First commercial deal

I think I’m too weak for social media. Although I’ve gotten better at managing my time on the apps, I notice a recurring thought when I’ve scrolled long enough —maybe you have a variation of this too: “I’m not good enough.”

Even though I know we post ‘highlights,’ not ‘behind-the-scenes’, my subconscious makes a snapshot comparison of my life vs. yours. It’s hard not to make those snapshots because we’re social creatures; we’ve evolved to be in tune with what the community around us has and lacks.

The issue is when I compare my deep personal truth to someone else’s 5 second post. There’s a disconnect. Although I know my own life story well, including all the highs & lows, if I catch a glimpse of someone else’s journey — I automatically assume that their journey has been linear & successful. It leaves a bad taste because by making comparisons, we look for explanations for the perceived discrepancy in outcomes. And in creeps the insecurity:

“I’m not good enough. Clearly, I don’t deserve good.” - down the rabbit hole we go.

I like talking about what goes on behind the scenes — the struggles & failures, along with the highs, in hopes that others (including you + I) remember that most content out there is extremely curated and manufactured.

This post is a first in an ongoing chain to document my journey as I close my first commercial transaction as an investor; including the highs & lows. A commercial multifamily property has 5+ units, and involves commercial financing. It’s all very new territory for me — so I expect a steep learning curve.

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I’ve been struggling a lot with my first deal, but I know in the grand scheme — the things that feel like big problems now, I’ll laugh at in a few years. The first of anything is always the hardest. When acquiring your first commercial property, you need:

(1) $$$ for a down payment

(2) A deal to invest in

(3) A bank willing to back you (bank of mom + dad work too)

Earlier this month, I invested in a tool called DealCheck. It’s extremely helpful to underwrite deals as it pulls info from public records. It cut my underwriting time from 1.5hr/deal to 15 minutes - fucking A. I still feel like I’m shooting in the dark, because although I’m finding a lot of properties to underwrite; most of them don’t survive my underwriting criteria. My goal is to have strong cashflow; a good cap rate + IRR are cherries on top.

In subsequent posts, I’ll dive deeper into the relationships I’m building with lenders and brokers (and of course my deal analysis) in order to secure the bag and close my first commercial deal. I’ve set a pretty strong goal for myself for 2022, and I’m glad I can document it with you in order to track the ugly & the beautiful.