In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we sit down with Alex Fahsel, the co-founder of Property Shield, a groundbreaking company that's changing how investors protect their assets from fraud and scams.
At just 23 years old, Alex built Property Shield while finishing college at the University of Georgia—and today, it operates in over 35 states, helping investors prevent rental fraud, wire fraud, and title scams that have cost renters and landlords more than a billion dollars.
We unpack how AI and machine learning are being used to fight fraudulent listings, what every investor needs to know about protecting their portfolios, and how small investors can stay one step ahead of increasingly sophisticated scammers.
If you invest in single-family rentals, multifamily properties, or land, this episode is your crash course in risk management, due diligence, and fraud prevention straight from one of the brightest young innovators in the industry.
Key Talking Points of the Episode
00:00 Introduction
01:15 How an internship at Progress Residential inspired Alex's idea
02:25 Turning a college project into a real business
03:40 The birth of Property Shield and early lessons learned
04:48 How AI detects fraudulent listings and impersonations online
07:28 The shocking scale of real estate fraud across major cities
09:04 The devastating impact of fraud on mom-and-pop investors and tenants
11:07 Property Shield's nationwide growth and expansion goals
13:08 Why small property managers and investors are hardest to reach
15:28 The first deal that changed everything—finding trust and opportunity
17:45 Breaking down other common types of real estate fraud
20:30 Wire fraud and phishing—why the biggest scams happen before closing
23:06 Using AI and automation to detect scams faster than ever
24:23 Deepfakes, AI-generated voices, and the next wave of fraud risks
26:10 How persistence can help you achieve success
27:23 Why investors should always use title companies and attorneys
28:07 How Property Shield is developing new partnerships to fight title fraud
29:50 The goal: catching fraudulent listings before they ever go live
31:38 Future of Property Shield: predictive analytics and risk scoring
Quotables
"We're seeing that between 20 and 25% of all online real estate listings have at least one fraudulent duplicate."
"Fraudsters are using AI, so we have to use AI. It's the only way to keep up."
"Persistence. That's the one word I'd use to sum up this journey. You just keep chugging along."
Links
Property Shield
RCN Capital
https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast
https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/
REI INK
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