Another series of one of the greatest investors of all time and by learning his principles you can actually learn a thing or two to apply on your portfolio. Those principles actually helped me choosing the crypto for my lifetime and the crypto just for a trade.
First of all, WHO IS SAML ZELL?
Sam Zell is recognized for his performance in the real estate market and other capital-intensive businesses, which has earned him a fortune of $ 5 billion, according to Forbes. The son of refugees from World War II, he claims to have inherited from his father, who managed to flee Poland before the German invasion, a keen sense of anticipating risks.
This protection-related ability, as we will demonstrate throughout this post, was one of those that solidified his competence. Zell started his career at university, when he administered student apartments to avoid paying rent. This provided him with important lessons for the real estate business, his first (and main) expertise.
The investor is the founder of Equity Group Investments (EGI), a private equity company that invests in the real estate, energy, logistics, manufacturing, transport and communication sectors. One of EGI's most striking businesses happened in 2007, when it sold its office operation, Equity Office Properties (the largest REIT in the American market so far), for $ 36 billion. In addition, Zell is responsible for Equity International, a division that operates in several countries and that, in the early 2000s, was one of the main investors of BRMalls.
"The Grave Dancer" is the nickname he received for one of his main approaches, which seeks assets in deteriorated situations and with little chance of survival, according to conventional opinion. This and other connected lessons can be learned from his autobiography, published in 2017: Am I Being Too Subtle? The Adventures of a Business Maverick. Next, we will detail the principles that serve as the basis for Sam Zell's decisions in all the different segments in which he undertakes, which are responsible for building his fortune.
- Use consensual opinions as a reference only
Zell has as a first principle not to be carried away by the consensus of the markets, which he classifies as the main cause of the excess of prices in times of pessimism or generalized optimism. This is due to the fact that, when many players have the same bias, prices tend to shift in an exaggerated way to a certain side.
The idea is to know that the majority's opinion is important - not to adhere to it, but to identify potential promising capital allocations.
Tomorrow i will list the last 4! Hope you enjoy!