Property Manager Broker Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur

Welcome to the Property Manager Broker Podcast with your hosts, Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur. Today's guest is Vincent Deorio, and we are discussing the acquisition game that is going on in the property management world. We also talk about buying property management companies, his experience with Mynd, and now Atlas Real Estate.
 
Listen as Vincent shares his experience with acquisitions and what he looks for when looking at property management companies to buy. Phil discusses that it's important to have your books in order and numbers ready when looking to put your company on the market, and Vincent says that a company with outstanding books is worth more to him as an acquirer.
 
Vincent discusses the challenges he has run across getting to the actual check cutting stage of an acquisition, some terms he sees when buying companies, and the difference between an earn-out versus a cash purchase. Brad believes an owner-financed situation is always the best because you can pay for it with earnings from the business.
 
Vincent talks about what property management companies should look at when buying another entity. He believes that although there is a lot of opportunity for consolidation, smaller local property management companies will always be around. 
 
Vincent also shares that there has been an increase in interest in the residential single-family home property management system. Brad agrees but says that the real competitor for them will always be the individual landlords looking for a piece of the action.
 
In this episode:
[02:24] Vincent shares his background and the company he is with now.
[03:45] Vincent says that he did about 20 acquisitions with Mynd while he was there.
[05:02] Were there certain requirements that Mynd had when it came to acquisitions?
[06:30] Vincent speaks about what he looks for in property management companies when looking to buy.
[08:02] Phil talks about being ready to sell by having your books in order and having your numbers ready.
[10:09] If you walk into a company with outstanding books, is that worth more to you as an acquirer?
[11:21] Vincent discusses the challenges of getting to the actual check-cutting stage of an acquisition.
[13:43] Vincent talks about some terms he sees when buying property management companies.
[14:47] Vincent speaks about the difference between a price in an earn-out versus a cash purchase.
[16:58] Have you seen a situation where the staff or anyone who doesn't need to know finds out about the sale and causes issues?
[18:22] Vincent shares how he retains talent with new purchases.
[21:50] Vincent talks about some war stories he had with the 20 acquisitions he accomplished.
[24:43] What should property management companies be looking for when buying another entity?
[27:02] Vincent says there is a lot of opportunity for consolidation but that there is always a need for smaller local operators.
[28:47] Vincent discusses the increase of interest in the residential single-family home property management system.
[30:57] Brad believes that the real competitor in the market is the individual landlords.
[32:13] Phil agrees with all of Vincent's points, but he believes there will always be big business and the little guy.
[33:51] What are Atlas Real Estate's goals for 2021?
[36:20] Vincent shares some final thoughts about what Brad and Phil are looking to accomplish with the Property Manager Broker.
[37:59] Thank you for being on the show!
 
Links and Resources:
http://propertymanagerbroker.com/
Propertymanagercfo.com
 
Vincent Deorio
https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincent-deorio-15326315/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/atlas-real-estate-group/
https://www.realatlas.com/

Welcome to the Property Manager Broker Podcast with your hosts, Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur. Today's guest is Stacey Salyer, out of western Washington. We are going to be talking about buying and selling property management companies and specifically Stacey's experience with buying a management company and buying a group of homes under management as a way to increase her company's size for revenue.
 
Stacey shares how she came across the company she acquired, some details about the process of purchasing the company, and the size of the company she was able to buy. Stacey speaks about how the deal was financed and says that she didn't know what she was doing but still believes she got a good deal.
 
Stacey discusses some challenges she faced, like the old school platform the company ran and keeping the old owner on to manage the business. Stacey also talks about how they bring the new accounts over to the system she uses and when transitioning the tenants over to her way of doing business.
 
We finish up with the three questions Phil asks at the end of each episode. Stacey shares what she would do differently when she bought her first business; if she knew then what she knows now, some advice Stacey would give to someone thinking of selling their property management company. She believes that the property management industry will see more regulations being handed down in the next ten years.
 
In this episode:
[02:22] Stacey shares her background and what she is doing now.
[03:07] When you got started in the property management world, did you start from scratch?
[05:18] Stacey speaks about how she came across a decent size company to acquire.
[08:45] Stacey shares some details about the process of purchasing the company.
[09:45] Phil discusses asset purchases and how to protect yourself.
[11:20] What is the size of the company you were able to purchase?
[12:07] Stacey speaks about how the deal was financed.
[14:05] Stacey says, to be honest, she didn't know what she was doing, and while going through the company's books, there were some red flags.
[15:50] What are the challenges you faced in this purchase?
[17:59] Stacey talks about the old school platform she ran into.
[18:52] Phil gives his insights into what Stacey went through during this purchase.
[20:35] Brad speaks about the seller still being part of Stacey's business.
[22:17] How did you close the transaction?
[23:17] Stacey discusses bringing the new accounts over into the new system.
[24:13] How are you transitioning them into your style of doing business? Are you changing their management fees?
[25:44] Stacey talks about how she feels about the revenue versus the new company's expenses.
[27:25] Stacey shares what she would have done differently if she brought her knowledge into her first business.
[28:01] What is one piece of advice you would give someone thinking of selling their property management company?
[30:12] Stacey believes that the industry will see more regulations in the next ten years.
[33:30] Thank you for being on the show!



Links and Resources:
http://propertymanagerbroker.com/
propertymanagercfo.com
Stacey Salyer
Stacey Salyer - REALTOR (wredgehomesales.com)
Stacey Salyer | Facebook

Welcome to the Property Manager Broker Podcast with your hosts, Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur. Today's guest is Amy Karns, a property management company operator with a lot of experience getting into the business, building a business, selling a business, moving and re-establishing a business, and potentially getting another business ready for sale later on down the road. Amy has come full circle a couple of times in the property management company world, selling and buying into an organization. This is a really great conversation with Amy talking through some things like multiples, hiccups, and some really great tidbits, tricks, and tips to help anyone listening. Enjoy!
 
Amy discusses her company's purchase and sale, the exit terms she negotiated, and some challenges she faced along the way. Amy talks through the owner's finance contract with the buyer and the issues she had getting the agreed-upon funds per the contract.
 
Listen as Amy talks about her new company, getting it ready to sell mindset even though she isn't ready to sell and what she will do differently this time. Amy speaks about the pros and cons of owner financing versus cash payout and selling just the contracts instead of the whole company.
 
Amy chats about what she would change if she could go back three years in her new company, what she believes the property management industry will look like in ten years, and a piece of advice for a property management company that is thinking of selling. 
 
In this episode:
[02:36] Amy shares her background and what she is doing now.
[03:33] Phil asks Amy if she thought she got a fair deal in 2006 when she purchased the full company and in 2016 when she sold the full company.
[05:45] Amy discusses the terms of exiting the company.
[07:10] Amy shares some hiccups she faced along the way.
[09:19] Amy talks through the owner financing option she had with the buyer.
[10:05] Listen as Amy speaks about the challenges that happened, starting with being audited by the IRS and what happened to the documents that were being scanned.
[12:38] Do you know what a trailing policy is?
[14:58] Amy shares that getting the payments back on track from the buyer became very contentious.
[16:26] Amy talks about what would have happened if she would have had to take the company back.
[19:13] Amy chats about what she will do differently when she sells her current company in the next five years.
[21:32] What was your emotional state when all of this was happening?
[23:11] Amy shares why she didn't sell just the accounts instead of the entire company.
[25:46] Amy talks about staying with the company for six months after the sale.
[28:27] Phil discusses the uniqueness of how Amy sold her company and the fear that she wouldn't get paid the full amount.
[30:46] If you are thinking about selling, look at the pros and cons of offering owner financing versus cash payment.
[33:11] Amy discusses some things she did with the mindset of getting the business ready to sell.
[35:58] Amy shares that her company has huge revenues because their overhead is so low.
[38:06] Phil says there is no drawback of approaching your business with the mindset of getting it ready to sell, even if you don't plan on selling.
[39:39] Amy talks about what she would change if she could go back three years and start over.
[40:49] Looking ten years in the future, what do you think will be different in the property management industry?
[42:48] Amy shares a piece of advice for a property management company that is thinking about selling.
[44:22] Phil believes that the culture of any company will follow the leader.
[46:28] Thank you, Amy, for being on the show!
 
Links and Resources:
Property Manager Broker
Property Manager CFO
Amy Karns
A Plus Management
 

“Plan your work and work your plan.” Welcome to the Property Manager Broker Podcast with your hosts, Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur. Today's guest is Scott Armstrong, an escrow officer servicing businesses nationwide. Scott will talk about the escrow process in buying and selling businesses, how it all works, and some risks involved. Scott's knowledge is endless, so tune in and see if you can walk away with some tidbits that you can use.
Scott shares what his company does, what a third party contractual agreement is, and the risks of trying to handle a sale on your own. Scott speaks about the reports his company files with the IRS and the benefits and pitfalls of using a traditional title and escrow company.
Listen as Scott discusses how they assist with an owner-financed sale, the language that needs to be in the escrow agreement around trigger events, and whether it is common to see earned money from a buyer go into an escrow account until closing. In closing, Phil gives his insights into the big picture of why using experts is so important.
In this episode:
[02:16] Scott shares his background and what his company does.
[03:00] Scott defines a third party contractual agreement.
[05:45] Phil discusses using a third party company to help close transactions on businesses he has purchased.
[07:25] Scott talks about the risks of trying to handle a sale on your own without a third-party intermediary to have your back.
[10:42] Do you know the legal ramifications of the actions you are taking?
[12:20] Scott speaks about the reporting his company does to the IRS.
[13:33] Scott talks through the benefits and pitfalls of traditional title and escrow companies.
[15:49] Scott shares what they do in assisting with the owner financing side.
[17:32] Scott recommends that a seller always put language into the escrow agreement if the buyer cannot raise the money.
[19:04] Phil wants to know how his company deals with a difference in interpreting what a trigger event is.
[22:32] Is it common to see earnest money from a buyer go into escrow until closing?
[24:58] Phil speaks about the big picture around using experts in escrow.
[26:16] Scott shares a story about a sale that went sideways and the fallout.
[28:34] Phil discusses trust accounts and certification of the escrow accounts.
[30:25] Scott talks about mark to market evaluations.
[33:35] Scott shares how to contact him.
[35:05] Thank you for listening!
 
Links and Resources:
Property Manager Broker
Property Manager CFO
Managers Roundtable
 
Scott Armstrong
469-497-7436
Email
Seacoast Commercial Bank

“If you own a property management company, you own an asset.” Welcome to the Property Manager Broker Podcast with your hosts, Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur. Today's guest is Sean Morrissey; he is an investor that uses his property management experience and systems to help scale his real estate investment portfolio. Listen as he discusses selling a property management company and the lessons he learned. His knowledge is endless, so tune in and see if you can walk away with some tidbits that you can use.
 
Listen as Sean shares why he didn't use a business broker when he sold his company, how he came up with the value of his portfolio, and the responses he got when he put the price out to market. He discusses taking the cash offer he received even though it was significantly less because he didn't want to be tied to the new owner for 3 to 5 years with a seller-financed offer. 
 
Brad, Phil, and Sean discuss clawback provisions and who has the leverage with them. Sean speaks about how the operational handoff went after the sale and what he did with the funds. Sean says to remember that once you sell your portfolio, you should expect a certain level of involvement for 6 to 12 months, even if you sell for cash.
 
Listen, as Sean talks about his podcast and what he believes will be different in the property management industry ten years from now. Sean shares some advice for anyone who is thinking of selling and what he would do differently if he were back to when he first started. 
 
In this episode:
[02:08] Sean shares his background and his journey to where he is today.
[05:18] Sean discusses why he sold his company.
[07:23] Sean believes that you need to reinvent your business systems every five years, or you will go out of business.
[09:22] Sean shares why he didn't use a business broker when selling his company.
[11:46] Phil speaks about what he and Brad want to do in the industry with property management companies' valuation.
[14:02] If you own a property management company, you own an asset.
[15:04] Sean discusses where he came up with his company's value and what happened when he put that price out to market.
[18:56] Sean shares the price difference between seller financed offers and cash offers.
[20:03] He speaks about why he didn't take the seller-financed offer.
[22:26] At the end of the day, he knew he didn't want to be tied up for 3-5 years. He took the cash offer which was less, but he wasn't tied to the new owner.
[25:06] Sean discusses the clawback provision and what it said.
[27:25] Phil speaks about who has leverage with a clawback provision.
[30:43] When you took the money from the sale, what did you do with the funds?
[33:10] Sean shares how the operational handoff worked out.
[35:57] If you are looking to sell your portfolio, expect a certain level of involvement for at least six to12 months, even if you sell for cash.
[37:53] Sean says to pay attention to the non-compete clause, especially if you plan on getting back into the business.
[39:08] Phil discusses non-competes and the levels of enforceability.
[40:41] Sean speaks about his podcast called Landlording for Life.
[41:44] If you looked ten years into the future in this industry, what's one major thing you think will differ from today?
[43:16] Sean shares what he would do differently if he were back where he started.
[44:31] Sean gives one piece of advice for someone who is thinking of selling their property management company.
[45:25] Thank you so much for being on the show!
 
Find Sean Morrissey
Chicagoland Realty Group LLC
Landlording For Life Podcast
LinkedIn
 
Links and Resources:
Property Manager Broker
Property Manager CFO
Managers Roundtable

Welcome to the Property Manager Broker Podcast with your hosts, Brad Larsen and Phil Mazur. Today's guest is Clint Collins is sharing his experience selling his property management company and moving to a new market. Clint will discuss lessons learned, what worked, what didn't, and what he would do differently. Listen to this interesting conversation and see if you can learn anything from Clint's experience.
 
Clint shares his background, how he got into property management and discusses selling businesses through the years. Clint describes the sale of his largest company to Home River Group, the negotiations, the challenges of running a company while moving through the sale, and the importance of an attorney negotiating the terms.
 
They speak about the emotions involved in selling a company when you have worked hard to put the team together and hoping that they will be taken care of. Clint speaks about the pros and cons of writing the language in a contract and how it's unfair to the employees.
 
Listen, as Clint answers the three questions Brad and Phil like to ask their guests, the answers might surprise you. Clint is very accomplished and knowledgeable, and you can learn a lot from listening to this conversation, so sit back, relax, and push play. Enjoy!
 
In this episode:
[02:18] Clint shares his background and his journey to where he is today.
[05:33] Phil speaks about Clint, how he knows him and working together.
[07:42] Clint discusses selling businesses over the years.
[09:56] Clint shares getting three different offers for his largest company.
[12:06] Listen as Clint describes his sale to Home River Group step-by-step.
[14:49] Was the year-long phase working on the sale hard?
[16:57] Clint speaks about the negotiations for sale with Home River.
[19:56] What was the hardest part, the negotiations, or moving through the sale?
[23:02] Clint discusses clawbacks, what they are, and his ideal purchase is a company that tells him they have three revenue sources.
[26:18] If your books aren't in order, you can't command a good price.
[28:15] Clint says to listen to the guys that aren't attached to the sale because the emotions can be high.
[29:39] Clint discusses making sure your team is taken care of when you sell a company.
[32:31] How do you know when an employee needs to go?
[35:03] Phil speaks about writing contracts to keep your team on tacked and how unfair that can be to the employee.
[37:23] As a seller, Clint shares what he would do differently.
[40:42] What is the first thing you would do differently from the beginning when acquiring a business?
[42:27] Clint shares one piece of advice you would give to someone entertaining the idea of selling their property management company.
[43:06] What is the major change in the industry you see happening in the next five years?
[46:08] Thank you so much for being on the show!
 
Links and Resources:
Property Manager Broker
Property Manager CFO
Managers Roundtable