Moshe Popack sits in the guest chair to take your questions about real estate and raising 11 kids. Today, he discusses expert strategies on time management, how to maximize each day, and why in business, losses are often victories.
On raising 11 kids and running a business:
“We run the house like a business. There are systems and whiteboards. Before school activities, after school activities, kids have to get places. And that’s fine. We drop off the kids. But then when I get back, I have my prayer and my meditation.”
How he chooses to attack every day:
“I think it comes down to choice. In my existence, time is short. I live in time, and if you know that it doesn’t matter how you feel, (then you are set up to win). It’s what you focus on. If you’re going to go down this path of, ‘Oh, I’m feeling crappy today,’ then that’s exactly what’s going to happen. But if instead you focus on the result, and say to yourself, ‘This is a world of action and I want to get to this result,’ then how you’re feeling just dissipates.”
How Moshe unwinds, even when he isn’t able to sleep:
“Sometime in the middle of the day, at some point, I will do a 20-minute meditation and it really grounds me. And that will build over time. Instead of needing to sleep necessarily – sleep is great – but that definitely helps. But I also give myself a carrot. I have to trick my brain by saying something like, ‘Oh wow. I’m going to get that really good Chinese food that I love and that’s going to be my reward.’ Don’t’ make it so crazy, but you have to trick your brain for the times when you say to yourself, ‘What the heck am I doing, running myself ragged.’ But again, I train martial arts, I play some tennis, I go to the gym. There are different things that you need for yourself so you can actually be sane.”
Why he’s bullish on buying commercial real estate:
“I just saw an article that in South Florida – which is the most in the country – over 80% of people are back in the office. We’re almost at pre-pandemic levels. But what’s the narrative nationwide? The narrative nationwide is that office buildings are terrible, and nobody is going back to the office. … But owners of businesses are seeing that we need to be together and collaborate in order to get stuff done.”
Why the summer is a great time to buy a home:
“It’s summertime now, and it’s before interest rates are going to go down. The way it works is that it’s an inverse relationship. As interest rates go down, the demand goes up because the costs of funds and the costs of mortgages end up going down, so more people look to buy homes. … But I love it right now. We’re in the summer and in Florida especially, everyone is ‘out to lunch’ and they haven’t dropped rates yet, so there will be much more supply and a lot less demand which means that it becomes a buyer’s market.”
What prospective homebuyers overlook:
“Not doing full due diligence on the condition of the house. So, you close, but then a few months later there’s an issue with the pool and you get a bill for ten grand. Or the A.C., or landscaping, or whatever. And they can call it inflation or supply chain or whatever names they want to use. And the guy is just sitting there saying, ‘You want to pay it or not? Otherwise, you don’t have a pool for the summer.’ … And obviously insurance and taxes.”