Real Estate Opportunities During Recessions: Marketing Automation and Team Building

Sam Schneider and Peter Von Der Ahe explore the systems, mindset shifts, and strategic pivots that powered Peter's journey from cold-calling broker to leading one of New York's top multifamily investment sales teams, and eventually transitioning into full-time principal investing through MFP Capital. They discuss: Why moving the money conversation to the front of a deal unlocked team collaboration and eliminated friction in brokerage How cloud computing and marketing automation allowed Peter to scale from six people to fifty-five while leveraging his time tenfold The decision to walk away from a successful, established brokerage business to build a principal platform from scratch How recessions create disproportionate opportunity for those with runway, preparation, and the right reframe Why understanding what you're naturally good at matters more than chasing what sounds impressive on the surface This episode offers a blueprint for anyone building teams, navigating career transitions, or looking to compound small advantages into lasting success in real estate. Topics: 00:00 - Intro 01:15 - Peter's early years and college at BC 03:44 - Moving to New York and first jobs 05:52 - Arthur Andersen and the CMBS boom 08:32 - Dot com detour and sales experience 11:26 - Joining Marcus & Millichap 13:11 - The GFC as opportunity 16:23 - Building a team-based brokerage model 23:02 - The marketing letter that changed everything 28:11 - Scaling with technology and systems 29:59 - Podcast and inbound strategies 30:32 - New York rent laws and pivoting out 32:56 - COVID acceleration and the Florida move 35:26 - Going all in on MFP Capital 40:05 - MFP's investment strategy 41:11 - Finding operational upside in deals 43:08 - Favorite deal story 44:43 - Peter's 90 mile-an-hour fastball 46:23 - Navigating adversity and hard decisions 49:11 - Advice for young professionals Sam Schneider LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-schneider-... Peter Von Der Ahe LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/pvonderahe/ Companies: Imperium Capital — https://www.imperiumcap.com MFP Capital - https://www.mfpcap.com/