Beyond Stocks

Summary

In this episode of Beyond Stocks, host Chihiro Kurokawa interviews Garland Benton from Direct Equity Source, who shares insights into the self-storage investment sector. As with many asset classes, in an industry of this size, not all self storage facilities are the same. Garland's firm specializes in Class-A self storage, meaning newly-built facilities with features like climate control and technology amenities. By cont...

A conversation with Haroon M. Cheema, a seasoned international tax attorney, discussing the complexities of cross-border taxation, investment structures, and tax incentives. He's done many deals, so he has thoughts on what you should look out for when considering an investment. Haroon shares his journey from New Jersey to Dubai and back, offering valuable insights into the world of international tax law.

Takeaways:

• Inves...

In this episode of the Beyond Stocks show, Chihiro Kurokawa interviews Cory Rodriguez, a crypto and Bitcoin mining expert. They discuss the evolution of mining technology, the unique business model of NFN8, and the competitive landscape of Bitcoin mining. Cory explains the risks associated with Bitcoin mining investments and how NFN8 mitigates these risks through strategic power contracts and innovative technologies like immersion ...

In this conversation, Chihiro interviews James Wang from Mimosa Ventures, exploring his journey into venture capital, the differences between angel investing and venture capital, and the current state of the VC ecosystem. They discuss the impact of AI on various industries, particularly healthcare, and the future of AI technology. James emphasizes the importance of strategic partnerships in investment and the challenges in today...

In this conversation, Pedro De Leon asks Chihiro Kurokawa for the details from his journey in multifamily investments, discussing the reasons behind his choice of this asset class, his first experiences, and the current state of the market. He highlights the challenges faced in today's multifamily landscape, including rent growth and tenant demand, and offers predictions for the future of the market. Chihiro also emphasizes the...

In this episode of the Beyond Stocks Podcast, Pedro and Chihiro dive into the world of Private Credit — exploring how it has evolved since the Great Recession of the late 2000s and what investors need to watch out for today.

After 2008, new regulations forced traditional banks to tighten lending standards. This opened the door for private lenders to step in, offering loans to borrowers deemed too risky or undesirable for banks. Whil...

What You'll Learn

In this episode of the Beyond Stocks Podcast, we sit down with Nic Espanet — multifamily investor, syndicator, and host of the FLEX Forward Podcast. Nic shares his journey from being a passive investor to leading large multifamily syndications, managing thousands of doors, and helping people invest as Limited Partners into commercial real estate.

If you’ve been curious about how to get started in multifamily inv...

Most investors have heard Buffett's expression about being greedy when others are fearful. But knowing it and doing it are entirely different.

John Bullman is the Chief Investment Officer at LGT Financial Advisors, and he has decades of investment experience including 15 years at a leading family office.

This discussion was packed with brilliant insights including John's thoughts on whether we currently have more inflationa...

Jared Benson with Clotine Capital is our favorite kind of investor. He started with a regular job like most other people, but at the young age of 25 he made his first investment into a private offering. He's also tried his hand in multiple businesses as an entrepreneur but wisely concluded that he should only create and run businesses that are in his area of expertise. This mindset allowed him to reach accredited investor statu...

Keith Blackborg and his wife Jessica did well with their businesses and real estate investing, but they eventually faced existential questions like "Why are we still doing this?"

They sold their assets and took a three year vacation, after which they formed Financial Journey. FJ serves self-directed millionaires who learn about wealth creation, wealth preservation, investments and tax strategy. Along they way they have fu...

Today our guest is Jeff Murphy from North Texas Angel Network. NTAN is a network of dozens of accredited investors who invest in early stage startups. They regularly meet in Dallas Fort Worth to listen to pitches from startups that are raising capital. The group setting helps investors consider outside viewpoints before making an investment.

If you think you need to have millions in investable cash to be an angel investor, you'...

A lot of people have the means but not the awareness to invest outside of the traditional system of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, asset managers, financial advisors etc.

What if you could learn about how people invest directly into projects, cutting out all those middlemen?

Pedro and Chihiro also do some mythbusting when it comes to the tax benefits often touted by commercial real estate syndicators!

Pedro De Leon, Jr. and Chihiro Ku...

Did you know that the United States is the world's leading oil producer? The #2 producer (Saudi Arabia) produces less than half of what the US does. With energy being such a large part of the US economy, it's no wonder that there are many private investment opportunities in oil.

Tim Pawul is an expert in oil investing, and he shares his tremendous knowledge including red flags to look out for if you're considering an inv...

In this episode, Pedro and Chihiro discuss an important consideration for people new to alts.

Active investing is a job. Whether it's a stock trading strategy, buying a business through ETA or running a commercial real estate deal, it's a major time and capital investment and significantly riskier than passive investment.

For these reasons, active investing isn't suitable for most people.

We go into detail on the pros a...

Days ago, Bill Alpert of Barron's published an article claiming that by the end of 2026, Americans may have broad access to Alts through IRAs and 401ks. We discuss topics such as:

• Will offerings be limited to mega asset managers or will smaller-scale offerings be available?
• What will fee structures look like?
• How will this reconcile with Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) in light of the illiquid nature of alternative inves...

Chihiro and Pedro like to attend and host in-person events in Dallas-Fort Worth. When we host, we are thoughtful about who we invite, and our events are not open to the public.

But last week, that guy showed up and he had a me-first mentality, seeking capital for his business. We won't invite him again, but this brings up the question, what's the right way to network? It's pretty simple - you can't go wrong as long as you lead with...

The thing about alt investments is that they are generally found through private offerings. By definition, they're harder to find than stocks on Robin Hood or E-Trade. So how do you find them?

Well, you can start by joining the Beyond Stocks journey to learn what to look for, and what kind of deals are available. Our goal is to let the world know that there's a whole new world of investments out there beyond traditional asse...

What are Alts??? In short, traditional investing refers to well-known financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds. Alts are everything else!

Categories of Alts include business investing (private equity), commercial real estate, crypto, commodities, non-bank lending (private credit) and more.

Pedro & Chihiro are motivated to spread the word about Alts (particular through private offerings) because they can be...

James Ellis is the CEO of Arundel Group Holdings, a vertically integrated firm that designs, engineers and builds commercial real estate.

James has over 4 decades of experience so he has learned what does and doesn't work in real estate development. Hear stories such as:

1. How building on a former landfill led to a business losing $1 million per week!
2. Conducting a Phase 1 Environmental Study can lead to learning things about y...