building what I wish I had
Issue 59 - November 19th, 2021
One of my long-time friends, Sam Coates, hosts an incredibly engaging podcast series called Driven By where he interviews people who have boldly blazed their own trail. He discusses what drives them, the risks they have taken, what they have learned, what’s most important to them, the ups and downs along the way and he always tries to find what drives these people in our society as they share their story with his audience. In addition to this podcast series, Sam also runs a company called “My Story” where he captures stories of people’s loved ones for generations to come.
Sam invited me on his podcast a few weeks back to record this episode, and he just released it this week. It was a fun talk with a wide ranging variety of topics covered, and I hope you can give it a listen!
Please see below for more on the episode, and a link to the podcast is HERE! We cover my background career-wise, the ups and downs along the way, and the things I would like to build and accomplish in the future.
“Building What I Wish I Had with Sam Sawyer”
After leaving Dallas, TX, and working for Silicon Valley based ZeroDown Sam launched Archetape, where he is Founder and CEO. After an early-stage investment round by Mucker Capital and other angel investors, Sam is building out Archetape and growing it throughout the Southeast U.S.A. Sam believes the future of residential real estate will continue to change dramatically and disrupt the old way agencies do business.
I had a great time with Sam where you’ll learn:
Contrary to standard behavior- why you’re better positioned to take risks and build companies in your 30’s and 40’s versus playing it safe
What makes a great early-stage investment relationship. Why Mucker Capital is a great partner and what they do to invest in and deliver value to their founders
Why raising too much funding can crush you
The impact of Zillow and how this transformed the industry
First Principles thinking and why this drives how they build this company
And much more!
Episode Link: https://www.drivenbypodcast.com/episode/sam-sawyer
Newsworthy Links To Share
While the overall multifamily volume of transactions in New York City has been slow, one segment in particular is showing explosive growth. Multifamily properties comprising fewer than ten units are attracting a great deal of investment interest, as these units through Q3 have already exceeded 2020’s total dollar volume for this asset class by 24%. (Forbes)
Small North Texas City Edges Out Singapore for Texas Instruments' Proposed $30 Billion Investment (CoStar)
Proptech startup Place raised $100 million in a Series A round led by Goldman Sachs, the company said Wednesday. Place is a tech and business services platform for real estate agents. The company, which was founded by Ben Kinney and Chris Suarez in 2020, takes care of tasks like accounting, hiring, training and digital advertising so real estate professionals can focus on real estate transactions. (Crunchbase)
@properties to acquire Christie's International Real Estate (Inman)
Silicon Valley robotic farming company tees up second facility in Lockhart outside of Austin,TX (Austin Business Journal)
Real estate marketing software provider Luxury Presence raises $25.9M in a Bessemer-led Series B (Yahoo! Finance)
Realogy and Sotheby’s form partnership to purchase high-end, luxury home auction platform “Concierge Auctions” (Inman)
Slowly but surely, Bitcoin is being used to purchase everyday items like coffee and cars — and now, real estate is also joining the party. The first commercial property in New York is being put on the market for digital coin. Magnum Real Estate Group is selling three retail condos complete with a fully rented-out retail bottom floor in Manhattan’s upper East side for $29 million — but will only accept Bitcoin. (Yahoo! Finance)
Steadily, an Austin-based landlord insurance company, raised about $27 million in Series A funding. Matrix Partners and Zigg Capital led the round and were joined by investors including Vesta Ventures, Peak State Ventures, Nine Four Ventures, and Next Coast Ventures.
AcreTrader launches farmland sales marketplace called AcrePro (AcrePro)
Sun Communities, Inc., the real estate investment trust that invests in manufactured housing communities, recreational vehicle resorts, and marinas recently revealed that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the UK-based owner and operator of holiday communities, Park Holidays UK, for $1.3 billion. The deal is likely to close in the first quarter of 2022. (Nasdaq)
Doorvest Raises $39M to Expand in Sun Belt States and Launches Direct Buying Program Platform (BusinessWire)