Regardless of market, the biggest differentiator tends to be ZIP-level selection and property management quality, not just city-wide stats.

Because it was over a weekend involving a quality-of-life issue for a nearly perfect resident.

.🏭 Industrial Asset Examples:Heavy & General Industrial FacilitiesManufacturing plants with production lines, cranes, and heavy power requirementsDistribution hubs serving regional or national supply chainsCold storage or food-grade industrial facilitiesIndustrial campuses with multiple buildings and shared infrastructureRail-served or port-adjacent industrial propertiesValue Creation Examples:Reconfiguring floor layouts for production efficiencyPower upgrades (3-phase, heavy amperage)Dock door additions or conversionsYard expansion and truck circulation improvements🏗 Flex Property Examples:Hybrid Office / Industrial AssetsFlex parks with front-office showroom and rear warehouse spaceTech-enabled flex buildings for R&D or engineering firmsContractor flex spaces (plumbing, HVAC, electrical firms)Medical or lab-adjacent flex facilities:Business parks with divisible flex suitesValue Creation Examples:Converting excess office to warehouse or vice versaImproving curb appeal for higher-quality tenantsRepositioning flex from owner-user to investment productUpgrading loading access or clear heights⚙️ Light Manufacturing Examples:Low-Impact Manufacturing & AssemblyAssembly plants (electronics, medical devices, packaging)Food processing or bottling facilitiesPrinting, plastics, or fabrication shopsApparel or product assembly centersSmall-batch production facilitiesValue Creation Examples:Layout optimization for workflow efficiencyUtility coordination (gas, water, compressed air)Compliance upgrades (ADA, OSHA, food-grade finishes)Expansion planning for future growth🚚 Warehouse & Distribution Examples:Storage & Logistics FacilitiesLast-mile delivery warehousesRegional distribution centersE-commerce fulfillment facilitiesBulk storage and racked warehousesMulti-tenant warehouse parksValue Creation Examples:Dock-high vs grade-level conversionsClear height increases or racking optimizationTruck court and trailer storage improvementsLighting, flooring, and fire suppression upgrades🏢 Business Center / Multi-Tenant Industrial Examples:Small-bay industrial parksContractor and service-oriented industrial centersMixed flex-industrial business campusesOwner-user industrial condo developmentsValue Creation Examples:Tenant mix optimizationOperating expense reduction through vendor renegotiationCapital improvement planning tied to lease renewalsRepositioning older assets to modern industrial standards

HE has done all the preliminary work and now needs to serve papers to someone out of country and proposed absurd methods to do so making me realize he didn't know the business. 

They back into cap rates from those sales, sanity check with broader market reports and lender data, then apply a risk premium or discount for things like condition, tenant quality, location nuance, and how believable the rent bumps are.

Even the best method of insulating them in a box of insulation will still find a problem from time to time.

One thing I’d stress before zeroing in on markets is making sure the exchange actually improves your risk-adjustedreturn, not just headline cash flow.If you’re netting $600k and already cash flowing ~$3k/mo at very low LTV, the biggest risk I see in 1031s right now is trading into a “cheaper” market that looks better on a pro forma but introduces execution risk, management drag, or thinner exit liquidity.The deals that seem to work best in this environment are:Smaller multifamily in working-class areas with stable employment anchors, not speculative growthProperties with light value-add where in-place rents lag market slightly, rather than heavy repositioningMarkets where cap rates actually hold up on refinance and sale, not just on paperI’ve seen investors do well focusing on secondary markets with hospital, logistics, or university employment bases where pricing is still rational and management quality matters more than rent growth hype.

Instead of hard rules like $300/unit or the 1% rule, focus on true cash flow after all expenses, condition of big-ticket items, and tenant quality.

It’s very common for investors to later refinance multiple properties into a single portfolio loan once cash flow is stabilized and the portfolio has a track record.A true portfolio loan can absolutely include properties that aren’t adjacent — even across different states — but lenders usually look for:Strong, stabilized cash flow across the entire portfolioCross-collateralization (the properties secure each other)Consistent DSCR and operating historyFewer, higher-quality assets versus a large scattered poolSome banks and private portfolio lenders will do this, but it’s more relationship-driven and less cookie-cutter than one-loan-per-property.The tradeoff I usually explain to investors:Portfolio loan: one payment, flexibility, cleaner balance sheet — but cross-default riskIndividual loans: more admin, but easier to sell or refinance properties one at a timeMost experienced investors I work with use individual loans early on and consolidate later when scale and stability justify it.Happy to answer questions from the lending side if helpful.

@Sean Sabin we usually don't have downpayments with the BRRRR Method.