Real Estate Addicts

In this episode of REA Willie Mandrell of the Mandrell Companies explains how he started investing in real estate with a small loan from a cousin and built a rental portfolio of over 25 properties! In the time since, he’s also built a successful real estate brokerage and has continued to grow into development. Willie touches on rehab costs, property management, and buying section 8 / low-income rental housing. We had a ton of fun recording this episode & we hope you enjoy it too!

In this episode Marc, Dan & Ray get some things off their chest and implore “the community” to insist on zoning contingencies. They discus the mechanics of a zoning contingency and then walk listeners step-by-step with #’s through a recent Choose Boston deal that was permitted and flipped

Ted Tye, Managing Partner & Co-Founder at National Development joins REA for a wide ranging discussion on what it takes to become a successful developer and how he’s helped to build National Development into one of the most respected development firms in New England. Ted brings us back to the firms first deal in 1983 and tells us how he got started in the industry. He shares his outlook on the market, tips on building a resilient business in a cyclical industry and offers his best advice for those looking to get into real estate development. This episode is a must listen!

#19 Michael Procopio, VP Development at the Procopio Companies on Developing in Gateway Cities by Marc Savatsky, Ray Hurteau, Dan Rubin

The Real Estate Addicts are joined by Attorney Nick Nardone, Partner at Touchstone Closing for an in-depth conversation about the myriad of important legal considerations a developer should be mindful of. We cover topics ranging from: •Title – Do you need title insurance and is there a way to buy it more inexpensively? • Understanding the process for condominium conversion. What is a master deed? • Condominium disputes and what is a Condominium Super-Lien? • Co-Op versus Condos and why does Marc HATE Co-Ops • Advice on buying a building with tenants? • What are notification requirements prior to converting to condos? • Why chasing foreclosure sales is often a waste of time. • What special considerations go into buying a property via an estate sale? Does it have to be advertised on MLS?

Ross Trethewey, founder and lead engineer for TE2 Engineering and Home Technology Expert on “This Old House” joins REA to talk mechanical engineering and smart home tech. We begin with a discussion on sustainability and identify the easiest and most effective ways to make your buildings more cost efficient to run and environmentally friendly to operate. Next, we dive into a discussion on basic options with regard to home heating and cooling systems from gas fired furnaces, to “combi units”, electric heat pumps and VRF units and how they each compare with regard to upfront installation costs and operational costs. From there we jump into a discussion on the best smart home features. Other topics covered include: Why is the temperature on a thermostat alone often a poor indicator of comfort? Why are so few people satisfied with the thermal comfort in their home? What is indoor air-quality? Why is it critical for buildings need to “breath”? How can I measure indoor air quality in my home? What are the most common mistakes Ross sees builders making on the MEP side? What are some strategies to keep HVAC systems quiet? What’s up with solar? Is it worth considering? How has battery technology changed the game in terms of solar? How do driveway snow melt systems work? Are they effective? Is induction cooking worth considering?

Michael Olson, Managing Principal at Rhino Capital Advisors LLC joins hosts Dan, Ray & Marc to talk about developing office product and the unique features of that sector. Mike explains how he got started in real estate and how Rhino Capital sources their deals from. Mike tries to avoid heavily marketed deals and tells us that most of his deals start with a simple question, “Would you have any interest in selling?” Mike explains one of Rhinos core principals which is ensuring that the real estate meets the business needs of the users, rather than the other way around. We go over some common commercial real estate acronyms, discus typical lease terms, tenant-fit outs and we compare the metro office market to suburban market. Finally, Mike talks about the pros and cons of starting a fund and what it takes to attract institutional capital.

Brian Gregory is a talented architect who specializes in Urban Planning and practices at Gamble Associates. His firm was recently engaged by the BPDA and the City of Boston to help spearhead the City’s new masterplanning effort, PLAN: East Boston. The conversation was wide ranging and interesting throughout. Topics covered include: Why is Boston’s City Hall so ugly? What does an urban planner do? Why are triple deckers are so prevalent in Boston? What is form based code? What does performing a re-zoning and new master plan entail? Does more parking encourage more cars? What are Maisonettes and how do they support street level activation? What happened to Wall St. when plannners loosens the zoning reigns? Was the development of Bostons Seaport a missed opportunity for urban planners? Is Air BNB good for cities?

We’re excited to have Tim White of J.L. Dunn & Company join us to discus the unique challenges of Being a General Contractor in Boston and the evolution of the construction business. We covered a wide range to topics including: What’s the difference between a GC and CM? Are there any true GC’s left out there? Is the pendulum swinging back? Is it challenging to get multiple bids in a market where everyone is extremely busy? How has the skilled labor shortage affected Tim’s business in Boston? Do you feel that the quality of drawings has diminished over the years? What do you think accounts for that & how does it affect your jobs. Recommendations for a developer on hiring a contractor? What questions should they ask? What’s the difference between GMP and lump sum and are there situations where one is better than the other? Developers are sometimes lured by a low conceptual level budget and then come to find out pricing is much higher. What advice do you have for developers to avoid falling into such a trap?

The Real Estate Addicts are joined onstage by Ricky Beliveau of Volnay Capital for a live-podcast at Boston Largest Real Estate Networking Event, The Real Estate Guild! We go over basics of finding investors for your first deal and the different ways you can structure that kind of loan. We discus the differences between being a custom homebuilder and a spec developer and the challenges inherent in each. We delve into the stressful side of being a ddeveloper and share a few of the many things that keep us up at night.

In this episode the Real Estate Addicts talk with Jeremiah O’Neill & Rens Hayes of H+O Structural Engineering fame about the ways a strong structural team can impact a development. We discus structural considerations developers should keep in mind during their due diligence, the various framing options a building can utilize (i.e. 4 over 1, 5 over 2, etc.) as well as their limitations and cost impacts. Finally, we conclude with a game of “help me avoid looking stupid” where Jeremiah and Rens define some common terms and engineering principals.

In 2009 Jason started his own real estate investment and development group that would later become, The Cincotta Companies. He cut his teeth renovating residential apartment buildings in the North End before endeavoring to build out a high design boutique scale apartment portfolio which started with 26 West Broadway a 31 unit ground up steel and concrete building in South Boston. Finally, Jason shares his vision for his hospitality business and shares the experience of building his first marquee project the Sarasota Modern.

Ricardo Rodriguez of Coldwell Banker shares his secrets and strategy on how he’s earned the title of Coldwell Banker’s #1 Team in New England and become the NAHREP #1 Latino Agent in the U.S. Ricardo most recently Ricardo has been the exclusive listing agent for well known projects like The Lucas, The Henry, The Marc and Port 45. Ricardo works with developers early to establish an ideal unit mix, unit size and pricing strategy based on a comprehensive and well thought out marketing plan. Ricardo holds no punches as he discuss competition from low-cost brokerages, pressures on commission and the proliferation of tools like Zillow. Finally, we talk about design trends, lifestyle marketing, listening to the market and using strategy to price units effectively.

Developer Kate Earls of Airsafe Contracting joins the guys and explains how she transitioned a lead paint abatement business she ran with her husband almost 20 years ago into a very successful residential development company self-performing their own general contracting on their myriad of projects across Boston. Kate shares how she’s overcome adversity including a story of a local municipality spot-zoning a specific parcel she had already purchased and having to completely rework her original ‘zoning compliant’ project. We talk about escalating construction costs and why her company recently purchased a full size excavator. Kate shares her advice for other women looking to get into development and finally, we conclude with a discussion on the merits of scaling a development business and why Kate has preferred to keep a steady pace and active project count over the years.

Benjie founded Arx Urban in 2013 after a stint on Wall Street. His most recent development endeavors are socially minded and he shares in detail how he’s been able to attract capital for these projects which aren’t necessarily typical development plays. Benjie was an early adaptor of “crowd-funding” deals and we discuss the evolution of this egalitarian way of finding investors. Finally, Benjie details a new project in Allston which he’s proposing as an innovative “Co-Living Space.” We conclude with over-rated/under-rated and hit on topics ranging from modular construction to micro-apartments and fractious topics like rent control.