Um,
01:30

01:30 one thing that I really admire about you
01:31

01:31 is how you relate to people. Everybody
01:34

01:34 loves you. Like, I know a lot of people
01:36

01:36 make me
01:37

01:37 >> more more is like, you know, just so the
01:40

01:40 audience knows, she’s very she’s very
01:41

01:41 well known in Denver and uh and
01:44

01:44 everybody has just good vibes, you know,
01:45

01:45 and you’re always welcome everywhere. So
01:48

01:48 even, you know, in LA, I think you met a
01:50

01:50 bunch of people there and they still
01:51

01:51 talk about you.
01:52

01:52 >> So I think it’s uh
01:55

01:55 >> it’s great. Um so how did you get
01:58

01:58 started in brokerage and how do you see
02:01

02:01 how did you see yourself starting?
02:03

02:03 >> So um my ex-husband built software for
02:06

02:06 real estate and I uh wanted to help the
02:08

02:08 family business and uh test the software
02:11

02:11 tools on the field uh as being a
02:14

02:14 realtor. Uh before I was a realtor as a
02:16

02:16 professional poker player and uh I did
02:18

02:18 that for about a decade and I thought I
02:20

02:20 was just going to venture into real
02:21

02:21 estate just to test the tools on the
02:22

02:22 market, maybe do a deal or two, nothing
02:25

02:25 serious, just for fun and uh and I just
02:28

02:28 fell in love with the industry and I
02:29

02:29 fell in love with the job and uh and
02:32

02:32 from there I just went real estate full
02:34

02:34 swing.
02:36

02:36 >> Uh so one thing that I I believe you
02:40

02:40 started at Kentwood. It did. So I came
02:42

02:42 to it
02:43

02:43 >> and one of their requirements is 5
02:45

02:45 million the first year.
02:47

02:47 >> The first year.
02:48

02:48 >> How in the world? I mean just getting to
02:50

02:50 like you know 1 million is a challenge.
02:53

02:53 How did you get to 5 million?
02:55

02:55 >> So I leaned heavily into my community.
02:58

02:58 So I’m Israeli. I’m Jewish and I’m
02:60

02:60 already very heavily connected in my my
03:03

03:03 circles. And I just let everyone know
03:05

03:05 that I’m a realtor and uh and asked if
03:08

03:08 they could send me business. and I
03:09

03:09 formed such great relationships in the
03:11

03:11 community that that community held me up
03:13

03:13 for sure. The the first I would say 10
03:16

03:16 transactions were within the Jewish
03:18

03:18 community.
03:18

03:18 >> Okay. What would you say to someone
03:21

03:21 starting out? Like does that formula
03:24

03:24 work for everybody? Rely on your network
03:26

03:26 and
03:26

03:26 >> it’s relying on a niche network. It
03:28

03:28 doesn’t have to be a religious network.
03:30

03:30 It doesn’t it can be a shared hobby
03:32

03:32 network. It can be a group of people
03:34

03:34 that play cards together, ski together,
03:36

03:36 uh a group of people that have a shared
03:38

03:38 values and interests, political views,
03:40

03:40 anything that brings people together
03:42

03:42 with a common denominator where you and
03:45

03:45 I already feel like we have a lot in
03:47

03:47 common, therefore we’re friends, you’re
03:49

03:49 more likely to refer me business. If
03:51

03:51 one, we see each other often, and two,
03:54

03:54 we have a share of similarities.
03:56

03:56 >> How just curious because I looked at
03:59

03:59 some average statistics. How long have
04:01

04:01 you been an agent?
04:03

04:03 >> I’ve been in This is my 12th year.
04:04

04:04 >> 12th year. Okay. So, that I I read that
04:07

04:07 that was the average uh broker length in
04:10

04:10 in Denver. Um
04:11

04:11 >> Well, I’m just getting started.
04:13

04:13 >> For you? Yeah. I mean, I love seeing
04:15

04:15 your team. How do you pick people for
04:17

04:17 your team? You know, it’s
04:18

04:18 >> so so I don’t I do have a lot of people
04:20

04:20 that apply to be part of the team, but
04:22

04:22 really it it’s more of uh the
04:24

04:24 relationships that I build with the
04:26

04:26 people. the agents that have joined my
04:27

04:27 team, I’ve known them for many years um
04:30

04:30 through other circles and also I want
04:34

04:34 brokers that are good in real estate
04:37

04:37 that care about their clients that care
04:39

04:39 about how they were perceived by other
04:41

04:41 brokers. So, uh this is a small industry
04:43

04:43 in Denver. you know, you get to hear
04:45

04:45 about brokers really quickly, especially
04:46

04:46 if they’re not doing a good job. Which
04:48

04:48 is why, you know, my biggest advice for
04:50

04:50 anyone is to uh keep, you know, your
04:54

04:54 cool, you know, um be classy. Um even if
04:58

04:58 you’re mad in transactions, don’t don’t
04:60

04:60 behave poorly because people talk. So,
05:03

05:03 um having um I guess an outstanding
05:07

05:07 personality and being a good person is
05:09

05:09 important for me as having someone on my
05:10

05:10 team, too.
05:12

05:12 >> Okay. what uh who what’s your longest
05:15

05:15 client relationship and how does that I
05:18

05:18 think a lot of people are getting into
05:19

05:19 real estate don’t realize that like they
05:21

05:21 see the money they hear the stories of
05:23

05:23 course one of my good friends said that
05:26

05:26 in Vegas well it’s funny cuz you
05:28

05:28 mentioned poker but in Vegas you have
05:29

05:29 the losers and the liars not a lot of
05:32

05:32 winners um maybe 1% but you know in real
05:36

05:36 estate you hear about the commissions
05:37

05:37 and all that but when you’re starting it
05:39

05:39 really is about building those long-term
05:41

05:41 relationships
05:42

05:42 Do you have like a a special client that
05:46

05:46 you know has been alongside with you
05:47

05:47 from the beginning?
05:48

05:48 >> So, I’m very fortunate. Almost all my
05:50

05:50 clients have been with you from the very
05:51

05:51 beginning. And that’s because I I um
05:54

05:54 nurture my relationships. Um a lot of
05:57

05:57 agents do a deal, a transaction, they
05:59

05:59 sell the house, and that’s it. They they
06:02

06:02 don’t communicate with their clients
06:03

06:03 anymore as if it’s a service, not a
06:05

06:05 relationship. Uh whereas I every time I
06:08

06:08 have a client, I add them to my friend
06:10

06:10 bank. Um, I closed with a client um,
06:13

06:13 about a month ago. Um, and she moved
06:16

06:16 here from Alabama and we’re going to
06:17

06:17 dinner now a month later and we’re
06:19

06:19 friends now. Um, so I’m going to
06:21

06:21 continue maintaining that relationship
06:23

06:23 and I continue maintaining relationship
06:24

06:24 with all my clients like that. Um,
06:26

06:26 because uh, consider your relationship
06:28

06:28 with your doctor. You know, it’s uh,
06:30

06:30 it’s a similar situation where you
06:33

06:33 especially if it’s a private practice.
06:35

06:35 Um, those are doctors that know your
06:36

06:36 entire family. They know your they know
06:38

06:38 the kids. They probably know the
06:39

06:39 grandkids that come around. That’s the
06:41

06:41 type of relationship I want to have with
06:43

06:43 my clients and not a service where they
06:45

06:45 just hire me and then the deal is over,
06:48

06:48 >> right? No, I love that. I was one of my
06:50

06:50 friends is an agent. I remember when I
06:52

06:52 was working with him, it was so dynamic.
06:54

06:54 You know, you’d be driving to a property
06:56

06:56 and it was a lot of personal, you know,
06:58

06:58 it takes a a skill set to be a good
07:01

07:01 broker. I think you have to be you have
07:03

07:03 to make people feel comfortable. You
07:05

07:05 have to take them through the
07:06

07:06 transaction. So going back a little bit
07:09

07:09 to you being a poker player, how has
07:12

07:12 being a poker player in terms of the
07:14

07:14 bluffs and the calls affected you in
07:16

07:16 negotiations and how do you how what
07:18

07:18 skills did you bring over from that?
07:20

07:20 >> Well, the I think the biggest one for me
07:22

07:22 was the money, right? Because I’ve been
07:24

07:24 handling large sums of money with poker
07:27

07:27 before the real estate. Um and um a lot
07:30

07:30 of times brokers get large sums of money
07:33

07:33 first of all and then they start just
07:34

07:34 spending it all. um especially if they
07:36

07:36 get their first paycheck. So the first
07:37

07:37 thing poker taught me is money
07:38

07:38 management and I think that translates
07:40

07:40 to any business, not just real estate.
07:42

07:42 If you have a set amount of money, you
07:44

07:44 have to know when how much you have to
07:46

07:46 spend it. Um that’s a big skill. The
07:48

07:48 other big skill is people reading. Um
07:50

07:50 many brokers don’t know as well as
07:53

07:53 clients don’t know that you show a lot
07:55

07:55 of tells on how you feel with your body.
07:58

07:58 Um, and oftentimes it’s not what you
08:00

08:00 say, it’s how you behave that tells me
08:03

08:03 how you feel, right? So, I have cues
08:07

08:07 from my clients, from the other party,
08:09

08:09 from um, whoever I’m working with on how
08:12

08:12 they feel and I can read the situation
08:14

08:14 better and and it’s mostly um,
08:17

08:17 surveysing them what they’re looking for
08:20

08:20 by seeing what they’re not happy with.
08:22

08:22 So question about uh just a technical
08:25

08:25 question because I I haven’t interviewed
08:27

08:27 you know people that are in the
08:29

08:29 brokerage world in residential.
08:31

08:31 >> What red flags should a client that’s
08:35

08:35 buying a property look for in a
08:36

08:36 transaction or in a deal?
08:38

08:38 >> Um the first red flag to look for is how
08:41

08:41 often the property switched hands.
08:43

08:43 Sometimes um it could be very innocent
08:46

08:46 where somebody bought a house, then they
08:47

08:47 got a job offer, they had to move, they
08:49

08:49 sold it really quickly. Um, however, if
08:51

08:51 you see a property history that’s moved
08:53

08:53 hands several times where somebody
08:55

08:55 purchases the property, sells it after a
08:57

08:57 year, another person purchased the
08:58

08:58 property, and then sells it after a
08:60

08:60 couple of years, and that’s a trend. Um,
09:02

09:02 it’s something to say to ask yourself,
09:04

09:04 what’s the reason people are not holding
09:05

09:05 on to this property for a long time? So,
09:08

09:08 that’d be the first thing to look into.
09:09

09:09 The second thing to look into is the
09:11

09:11 three big items that in my opinion would
09:15

09:15 be important for having a good sale.
09:17

09:17 It’s the roof, the structure, and the
09:19

09:19 sewer. Um, if those three items are
09:22

09:22 good, um, I think everything else is
09:24

09:24 negotiable.
09:25

09:25 >> Okay. Do you think there’s any
09:27

09:27 underserved or sort of undervalued
09:29

09:29 markets in the Denver area? Like, where
09:31

09:31 would you point an investor to invest
09:33

09:33 around Colorado?
09:34

09:34 >> I always point into areas that have not
09:37

09:37 that have a permit for some sort of new
09:39

09:39 shopping area, new um, entertainment
09:42

09:42 area, things that have not opened yet,
09:45

09:45 um, but are about to. And the way
09:47

09:47 developers and investors can look into
09:49

09:49 that is looking into the city website
09:50

09:50 and county website and seeing what
09:53

09:53 permits have been approved for areas
09:55

09:55 around them. And if they see a hub
09:57

09:57 that’s going to be have something new
09:59

09:59 constructed there in the next 18 months
10:02

10:02 to two years, that’s probably a good
10:04

10:04 area to invest in an underserved
10:06

10:06 community because it’s now being
10:08

10:08 developed even further. And that’s how
10:10

10:10 you’re going to get the most money out
10:13

10:13 of your investment because it’s going to
10:14

10:14 grow exponentially with the new
10:17

10:17 development that’s coming into the area.
10:19

10:19 >> I mean, that’s great. I think that’s
10:21

10:21 that’s so true. And I think that in a
10:23

10:23 way, you know, that’s what I kind of
10:25

10:25 look for. You know, when you know that
10:27

10:27 there’s a lot of investment going up,
10:28

10:28 it’s sort of like people aren’t sure
10:30

10:30 what’s happening, but you know,
10:31

10:31 somebody’s already committed a billion
10:32

10:32 dollars or a few hundred million dollars
10:34

10:34 into an area. I think that it says a lot
10:36

10:36 about the future of the area um
10:39

10:39 >> and the infrastructure of the area. That
10:41

10:41 means that the whole lifestyle of that
10:42

10:42 area is going to be elevated which in
10:44

10:44 will turn affect your real estate.
10:47

10:47 >> So I what I one thing I love about you
10:49

10:49 is that you’re very practical and I
10:51

10:51 think that that’s something that
10:52

10:52 everybody can take away. You know people
10:53

10:53 go get their MBA, they go to college,
10:55

10:55 they learn whatever they learn in
10:57

10:57 school. It’s very structured thinker.
10:59

10:59 Being an Israeli, you know, and many
11:01

11:01 immigrants I’ve seen they come from
11:03

11:03 Mexico or wherever. I’ve seen that
11:05

11:05 people have street smarts and that
11:08

11:08 street smart is a rationalization just
11:11

11:11 being open-minded to creating business.
11:13

11:13 How creatively can people get into real
11:15

11:15 estate if they don’t qualify for the
11:17

11:17 traditional like FHA, you know, Fanny
11:20

11:20 May Freddy Mack kind of loan? Is there
11:21

11:21 creative alter?
11:22

11:22 >> So many creatives. Um, the biggest
11:24

11:24 creative right now is house hacking
11:27

11:27 where a first-time home buyer can
11:29

11:29 qualify for a loan of for up to four
11:33

11:33 units um as a residential loan and he
11:36

11:36 can live or she can live in one of the
11:39

11:39 units and rent out the rest. That
11:41

11:41 offsets their mortgage and it allows
11:43

11:43 them basically to live mortgage free.
11:46

11:46 Um, and all they would require is having
11:48

11:48 good credit and the down payment for the
11:50

11:50 property.
11:51

11:51 >> Okay. One uh one thing I love about you
11:53

11:53 is I feel that no matter where you go,
11:55

11:55 you’re going to succeed. I mean, it’s
11:57

11:57 just your personality. It’s not just the
11:59

11:59 win mentality that you have. I think
12:00

12:00 it’s other values that you have. What
12:03

12:03 values are those values that you would
12:05

12:05 bring wherever you go?
12:07

12:07 >> And not not just business values,
12:08

12:08 probably in raising kids and just your
12:11

12:11 friendship group, you know, everything.
12:12

12:12 What
12:12

12:12 >> I think it’s grit. It’s not giving up.
12:15

12:15 >> It’s putting the extra mile. When
12:16

12:16 everyone’s given up, I put another mile.
12:18

12:18 When everyone says the deal is over and
12:20

12:20 it’s going to be dead, I say, “I don’t
12:21

12:21 think it’s dead yet. Let’s push another
12:23

12:23 let’s push another time.” When the buyer
12:25

12:25 submits an offer and the seller didn’t
12:27

12:27 get his offer and he and it’s countered
12:29

12:29 and doesn’t get accepted, um, I reach
12:31

12:31 out to the buyer and see if he wants to
12:33

12:33 resubmit it once more. You know, it’s
12:34

12:34 it’s pushing and pushing until you get
12:37

12:37 what you want, but with benefiting the
12:39

12:39 people around you.
12:41

12:41 >> Okay. When it comes to investments, are
12:44

12:44 you interested in how do you see that? I
12:46

12:46 know you have, you know, some
12:47

12:47 investments yourself. Do you want to do
12:49

12:49 more of that? And why do you do that?
12:51

12:51 Look for
12:51

12:51 >> course. Yes. I’m always looking for I
12:54

12:54 like to diversify my portfolio. So, I
12:56

12:56 currently own five properties and each
12:58

12:58 one of them is a different type of
12:60

12:60 property. And um Okay. Some are
13:02

13:02 residential, some are commercial, some
13:04

13:04 are a mixuse. Um different types. So, I
13:08

13:08 think what I try to do is I try to buy
13:11

13:11 one new real estate investment a year.
13:15

13:15 Uh, in the last couple of years, the
13:16

13:16 real estate market hasn’t been very
13:18

13:18 great and it hasn’t been as easy to save
13:20

13:20 up money for another investment
13:21

13:21 property. So, you know, sometimes those
13:23

13:23 timelines don’t work exactly like you
13:25

13:25 plan them. So, I’ll buy another
13:26

13:26 investment property next year. I haven’t
13:28

13:28 bought an investment property for the
13:29

13:29 last couple of years.
13:30

13:30 >> Um, but it’s also the market. I have to
13:32

13:32 adapt to what’s going on around me. With
13:35

13:35 that being said, there are a lot of
13:36

13:36 great investment opportunities at any
13:38

13:38 time. So, would you say it’s better to
13:41

13:41 buy one you like one good deal or a
13:44

13:44 bunch of smaller good deals?
13:47

13:47 >> I think they’re both great strategies
13:48

13:48 and I have clients that do both and I
13:51

13:51 respect all of their businesses and what
13:52

13:52 they do with their investments.
13:54

13:54 Personally, for me, I like to diversify
13:56

13:56 it because I like to have eggs in
13:58

13:58 different baskets. Um, however, when you
14:01

14:01 do focus on one investment and you pour
14:03

14:03 all your investment in there, if it does
14:05

14:05 really well, um, you are going to
14:07

14:07 probably make a lot more than you would
14:08

14:08 have if you spread out too thin.
14:10

14:10 >> Yeah.
14:11

14:11 >> Um, but it also works the other way. If
14:13

14:13 the investment doesn’t go well, you you
14:16

14:16 pretty much don’t have anything else to
14:17

14:17 fall back on. Versus, in my case, if one
14:20

14:20 investment doesn’t do well this year,
14:22

14:22 another one will to kind of offset the
14:24

14:24 loss,
14:24

14:24 >> right? Yeah. I mean, that’s what I love
14:26

14:26 about diversification. Um, you know,
14:29

14:29 some people also don’t realize that
14:31

14:31 commercial the values are so much
14:33

14:33 higher. So, let’s say you have $20
14:34

14:34 million in assets. If it’s only in three
14:37

14:37 assets and one of them is empty, that’s
14:39

14:39 one/ird of the potential cash flow. But
14:41

14:41 if you have like 20 properties and
14:43

14:43 there’s a few that are vacant, it really
14:44

14:44 doesn’t affect your bottom line that
14:46

14:46 much.
14:46

14:46 >> That’s right.
14:46

14:46 >> So, I mean, it’s just a personal thing.
14:49

14:49 You know, I always think of it from like
14:51

14:51 a client point of view. What are they
14:53

14:53 what are their needs? Can they deal with
14:55

14:55 the uh instability or stability of
14:58

14:58 different cash flows? Um so I sort of
15:01

15:01 asked you this before because it’s a
15:03

15:03 personal question. Uh brokers, you know,
15:06

15:06 there’s so many brokers and there’s very
15:09

15:09 few that are the like the top earners
15:11

15:11 and there’s a huge uh distribution
15:13

15:13 towards like the successful brokers.
15:16

15:16 What would you tell the ones that want
15:17

15:17 to continue fighting the battle or
15:20

15:20 selling homes and building their client
15:22

15:22 list, but that just aren’t doing well?
15:24

15:24 Even though they’re following all the
15:25

15:25 right steps, they’re cold calling,
15:26

15:26 they’re networking, but there’s just
15:28

15:28 something missing.
15:29

15:29 >> Well, I don’t think cold calling is the
15:31

15:31 right step anymore. Not in 2025. Think
15:34

15:34 about all the phone calls that you get.
15:36

15:36 Are you going to are you going to sell
15:37

15:37 your property with a broker that cold
15:39

15:39 calls you and asks you to sell your
15:40

15:40 home? is probably going to treat it like
15:41

15:41 a like a spam call and you’re probably
15:44

15:44 not even going to answer the phone
15:45

15:45 number that you don’t recognize. I think
15:47

15:47 in today’s market, cold calling doesn’t
15:49

15:49 work anymore. And if it does, it’s for a
15:51

15:51 very small percentage. I think it’s
15:53

15:53 networking is number one. It’s
15:55

15:55 networking. It’s being it’s being
15:57

15:57 wherever you can be. It’s registering to
15:60

15:60 every event that you can imagine that
16:01

16:01 you will enjoy, too. And it’s not just
16:03

16:03 arriving at the event because I have
16:05

16:05 brokers that sell me more. I go to all
16:06

16:06 these events and I do everything you’re
16:09

16:09 saying, but I don’t form relationships.
16:11

16:11 Well, I asked them, “What are you doing
16:12

16:12 at this event?” Well, walk me through
16:14

16:14 the steps of what you’re doing there.
16:16

16:16 They come in, they say, “Hi.” Hi. They
16:18

16:18 get a drink, they stand, they listen to
16:20

16:20 the event, maybe chitchat with one or
16:22

16:22 two people, and then they go home. Well,
16:25

16:25 when I go to an event, I make an effort
16:27

16:27 to talk to as many people as I can. And
16:29

16:29 I don’t want to come in and say
16:30

16:30 everyone, “I’m a realtor. I’m a
16:32

16:32 realtor.” Cuz who wants to hear that?
16:34

16:34 But I make sure I always implement
16:36

16:36 conversations about the real estate
16:38

16:38 market, you know, so that everyone that
16:40

16:40 talks to me at this point already knows
16:42

16:42 if they’re going to see me, they’re
16:43

16:43 going to want to ask me some real estate
16:45

16:45 question. And if they don’t, I’m going
16:46

16:46 to interject some real estate
16:48

16:48 information in there so that real estate
16:51

16:51 is part of the conversations of where
16:52

16:52 I’m going for these events and everyone
16:55

16:55 knows that I’m a realtor. So going to
16:57

16:57 networking also if everyone knows that
16:59

16:59 you’re a realtor and you make sure of it
17:01

17:01 and also if you form relationships.
17:03

17:03 Handing people your business card um
17:05

17:05 swapping business cards doesn’t work
17:07

17:07 anymore. You want people on your phone.
17:09

17:09 I don’t even give people my business
17:10

17:10 card anymore unless I go to a showing
17:12

17:12 and leave it at the property. I’ll take
17:13

17:13 my phone and I’ll have the phones
17:16

17:16 connect and I’ll swap the contact card
17:18

17:18 because if you’re on my phone then I can
17:20

17:20 text you. Oh, hey Duardo. It’s more. It
17:22

17:22 was great meeting you at the event. if
17:24

17:24 there’s anything you need for real
17:25

17:25 estate, here’s my number. I’d love to to
17:28

17:28 chat. And now I’m in your phone and the
17:31

17:31 likelihood of you remembering me through
17:33

17:33 that interaction is much greater than if
17:35

17:35 I just gave you a card and you stuck it
17:36

17:36 in your pocket.
17:37

17:37 >> One thing that I love that you do, I was
17:40

17:40 watching the Denver ear and some videos
17:41

17:41 that you did on YouTube. I think it’s
17:44

17:44 such a great way to showcase like a
17:46

17:46 city’s I don’t know, just the fun things
17:49

17:49 to do in a city, the lifestyle, things
17:50

17:50 like that. How has that helped your
17:52

17:52 business? And and do you still do that?
17:54

17:54 >> I do still do that. I now also hire some
17:56

17:56 content writers to help me. I used to
17:58

17:58 bootstrap the whole thing myself. I used
18:00

18:00 to work all day in real estate and at
18:02

18:02 night I’d write blog posts, but that
18:04

18:04 burnt me out a little. And I’m also a
18:06

18:06 mother of three children, so that didn’t
18:07

18:07 leave me much time at all. But I still
18:09

18:09 write every once in a while because I
18:10

18:10 want to keep my content in there. Um,
18:12

18:12 and it does help my business. The first
18:14

18:14 way it helps my business is that it
18:16

18:16 keeps me top of mind. So now people read
18:19

18:19 my content not just after just when
18:21

18:21 they’re looking to buy a house or after,
18:23

18:23 you know, they’ve just closed on one um
18:26

18:26 just to learn some real estate market
18:28

18:28 news. They also want to know what’s
18:29

18:29 going around in their communities
18:31

18:31 because when you buy a property, you buy
18:33

18:33 a community with the property. So you’re
18:35

18:35 going to continue coming back to my
18:36

18:36 content if you know what’s going on in
18:38

18:38 the areas that you bought the real
18:40

18:40 estate. Now it’s about what’s happening
18:41

18:41 this weekend in your neighborhood,
18:43

18:43 what’s the what’s happening in the
18:45

18:45 museums in your area. and uh it keeps me
18:48

18:48 top of mind. And the second way it’s
18:50

18:50 helped me is that it brings a lot of
18:52

18:52 first-time home buyers that um are
18:55

18:55 unsure who to use as their realtor. I
18:57

18:57 only advertise myself and my team on my
18:60

18:60 blog. I have rejected every um request
19:04

19:04 to monetize my website because I want
19:06

19:06 people to associate me eventually with
19:08

19:08 real estate, not with whatever ad
19:11

19:11 someone’s going to pay me to put on the
19:12

19:12 site. So, um, people that are not sure
19:16

19:16 about who to hire as a realtor, maybe
19:18

19:18 they’re transplants or maybe they, you
19:20

19:20 know, they just got started, so some of
19:21

19:21 their friends are not realtors yet.
19:23

19:23 >> I I can have uh a big group of people
19:26

19:26 funnel through that way and also provide
19:28

19:28 leads to my agents.
19:29

19:29 >> Yeah. So, speaking of your agents, you
19:32

19:32 know, one question that I have and it’s
19:34

19:34 a very I feel like it’s a very
19:36

19:36 undervalued question is you got to have
19:38

19:38 the right people around you. You know,
19:40

19:40 you say you hire assistants and
19:41

19:41 everything. I find sometimes when you
19:42

19:42 hire the wrong people even though their
19:44

19:44 intention is good, maybe they’re a
19:46

19:46 beginner and you want to believe that
19:47

19:47 they have potential um or they cost, you
19:50

19:50 know, the right amount or maybe they
19:51

19:51 cost a lot so you expect a lot. But
19:54

19:54 managing people, hiring the right
19:55

19:55 people, what’s the secret? Because you
19:57

19:57 got to have a lot of people I’ve
19:59

19:59 interviewed and talked to, they blame
20:01

20:01 their success on their team. And it’s
20:04

20:04 like it’s all about the people. That’s
20:05

20:05 what the quote. Um and it’s how do you
20:08

20:08 get the right people? you know, like
20:10

20:10 Adam, I I love having him. We’re gonna
20:12

20:12 do every podcast I have. I’m gonna bring
20:14

20:14 him on on the uh
20:15

20:15 >> That’s great. Then you’re working with
20:16

20:16 the right people.
20:19

20:19 >> Um I really care about who they are as
20:21

20:21 people. So, it’s not just about making
20:23

20:23 money. So, having the right people is
20:25

20:25 important. It’s the culture. You know,
20:27

20:27 eventually you’re going to hang out with
20:29

20:29 the people in your business more than
20:30

20:30 you’re going to hang out with most
20:32

20:32 people in your life. So, um having the
20:34

20:34 right people also means how do they
20:36

20:36 treat other people? Do they talk down to
20:38

20:38 people? Do they make people feel
20:40

20:40 comfortable and welcome around them? Um,
20:43

20:43 >> are they just caring about the money and
20:45

20:45 the business?
20:46

20:46 >> Um, are they condescending, you know?
20:49

20:49 So, what type of person are you first of
20:51

20:51 all? And having people that you enjoy
20:53

20:53 going to work with
20:55

20:55 >> is what makes the business fun and what
20:57

20:57 allows you to make more money. I mean, I
20:59

20:59 just took my team to Vegas as a team
21:01

21:01 building trip because they hit a
21:02

21:02 financial goal and I didn’t feel like I
21:04

21:04 was on a business trip at all. In fact,
21:06

21:06 most of the time we forgot we’re we’re
21:07

21:07 on a business trip. We’re like, “Wait a
21:08

21:08 minute. Should we talk about real estate
21:10

21:10 for a little bit because we were having
21:11

21:11 such a blast as friends in Vegas
21:13

21:13 together. Uh maybe we should just talk
21:14

21:14 real estate to just make feel like this
21:16

21:16 trip was worth the money, but really was
21:18

21:18 worth the money and gold because we came
21:19

21:19 back even more united on a personal
21:22

21:22 level.” And that’s what elevates the
21:25

21:25 team from being just a transactional
21:27

21:27 business to a successful team.
21:29

21:29 >> Yeah, it’s a delicate balance. I mean,
21:32

21:32 sometimes you want to hire your friends
21:33

21:33 or you see your friends, you’re like,
21:35

21:35 “What can we do together?” And sometimes
21:36

21:36 that works, but I find that being
21:38

21:38 assertive and remembering that you’re
21:40

21:40 the boss or that you’re the one that
21:42

21:42 sort of has to control, you know, I
21:44

21:44 think that that’s part of it. Also,
21:46

21:46 understanding, not that, you know, I’m
21:48

21:48 preaching, but, you know, understanding
21:50

21:50 that you have to listen to everybody.
21:51

21:51 you know, other people, you hire people
21:53

21:53 for their expertise and you want people
21:55

21:55 to like tell you when I mean, I want
21:57

21:57 people to tell me when I’m screwing up
21:59

21:59 or when I’m not doing things properly
22:01

22:01 >> or anything like that.
22:02

22:02 >> Um, brokerage, I don’t know how it is,
22:05

22:05 you know, with you in your experience of
22:07

22:07 the 12 years you’ve had, but there, you
22:09

22:09 know, there’s lots of ups and downs in
22:11

22:11 brokerage and sales and things like
22:13

22:13 that. You know, you have cycles.
22:15

22:15 >> What do you do to like mitigate the down
22:17

22:17 cycles? Do you change your personal
22:20

22:20 financial, you know, spending? Do you
22:23

22:23 just drum up more marketing?
22:25

22:25 >> You need to invest more money in a down
22:26

22:26 market.
22:27

22:27 >> Okay,
22:27

22:27 >> you have to spend more money. And if you
22:29

22:29 don’t have it, you take a loan. And if
22:30

22:30 you don’t have a loan, you call your dad
22:31

22:31 or mom. If you don’t have your dad mom,
22:32

22:32 you call your friend. You’re going to
22:34

22:34 invest more money in your real estate
22:35

22:35 business than you have ever have
22:36

22:36 invested before. Because in down
22:38

22:38 markets, agents that are don’t spend the
22:41

22:41 money are retracting their business
22:43

22:43 because they’re saving because they
22:44

22:44 don’t have it. Um, they take jobs, they
22:46

22:46 get lost. and versus the agents that
22:49

22:49 reinvest in their business. At that
22:51

22:51 point, they’re buying market share. So,
22:53

22:53 when the market goes back up, the agent
22:55

22:55 that reinvested during the down market
22:57

22:57 is going to be on top,
22:58

22:58 >> right?
22:59

22:59 >> Yeah. So, it’s about pushing even
23:01

23:01 further on a down market. And again,
23:02

23:02 it’s that grit piece. You know, there’s
23:05

23:05 so many times when you can give up and
23:06

23:06 say, man, this transaction that I’ve
23:09

23:09 relied on has been being extended for
23:12

23:12 >> who knows how long already, and I can’t
23:14

23:14 do this anymore. Right? But no, you have
23:16

23:16 to say this is part of my job. So, I
23:18

23:18 need to get more transactions to
23:20

23:20 continue feeding the business as as much
23:23

23:23 as I can. And if that’s hard, you’re
23:25

23:25 going to find a way to do it. And if
23:26

23:26 that’s hard, you’re going to find
23:27

23:27 another way to do it. And I think grit
23:29

23:29 is the success factor in real estate.
23:32

23:32 Whoever sticks with it makes it.
23:34

23:34 >> Do you think that being a woman in real
23:36

23:36 estate is uh not maybe not a challenge,
23:40

23:40 but what how is it different? Does it
23:41

23:41 affect you? Do do you think that
23:43

23:43 >> I feel as being a female is different
23:45

23:45 and it affects me personally. I feel
23:47

23:47 like I don’t feel like anyone didn’t
23:50

23:50 hire me because I was a woman, right?
23:52

23:52 >> Um but what it does bring that’s
23:54

23:54 different um for the hiring process is
23:57

23:57 that I’m very authentic. Meaning I will
23:59

23:59 come to a seller and I’ll tell them what
24:01

24:01 I think about the price of their home.
24:03

24:03 I’ll tell them what I think they need to
24:04

24:04 do in order to sell their home. I’ll
24:06

24:06 tell them what um what they probably
24:09

24:09 have not done well enough in the past.
24:11

24:11 Um, and I’m not scared to hurt their
24:13

24:13 feelings. Um, so I guess that kind of
24:17

24:17 um, authenticity potentially could have
24:19

24:19 cost me some clients and people that are
24:22

24:22 used to having a lot of small talk and
24:23

24:23 this nices and not really liking to hear
24:26

24:26 the truth even when it hurts. But I
24:29

24:29 think it gained me more more I guess
24:32

24:32 believers and people that want to work
24:34

24:34 with me because they know that when
24:35

24:35 you’re working with me, I’m going to
24:36

24:36 tell you like it is.
24:37

24:37 >> Yeah. Trust.
24:38

24:38 >> You’re assertive. I think I’m surfing
24:40

24:40 it’s it’s a good quality I think when
24:42

24:42 you want to you have to build trust as a
24:44

24:44 broker you know that people are trusting
24:46

24:46 you on
24:47

24:47 >> sort of defending them behind the scenes
24:49

24:49 if there’s the other agent from you know
24:51

24:51 another transaction not another
24:53

24:53 transaction but on the other side of a
24:55

24:55 transaction calls you you have to
24:57

24:57 represent properly and sometimes like
24:58

24:58 you were saying body language is says a
25:01

25:01 lot or at least even on the phone the
25:03

25:03 way they ask question
25:04

25:04 >> their voice their tone everything yeah
25:07

25:07 absolutely
25:08

25:08 >> so When somebody’s looking for a house
25:10

25:10 and you meet a new client, what kind of
25:12

25:12 questions do you want to know about what
25:14

25:14 their needs are, what their wants are,
25:16

25:16 how do you address them as a client?
25:19

25:19 >> Well, first I want to know who they are
25:20

25:20 before we start with their criteria for
25:22

25:22 their home. I want to know about them as
25:24

25:24 people. And the reason is because your
25:26

25:26 choice of your home is very much
25:28

25:28 reflected in the dynamics of your
25:30

25:30 family. So, do they have children? Is it
25:32

25:32 a couple? Is it a single? Um, do they
25:34

25:34 want to be near a school? Do they want
25:36

25:36 to be near a place of work? Do they have
25:39

25:39 any pets?
25:40

25:40 >> Um, do they need a yard? Um, what has
25:43

25:43 caused them to not like their home in
25:46

25:46 the past? What has been a sticky factor
25:48

25:48 for them that they made them want to
25:50

25:50 move? And then I just start gathering
25:52

25:52 information about who they are. And then
25:55

25:55 I ask them to give me their criteria.
25:57

25:57 But but sometimes their lifestyle
25:59

25:59 situation and what they think their
26:01

26:01 criteria is doesn’t align. So, by me
26:04

26:04 knowing who they are and then they give
26:06

26:06 me their criteria,
26:08

26:08 >> let’s say, for example, I’ll throw out
26:10

26:10 an example. Let’s say they have a couple
26:12

26:12 of dogs and um and they want a a big
26:16

26:16 backyard, right? And uh but uh there’s
26:19

26:19 this house and the house is great. It
26:22

26:22 doesn’t have a big backyard, but it’s
26:23

26:23 close to it’s right across the street
26:25

26:25 from a park,
26:26

26:26 >> right? So, often times just knowing what
26:28

26:28 the need was that the need was the
26:30

26:30 backyard for the dog. Um, I could then
26:33

26:33 say something like, “Well, this house is
26:34

26:34 exactly what you’re looking for. You
26:36

26:36 don’t have that big backyard, but it’s
26:37

26:37 right across from the park. Do you want
26:38

26:38 do you want to take a look at it?” And
26:40

26:40 the reason I know that’s because I
26:41

26:41 figured out what the reason they needed
26:43

26:43 the change is for. So, it’s more than
26:46

26:46 just asking what are you looking for?
26:47

26:47 And like, why do you need it is the real
26:50

26:50 question. Why do you need that third
26:52

26:52 bedroom in the basement? If you if I get
26:55

26:55 you something else, will that fit your
26:57

26:57 need? Um, but it’s mostly finding out
26:60

26:60 about how they live, too.
27:02

27:02 >> I mean, I love that because it’s going
27:03

27:03 the extra yard. It’s trying to dig
27:05

27:05 underneath. And that was actually going
27:07

27:07 to be my next question. You know, do you
27:09

27:09 ever find that your clients will say
27:12

27:12 they want something and they don’t, you
27:14

27:14 know, like there’s a lot of and not just
27:17

27:17 they want something and it maybe not in
27:18

27:18 their best interest because it changes
27:20

27:20 their price to something that, you know,
27:21

27:21 there’s a negative there. It might
27:23

27:23 increase the price.
27:24

27:24 >> Um,
27:25

27:25 >> yeah. Yeah. And sometimes they also have
27:27

27:27 some notions about something to do with
27:29

27:29 real estate that might not be um
27:32

27:32 reflective to the situation that they’re
27:34

27:34 in. For example, some people come and
27:35

27:35 say to me, “I don’t want to have an HOA.
27:37

27:37 I hate HOAs. I don’t want HOAs no matter
27:40

27:40 what. And don’t send me anything with an
27:42

27:42 HOA.” But here, there’s a property I
27:45

27:45 found that’s exactly what they’re
27:47

27:47 looking for, and it has a small HOA fee,
27:49

27:49 you know. So, being able to say, “Hey,
27:51

27:51 Eduardo, you told me you don’t want an
27:53

27:53 HOA to never offer you an HOA, but
27:57

27:57 here’s a property with an HOA.” So, um,
28:00

28:00 it it’s it’s finding it’s finding those
28:03

28:03 things and and figuring out how you can
28:06

28:06 how you can give them
28:10

28:10 some extra help rather than just
28:13

28:13 dictating whatever they’re telling you
28:14

28:14 to do.
28:15

28:15 >> Yeah. No, I think that the HOA is a huge
28:17

28:17 one. I mean, I you know, for example,
28:19

28:19 I’m looking for a piece of land, but I
28:21

28:21 want to do some developments on it. If
28:23

28:23 you’re in an HOA area, like there’s some
28:24

28:24 beautiful properties in Carbondale. If
28:26

28:26 it’s in an HOA area, then you kind of
28:28

28:28 lose control of what you’re allowed to
28:30

28:30 do because now you’re a lot of investors
28:32

28:32 or people that are looking to buy, they
28:34

28:34 don’t know what limitations are. That’s
28:36

28:36 kind of what this podcast I originally
28:37

28:37 started doing. It’s exposing things that
28:40

28:40 new investors don’t might not know. You
28:42

28:42 know, with crowdfunding, you had
28:44

28:44 dentists, you had all sorts of new
28:45

28:45 people investing in crowdfunded real
28:47

28:47 estate deals, and they were very smart
28:49

28:49 in their business, but they didn’t have
28:51

28:51 some, you know, some basic things that
28:54

28:54 you might not think of. You know, they
28:55

28:55 might see a 5-year deal with a certain
28:58

28:58 return, but then they lose control of
28:60

28:60 their money. Maybe that 5-year deal
29:01

29:01 turns into a 15-year deal because the
29:03

29:03 developer wants to instead of selling
29:04

29:04 his condos, they want to rent it out
29:06

29:06 until the market turns back around. So,
29:08

29:08 that was kind of the thing. But
29:10

29:10 >> that happens a lot.
29:11

29:11 >> Yeah. Yeah, then that’s that’s kind of
29:14

29:14 you lose control and if that’s your
29:16

29:16 retirement plan that at the end of five
29:18

29:18 years you’re going to collect the money
29:20

29:20 then you’re kind of you know you’re in
29:21

29:21 trouble and it’s just you know something
29:24

29:24 people need to be aware of I think and
29:26

29:26 there’s so many things people need to be
29:28

29:28 aware of um where if somebody wanted to
29:31

29:31 start looking at investing what do they
29:33

29:33 need to you know do they need to talk to
29:36

29:36 their loan broker first do they need to
29:37

29:37 talk to you first do they need to what
29:40

29:40 would you suggest? Well, I like talking
29:41

29:41 to them first before they talk. Well, I
29:44

29:44 guess I want them to know how much they
29:45

29:45 can afford, right? Um, but I want to
29:48

29:48 understand what they’re looking for
29:49

29:49 first because there’s different types of
29:51

29:51 investment properties. You can want an
29:53

29:53 investment where you park your money
29:54

29:54 somewhere for a long period of time
29:56

29:56 where you get returns
29:59

29:59 and that’s a safe bet and you don’t get
30:02

30:02 a lot of returns or high returns, but
30:03

30:03 you get consistent ones. Or you can
30:05

30:05 choose a property where you’re like more
30:07

30:07 I don’t really care about the cash on
30:08

30:08 cash but the appreciation. I want this
30:11

30:11 property that I can give it to my
30:12

30:12 children one day. I want it to
30:13

30:13 appreciate really well. Um and there I’m
30:16

30:16 just looking to kind of put the money
30:18

30:18 there just for it to be longterm. And
30:20

30:20 there’s some that want to do a short
30:22

30:22 term where they’re looking for something
30:23

30:23 that’s going to give them just cash.
30:24

30:24 They don’t care about the equity. So as
30:26

30:26 soon as we figure out or I figure out
30:28

30:28 what exactly do you want your money to
30:30

30:30 do for you? Um, then I’m able to direct
30:34

30:34 them to the type of investment that
30:36

30:36 probably work well for what they’re
30:37

30:37 looking for their money to do,
30:39

30:39 >> right?
30:39

30:39 >> Um, and a lender would be good to find
30:41

30:41 out and it depends what type of
30:43

30:43 investment they’re looking for. You
30:44

30:44 know, some some lenders will do some
30:47

30:47 unique creative financing like uh DSCR
30:51

30:51 loan. Um, some do um different financing
30:55

30:55 where um you put specific money down and
30:60

31:00 um and when you put over a certain
31:03

31:03 amount, you don’t pay the mortgage
31:04

31:04 insurance. You know, there’s there’s
31:06

31:06 lots of ways that you can be creative
31:08

31:08 with the lender, too. Um I’m not going
31:11

31:11 to go through all of them because I’m
31:12

31:12 not a lender. I’m a realtor and I guess
31:14

31:14 I’m not really supposed to talk about
31:15

31:15 financing as much, but I can tell you
31:17

31:17 that I can connect any investor with a
31:20

31:20 plethora of of very good lenders that
31:24

31:24 will give you creative financing. Um,
31:26

31:26 and you don’t need a lot of money.
31:28

31:28 That’s the biggest thing that people
31:29

31:29 don’t realize. They hear I work with
31:31

31:31 investors and they think, “Oh,
31:32

31:32 investors, like that’s a that’s a big
31:34

31:34 word.” And like, but really, I would say
31:37

31:37 about 75% of my investors are mom and
31:40

31:40 pop shops where they own residential
31:43

31:43 real estate and now they’re looking to
31:44

31:44 put some of their money and own an
31:46

31:46 investment property or two or three. And
31:49

31:49 that is basically almost anyone that you
31:52

31:52 know that can save up about $100,000,
31:55

31:55 >> right?
31:56

31:56 >> So any person that has about 100 grand
31:57

31:57 in their bank or can save about $100,000
32:01

32:01 um and it could in other markets it’s
32:03

32:03 less. I’m saying 100 in Denver because I
32:05

32:05 don’t want investors to call me and say
32:07

32:07 I saved up 30k what can I buy and it
32:10

32:10 would be very little. Um, but if you
32:13

32:13 have about 100, you can buy any
32:14

32:14 investment property almost that can give
32:16

32:16 you a good leg up to start your
32:18

32:18 business. Obviously, not ones that um
32:21

32:21 would be jumping into too high, but you
32:23

32:23 have a good start. And that can be
32:25

32:25 anything from a condo to a duplex to a
32:28

32:28 single family home. And once you start
32:30

32:30 with one, it’s much easier to to build.
32:33

32:33 Like they say, money makes money because
32:36

32:36 what you can do is also you can also
32:38

32:38 convert your primary residence to an
32:41

32:41 investment property and buy a new
32:43

32:43 primary residence too. And I have
32:45

32:45 investors that do that as well that
32:47

32:47 instead of buying their first investment
32:48

32:48 property um as a pure investment, they
32:51

32:51 just convert their primary residence and
32:53

32:53 they just search for a better home for
32:54

32:54 themselves.
32:55

32:55 >> Yeah. I mean, I’ve thought of, you know,
32:57

32:57 one of my dreams is having a lot of
32:58

32:58 houses and building an ADU and making
33:00

33:00 the primary residence the Airbnb, but
33:02

33:02 that’s sort of one of the threats to
33:04

33:04 that. And I don’t know if it’s something
33:05

33:05 you consider is Airbnb laws are changing
33:08

33:08 city. Like in Denver, I think you’re
33:10

33:10 only allowed to have one Airbnb and it
33:11

33:11 has to be your personal residence.
33:13

33:13 That’s right.
33:13

33:13 >> Could be wrong. But how do you feel like
33:16

33:16 that is the trend of that would affect,
33:18

33:18 you know, some people that are looking
33:20

33:20 to do something called the Burr method?
33:22

33:22 I don’t know if you’ve heard of it. No.
33:23

33:23 What is that? But it’s the buy, repair,
33:27

33:27 rent, refinance, and that’s kind of
33:29

33:29 gotten in a little bit of trouble
33:31

33:31 because the refinancing interest rates
33:32

33:32 went up and they wouldn’t be able to
33:34

33:34 qualify with the income to be able to
33:36

33:36 buy something else. That was the last R.
33:38

33:38 I don’t know how there’s an
33:39

33:39 >> So buy and hold basically, but with refi
33:41

33:41 at the end,
33:42

33:42 >> right? Um, how do you think that would
33:45

33:45 work? Do you think that’s a good plan or
33:47

33:47 do you
33:48

33:48 >> Yeah. So, first of all, there are some
33:49

33:49 areas that you can short-term rent. It
33:51

33:51 has to be in an unincorporated county.
33:54

33:54 So there so you can look on the county
33:56

33:56 website if the property that you’re
33:57

33:57 interested is sitting in an
33:58

33:58 unincorporated zone. And also some
34:01

34:01 properties I own a couple of those um
34:04

34:04 have a hospitality license on the
34:05

34:05 building.
34:06

34:06 >> Oh wow.
34:07

34:07 >> And it’s a mixeduse building. So
34:09

34:09 commercial is allowed as well as
34:12

34:12 short-term rentals because it already
34:14

34:14 has the hospitality license connected
34:16

34:16 with the licensing of the of the
34:17

34:17 building itself. Those are unique
34:19

34:19 examples. Uh but they were there and
34:22

34:22 there are in Denver it’s very difficult
34:24

34:24 but in the outskirts city outskirts I
34:27

34:27 think short-term renting is I guess
34:30

34:30 there are pockets that make it more
34:32

34:32 achievable. Again make sure that if
34:35

34:35 you’re interested in short-term rentals
34:37

34:37 that whoever is interested in listening
34:38

34:38 to this podcast checks the rules and the
34:42

34:42 laws. And I’m going to put the whole
34:43

34:43 disclaimer here. Uh because yes, because
34:45

34:45 you can get hit with multiple fines um
34:48

34:48 if you do short-term rental illegally.
34:50

34:50 >> One one of my concerns of that and
34:52

34:52 that’s something that’s very unique to
34:54

34:54 Colorado is water rights. And you know
34:56

34:56 there’s so many complications with that
34:58

34:58 that you might have the hospitality
34:60

34:60 zoning also. But then if you don’t have
35:01

35:01 the rights for water, then it’s going to
35:03

35:03 be very hard to get permits to build new
35:06

35:06 dwelling units. Um, how do you uh
35:11

35:11 so just going back to sort of the
35:12

35:12 beginning, can you describe the kind of
35:16

35:16 properties you sell because there’s so
35:17

35:17 many different kinds, you know,
35:19

35:19 high-end, uh, you know, multifamily
35:22

35:22 land, you know, what’s the
35:23

35:23 >> I can tell you how I break some of my
35:25

35:25 current listings. The majority of my
35:26

35:26 listings are luxury homes over a million
35:28

35:28 dollars
35:29

35:29 >> that are primary residents. Um, the
35:31

35:31 second portion of my listings are multif
35:34

35:34 family properties. So, um I typically
35:37

35:37 sell mostly up to four units and because
35:39

35:39 of what I told you earlier where a
35:42

35:42 primary resident a primary buyer can buy
35:44

35:44 up to four units and it’s also
35:46

35:46 conventional financing.
35:48

35:48 >> So, you can get a conventional
35:49

35:49 residential financing up to four units.
35:52

35:52 So, I like to stay under the residential
35:54

35:54 umbrella,
35:55

35:55 >> right,
35:55

35:55 >> by the four units. I still sell
35:57

35:57 commercial over four units, but I don’t
35:60

35:60 have as many because my pocket is mostly
36:02

36:02 residential. And after that, um, it’s
36:04

36:04 any type of property that generates an
36:07

36:07 income. That can be a single family home
36:10

36:10 in a suburb, and it generates an income
36:12

36:12 because it’s a long-term rental. It can
36:14

36:14 be a condo. It can be a land.
36:18

36:18 >> It can be a parking lot.
36:20

36:20 >> It can be anything that generates an
36:22

36:22 income to the to the client. Um and um
36:26

36:26 and then I have your random then I have
36:28

36:28 your random deals of friends and family
36:30

36:30 that you know I’ll sell whatever they
36:32

36:32 have as well. Uh but um it’s mostly the
36:35

36:35 relationship that determines the
36:37

36:37 portfolio that I have because I form
36:39

36:39 those relationships. So if you’re
36:41

36:41 portfolio and you have two single family
36:43

36:43 homes and a multi and a condo and hey
36:47

36:47 more I want you to sell my multi, it’s
36:49

36:49 because of our relationship. It’s not
36:51

36:51 because, oh, more is going to sell my
36:53

36:53 multi and then this other broker is
36:55

36:55 going to sell my primary. I mean, I can
36:57

36:57 sell it all
36:58

36:58 >> and that keeps the relationship intact.
36:60

36:60 And also, it helps my clients when they
37:02

37:02 I know they’re financing and and here I
37:04

37:04 know I have to sell this investment
37:06

37:06 property for them for X amount so that
37:08

37:08 they can qualify for their primary for X
37:10

37:10 amount.
37:10

37:10 >> Do you see yourself staying in
37:12

37:12 residential and doing, you know, selling
37:14

37:14 that for the next 5 to 10 years or do
37:16

37:16 you want to
37:17

37:17 >> I love residential real estate. I
37:19

37:19 venture heavily into commercial and more
37:22

37:22 so in the last few years and I think I’m
37:24

37:24 good at it and I provide value for my
37:27

37:27 clients but I don’t enjoy it as much as
37:29

37:29 I do residential cuz residential has a
37:31

37:31 faster pace to it. People answer emails
37:33

37:33 quickly. They know there’s a deadline.
37:35

37:35 You know, commercial is just a slower
37:37

37:37 pace and everyone’s taking their time
37:40

37:40 and even getting somebody on the phone
37:42

37:42 in commercial can be, I kid you not, a
37:44

37:44 couple of days during a transaction.
37:48

37:48 >> It just feels like the urgency level is
37:50

37:50 very low in the commercial space. Unless
37:52

37:52 we have a quick
37:54

37:54 >> transaction with quick deadlines, the
37:56

37:56 majority are slow and long
37:58

37:58 >> and uh that just takes away some of the
38:00

38:00 fun for me. And I think after being in a
38:02

38:02 fastpaced business and I’m just a
38:05

38:05 fastpaced type of personality um that
38:08

38:08 like lowering my I guess my gear to a
38:11

38:11 slower pace in commercial is good. It’s
38:14

38:14 just not as enjoyable.
38:16

38:16 >> Right. So one thing I want to let all
38:19

38:19 the listeners know I get your newsletter
38:21

38:21 and every time I’m impressed. I think
38:22

38:22 it’s very hard I think to continuously
38:24

38:24 pump out a new newsletter. Even if it’s
38:26

38:26 once a month, you know, you still have
38:28

38:28 to make sure it comes out well. you have
38:30

38:30 to have new updates, you know, if and I
38:33

38:33 always get your newsletter and it’s
38:34

38:34 always interesting deals. I saw you had
38:35

38:35 a a duplex listed that had some pretty
38:39

38:39 significant upside. Um, one of these
38:42

38:42 deals we’re going to do one of these
38:43

38:43 days we’re going to do a deal together
38:44

38:44 because you have so many deals. Just
38:47

38:47 start, you know, we can start making
38:48

38:48 offers. But, um,
38:50

38:50 >> unfortunately I do have a lot of deals
38:51

38:51 and I and I’m fortunate to my clients.
38:53

38:53 Thank you to my clients that entrust
38:54

38:54 their business with me.
38:56

38:56 >> That’s kind of the thing. It it’s a
38:58

38:58 long-term. It’s a client. It’s a trust
38:60

38:60 that takes time to build. How long do
39:01

39:01 you think a agent should expect if
39:05

39:05 they’re going on the right path should
39:07

39:07 start getting I mean for you it was
39:09

39:09 right away it seems.
39:10

39:10 >> But repeat business I think once you get
39:12

39:12 repeat business is when you know first
39:14

39:14 of all you not only did a great job the
39:16

39:16 first time around you kept good enough
39:18

39:18 in touch that that the top of mind
39:21

39:21 strategy is there that they want to work
39:22

39:22 with you again. And I think an agent
39:24

39:24 shouldn’t quit before at least they push
39:26

39:26 the fiveyear mark unless okay
39:29

39:29 >> unless they don’t have any other option
39:31

39:31 because they can’t make it. But if they
39:33

39:33 can make it and they can get by and they
39:35

39:35 pass the fiveyear mark and and they
39:38

39:38 haven’t and they’ve continued pushing
39:40

39:40 the way I would push on every which way
39:43

39:43 and not giving up, then they should
39:45

39:45 break that. So, here’s a question just
39:47

39:47 on your opinion because I’ve heard
39:49

39:49 different uh answers, I guess, to this.
39:51

39:51 Uh, a lot of people go into being an
39:54

39:54 agent because they’re attracted to the
39:56

39:56 commission and they think they could do
39:57

39:57 it part-time. Is that true? Can you do
39:59

39:59 it part-time?
39:60

40:00 >> I mean, I bet some agents can, but I
40:02

40:02 don’t allow part-time agents on my team
40:04

40:04 is because the reason is when you’re
40:06

40:06 doing it part-time, first of all, your
40:09

40:09 your head is not into it all the time.
40:11

40:11 You have another business and that’s
40:13

40:13 where your mindset is. Um, and second of
40:16

40:16 all, you’re not really able to push like
40:19

40:19 you would on your business and succeed
40:22

40:22 if you’re not deciding to go allin. You
40:24

40:24 know, if you’re committed, then you need
40:27

40:27 to be committed. And um, being
40:30

40:30 successful with a part-time job is in
40:33

40:33 real estate, which requires so much from
40:36

40:36 the agent to succeed. You’re just making
40:38

40:38 it so much harder for you to succeed.
40:40

40:40 So, yes, you’re getting the income that
40:42

40:42 you need to get by, but you’re not
40:44

40:44 building your business. You’re just
40:46

40:46 using real estate as a crutch for your
40:47

40:47 income,
40:48

40:48 >> right?
40:48

40:48 >> It’s not a career at that point. It’s a
40:50

40:50 job.
40:50

40:50 >> I never thought of it as a good
40:52

40:52 part-time thing because you do have to
40:53

40:53 be breathing it. But speaking of, you
40:55

40:55 know, putting so much time and effort
40:57

40:57 into it. How do you what’s your work
40:58

40:58 life balance? Cuz you have three kids,
41:01

41:01 you travel a lot, now you have different
41:03

41:03 investments, uh, portfolio, and how do
41:06

41:06 you balance everything? What’s your
41:08

41:08 structure? Well, first of all, my
41:09

41:09 children are always first, and I’m never
41:11

41:11 going to put my business before my
41:13

41:13 children. Um, I’m fortunate that the
41:15

41:15 real estate industry is very, very good
41:17

41:17 to mothers because I don’t have to ask
41:20

41:20 anyone if I can take the day off because
41:22

41:22 my children are sick at home. I don’t
41:24

41:24 have to request permission to take a
41:26

41:26 vacation. So, being an independent, you
41:29

41:29 know, there’s pluses and minuses. The
41:30

41:30 minuses is that, you’re right, I have to
41:32

41:32 work to get my own money, but the plus
41:34

41:34 is that I can be there for my kids. So,
41:36

41:36 I feel as though being a realtor, I have
41:37

41:37 a better ability for a work life balance
41:40

41:40 than a mother that goes 9 to5 to an
41:42

41:42 office and and and can’t see her kids. I
41:44

41:44 pick up my kids from school. Um, I I
41:47

41:47 spend a lot of time with them. So, I’m
41:49

41:49 fortunate for the real estate industry
41:51

41:51 to give me that opportunity as a parent.
41:53

41:53 Um, but in terms of the day-to-day life,
41:55

41:55 it’s hectic. You know,
41:56

41:56 >> my family’s here from out of town.
41:58

41:58 They’re like, “More, you know what?
41:59

41:59 We’ve noticed that you never stop
41:60

41:60 working.” Like, people go home at the
42:01

42:01 end of the day and they stop working.
42:04

42:04 And I think I could do better with that.
42:06

42:06 Not that I’m saying the real estate
42:07

42:07 industry is like this. I should be
42:09

42:09 better with this. But I’m always
42:10

42:10 working. Even at home, I’m getting calls
42:12

42:12 about deals. And yes, I know how to put
42:14

42:14 my phone aside, have dinner with my
42:16

42:16 family. Yes, I know how to not take my
42:18

42:18 phone to karate class and watch my son
42:20

42:20 do karate. Holy. But I still still
42:23

42:23 working everywhere I go. On vacation
42:25

42:25 that you say I’m on vacation. I’m not
42:27

42:27 really on vacation. I mean, I am, but
42:28

42:28 I’m also at the pool negotiating a deal.
42:31

42:31 So, I take my business with me and
42:33

42:33 that’s good and bad, but as a parent, I
42:35

42:35 think it’s good.
42:36

42:36 >> Yeah. Well, okay. So, if you weren’t in
42:40

42:40 real estate and you had to pick another
42:41

42:41 career path, what do you think you would
42:43

42:43 have done?
42:43

42:43 >> Well, I was a professional poker player
42:45

42:45 and I can tell you that was my favorite
42:47

42:47 job. I was also a preschool teacher and
42:49

42:49 that’s also great. That’s also a great
42:51

42:51 job. But, uh I had
42:52

42:52 >> World Series though, right?
42:54

42:54 >> Well, I I mean I play for a living. I
42:56

42:56 World Series would be whatever you
42:58

42:58 consider it. I still had to go every day
42:59

42:59 and make money for a living uh in the
43:02

43:02 poker world, but it was just so much
43:04

43:04 fun. It was just easier to do it back
43:05

43:05 when you don’t have a lot of
43:06

43:06 responsibilities. When you’re in your
43:08

43:08 early 20s and you don’t have children,
43:10

43:10 you just have to pay your rent or
43:11

43:11 whatever than gambling for I usually
43:14

43:14 don’t like calling it gambling, but just
43:16

43:16 to make it easy. I mean, for a living is
43:18

43:18 kind of scary. Uh but also easier then.
43:21

43:21 Now it’s scary when I’m an adult and I
43:22

43:22 have responsibilities. But so I wouldn’t
43:24

43:24 go back to being a professional poker
43:26

43:26 player, but I did have the best time
43:28

43:28 ever. Um, and I probably will end up
43:31

43:31 retiring and being on the poker circuit,
43:33

43:33 going from tournament to tournament.
43:34

43:34 You’re going to see me in the
43:35

43:35 tournaments.
43:36

43:36 >> You’re so happy. I see the smile.
43:38

43:38 >> So much fun. It’s so much fun. I can do
43:40

43:40 it for hours. So, I think that will be
43:41

43:41 my retirement plan. I’m just going to
43:42

43:42 play poker again.
43:44

43:44 >> Was there ever any time in your career
43:46

43:46 where you were just like a little bit
43:47

43:47 scared or vulnerable and you felt like
43:49

43:49 you didn’t know what to do? And how did
43:51

43:51 you find your way out of it? I don’t
43:53

43:53 know if
43:53

43:53 >> there’s always those times, you know, it
43:55

43:55 can Here’s the thing also with real
43:57

43:57 estate, every deal is completely
43:58

43:58 different and you learn on the job,
44:00

44:00 right? You can be doing it for 12 years,
44:02

44:02 20 years, you get a transaction you’ve
44:04

44:04 never had before and it’s a puzzle piece
44:06

44:06 and now you have to make it work and
44:08

44:08 there you’re learning something new. Um
44:11

44:11 but uh I did have a specific transaction
44:14

44:14 um where there was a lot and there was
44:17

44:17 permits that were grandfathered in from
44:19

44:19 years ago and I had to go every week to
44:24

44:24 the county for the business and
44:27

44:27 development the planning and development
44:28

44:28 department and I had to meet with them
44:31

44:31 for this deal every week and I think I
44:34

44:34 didn’t end up um selling that uh deal.
44:38

44:38 It ended up going into auction.
44:40

44:40 >> Really?
44:40

44:40 >> Yeah. However, I learned so much from
44:43

44:43 those eight months of going to the
44:45

44:45 county that
44:47

44:47 >> that years later, I am still
44:49

44:49 implementing
44:50

44:50 all the knowledge I’ve learned from
44:53

44:53 those
44:54

44:54 >> months of me working on that deal. So,
44:57

44:57 my advice to brokers like, why did I do
44:60

44:60 this deal? And and oh wait, I’m going to
45:02

45:02 give you a cherry on top of this story
45:04

45:04 is that years later, I got interviewed
45:05

45:05 by a developer and he asked some
45:08

45:08 questions from another developer that
45:10

45:10 was in the room with him outside of the
45:12

45:12 interview to hire me. And I responded to
45:15

45:15 his questions because of all the
45:17

45:17 knowledge that I’ve learned from that
45:18

45:18 deal that I said, “Oh, you shouldn’t do
45:20

45:20 that. You need to go here and here and
45:21

45:21 here and tell them this and that.” And
45:23

45:23 they were like, “More, how do you know
45:24

45:24 all of this?” “Oh, I I’ve learned a lot
45:26

45:26 about this.” And I then I got a big deal
45:29

45:29 from that developer. Now I don’t know
45:31

45:31 for a fact if I got the deal because I
45:33

45:33 knew so much, but I can tell you it
45:35

45:35 definitely helped. So sometimes when the
45:37

45:37 deal didn’t go through and you think
45:39

45:39 that was a waste of time, that was a
45:40

45:40 waste of money. You might find that in
45:42

45:42 the future that deal ended up helping
45:44

45:44 you in ways you weren’t you didn’t know
45:45

45:45 at that time.
45:46

45:46 >> That’s what I mean personally I love
45:48

45:48 struggles because of that because they
45:50

45:50 create so much character that you know
45:52

45:52 you could choose to grow or you could
45:54

45:54 choose to not grow. And I think that
45:56

45:56 yeah, I think that’s incredible. I mean,
45:58

45:58 we were talking about that. I’ve I’ve
45:59

45:59 been going through a little bit of that
46:00

46:00 myself recently and it’s been one of the
46:02

46:02 best things as a person that I’ve ever
46:04

46:04 been through. But um and I’m very
46:06

46:06 thankful for that. So, what’s some of
46:09

46:09 the hardest lessons that I feel like
46:10

46:10 you’ve learned in in real estate?
46:13

46:13 >> I guess the hardest lesson to learn is
46:15

46:15 that, you know, don’t have any
46:18

46:18 expectations. You know, I think people
46:19

46:19 get hurt, especially brokers, they get
46:21

46:21 hurt real quick. If somebody that they
46:23

46:23 know and they were sure they were going
46:25

46:25 to list their home with them, um, didn’t
46:27

46:27 sell and now it becomes this like
46:29

46:29 offend. Oh, I’m so offended. Like, I
46:30

46:30 don’t have that at all. If you don’t
46:32

46:32 sell your home with me, we’re still
46:34

46:34 friends. I think you should sell your
46:35

46:35 home with me because I’ll do a really
46:36

46:36 great job for you. But
46:38

46:38 >> business and business and friends are
46:40

46:40 friends. You have to keep that separate.
46:42

46:42 And I think that is something that
46:43

46:43 realtors should know from the get-go.
46:45

46:45 like don’t stop talking to your friend
46:47

46:47 from high school because she didn’t sell
46:49

46:49 your house with you. Um stop taking
46:51

46:51 things so personally, right? So I think
46:54

46:54 that’s that’s number one. Um and in the
46:57

46:57 beginning in real estate, everyone takes
46:58

46:58 things real personal.
46:60

46:60 >> Um the second thing I’ve learned is that
47:02

47:02 um you can you can be the big shot one
47:06

47:06 day and you can be the you could be the
47:07

47:07 head hunter, you could be the top of the
47:09

47:09 p the the ball, but as long as you’re in
47:11

47:11 the game, you’re in the game.
47:13

47:13 >> Poker terms. Yeah, as long as you’re in
47:15

47:15 the game, you’re still in it. So, like,
47:17

47:17 don’t give up. And um and uh I’ve just
47:21

47:21 seen a lot of people give up along the
47:23

47:23 way because struggles are real.
47:24

47:24 >> Yeah.
47:25

47:25 >> And uh I’m here to say there’s always a
47:27

47:27 light at the end.
47:28

47:28 >> Do you have any influencers that you
47:30

47:30 like?
47:30

47:30 >> Um well, my agents are influencers
47:33

47:33 themselves. So, um I think that’s a
47:36

47:36 great way to build, I guess, your
47:39

47:39 business in today’s world. You know,
47:42

47:42 >> I think not being some sort, it doesn’t
47:45

47:45 have to be a lifestyle influencer. I
47:47

47:47 mean, I consider myself a little bit of
47:49

47:49 a lifestyle influencer cuz I have that
47:51

47:51 blog.
47:51

47:51 >> Oh, yeah.
47:52

47:52 >> But it could be anything as long as you
47:54

47:54 have an audience. What is an influencer?
47:56

47:56 It’s someone that has an audience. And
47:58

47:58 the reason that they’re considered an
47:59

47:59 influencer is because they influence a
48:01

48:01 large number of people, right? So if you
48:04

48:04 can build an audience and it doesn’t
48:06

48:06 have to be a shallow influencer, it can
48:09

48:09 just be an influencer that influences
48:11

48:11 regarding business decisions. An
48:12

48:12 influencer that I mean you’re an
48:13

48:13 influencer in my opinion.
48:15

48:15 >> Am I right?
48:17

48:17 >> I I don’t know. I
48:18

48:18 >> I think you’re an influencer. You
48:19

48:19 influence people and you have
48:20

48:20 >> you challenge people for sure.
48:22

48:22 >> Yeah. So I think having that is a
48:24

48:24 benefit and I think everyone should
48:25

48:25 consider how they can be an influencer
48:28

48:28 in their field.
48:30

48:30 How do you feel about the, you know,
48:32

48:32 this is kind of a I know the answer, but
48:34

48:34 I’m curious what you think. You know,
48:36

48:36 with the MLS, um, you have your own
48:39

48:39 insight. Back in the day, brokers had
48:41

48:41 their own insight on everything with Red
48:43

48:43 Fin, with Zillow, with sort of buyers
48:45

48:45 trying to cut the middleman out. How do
48:47

48:47 you feel brokers still having a, you
48:51

48:51 know, there’s still a need for brokers?
48:54

48:54 What’s that need? And why should people
48:57

48:57 call you rather than look up for their
48:59

48:59 own properties and you know do all the
49:01

49:01 work themselves?
49:02

49:02 >> Um well first of all um I think that um
49:05

49:05 what the person thinks that they know
49:08

49:08 based on Zillow or Red is not the actual
49:10

49:10 transaction. You know you might know the
49:13

49:13 year of the house and when it was built
49:15

49:15 but um do you know all the intricacities
49:17

49:17 of what the title commitment is going to
49:19

49:19 do if you leave it that way without
49:20

49:20 removing a section from it. Do you know
49:23

49:23 um you know you’d have a lot of
49:25

49:25 situations in a transaction that you
49:27

49:27 could potentially um trigger yourself to
49:30

49:30 lose a lot of money or potentially have
49:32

49:32 a situation that um the deal could be a
49:34

49:34 bust because of just trying to save a
49:36

49:36 little bit. You know,
49:37

49:37 >> I always say, “Oh, why should I hire a
49:40

49:40 realtor?” Well, if let me ask you a
49:41

49:41 question. If you’re in jail and they’re
49:43

49:43 going to send you to prison, are you on
49:44

49:44 a self-defense?
49:46

49:46 >> Are you going to represent yourself or
49:47

49:47 are you just going to hire an attorney?
49:49

49:49 you know, so real estate is a big
49:52

49:52 amount. It’s a large sum of money. It’s
49:54

49:54 it’s most of the people’s entire money
49:57

49:57 that they have in their lives is their
49:58

49:58 primary residence sits in it. Why would
50:00

50:00 you risk everything that you have um
50:04

50:04 potentially with a lawsuit that could
50:05

50:05 happen? Because people don’t realize
50:06

50:06 that when the deal ends, the liability
50:09

50:09 doesn’t end. Liability can go up to
50:11

50:11 seven years past the transaction. So,
50:13

50:13 Mr. seller can decide to not hire a
50:15

50:15 realtor, not know that he needs to fill
50:18

50:18 out the seller’s property disclosure in
50:19

50:19 full. Um, decide that he’s just going to
50:22

50:22 save money, sell his house for a million
50:25

50:25 dollars, not notify whatever on the
50:27

50:27 seller’s property disclosure only to get
50:29

50:29 sued, try to represent himself, and end
50:32

50:32 up losing all of his equity and all of
50:34

50:34 that to what? To save a couple of
50:36

50:36 percentage to have a professional that
50:38

50:38 does it not just because we have access
50:40

50:40 to the MLS. because we are involved in
50:43

50:43 education on the field. We have to have
50:46

50:46 specific number of hours on our license
50:48

50:48 of education to continue um and um
50:53

50:53 learning to grow and understand the
50:55

50:55 rules, the regulations and all the
50:57

50:57 potential pitfalls and that’s why this
50:59

50:59 is my job and Mr. Seller or Mr. Buyer,
51:02

51:02 it’s not their job. It’s just their
51:04

51:04 property.
51:05

51:05 >> I think it’s that Yeah. I mean the
51:08

51:08 advice that you give even when you just
51:11

51:11 Even when we’re, you know, shooting the
51:12

51:12 talking, the the advice that you
51:14

51:14 give, the information that, you know, is
51:16

51:16 so valuable that you’re not going to
51:18

51:18 find that on Red Fin or other websites
51:20

51:20 where you’re searching for yourself,
51:21

51:21 you’re also not going to have the
51:23

51:23 network that you have. You know, if
51:24

51:24 somebody needs a special inspector,
51:26

51:26 maybe there’s asbestous, maybe there’s
51:28

51:28 mold. You know, these are things that
51:29

51:29 don’t always come up. People don’t
51:31

51:31 really even do inspections for those two
51:33

51:33 things a lot of the time. Um, and they
51:36

51:36 could cost, you know, hundreds of
51:38

51:38 thousands of dollars to remediate if you
51:40

51:40 don’t catch it on time. Um, or during
51:42

51:42 the inspection, it could it should lower
51:44

51:44 your price if you’re
51:45

51:45 >> 100%. And I also have a lot of people
51:47

51:47 that I work with that can give you good
51:48

51:48 pricing for renovation and for for
51:51

51:51 basically everything. Anything realtors
51:54

51:54 are become like a directory for anything
51:56

51:56 to do with real estate. I would be your
51:60

51:60 address.
52:01

52:01 Uh, so I’ve seen that you’ve mentored a
52:03

52:03 lot of people. Uh, who mentored you and
52:06

52:06 what did they give you?
52:08

52:08 >> Um, wow, that’s a that’s a big question.
52:11

52:11 Um, well, I’m going to sound like, you
52:13

52:13 know, those like I guess TV shows, but
52:16

52:16 uh my biggest mentor was my grandmother
52:18

52:18 who passed away a few years ago. And and
52:21

52:21 she wasn’t a mentor for real estate. She
52:23

52:23 was mentor for my life. You know, she
52:25

52:25 taught me how to be a good person. And
52:27

52:27 that’s why this whole conversation, we
52:29

52:29 keep asking me what makes a good broker.
52:31

52:31 It’s who they are as a person first. Uh,
52:33

52:33 so I’m definitely going to give my
52:34

52:34 grandmother chops for being my biggest
52:35

52:35 mentor. Um, in terms of real estate, I
52:38

52:38 learn from everyone. You know I am not
52:41

52:41 just the broker that comes and talks and
52:43

52:43 speaks to others. I like to learn too. I
52:46

52:46 learn from you, from everyone I go to. I
52:48

52:48 go to all these conferences around the
52:50

52:50 world so that I can also not just teach
52:53

52:53 but also learn and I take advice from
52:55

52:55 everybody that I meet um and I implement
52:58

52:58 it in my business. So I would say my
53:01

53:01 mentors have been all the people I’ve
53:03

53:03 heard over the last 12 years that have
53:05

53:05 given me advice um and there there is
53:10

53:10 one particular person and this is a
53:13

53:13 woman I met at a conference and she told
53:15

53:15 she told me just one sentence and I
53:17

53:17 think I just took it with me because
53:18

53:18 it’s really helped my business. She said
53:19

53:19 to her I congratulated her for her
53:21

53:21 success in real estate and being a
53:23

53:23 broker and she is this big hot shot. She
53:26

53:26 closed a lot of deals and she’s older
53:28

53:28 and she goes to me, “Oh, more do not
53:31

53:31 compliment me on how many transactions
53:33

53:33 I’ve done. Compliment me that I’ve saved
53:35

53:35 money and over the years I’ve bought
53:36

53:36 investment properties with my
53:38

53:38 commissions and now I own over a 100red
53:40

53:40 properties and that’s how I have passive
53:43

53:43 income in my retirement. You should
53:45

53:45 congratulate me for that, not for my
53:47

53:47 transactions.” And I took that with me.
53:49

53:49 And I guess that’s when I started
53:51

53:51 pushing on buying more investment
53:53

53:53 properties for myself because if her if
53:56

53:56 after she’s been awarded every single
53:58

53:58 award for being a lifetime achievement
53:60

54:00 broker and if her success is the
54:02

54:02 properties that she’s purchased, not the
54:04

54:04 one that she sold for herself, then
54:06

54:06 that’s for me something that I’m taking
54:08

54:08 with me.
54:09

54:09 >> That’s long-term thinking. I think you
54:10

54:10 know originally this podcast was called
54:12

54:12 the long-term real estate investor
54:13

54:13 because it was trying to the idea was to
54:16

54:16 show people that investing for long-term
54:18

54:18 is very different than like you know
54:20

54:20 immediate returns. I think the culture
54:22

54:22 was really about instant gratification
54:24

54:24 and a lot of real estate people that are
54:26

54:26 in it for the long run look at things
54:28

54:28 differently than the instant
54:29

54:29 gratification of a high return year one
54:33

54:33 or year within the first 5 years type of
54:35

54:35 thing. So no, it’s very interesting.
54:37

54:37 What habits do you have you created in
54:39

54:39 your life? Like what are three key daily
54:41

54:41 habits for you that you know you really
54:43

54:43 have to do every day to set yourself up
54:45

54:45 for success?
54:46

54:46 >> Um I definitely have to use my calendar.
54:49

54:49 Like I can no longer just have meetings
54:51

54:51 random. I have I am I’ve now become
54:54

54:54 bound to my calendar. And I think that
54:56

54:56 just happens the more business that you
54:58

54:58 get. You have to live by the calendar.
54:60

54:60 Uh but really it’s also about giving
55:02

55:02 gratitude. So, I always make sure and I
55:04

55:04 learned that from the ninja. There’s a
55:05

55:05 ninja program on being a realtor and
55:07

55:07 anyone who doesn’t know that, I highly
55:08

55:08 recommend looking into it. Uh I I
55:12

55:12 communicate. So, I have to either reach
55:13

55:13 out to my clients. Three people a day I
55:15

55:15 pick up the phone and talk to them that
55:16

55:16 I haven’t spoken to for a couple of
55:17

55:17 years. Four people a week. I’m going to
55:20

55:20 write them a letter. I’m going to send
55:22

55:22 them something. I’m going to give them a
55:24

55:24 Starbucks gift card for something I saw
55:26

55:26 that they just that they just on
55:28

55:28 Facebook or Instagram. They got married.
55:30

55:30 They had a baby. I don’t know. Whatever
55:31

55:31 it is, maybe more than a Starbucks for
55:32

55:32 that, but you know what I mean. I try to
55:34

55:34 give them personal attention and I
55:36

55:36 always keep in flow and connection with
55:37

55:37 my clients.
55:39

55:39 >> I love everything ninja. So that’s why
55:41

55:41 you saw me smiling. I used to say I was
55:43

55:43 a ninja, but I was I’m like the worst at
55:45

55:45 tiptoeing. I crash into everything. But
55:48

55:48 that’s that’s interesting. I’ve heard
55:49

55:49 you say something about that. There’s a
55:51

55:51 book.
55:51

55:51 >> There is a book.
55:52

55:52 >> Ninja something.
55:53

55:53 >> Um
55:54

55:54 >> it’s by Larry Kendall. He’s very I saw
55:56

55:56 it. I saw it yesterday. I wrote it down
55:58

55:58 actually in my notes to buy it. I’m
55:60

55:60 trying to read a bunch of books um right
56:02

56:02 now. Uh so what’s an advice a piece of
56:05

56:05 advice you would give to somebody
56:06

56:06 starting out in real estate? And that’s
56:08

56:08 >> build a database. And when I mean build
56:11

56:11 your database, I don’t mean having
56:12

56:12 people just on your contacts on your
56:14

56:14 phone cuz I do have it there. I told you
56:16

56:16 it’s important. But you also have to
56:17

56:17 have it either in a CRM, which is a
56:20

56:20 client relationship management tool, or
56:22

56:22 in I don’t care if it’s in Excel. I
56:25

56:25 don’t care where it’s on your word
56:26

56:26 document if it’s in your notebook, but
56:28

56:28 you need to have not only this person’s
56:30

56:30 phone number and their email address.
56:33

56:33 You need to know where they live. You
56:35

56:35 need to have in there what the name of
56:36

56:36 their partner is, if you know it, what
56:38

56:38 their name of their children, of their
56:40

56:40 dog. Um, you need to have as much
56:43

56:43 information about when was the last time
56:45

56:45 they told you that they were going to
56:47

56:47 they thinking about selling. Did they
56:49

56:49 tell you, “Oh, we’re not ready yet.
56:51

56:51 we’re probably going to list towards we
56:53

56:53 want to list towards the spring and
56:55

56:55 you’re talking to them in November. A
56:56

56:56 lot of brokers don’t remember to call
56:58

56:58 throughout that time to get to to the
57:00

57:00 time where the spring is coming over.
57:02

57:02 So, I think having a good database and
57:04

57:04 looking at your database often if I
57:06

57:06 don’t have a deal where I’m like worried
57:08

57:08 about business, I’ll open my database
57:09

57:09 and I’ll just look at all the people
57:11

57:11 that I know and I’ll find some person.
57:14

57:14 I’m like, “Oh, I know who I can call. I
57:17

57:17 haven’t spoken to Eduardo for a while
57:19

57:19 and I’m just going to give him a call.
57:21

57:21 And then I’ll sometimes even ask the
57:23

57:23 people, hey, I’m like I told you, I’m
57:26

57:26 completely honest. And if it’s a slow
57:27

57:27 market, I’ll tell my clients, hey buddy,
57:29

57:29 you know, it’s been kind of slow. Do you
57:30

57:30 have anyone that might want to buy or
57:32

57:32 sell? Let me tell your friends want to
57:34

57:34 help you. They just need to know. They
57:36

57:36 You need to be able to tell them, “Hey,
57:38

57:38 >> I need some help here. Send me a deal. I
57:40

57:40 so appreciate it. I’ll take such good
57:42

57:42 care of your friends.” Yeah.
57:43

57:43 >> And sometimes that’s all people need to
57:45

57:45 hear and they will want to help you, but
57:47

57:47 people are afraid to ask for help. I
57:49

57:49 >> mean, that’s part of your assertive
57:50

57:50 nature. I’m sure that’s led to a lot of
57:52

57:52 success.
57:53

57:53 >> Well, that’s uh that’s the wrap-up
57:55

57:55 question. So,
57:56

57:56 >> can I promote myself for 30 seconds?
57:58

57:58 >> Yeah, of course. Definitely.
57:60

57:60 >> Well, um I would love to help you and
58:02

58:02 all of your family members and everybody
58:03

58:03 you know in any type of real estate
58:05

58:05 deal. And uh my website is team Denver
58:08

58:08 homes, but you can find me as more
58:10

58:10 zooker on every social media platform.
58:12

58:12 and please reach out to me.
58:15

58:15 >> Uh, and that’s a wrap. Thanks everybody.
58:17

58:17 And thanks Mark. I appreciate you doing
58:19

58:19 this.

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