At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

🎙️ About the TCREI Hosts

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

💡 We’d love to meet with you and hear about your investing goals. Book a time with us here: TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

Jacob Wrich didn’t take a straight line into real estate. After a brief career as a teacher proved it wasn’t his calling, Jacob found his footing managing adult group homes — a role that exposed him to both operations-heavy businesses and the real estate behind them. Through a series of career moves, he eventually earned the opportunity to purchase the company he was working for, which included a small but meaningful real estate portfolio. Jacob scaled that business into something truly marketable and successfully exited a few years later.

After the exit, Jacob rolled his proceeds through a 1031 exchange and took a very different path than most investors: focusing on new-construction single-family homes in desirable yet still affordable suburbs. In this episode, Jacob breaks down why this strategy works, how it compares to traditional rentals, and what investors often overlook when thinking about scalability, maintenance, and long-term exits. This is a great listen for anyone curious about alternative rental strategies and building businesses that are designed to be sold — not just managed.

At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

🎙️ About the TCREI Hosts

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

💡 We’d love to meet with you and hear about your investing goals. Book a time with us here: TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

Episode Description

Joe Walz started investing in fixer-upper single-family homes in St. Paul and Minneapolis while living in Boston in the early 2000s — managing properties from afar before remote investing was common. Over time, he quietly snowballed that early momentum into a small but mighty portfolio, focused on hands-on self-management, thoughtful renovations, and long-term belief in specific neighborhoods.

What really sets Joe apart is why he invests. He’s deeply intentional about community, having used house hacking multiple times as a way to create connection, shared living, and stability — not just returns. Joe believes affordable housing and companionship matter more than ever, and his approach reflects that philosophy in practice. He’s a genuinely good dude with a clear moral compass, and this conversation is a reminder that real estate can be both profitable and deeply human.

If you’re interested in investing with intention — building wealth while actually improving the places and communities you touch — this episode is for you.

At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

💡 We’d love to meet with you and hear about your investing goals. Book a time here: TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

April Bryan is the owner of Network Title and one of the go-to resources investors rely on when deals get complicated. In this episode, we dig into the parts of real estate transactions that most investors overlook until something goes wrong—title issues, contract for deed, lease options, and other creative financing structures. April breaks down where investors get tripped up, what to look for before closing, and how title work can quietly make or break a deal.

Title isn’t flashy, but it’s foundational. If you’re doing creative deals—or even thinking about them—you need a real understanding of how ownership, liens, and recording actually work. This conversation will help investors make smarter decisions, ask better questions, and avoid costly mistakes that don’t show up on a spreadsheet but can derail an entire portfolio.

If you’re an investor doing—or considering—creative deals, this is a must-listen. Subscribe, share the episode with another investor, and reach out if you want help structuring or analyzing your next deal.

At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

🎙️ About the TCREI Hosts

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

💡 We’d love to meet with you and hear about your investing goals. Book a time here: TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

Episode Description

In Part 2 of our conversation with Ford Wagner, we move past the origin story and get into the real substance: the portfolio. Ford breaks down how he’s accumulated 14 doors in just two years, primarily using BRRR strategies and contract for deed deals, while leaving very little of his own cash stuck in the properties.

This episode dives deep into the unsexy but critical details that actually make deals work — navigating Cat 2 properties, handling title issues, operating with Section 8 tenants, and, most importantly, how to plan for appraisals from day one to ensure a successful BRRR. If you want a realistic, boots-on-the-ground look at building a portfolio through non-traditional acquisitions — this is the playbook.

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart, practical real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. 👉 https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

As 2025 comes to a close, Adam and Tim ring in the New Year with a special year-end episode breaking down the best real estate deals of the year—including their own personal investments and standout client and “friend of the pod” wins across the Twin Cities.

This episode spans the full spectrum of what’s actually working in today’s market: tiny owner-occupied single-family homes, larger multifamily properties, heavy renovation projects, turnkey buys, and deals done using cash, traditional financing, and contract for deed structures.

They also share what’s ahead for Twin Cities Real Estate Investing in the coming year—podcast plans, content direction, and details on an upcoming in-person meetup for local investors.

If you’re looking for a real-world snapshot of what Twin Cities buyers are successfully doing right now, this episode offers one of the most complete, grounded views of today’s market as we head into 2026.

💡 Want to talk through your own investing goals or a deal you’re working on? Book time with us here 👉 TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

Episode Title: How 27-Year-Old Ford Wagner Flips 36 Homes a Year

At just $5 a unit per month, it’s worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

💡 We’d love to meet with you and hear about your investing goals. Book a time with us here: TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

Ford Wagner is only 27 years old, but he’s already built real momentum in Twin Cities real estate. After an early attempt at being a traditional realtor, Ford found his way onto a development team, got connected with wholesalers, and learned the business through trial and error. That hands-on experience led to a huge year in 2025, where Ford completed 36 flips while continuing to sharpen his systems and decision-making.

In this episode, Ford breaks down what actually goes into running high-volume flips at a young age—what worked, what didn’t, and the lessons he learned the hard way. We also talk about his first BRRRR, why he’s excited to do more, and how he’s built a 14-door portfolio across the Twin Cities. Ford brings a lighthearted, honest perspective to the realities of scaling, making mistakes, and building real experience early in your investing career.

At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://calendly.com/oliver-theshuk/shuk-demo — Use discount code TCREI20 for 20% off.

🎙️ About the TCREI Hosts

Adam Tafel – Investor, Realtor, and host of Twin Cities Real Estate Investing. Adam has helped hundreds of clients buy, sell, and analyze investment properties across the metro. He works daily with local investors and is passionate about building wealth through smart real estate strategies. 📩 adam@UpsidePropertySales.com

Tim Swierczek – Mortgage lender and experienced investor who helps clients structure financing to maximize returns and long-term wealth. Tim brings a practical, numbers-first approach that makes deals work in the real world. 📩 tim@timswierczek.com

💡 We’d love to meet with you and hear about your investing goals. Book a time with us here: TwinCitiesRealEstateInvesting.com/schedule

This week on the show, we sit down with Bruce Brunner, an independent landlord who began investing later in life—at a stage when many people assume the window for building real estate wealth has already closed. Bruce proves otherwise. With a sharp focus on Minneapolis, he has built a portfolio centered on value-add opportunities and small multifamily properties, showing that deep local knowledge and disciplined investing still create outsized results.

Bruce is a hands-on operator with deep expertise in duplex-to-triplex conversions, the 4d tax program, Minneapolis Section 8, and navigating the realities of owning rentals in a highly regulated market. Rather than scaling endlessly, he’s intentionally kept his portfolio small and self-manageable—while still building significant wealth and educating countless other landlords along the way. This episode is packed with practical insight for anyone investing in Minneapolis or looking to build a durable rental portfolio without turning landlording into a second full-time job.

At just $5 a unit per month, it's worth checking out shukrentals.com or booking a live demo in the show notes. https://www.rpmviking.com/ and click "request assessment", let them know we sent you for $300 in free maintenance.