On this episode of the Massimo Show

Rod sits down with one of the CRE top producers in North America, James Nelson. Now an author, as well as being a speaker, investor, amazing broker and long time Massimo member, James is principal and head of Tri-State Investments at Averson Young.

With the launch of James’ new book, The Insiders Edge to Real Estate Investing, Rod opens by asking why brokers don’t often also invest in commercial real estate? Does he see that as a conflict or should they be investing? James astutely remarks on the ethical issues and potential conflicts of being a broker and an investor. He personally operates with the beliefs that reputation is everything, full or over disclosure is key and don’t invest in an opportunity that you’re listing or selling as a broker.

Next, Rod explores why James chose to invest in commercial real estate versus other avenues, such as the stock market. James responds by sharing his passion for the business and his desire to aquire all the knowledge he can on the frontlines as a broker. He then postulates, “Why wouldn’t you take your expertise and knowledge and parlay that into an investment? Why would we not practice what we preach” about the benefits of buying and long term wealth creation? There are many inefficiencies in real estate, you can use that as opportunities that you just won’t see in the public markets.

James continues to share that this is a big part of how he came to his book’s title, The Insiders Edge to Real Estate Investing, as this insight, or edge, is “one of the main benefits of real estate.” His book explains that “you can gain the insiders edge to outperform in the market,” whereas with the stock market, everyone has the same information available to them.

Rod and James go on to discuss how he first started his 20 year investing career, the main deltas on how a professional investor views a deal versus a broker, tips for how to get started in investing with “sweat equity,” and what the ideal investment team looks like. James provides a host of information in his book about “having the right specialists” and how “this is the business that’s all about having the right people.”

With the assistance of James’ writing team, he also wrote about how to bring on a well trusted partner for your first investment and the significant differences, with respect to both risk and reward, between a general partner, co-general partner, and limited partners. Lastly, and a big part of the book, James reviews “the most important attribute for a great opportunity, seller’s motivation.”

To close out their podcast, Rod gets James’ thoughts, from his broker perspective, for what he sees as opportunities in the market for 2023 and how he’s able to find the time to do so many things in the real estate industy.

If you’d like to find James’ podcast or more information about his book, published by McGraw HIll, The Insiders Edge to Real Estate Investing, go to jamesnelson.com.