🥂 Best Ever's 'Best of 2023'

We’re highlighting the Best of 2023, from the year’s best investing advice, to the most downloaded and shared podcast episodes, to the best from the Best Ever Blog.

Author

Best Ever CRE Team
December 31, 2023

 

🥂 Happy New Year’s Eve, Best Ever Community!

Thanks to you, it’s been an incredible year here at Best Ever. In 2023, the Best Ever Show:

  • Featured more than 300 guests

  • Released 365 podcast episodes (still the world’s longest-running daily real estate podcast)

  • Received more than 10 million downloads

  • Eclipsed 44 million total downloads

In this special year-in-review newsletter, we’re highlighting the Best of 2023, from the year’s best investing advice, to the most downloaded and shared podcast episodes, to the best from the Best Ever Blog. We hope you’ve gained value from our conversations and resources over the last 365 days, and that you continue to in 2024!

Cheers!

⭐️ ICYMI
FROM THE BEST EVER PODCAST

This week, we celebrated an incredible year on the Best Ever Show by releasing our Best of 2023 series. We aggregated some of the best segments from our most knowledgeable podcast guests and put them in individual episodes so the Best Ever listeners could truly get the best investing advice ever in key categories, all in one place. 

🏘️ The Best of Multifamily: In this episode, Vikram Raya discusses how he went from zero to $700M AUM in about eight years, Patrick Grimes explains some of the biggest lessons he learned from the recent economic downturn, Jay Balekar provides his tips on working with third-party property management companies, and Pace Morby, the king of creative finance, explains the zero down, 4% seller finance deal he did that became the standard for his multifamily deals.

🗄️ The Best of Self-Storage: In this episode, Connor Gross explains how he 3X’d the NOI on his very first deal, Faraz Hemani provides tips on how to find — and talk to — the right sellers in a competitive market, Travis Baucom breaks down his due diligence process, and AJ Osborne explains how he accounts for the threat of new construction disrupting the supply and demand balance. Baird Kleinsmith (aka the Sultan of Storage) wraps it up by revealing his secrets to quickly scaling to eight facilities, and the hardest lessons he’s learned along the way.

🚍 The Best of Mobile Home Parks: In this episode, Derek Vickers reveals how he turned a nasty, crime-ridden park into a prime cash-flowing asset, while Tyler Lekas highlights the biggest mistakes mobile home park investors make, Mario Dattilo explains vertical integration and why there’s safety in scale, and Daniel Weisfield debunks mobile home park myths and shares how investors can get in on the mobile home park development game.

🏭 The Best of Industrial: In this episode, Faraz Hemani explains why he is expanding from self-storage into flex industrial, Joel Friedland touts Chicago as America’s biggest industrial hub, and Neil Wahlgren discusses the benefits and nuances of triple-net leases and how investors can pivot from multifamily to industrial. 

📣 The Best of Joe Fairless: From the Best Ever Conference to the Best Ever Book Club and more, Joe Fairless has shared a wealth of knowledge and experience with the Best Ever community in 2023. In this episode, Joe relives his worst-ever deal, looks back on his biggest mistakes, and shares some key takeaways from the books he’s read in 2023.

🏆 BEST OF 2023
MOST DOWNLOADED, SHARED, & MORE

In a year where the Best Ever Show surpassed 44 million total downloads, a handful of guests made their presence known on the show not just as the most downloaded of 2023, but also as the most shared on social. Here is a list, in no particular order, of the top 10 episodes that resonated most with the Best Ever community in 2023.

✍️ BEST EVER BLOG
FROM JOE FAIRLESS, JOHN CASMON, & MORE

This year, the Best Ever Blog covered a wide range of critical CRE topics, from WeWork, to historic apartment defaults, to how to win a bidding war, and more. Here’s a list of the top five articles from the Best Ever Blog in 2023:

In April, a Houston apartment investor defaulted on $229 million in loans, resulting in foreclosure on 3,200 units. The default was a result of negative cash flow, slowed rent growth, and rising expenses, exacerbated by a sudden interest rate increase. In author John Casmon’s analysis, he highlights how the event serves as a reminder to scrutinize income projections, manage expenses, and maintain realistic renovation budgets. Risk management can be enhanced, he explains, by adopting a neutral approach and asking critical questions about potential pitfalls.

In this article, Joe Fairless outlines five key tactics for winning bidding wars in competitive markets. These include submitting a nonrefundable earnest money deposit, shortening the due diligence period, signing an early access agreement, using the seller's purchase-sale agreement, and guaranteeing a closing by a specific date. These strategies can help make your offer more attractive, boosting your chances of winning the deal.

When diving into real estate investment, evaluating a sponsor's track record is crucial. Here, author Evan Polaski provides seven key questions to guide you. First, focus on net returns, question whether the track record includes all deals or selective case studies, and assess the consistency of the business plan. Additionally, you should inquire about changes in the waterfall and fee structure, consider the timeframe of the track record, and investigate the sponsor's relationship with property management. Getting answers to these questions is imperative when making informed investment decisions.

All eyes were on WeWork this year, but despite the challenges the company faced, author Veena Jetti points out that the coworking sector actually remains promising for investors, offering a dynamic landscape for strategic investments. The U.S. coworking industry has been experiencing robust growth, with a 10% increase in flexible workspaces, surpassing 6,100 locations nationwide in the second quarter of 2023. She attributes the surge to the appeal of cost-effective solutions for corporations, enticing perks like fitness facilities and pet-friendly policies, innovative working environments, cutting-edge technology integration, and increased networking opportunities. 

📉 4 Strategies to Survive Financial Uncertainty
By: John Casmon, Casmon Capital Group

In the midst of economic uncertainty and the looming possibility of layoffs, ensuring financial security is paramount. In this article, author John Casmon highlights four key strategies: building emergency funds, diversifying income, making wise investments, and prioritizing wealth accumulation. “A long-term outlook does not mean only focusing on retirement,” John says. “The goal is not to retire at 65, it’s to live life on your own terms. This means identifying potential gaps that could derail your life plans and finding ways to guardrail those plans.”

🙏 Thanks for reading!

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Here’s to a Best Ever 2024! 🥂 

—Joe Fairless