Playbooks from investors doing the deals
Every article starts from a real conversation on one of our shows, then gets turned into a step-by-step guide.
Build-to-Rent Development: Yield on Cost, Debt, and Exit
How build-to-rent deals are underwritten and financed: yield on cost thresholds, 75% bank debt vs 88% LTC life-co capital, and the five-year exit cycle.
Automation vs AI in Real Estate: Where Each One Belongs
A 23-year software executive turned St. Louis flipper on which parts of a real estate business to automate, where AI actually helps, and what breaks when you flip the order.
Replacement Cost vs Actual Cash Value: A Landlord’s Fire Lesson
A landlord’s Binghamton three-family burned down and actual cash value coverage paid only $130K — not enough to rebuild. What replacement cost would have changed.
Pre-Listing Home Prep: What a $12K Average Ticket Buys
Pre-listing home prep averages about $12,000 for paint, carpet, and cabinet painting. What that scope buys, which updates move buyers, and the hidden cost.
Tenant Damage Before Closing: Selling an Occupied Rental
Tenant damage before closing can blow up an occupied rental sale. Real sabotage cases, a pre-walkthrough checklist, and how to underwrite for the unexpected.
Flipping Houses Sight Unseen: The Realtor Walkthrough Test
How one investor contracts and flips houses sight unseen across Canada: the realtor walkthrough gate, buyer-side underwriting, and an 11,000-name buyer list.
What to Fix Before Listing: An Inspector’s Deal-Killer List
An inspector, contractor, and agent in one explains what to fix before listing a house — the panels, rot, and systems that kill deals, and the cosmetics that pay.
AI Marketing Automation for Agents: One Broker’s Claude Stack
How a Montana broker runs two linked Claude projects for YouTube content, expired-listing email and directory audits — plus the real time cost and lead timeline.
Hiring Your First Employee: The KPI Test Before You Post
Robert Syfert says most owners who feel ready to hire aren’t. The test: can you document what comes off your plate and the KPIs that define success?
Lead Source Tracking: Know Which Marketing Actually Pays
How to tag every lead to its source, calculate CAC and LTV, and fix attribution before you spend more — from fractional CMO Danielle Hollembaek.
Buying Undivided Interests From Heirs: Messy Title Deals
How investors buy an undivided interest from heirs: the deal profile, 10–30 cents pricing, five-factor underwriting screen, cash-only funding, and holdout remedies.
Office Condo Development: Selling Suites Instead of Leasing
Office condo development sells 1,200–1,500 SF suites to owner-occupants instead of leasing. How developers pick sites by rooftop count and presell before delivery.