How to Make Money with a Ground Lease

Today’s guest is Steve Waldman, president of Ground Lease Capital Partners.

Now, if you’re not into real estate, I’m willing to bet that you never knew you could buy a piece of land without buying the building on top of it, and then give the building owner a lease allowing the building to be on the land.

Well, it’s called a ground lease, and Steve Waldman has made a career out of them, helping building owners increase their returns by stripping the land piece from the property and helping his own investors make returns by owning that land.

In this interview, Steve walks through the process of exactly how you make money doing this kind of ground lease deal.

Steven Waldman is the founder and president of Ground Lease Capital Partners, LLC, a top investor, acquirer, and originator of ground lease deals in the U.S. and around the world. The company also advises institutional investors seeking exposure to ground lease investments and the safety and wealth generating aspects of these assets.

Before establishing Ground Lease Capital Partners, LLC, Steve co-founded Spectrum Advisors. Spectrum Advisors is a family of companies that includes a 1031 Exchange company, mezzanine fund, and a title insurance agent. Steve represented high net worth and institutional investors to acquire ground leases and lease holdings. With Spectrum Advisors, Steve transacted more than $700 million in acquisitions for his clients.

Two notable transactions include the land beneath The Water Club Tower at The Borgata Hotel in Atlantic City, NJ, and the land beneath the second largest research park in the U.S. — Cummings Research Park, in Huntsville, AL.

Earlier his career, Steve managed the day-to-day operates of the New York 1031 Exchange practices for First American Title Company and Land America Title Insurance Company — two Fortune 500 companies. He also advised accounting firms, law firms and investors on intricate 1031 Exchange structures.

In both positions, Steve was responsible for driving substantial transactional growth and revenue. He remains an active investor and operates commercial real estate across North America.

I hope you enjoy the interview with Steve Waldman. If you’d like to know more about investing in ground leases, please check out Steve’s website at www.groundleasecap.com.