032 Buying Over 500 Units Long-Distance with Gino Barbaro
Gino Barbaro is from New York City, which is not an easy place to invest in real estate in. Gino has bought properties in New York and bought properties in other states as well. In fact, with his partners Gino has over 50 rental property units! On this episode of the InvestFourMore Podcast I talk to Gino about how he has bought so many units while living in New York City.
How did Gino get his start investing in real estate?
Gino has always been am entrepreneur, but not with real estate. He has been a restaurant owner in New York for many years. Gino knew that owning a restaurant would not provide the lifestyle or passive income he desired. There was too much active management and many ups and downs. Gino discovered real estate and knew that was path he wanted to take in order to provide passive income. He started buying properties in New York, but quickly realized it was very tough to cash flow anywhere in the city or outlying areas, because real estate prices were and are so high.
Gino’s first adventure outside the city was buying a duplex in Rochester, New York. He loved the cash flow the property provided, but did not love how far away the property was or the high taxes and low appreciation potential.
How did Gino start investing in long-distance properties with a partner?
Over the years Gino met Jake Stenziano, and they hit it off immediately. Gino and Jake started to invest together in long-distance properties. They knew they did not want to start small, but big. So they looked at multifamily apartment complexes. Jake was able to move to the Southern part of the country to be the hands on investor and Gino stayed in New York. Gino and Jake were able to buy a 25 unit property and they were just getting started.
Why do Gino and Jake like multifamily properties?
Gino and Jake were attracted to Multifamily properties because of the economies of scale with a big property. They could buy large complexes in one transaction, instead of purchasing multiple single family or smaller properties with many different transactions. In the areas that Jake and Gino were investing in, the multifamily buildings also had better returns than single family properties.
How did they form their real estate partnership?
After buying the 25 unit complex, Jake and Gino bought a 136 unit complex and now own over 500 units. From the beginning they have been very careful about their partnership. They have always had everything in writing, they have always paid each other for jobs they have always been clear on what each partners responsibility is. Jake has been more hands on with management and finding properties. So he has been paid for managing the properties and finding them. It is very important that each partner knows what their role and compensation is.
How can you contact Jake and Gino?
Jake and Gino have their own podcast and website where they talk about their journey with real estate. JakeandGino.com is the best place to reach them and I was recently on their podcast, so make sure you listen to that show!