CapitalBrain

Building and Monetizing Your Mindset: monthly LIVE Masterclass

Aug 10 2023

Next ‘Reach Any Summit’ Masterclass – Building and Monetizing Your Mindset Apply for a monthly private coaching program for female entrepreneurs Class Dates: first Saturday of...

Self-leadership lecture at UW Foster Executive MBA

Jul 21 2023

This week I gave a lecture on self-leadership at UW Foster Executive MBA (the School also develops a wide range of custom corporate programs). I...

Why laziness is good for you

Jul 10 2023

Naturally, there are periods of time when it seems like we have given up on everything we ever desired. At it feels as not just...

Handling procrastination

Jun 10 2023

Understanding why we start procrastinating is relatively straightforward. It often begins with feelings of anxiety, even when faced with familiar tasks. Fear of failure and...

REITs, interest rates and fairy tales: Don’t fear the big bad interest rate wolf

Apr 01 2023

Published in Institutional Real Estate Investor Magazine Dick Wollack of Fulton Advisors and I have discussed the effects of interest rate increases on REITs in...

Mt Kenya Expedition

Mar 10 2023

I summited Mt Kenya (5,199 m), the second highest mountain in Africa, end-February. The climb took us 4 days including time to get to the...

My Portfolio of Mountains

Feb 28 2023

What is life without risk? Mountain Altitude Summit Date Comments Olympus Mons, Mars 21,287 m (69,841 ft) TBD 🙂 Tallest planetary mountain in the Solar...

I spent 20 min on top of Mt Everest. Here is what I learned about the meaning of life

Jan 14 2023

I spent 20 minutes alone of top of Mt Everest, the highest mountain on the planet. Here is what I learned about the meaning of...

Surviving is just a habit

Dec 21 2022

A reader sent me a question: How am I supposed to set big goals if I am too busy handling my everyday life? Well… Yes,...

How to not give up

Dec 13 2022

When we get stuck in traffic, we are surrounded by people who are trying to go somewhere. They all have goals and a final destination....

Goal-setting 101

Dec 03 2022

I hope you had a chance to review the goal-setting guide we have prepared. If not, here is the link again. To control and manage time...

Life in the “death zone” and reader Q&A

Oct 25 2022

October. The Halloween, the day of the year associated with death in many cultures. Let’s talk about death. I am writing this at the gym...

Simple tips on how to reach your hardest summits – UC Berkeley Haas lecture

Oct 21 2022

I recently gave a leadership lecture at Berkeley Haas. Here are a few things we talked about: We talked about mindset, setting goals, taking risks,...

Joining WWSG as an exclusive speaker

Aug 02 2022

I am excited to announce that I am now available for speaking engagements exclusively through @WWSG. I will be sharing what I have learned during...

Annapurna I expedition

Jun 26 2022

Update: On April 28th 2022 I summited Annapurna I and became the 1st Russian female mountaineer to do so. Victory! Today is 2 months since...

K2 NFT Collection

Dec 16 2021

Announcing K2 Expedition NFT collection drop Olga Koroleva is a mountaineer and an AI entrepreneur. Olga summited her first mountain when she was 7 years...

CRE. ESG. NFT…

Dec 08 2021

After my K2 expedition I released my own NFT collection. While working on it I had to do a lot of research: I am a...

My K2 Expedition

Jul 28 2021

This blog is usually about real estate. Not this time… I want to share that I am currently in Pakistan about to embark on my...

Micro-data centers

Jun 10 2021

Data centers were the highest performing REITs sector last year, Everything from working from home to online shopping and self-driving cars fuels demand for data...

President Biden and Affordable Housing – Part 2

May 13 2021

Today, too many United States citizens do not have access to affordable housing options; “Affordable” is defined as only taking 30% or less of a...

U.S. Housing Policy, Politics, and Economics: Bias and Outcomes – Part 1

May 07 2021

Real estate investors need a basic understanding regarding the fundamentals of policy and economics, that continuously drive the demand and supply of housing; For the...

The metrics of ESG in Relation to Real Estate

Apr 27 2021

ESG, Supply-Chain Innovations, and Green Energy Investors could obtain long-term performance advantages when portfolio construction and investment analysis include ESG factors, When considering the metrics of ESG...

ESG: Ways to Achieve Net-Zero in a Real Estate Portfolio

Apr 19 2021

Reviewing Ways to Achieve Net-Zero in a Real Estate Portfolio The City Developments Limited (CDL) offers great guidance in achieving a net-zero portfolio through operational...

ESG: New Opportunities for Investors

Mar 18 2021

ESG: Why is it in focus? ESG, Environmental, Social, and Governance, is in focus for businesses and here’s why. Growing evidence is putting forward that when...

Hotels: good deals are yet to materialize

Feb 23 2021

Investing in hotels could be one of the most efficient ways to capitalize on the post-pandemic travel economy, Investors are starting to take advantage of...

Thrive Global: Olga’s Interview with Parveen Panwar, Mr. Activated #whynot

Feb 13 2021

I recently had a pleasure of being interviewed by Parveen Panwar of Thrive Global about building a real estate investment company, my climbing, and staying...

Resurgence of single-family asset class

Feb 02 2021

Institutional investors continue piling into single-family rentals, an asset class seen as a safe-harbor post-pandemic, The pandemic has sent Americans rushing to the suburbs, setting...

Will tech companies solve the housing crisis?

Jan 26 2021

Tech giants are stepping up to help alleviate the housing crisis, Amazon, Alphabet, Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple – all launched affordable housing investment programs, Many...

Life sciences real estate – state of the market Q4’20

Jan 18 2021

Given the current pandemic situation the interest of the real estate investment community in the life sciences real estate sector is poised to grow tremendously...

Life Sciences real estate – a new darling of real estate investing

Jan 11 2021

Given the current pandemic situation the interest of the real estate investment community in the life sciences real estate sector is poised to grow tremendously...

Technological Impact on Office Properties

Jan 04 2021

The introduction of new technologies by landlords and residents has revolutionized the source of real estate revenues and uses of space. New hardware and software...

Real Estate Technology: New Applications for Organizational and Portfolio Strategies

Dec 26 2020

We recently looked at the technological impact on real estate investing, various applications of machine learning in real estate, and how these new technologies might...

Post COVID Trends in Commercial Real Estate

Dec 10 2020

Capital Brain advisor Dr. Larry Souza recently gave a presentation at the CCIM Chapter meeting. We compiled the main points below regarding post-COVID commercial real...

Retail Landlords Carnage: Retail Landlords Filing for Bankruptcy

Nov 12 2020

The pandemic, along with changing consumer habits and few new retail focused real estate funds being launched have caused major financial consequences for retail landlords....

Home Factory, Inc: Post-fire rebuilds in santa rosa, ca

Sep 10 2019

California is mired in a housing crisis of epic proportions There is a housing crisis of epic proportions in the State of California and the...

Machine Learning in Real Estate

Jan 10 2018

Idea I recently had an honor to speak about automation for real estate at the IMN’s COO/CFO Forum in New York (awesome crowd!) This post...

Don’t Count Retail Real Estate Out Just Yet

May 18 2017

Kohl’s, Macy’s, JC Penny, and Sears have all reported lower sales from the prior year. Payless and Sports Authority have shuttered hundreds of stores....

Calpers Cuts Investment Targets. New Private Equity Funds Launched

Mar 20 2017

Calpers Cuts Investment Targets, Greatly Impacting Local Governments With the declaration that California’s roads are “in dire shape” and the evacuation of 180,000 people due...

Hotels: tons of activity

Feb 20 2017

Time To Use Those Vacation Days? The U.S. dollar’s strength has seen a 14-year high last year, the price of flight tickets have been steadily...

Retail Funds Stay Strong

Dec 01 2016

Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Retail Funds Are As Active As Ever Another Thanksgiving has come and gone, and through the wasteland of discarded wishbones...

Telescope Peak: from -250 to 11,000 ft in one day

Dec 01 2016

The “impossible” and the hardest day hike in the US completed in 14 hours. Climbing from the lowest point in Death Valley (and in the...

Active Hotel Investors of 2016

Nov 14 2016

Here are some notable events happening in the hotel world: 2016 has given us Brexit, the most unfavorable presidential candidates in history, and a summer...

Most active investors in office deals

Oct 26 2016

Investment Vehicles, The Big Apple, and Sand Hill Road Investment in office is still a lucrative business. Just ask WeWork, the community-oriented workplace who’s preparing...

Retail real estate can’t catch a break

Sep 29 2016

Let’s face it: Retail companies just can’t seem to catch a break, whether it be malls’ dwindling customer population, retail sales recording weaker than projected...

2016’s Most Active Middle-Market Private Equity Firms

Sep 01 2016

Active middle-market real estate private equity Real estate private equity firms manage investment capital obtained from institutional investors or high net worth individuals with the goal...

Celebrity Real Estate Investors

Aug 31 2016

ICelebrity investors Kobe Bryant announced Monday that he was starting a $100 million media, technology and data fund. Take a look at these famous sportsmen...

Healthcare Shocker

Aug 26 2016

In a move that’s sure to raise everyones’ blood pressure, insurance provider Aetna has announced that it’ll no longer be partnering with Obamacare in the...

Facebook Ventures Into Affordable Housing

Aug 19 2016

Need to reach out to affordable housing operators? Just grab a free bonus – a company list with investment strategies at the end of this...

How Much is a Degree Really Worth to a Mobster?

Aug 18 2016

Stay in school, kids— it may help you become a better gangster. The University of Essex recently analyzed U.S. Census data and information from the...

Multifamily: Overbuilding and Concessions

Aug 16 2016

Slowdown in Multifamily Private Deals Apartment Operator Aimco has just inked a $320 million deal in Redwood City for a 463-unit apartment community— and 18%...

Investing in the Games

Aug 11 2016

All That Glitters Is Not Gold There’s a shimmering light at the end of the tunnel. But it’s not a gold medal: it’s the outlandish...

CalPERS Disappoints

Aug 03 2016

The California Public Employee’s Retirement System (CalPERS) has reported their 12 month net return on investments, which clocked in at a preliminary 0.61%. CalPERS total...

Aquaculture Real Estate. New Trend?

Aug 03 2016

Something’s in the Water Something smells fishy here, but that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s cause for concern. The Food and Agriculture Organization has reported that...

Hines REIT dissolution and a few words about Blackstone

Jul 21 2016

To close out a month that gave us the Brexit, which briefly wiped $3 billion off the global market; the 6th season finale of Game...

Diamond Resorts Deal and a Slowdown in the Hospitality Sector

Jul 12 2016

Apollo Global has been one of the most active PE firms this year purchasing 3 corporations each valued above a billion dollars. Recently Apollo Global...

Mt. Denali, the hardest of the 7 Summits is conquered!

Jun 23 2016

Mt. Denali is summitted after seven months of daily training, two weeks in -30F temperatures, 140 lb in a sled (I only weigh 110 lbs!)...

Is brick-and-mortar retail dead?

May 27 2016

Hostess Brands is back… with no retail locations Deep fried fair lovers, nostalgics, and kids rejoice: not long ago Hostess Brands announced it will soon...

[Inforgraphic] Real Estate Quotes: Get inspired

May 13 2016

No need to worry: private multifamily real estate funds are doing great

Feb 15 2016

With the continuing “desuburbanization” and the Millennials’ preference for simpler uncluttered life, multifamily remains the most popular investment strategy for private real estate firms. Multifamily...

Black Friday: Private retail real estate funds fail to impress

Nov 29 2015

Despite some choppiness in the GDP and employment statistics this year, historically retail remains one of the most popular investment strategies for private real estate...

Olga summits Elbrus, her third of the 7 Summits

Jul 18 2015

I knew that if I failed I wouldn’t regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not trying. –Jeff Bezos

[Infographic] How to Make a Billion in Real Estate

Mar 22 2015

When it comes to making money in commercial real estate investing, there are many ways to do it but pretty much all of them involve...

Olga Koroleva, CEO, Summits Aconcagua

Jan 25 2015

Aconcagua is the highest mountain outside of Asia, at 6,960.8 meters (22,837 ft). It is located in the Andes mountain range, in the province of...

[Infographic] The Rise and Fall of the Single-Family as an Institutional Asset Class

Aug 22 2014

Several single-family investment companies have done really well during the crisis but the “easy gains” available to them through buying assets in “fire sales” have...