The deals that don’t happen still provide lessons to carry with you. And so with that as prelude, even as I haven’t yet done a first deal for my new venture, there is an education that I’ve received already.
(1) What institutional partners focus on when it comes to development projects is not the stuff of engineers and construction managers. If you can convey what the project will be, and a basic sense of what it cost, you’ll be able to check most of the boxes and sound professional.
(2) Lawyers are a terrific source of deal flow. With title guys and mortgage brokers also a useful contact.
(3) New York is its own world when it comes to deal process and the benefits of being a seller.
(4) Working for yourself means constantly thinking about your goals and how to achieve them.
(5) If you happen to be a bit reserved, you’ll have to find a way to get over it. Real estate is a relationships business. No way around it. If you don’t have (or alternatively go out and find) the relationships, you’ll never see anything worth buying.
(6) Brokers are generally a waste of time.
(7) Be constantly curious about the markets and asset types that you want to focus on.
(8) Know that doing a deal often takes time and a few iterations. You will look at plenty of stuff before the pieces finally come together.
(9) If you partner up with someone, being able to trust him is more important than anything else he might bring to the table.
(10) You never know who or where the next lead will come from, so always take the meeting or call when someone wants to meet you.
