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HEARTLAND INVESTMEN T COMPANIES STARS
JULY 2021
AN.COM
DARINGARM 319-350-5378
I can’t believe it’s almost July already. The first six months of the year always go quickly for me. I’ve been busy implementing new strategies, working hard to exceed the expectations of my investment partners, and checking off all those to-do items I created last year when I said, “Well, we’ll take care of that in 2021.” Sprinkle in some new clients and investors, and it has been a crazy few months (in a good way)! Now, though, it’s time for a well-deserved and very American vacation. I’m not the kind of guy who takes a lot of time off or schedules a year’s worth of vacations in advance, but one holiday I always pencil in on my old-fashioned paper planner every January is — drumroll, please! — the Fourth of July. In my family, Independence Day is just as big a deal as Christmas, if not bigger. It’s the one day each year when the whole kit and caboodle get together at our lake house in Okoboji. That includes me and my wife, Gina, of course, plus our kids, their buddies, my sister-in-law and her husband, our nieces, kids, and my mother-in-law and father in-law. Every year, our house fills up with about 15 people for three or four days of celebrating! Back when my kids were little, when this tradition started, we used to do Fourth of July like outlaws. Private fireworks were illegal in Iowa up until a few years ago (read more about that on Pg. 3 — it’s a long story), so the kids and I would pile into the car and drive all the way over to Mineral Point, Wisconsin, to score our loot. I shot the breeze with the proprietors while they loaded up the car with bootlegged fireworks. Then, we headed home and lit up every rocket and fountain you can imagine. I always had a good time doing that, but now that the kids are older and fireworks are legal, things have settled down. These days we’re all more excited about Grandma’s potato salad and the spread of homemade baked beans and meat from the grill than we are about the fireworks. Usually, Gina goes all out on the decorations, too, buying streamers, Uncle Sam hats, and all of the red, white, and blue napkins and flags we can fit on the table. HOW MY FAMILY PREPS FOR FIREWORKS IN THE HEARTLAND, WE DO THE FOURTH RIGHT!
After dinner and a long day of fun on the lake, we all head out to the dock to watch the fireworks. Luckily for us, our community puts on a big show right over the lake just 200 yards from our dock. No matter what, we have front- row seats on the Fourth. As I write this, the anticipation for the holiday is already killing me! I can’t wait to man the grill and hang out with the whole family. Every year, that holiday reminds me how lucky I am to have so many opportunities for fun and relaxation. Not every country comes with those perks, but I’m sure glad mine does. Living in the Heartland is a privilege and never more so than on the Fourth.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, Gina and I have a party to plan!
All the best,
–Darin Garman
319-350-5378 1
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APPEN TO
WHAT WILL H CRYPTOCUR
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RENCY IN TH
FECT YOU
IS COULD AF
AND WHY TH
Even if you’re not familiar with cryptocurrency, you’ll notice one thing about its market trends — it has been trending higher and higher in the past decade. Then suddenly, in mid-April this year, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies plunged significantly in value. That’s because the U.S. government has started the conversation it’s been putting off for some time: Should cryptocurrencies be regulated and, if so, how? Here are some reasons the discussion needs to move forward. CRIMINAL USAGE OF CRYPTOCURRENCIES Is cryptocurrency still popular with criminals? A blockchain data firm Chainalysis reports that illicit activity made up 0.34% of all cryptocurrency transaction volume. That’s roughly 2% lower than in 2019. While the percentage has dropped for overall activity, Kim Grauer, head of research at Chainalysis, told NBC, “Still, ransomware was by far the biggest category in terms of activity growth (311% year over year), and we’re seeing an all-time high for dark-net market activity.” Ransomware is malicious software that hackers use to infect a computer, then demand a fee to unlock it. The bounty is typically paid in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, which are difficult to trace.
with ransomware? One rule proposed by the U.S. government would require anyone holding crypto in a private digital wallet to undergo identity checks if they make a transaction of $3,000 or more. Many believe, however, that this isn’t a long-term solution. Jesse Powell, the CEO of Kraken, the world’s fourth-largest digital currency exchange, told CNBC that the U.S. is more “shortsighted” than other nations and “susceptible” to the pressures of incumbent legacy businesses, like banks, that “stand to lose from crypto becoming a big deal.” Technically, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulates most crypto, but even Hester Pierce, a commissioner of the SEC, says, “We’ve seen other countries take a more productive approach to regulating crypto. Our approach has been to say no and tell people [to] wait … we need to build a framework that is appropriate for this industry.” In some ways, crypto is profitable like the stock market is, except you can also use it to purchase goods and services. While this regulatory framework isn’t clear just yet, the longer it takes to establish, the more the American public, like you, might lose out on these multibillion-dollar markets.
REGULATORY UNCERTAINTY IN THE U.S. Although criminal usage of cryptocurrency is rather miniscule today, how do you resolve issues
NG PROPERT Y
BLOOD BOILI MANAGEMEN
T ISSUES
So, this 100-plus unit common area was not nearly as good as it needed to be.
On a Sunday this past May, I was working. Yeah, I realize that Sunday is supposed to be a day off and all, but I was working that day. I was doing my follow-up work on some site inspections that I wanted to make before the upcoming Memorial Day holiday. I find that Sundays are a good time to do inspections of the properties, since you get a real look at how things really go when all of the residents are around. Plus, it keeps my property managers on their toes. Well, on this particular day, I inspected one of our 100-plus unit properties and found the conditions of the common areas to be sub-par. The common areas being in great shape is key to having a good first impression on a potential tenant and, of course, helps with the current tenant mix, keeping the tenants in their apartments as long as possible. The bottom line is that clean common areas help reduce turnover.
Not even close.
When my money and investment is in this property (and the money and investment of my investment partners, too), it gets me in a very foul mood. Yeah, the property does fine for cash flow under the existing conditions, but it could do so much better if what I told the management folks to do actually got done — when I said it needed to be done!
So, the very next day, I gave our management folks direction on what needed to be done and that it needed to be done right away.
Almost a week later, I went back to the property to see how the clean-up of the common areas went.
What did I find?
Blood boiling!
Nothing had been done!
I found that the common areas were in the same shape as they were almost a week ago. Actually, they were worse. Saying that my blood started to boil is a huge understatement. Heck, I get mad just thinking about it now!
–Darin Garman
2 DARINGARMAN.COM
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I WA LIFE
SUDOKU
THE FIREWORKS THAT ALMOST KILLED US ALL (TWICE)
IOWA’S EXPLOSIVE FOURTH OF JULY HISTORY
SALES AND SUCCES S
As Darin mentioned on Pg. 1, personal fireworks were illegal here in Iowa 1937–2017, which included the period when his kids were growing up. But why? It turns out our state has a very explosive history with, well, explosives! According to the State Library of Iowa, two fiery incidents in particular led to the fireworks ban.
APARTMENT
DISASTER NO. 1: SPENCER, IOWA — 1931
On June 27, a little boy lit up a sparkler in Otto Bjornstad’s drugstore in Spencer, Iowa. He started playing with the firework, and moments later, he dropped it onto a table full of other explosives for sale. As you can imagine, the drugstore went up like a powder keg. The fire destroyed a total of 25 buildings and 50 more were damaged. The Des Moines Register reported the fire caused more than $2 million in damages and reached 900 degrees F — hot enough to melt the drugstore’s marbles.
DISASTER NO. 2: REMSEN, IOWA — 1936
48 UNITS! NOW UNDER CONTRACT!
36 UNITS! CLOSED AND PURCHASED!
Just five years after the Spencer explosion, a girl living in Remsen, Iowa, ruined the whole town’s Fourth of July when she accidentally dropped a sparkler onto a pile of gasoline-soaked rags. The garage the girl was standing in went up, followed by 20 surrounding businesses. The State Library of Iowa reports that the incident left 100 people homeless in the summer heat. Considering both of those terrible fires, it’s no wonder the Iowa legislature voted to ban the sale, possession, and use of fireworks statewide in 1937! Of course, for the next half-dozen decades and beyond, Iowans continued to find ways to get around the ban and shoot off fireworks safely at home, just like Darin and his family did. In 2017, the state legislature finally repealed the ban just in time for the Fourth of July. Today, you’ll find Iowans all around the state going nuts (in a fun way) with explosives around the holiday, from firecrackers, smoke bombs, and fountains to the big boys!
12 UNITS TARGETED 14% CASH ON CASH RETURN! AVAILABLE!
CONTACT DARIN TODAY AT 319-350-5378 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THESE LISTINGS!
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HEARTLAND INVESTMENT COMPANIES
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
Darin Garman: Heartland’s Most Trusted Multi-Family Investment Advisor 2505 Silver Oak Trail Marion, IA 52302 DarinGarman.com 319-350-5378
INSIDE Page 1
Darin’s Fourth of July Celebration in the Heartland Page 2 What’s the Deal With Cryptocurrency Regulation?
Blood Boiling Property Management Issues
Page 3 The Fireworks That Almost Killed Us All (Twice)
Apartment Sales and Success
Page 4 Make Your Work-Life Balance Easy
3 BUSINESS TRICKS THAT WILL IMPROVE YOUR PERSONAL LIFE
When you’re constantly in the “zone” at work, you’re not always thinking about what’s best for your personal life. While many business owners prioritize balance, what will truly benefit both your home and work life? Check out these three tricks. 1: START YOUR DAY WITH A PLAN. We know what you’re thinking: Writing out your plan is more work than just doing it. The key is to plan whenever you can. If you jot down things you want to accomplish the following day as they come up, all you’ll need to do is spend a few minutes organizing your list the next morning.
Whether your reminder is an alarm at the same time every day or even another habit (“I’ll exercise before I take my morning shower”), make sure it’s part of any new process you implement.
3: REMEMBER, WORK IS FLEXIBLE — YOUR PERSONAL LIFE ISN’T.
Bryan G. Dyson, CEO of The Coca-Cola Company, once told his staff, “Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them — work, family, health, friends, and spirit — and you are keeping all of these in the air.” In his metaphor, work is a rubber ball. “If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered. They will never be the same.”
Pro Tip: Remember to include time to unwind and relax!
2: DEVELOP NEW AND IMPROVED PROCESSES. While certain activities can’t be replaced with shortcuts (like spending time with family), consider ways to make your current processes more efficient and beneficial. For example, you can’t lose weight if you don’t change your diet and exercise. Adjusting your habits might seem difficult, but there’s actually a straightforward method. According to “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, every new habit has a simple formula behind it: motivation, ability, and prompt.
We hope these tips help you protect the “glass balls” in your life!
4
DARINGARMAN.COM
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ATTENTION APARTMENT OWNERS AND INVESTORS!!
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Darin Garman, Author and The Heartland’s Most
Trusted Multifamily Investment Advisor!
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