POWERS

Moses Kagan is the Co-Founder and Head of Adaptive Realty, a Los Angeles-based development, and property management group. Since 2018, Moses has overseen the repositioning of 80 properties in Los Angeles and grown Adaptive from $0 to $110M of property under management. Moses joins Chris for his third appearance on The FORT Podcast.

In this two-part episode, they discuss the decision to not deploy a fund he raised in early 2020 and his new core strategy. They also explore rent control vs non-rent control. How he talks to his family about wealth and potentially taking over his business, learnings from ReConvene, and where we go from here....

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Ci-4AXwSZOI

(2:51) - Moses’ journey through ReTwit

(4:24) - What do you think the next 2-3 years look like for you in this online journey?

(6:35) - How do you explain this Twitter world you’ve built to people not in the know?

(8:04) - What your experience putting on ReConvene and what does it mean for the greater RE industry?

(12:54) - Was there anything that stood out from the feedback you got from the event that you’ll be implementing going forward?

(14:47) - Thoughts on ‘Quality’ when it comes to Moses’ expectations for doing a deal to lead into his new buy strategy

(21:28) - Bank’s attitude toward owning an asset for a year vs. having a loan on the asset

(25:36) - Spreadsheets vs. reality: experienced investors are losing out to inexperienced investors

(27:07) - How are you processing all of the craziness in the CA real estate market?

(29:52) - Moses’ Fund and the investor reactions to not spending any of it over Covid

(35:20) - Dealing with the eviction moratorium in LA

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

Kendal Harazny is a Principal and Co-founder of Wexford Developments, a real estate development, investment, and management company. Wexford has completed over $500 million of development, currently has $500 million in assets under management, and has an upcoming development pipeline exceeding $400 million, including over 900 units breaking ground in 2022. Focused on Western Canada and the Southwestern United States, Wexford is primarily involved in urban mixed-use residential projects but has also developed substantial land, retail and industrial assets.

In this episode, Kendal and Chris discuss an array of topics such as the differences in Canada vs. the United States and what it takes to develop a generational asset. They also chat about how Wexford identifies and selects projects to work on and why design matters and how to communicate to neighboring stakeholders and much more! 

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

Watch this Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/DN61kAEFq-4

(02:08) - Kendal’s Background and Career

(04:10) - What are the top things that create bad deals in development?

(06:10) - More on Kendal’s Background

(10:44) - What are the biggest differences between Canada and the United States?

(13:02) - Getting Project Approval in Canada

(15:25) - How do you handle emotional opinions from the community when doing development?

(17:53) - Incorporating Feedback From the Community & Rezoning

(19:48) - How long is the process from submitting to the city for approval?

(21:45) - Is everything you do for rent or do you have for sale opportunities?

(22:13) - How do you capitalize deals and think about debt?

(24:00) - Why don’t you bring US debt into Canada?

(25:07) - Cultural Differences in Lending

(26:54) - How is recourse structured?

(28:28) - How do you think about parking for your projects?

(31:35) - Thoughts on Building EV Stalls

(33:49) - Is a lot of your equity coming from Canada or is it global?

(34:50) - The Toronto & Vancouver Real Estate Market

(36:52) - What experiences are you having as it relates to building and the supply issues we’re seeing?

(40:27) - What do you look for in markets before entering?

(43:16) - How do you know you’re going into the best location?

(45:07) - How do you think about hiring architects?

(48:49) - The Importance of the Cohesion Between Architects, GC’s and Engineers

(52:02) - What matters to you when picking General Contractors?

(54:39) - What is ‘crystalizing the promote?’

(1:00:08) - Kendal’s Hunt for an Acquisition Manager

The Fort is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

Chris chats with Keith Wasserman, Founder of Gelt Inc. which is one of the fastest-growing real estate companies in the country. Gelt focuses on purchasing multi-family communities, storage facilities, and RV parks. You can connect with Keith by email at [email protected] or @keith_wasserman on Twitter.

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

(01:05) - Keith’s Background and Career Founding Gelt

(09:59) -  Investing In The Person vs. The Project

(11:14) - Why are you focused on multi-family and mobile home parks as a business model?

(15:14) - How do you think about the future of renting and ownership?

(18:10) - The Biggest Changes in Tech and Living We See For The Future

(23:10) - Other Asset Classes Gelt Focuses On

(31:05) - How do you go about entering new markets?

(33:49) - Building Relationships 

(36:44) - YPO Global Real Estate Fair

(37:52) - Gelt's Process of Finding Investors & Securing Deals

(45:40) - How has your job changed as the company grows?

(50:27) - Where will the company be at the “end”?

(52:55) - Keith’s Thoughts on Growth

(54:07) - Origins of The Name Gelt, Thoughts On Charity, and Both Their Thoughts On The Future Of Education

(1:02:15) - Advice For Folks Thinking About Starting Their Own Business

The Fort is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

Peter Lohmann is the founder & CEO of RL Property Management, a residential property management company in Columbus, Ohio. Peter graduated with a Bachelor’s in electrical engineering and spent 5 years as a control systems engineer before founding RL Property Management in 2013. RL Property Management now manages over 500 units for central Ohio real estate investors.

On this episode, Chris and Peter deep dive into the operations of a residential PM business. They discuss his thoughts on Airbnb entering the PM space, What technology the PM industry needs, and how he bought & valued 2 PM companies.

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1Ho_tj32xus

(02:27) - What brings a person to own a property management business in Ohio?

(05:01) - Peter’s Pathway To Breakeven & Profitability

(07:10) - What do you mean by “spending time on bigger pockets”?

(08:27) - Who was your first hire?

(10:09) - Where do you stand today since starting in 2013?

(11:44) - Peter’s Flat Fee Model

(16:54) - Are there other revenue line items you’re charging outside of that flat fee?

(19:03) - Does the client expect you to get a property ‘rent-ready’ or is that on them to do and then come back to you?

(20:11) - How much maintenance do you have going on at any given time and what do their days look like?

(22:22) - Are the techs ‘jack of all trades’ or do you look for specialists in electrical or plumbing?

(23:08) - Thoughts On The Current Labor Market When it Comes to Blue-Collar Trades

(27:23) - How do you approach maintenance when it comes to accountability? Is this a landlord responsibility or tenant?

(29:51) - Dealing With Owners Leaving You and Then Coming Back

(35:32) - What are you doing with automation and technology in your business?

Buildium | Airtable | Process Street | Zapier | Lead Simple | Notion

(41:50) - Who contributes to the company Wiki and how do you keep it from getting bloated?

(44:31) - Is it better to own 5 SFR’s or one 5-unit building?

(46:05) - Is your management radically different based on the number of units a client owns?

(48:01) - Is there anything that really needs to be built on the software side to better streamline your industry?

(52:53) - Peter’s Experience & Processes for Buying Other Property Management Businesses

(59:09) - Do you get to speak to clients of a prospective business during due diligence?

(1:00:01) - Was there high churn from the acquisitions?

(1:01:01) - Thoughts on Airbnb in the Residential Property Management Space

(1:07:39) - Twitter: What lessons did you take away from Greg Crabtree & What was the conversation like when your partner stepped away to run your engineering company?

Simple Numbers by Greg Crabtree

(1:13:40) - Peter’s Side Hobby of Restoring Historic Windows

(1:16:53) - What’s the best way for people to get in touch?

Twitter: www.Twitter.com/PSLohmann

Peter's Website: www.Peterlohmann.com

Owner occupied Podcast

Alex Lieberman is the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Morning Brew, a multi-platform business media brand. In October 2020, Alex & his co-founder sold a majority stake of Morning Brew to Business Insider for a reported $75 million. Today, Morning Brew provides quick and digestible business content to more than 3 million users, successfully changing the way young professionals engage with the business world. 

On this episode, Chris and Alex deep dive into the founding story of Morning Brew, the future of Morning Brew, and Alex's transition to Chairman from CEO. They also discuss how newsletters and online media companies are valued, how crypto/blockchain/NFT's will impact media, and much more!

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

(01:52) - Alex’s Journey Starting & Growing Morning Brew

(08:02) - What did the newsletter space look like in 2015?

(12:44) - What was the process for putting in a day’s worth of content?

(16:09) -  Where did you end your senior year of college and when did you come to the conclusion to go full time into MB?

(24:30) - Where was the business at when you decided to leave Morgan Stanley and how did you initially monetize?

(31:32) - How did the MB referral program work?

(37:20) - Was there an inflection point along the way that caused the balloon effect to happen?

(41:22) - How do you price ads today?

(44:21) - What was the process to come to the decision to sell MB?

(52:34) - Did you do anything wild after you sold?

(56:55) - How is a newsletter valued?

(58:17) - Alex’s Transition Out of the CEO Role

(1:07:28) - What’s the goal for The Brew going forward for your 3 million users?

(1:08:44) -  How does Crypto and Blockchain impact MB?

(1:17:09) - How do you think about the future of media and truth?

(1:21:44) -  How can people get in touch with you?

Follow on Alex on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/businessbarista

Listen to the Founders Journal Podcast

Morning Brew

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

On this episode, Chris does a full deep dive into the world of fees, including what they are, should you be charging fees at all, and when, fee misconceptions, the benefits of a profitable company, and the pathway to building a world-class REPE operating platform. Chris also answers your questions submitted on Twitter and much more!

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

(01:16) - Why Fees?

(02:45) - Misconceptions: GP’s Charging Fees and Making a Profit is Bad

(05:20) - Charging Market Fees and Getting Great Returns

(06:49) - What are the benefits of running a profitable company?

(10:05) - GP’s That Don’t Charge or Offer Reduced Fees are Hurting their OpCo in the Long-Run

(11:01) - The Difference Between OpCo’s and Assets

(13:18) - Understand Where Your Company is: Fee Structuring for Young Companies

(15:03) - How to Charge Fees and How to Talk About What’s Behind the Fees

(17:43) - How do we know what we can charge for and what we cannot?

(21:24) - Fort Capital’s Fee Strategy Early On

(23:35) - An Outline of How to Think About Fees and Example Scenarios

(30:27) - GP’s That Don’t Charge What They’re Worth

(31:25) - Ways to Think About What You Should Be Charging

(36:04) - Running Your Company as a Break-Even Business vs. a Profit-Generating Business

(37:53) - Specific Fees to Think About

(49:18) - Real Estate Private Equity: Fees Charged to Allocate Capital to GP’s vs. Fees Charged by GP’s Who Actually Operate

(50:47) - Charging the Right Structure of Fees for Your Business

(53:50) - Twitter Question: What’s an example of a deal you’ve done and how the fee dollars are allocated?

(59:00) - Third-Party Providers 

(1:00:32) - Twitter Question: Can an established sponsor with capital charge an acquisition fee that’s equal to their contribution?

(1:04:16) - Twitter Question: How have Fort Capital’s fees changed over time?

(1:07:56) - Twitter Question: 3rd Party Management & Leasing vs. Vertically Integrating

(1:10:14) - Wrap Up

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

John Blatchford is the Owner of Kunst, a real estate developer in Cincinnati, Ohio that renovates historic buildings into city apartments by utilizing historic tax credits and Opportunity Zone investments. This episode is a deep dive into The Historic Real Estate Tax Credit, John breaks down the entire process from what buildings qualify, how to apply, the difference between the state and federal credits, how they use the credits, and much more. Enjoy!

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

John on Twitter

Kunst 

(02:09) - John’s Background and Career

(05:37) - What are you focused on at Kunst?

(06:38) - The Cincinatti Market

(08:40) - The Historic Tax Credit

(09:47) - How do LP’s benefit from this Tax Credit?

(11:35) - How do you use the credit?

(12:12) - How do you begin the process of getting the credit?

(13:56) - How often does the state approve these credit applications?

(14:17) - What work has been done before applying?

(15:39) - What are the things you did wrong on the first deal that are easy fixes on deal 14 and onward?

(16:49) - Do you have to own the property before submitting an application or can you be under contract?

(17:30) - Does anyone actually come to visit the property from SHIPO?

(18:07) - How much of the building needs to be ‘saved’ in order to qualify for the tax credit?

(19:38) - How vacant are these properties when you acquire them?

(20:39) - If a building is totally bombed out, do renovations have to match the aesthetics of the time or can it be built to look more modern?

(21:11) - Why do states and federal governments care so much about preserving the historical nature of these buildings?

(22:28) - Is there a point where the building is in such poor condition where you have to demo it?

(23:07) - Would a ground-up development require a historic-style building to go up?

(36:04) - Do you ever sell the credit in whole?

(37:12) - Is there an online marketplace where you can list these credits for sale?

(40:57) - Is there a place people can go to see all the federal tax credits that were awarded in a year to try and buy them?

(42:12) - Who are you usually selling your federal credits to?

(51:04) - How often do you see projects that are missing out on these tax credits?

(52:18) - What would it cost to hire a consultant to work on getting these credits?

(52:45) - How would you find a consultant?

(53:23) - Is there anything within landscaping that falls under the criteria?

(53:40) - How long does a typical renovation take you?

(58:30) - Do you have a lot of competition in your market?

(59:26) - Do you have the runway to do a lot of projects in your market?

(59:52) - Do you have a favorite historical building?

(1:00:26) - John’s Cincinnati Preservation Collective

(1:01:00) - Are there any political or governmental risks that keep you up right now?

(1:01:56) - How do you project job creation?

(1:02:37) - Who is usually the owner of the building before you enter the picture?

(1:03:41) - What do conversations with public owners look like?

(1:04:20) - Can you get the credit for ground-up dev?

(1:04:34) - Is there anything you’ve learned along the way when creating your budget?

(1:06:07) - Have you come across any treasures in these old buildings?

(1:07:49) - What are the biggest differences in how people used to build things back then?

(1:09:50) - What buildings can get these credits?

(1:11:21) - Is there a yearly influx of these buildings getting approved with the 50-year existence requirement?

(1:12:29) - Can you get a building out of a historic designation?

(1:13:02) - What’s your end goal?

(1:13:30) - Are there any resources that people can learn more about this industry?

The Ohio Dept. of Development

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

On this solo episode, Chris breaks down what would cause someone to sell an investment property or cash-flowing asset. He also discusses why different entities will decide to sell, such as funds or merchant developers. He stresses the importance of building a track record of selling, and how that played into the success of Fort Capital. He also discusses the process by which Fort Capita approaches a sale and experiences they've had. Enjoy!

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/ 

(01:57) - Who and what are we selling?

(02:30) - What are some reasons to sell?

(04:10) - Misalignment & Partnerships

(04:59) - You’re Doing Larger Deals

(05:43) - Satisfying Estate Issues

(06:09) - The Market is High and The Offer is Great

(06:38) - There are Better Opportunities for Capital

(07:18) - Taking Profits

(08:55) - Changing Market Conditions

(10:31) - Cross-Collateralized Deals

(11:10) - Taking risk Off The Table

(11:26) - Real Estate Depreciation

(12:05) - Investor’s Preferred Time Horizon

(13:13) - Tax Reasons

(13:38) - Why funds, REITs, and Merchant Developers Will Sell

(15:01) - You’ve Aggregated Enough Assets

(16:12) - What does selling do for an investment company?

(18:15) - Building a Track Record

(23:04) - Ownership Types and Incentive Structures

(30:08) -  Fort Capital’s Experience in Selling Portfolios

(32:29) - The Process by Which Fort Capital Sells

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts.

Bill D'Alessandro is the Founder / CEO at Elements Brands, a parent brand that owns and acquires e-commerce companies. Bill founded Elements Brands in 2010 and has scaled to 8 figures of revenue, 50+ employees, and 51,000 square feet of office/warehouse. Elements Brands is vertically integrated and they own and operate all their brands. They have a team of in-house experts in digital marketing, branding, wholesale sales, customer retention, and financial analysis. Their supply chain and logistics teams manufacture and ship thousands of orders each day to customers around the world.

On this episode, Chris and Bill discuss Elements Brands and why Bill chose vertical integration, with a rabbit hole into how that has played out so well for them given the current supply chain challenges facing the globe. They have a great discussion on the 'Amazon Seller' model and where that plays a role in the companies Bill looks at purchasing. They break down Bill's strategy when acquiring brands and what that process is like for the seller. They also discuss how Bill landed on Petcare and skincare for his core products, Culture Index, digital marketing, and more. Enjoy!

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/_ekX3rEf4iY

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

(02:20) - Bill’s Background and Career 

(04:02) - How did reading 4 Hour Work Week impact you?

(06:04) - Building KP Elements

(08:07) - What is Elements Brands and how is it structured?

(09:51) - Element’s Berkshire Hathaway Angle

(10:25) - What’s your day-to-day focus as CEO?

(11:13) - Why did you choose to pursue vertical integration?

(12:51) - Why do more folks not do vertical integration?

(15:13) - How did you land on skincare and petcare as your core products?

(18:15) - Discussion On The ‘Amazon Seller’ Model

(25:49) - Bill’s Process When Buying Businesses and His Ownership Strategy

(27:12) - Valuing the Business

(30:57) - Are you ever paying a premium for a great brand?

(32:20) - How does your deal flow operate?

(33:56) - What happens from the initial verbal agreement to the day you own the business?

(36:00) - The Financials Side of Deals

(38:26) - Organizational Structures

(39:55) - Elements’ Employee Makeup

(43:10) - Ingesting The Acquired Companies Teams

(43:48) -  Culture Index

(46:34) - What’s going on with Facebook and Apple and online advertising?

(57:50) - How many of your 60 people are Marketing & SEO?

(59:50) - How are you thinking about our current supply chain issues?

(1:04:03) - Is there a solution on the horizon in terms of having the ports operate longer hours?

(1:07:39) - What’s your end goal for Elements Brands?

(1:09:54) - What do most people get wrong when starting their first product?

(1:11:43) - Is there a way to start sales before putting a lot of advertising dollars at risk?

(1:13:20) - Teaching Entrepreneurship Through Action

(1:15:28) - What advice would you give someone starting out in your industry?

(1:16:11) - Is there a book you would recommend?

Plain Talk by Ken Iverson

(1:18:36) - How can people reach you or Elements Brands?

Bill's Personal Website

Elements Brands

Bill on Twitter

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts

Born and raised in South Philadelphia to a single mother, Ayesha is now a multi-millionaire in Stock, Real Estate, and as a Franchise Business Owner. As an Economic Activist, she encourages everyone to invest their money in themselves and their neighborhoods.

On this episode, Ayesha discusses her upbringing and how she was able to escape poverty through Real Estate, and her goals of helping others do the same. She and Chris discuss her RE philosophy, how she manages her assets, the impact of the past 18 months, her #1 message: "Own some shit" and much more. Enjoy!

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/z51ByEcm23M

Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris

Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com

Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/

Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/

(02:17) - Ayesha’s Childhood in South Philadelphia and Career Background

(10:19) - Entrepreneurship By Hook or By Crook

(11:12) - Trial and Error: Money Management

(13:55) - “You gotta own some shit”

(16:39) - Thoughts on Gentrification

(21:10) - Mud to Millions

(24:55) - How did money play a role in the broader community growing up?

(29:33) - What do you mean when you say “change your mindset” when talking about money?

(35:44) - How Ayesha Built Her RE Portfolio

(41:24) - How do you think about cash flow & appreciation?

(44:20) - The Social Impact Mindset When Setting Rents

(46:22) - Ayesha’s Online RE Deal in LA and Goals in California

(52:44) - Ayesha’s Annual Net Worth Review & What’s Next

(59:38) -  Thoughts on NIMBYism and Affordable Housing

(1:01:34) - What has the last 18 months taught you about the world?

(1:06:16) - How can FORT listeners spread the Mud 2 Millions Message?

Mud 2 Millions Book

Mud2Millions.com

(1:06:54) - Do you have a morning routine?

(1:07:31) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?

(1:08:06) - If you had a billboard for the world to see, what would you put?

(1:08:22) - How can people find you?

Twitter: www.Twitter.com/AyeshaSelden

Instagram: www.Instagram.com/AyeshaSelden

The FORT is produced by Johnny Peterson & Straight Up Podcasts