Today’s guest is Bruce Wuollet, the Founder and Owner of Bakerson LLC. Growing up in the bakery business in the Twin Cities in Minnesota, Bruce wanted to pay homage to his late father (hence the name, Bakerson). After trying his hands in a few different ventures in Minnesota, Chicago, and Phoenix, he finally found his niche in real estate. With a proven track record of success throughout Bakerson’s 20-year history and thousands of individual units bought, repositioned, and sold, Bruce has overseen all aspects of the business, from operations, acquisition, and project leadership to equity fund management, syndications, legal, finance, and more! His focus is finding good deals while his passion is serving residents, building relationships, and creating communities out of apartments. Listening in, you’ll learn why Bruce attributes Bakerson’s success to their hyper focus on workforce housing, coupled with their reputation for tackling ‘tough’ projects, which has provided them with tremendous credibility. Bruce also shares how his business has evolved over the last two decades and offers some insight into the value adds his tenants care about, some of the unique challenges and opportunities that come with workforce housing, and his innovative approach when it comes to long-term hold periods, as well as how his father taught him to value relationships, and so much more! Tune in today to learn more!
Key Points From This Episode:
- A glimpse into the early days of Bakerson and how the business has evolved since.
- Why Bruce believes it was a mistake not to embrace wholesaling through technology.
- Insight into Bakerson’s focus on an underserved demographic: workforce housing.
- Defining who Bakerson serves as lower middle class and upper lower class.
- Value adds that Bruces’ tenants care most about: safe, functional, durable, and clean.
- Why amenities are less important than curb appeal for workforce housing.
- The pros and cons of working with properties built in the 1960s and ‘70s.
- Some of the biggest challenges and opportunities unique to workforce housing.
- Why Bruce values his connections with the communities that he invests in.
- Bruce shares his innovative approach when it comes to long-term hold periods.
- The three types of investors attracted to this model.
- Progress on the 65-unit motel conversion project Bruce is working on in Sierra Vista.
- Buying per square foot, having multiple contractors work in sync, and other key takeaways.
- How underwriting is impacted by inflation and supply chain delays.
- Hear the story behind the company name, Bakerson, and how it honors Bruce’s father.
- Bruces shares his vision for Bakerson in 10 years’ time; living off cashflow alone.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
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