Finance & Economy

Real Estate

From baseball legend to successful multifamily investor: A talk with Alex Rodriguez

June 7, 2023

From baseball legend to successful multifamily investor: A talk with Alex Rodriguez

Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod)

Baseball Legend, Businessman, and Philanthropist

Catch this delightful discussion between Willy Walker and baseball (and investing) legend Alex Rodriguez.

A recent episode of the Walker Webcast is quite different than our typical episodes in that my guest and I both had questions for each other. I sat down for a great chat and interchange of ideas with none other than Alex Rodriquez (A-Rod).

While most people know A-Rod as one of the greatest baseball players of all time, he has plenty of accomplishments off the field as well. In addition to his baseball accolades, Alex has found the time to be a profound philanthropist as well as the CEO of A-Rod Corp. We sat down together to discuss everything from sports to multifamily investing.

Avoiding common investment mistakes

In a world of infinite choices—and infinite possibilities to make a mistake— staying true to your goals and correcting course as needed can be difficult. In recent months we’ve seen that overexposure to risk in the financial industry can cripple a business in an instant. Alex noted that’s why it’s important to remember that when you’re looking to make an investment, you don’t have to swing at every pitch. Although you can’t wait around forever for the perfect opportunity, taking on calculated risks is key in investing, which is one of the many lessons that A-Rod has learned from his mentor, Warren Buffett.

Lessons from Warren Buffett

Oddly enough, A-Rod met Warren Buffett when he started playing baseball in Texas, as Buffett was the one insuring his contract. Over the course of more than 20 years, Alex got to know Buffett and has learned quite a bit from him. One of the most important things that he’s learned from the Oracle of Omaha is simplicity. Throughout the time they have known each other, Buffett has pushed Alex to buy great companies at fair prices and companies that he would like to own for decades and emphasized the importance of being a polite gentleman.

The outlook for multifamily

Alex and I also discussed how, although we have seen widespread struggles in the commercial office space, multifamily has remained strong and likely will continue to remain strong into the future. We are seeing many REITs and institutional investors sell off or pull money out of their multifamily properties to help stop the bleeding with their office investments. But at the end of the day, while the work-from-home trend has impacted the office space, the bottom line is that people will always need a place to live. Though we have seen tremendous growth in the number of residential units in recent years, we are still undersupplied, making multifamily a great place to invest.

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