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The Rich Somers Report

How 1980's Real Estate Will Shape the Next 10 Years | Michael Zuber E405

The Rich Somers Report

Rich Somers

Investing, Business

5.01K Ratings

🗓️ 30 September 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

History doesn’t repeat—but it sure does rhyme. In this episode, Rich sits down with Michael Zuber, veteran investor and host of One Rental at a Time, to break down why today’s market looks a lot like the 1980s—and what that means for the next decade of real estate. From transaction crashes and affordability issues to interest rate cycles and syndication blowups, Zuber explains how to position yourself now to ride the wave. They cover: Why the 40/40/40 “go to school, get a job” model was alway...

Transcript

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0:00.0

daily discipline. We've got to tell people that's what it takes. I don't give a shit what you want to be great at. If you focus and execute on it daily for a year, you will be in the top 1% of whatever you choose. And that is the secret to life. But guys like you and I who are the top 1% in our areas, we have to tell you, you know, the first 30 days suck, the first 90 days. You're not going to believe it. You're not going to see it. But trust me, it's worth it. And it's empowering. And once you get that proof of concept, you just keep coming back. Welcome to the Rich Strummers Report where we talk real estate, business, and wealth building, all while keeping it real. No fluff, no BS. I hope that you enjoy the show.

0:44.5

All right, guys, welcome to another episode of The Report today. I got someone who's been in the

0:51.2

game for quite some time and he's been investing in real estate in central California for quite some time. Seeing a couple of cycles, couple market cycles, the ups, the downs, recessions. I got my man, Michael's Uber. Michael, welcome to the show, brother. Rich, I appreciate the opportunity. Yeah, it's been a fun ride, 20-some-odd years. Yeah, man. Seen a lot, done a lot. And I like the black on black vibes, man. You got the Air Force ones there, a little purple.

1:13.8

That's right.

1:14.2

A little swag. 20 some odd years. Yeah, man. Seen a lot, done a lot. And I like the black on black vibes, man.

1:11.7

You got the Air Force ones there, a little purple. Yeah, that's right. A little swag. I got to wear built for my man. Dude, yeah. A big shout out to Bill. There you go. Bill's actually sponsor our Tulum Retreat next week, man. It's so excited for it. It's going to be so sick. but dude what is the 40 40 40 40 life 40 life? Break that down. Well, there was something that I was

1:30.3

told was the goal in life. I was raised, you know, I'm a Gen X. I was raised to believe that you

1:34.5

should go to school, get a good job, work 40 hours for 40 years to live on 40%. That was the dream.

1:43.7

It doesn't have to be.

1:44.8

It's a nightmare.

1:45.7

Yeah, I was taught the same age, man, from a young age, go to school, get good grades,

1:49.6

go to college, get a job.

1:51.5

And I did all those things.

1:53.4

And it was cool.

1:55.4

But very, very hard to win with that mentality today.

2:00.6

I think 40 years ago, 50 years ago when

2:02.3

there were pensions and, you know, there wasn't all the inflation that you see today. You could

2:06.4

theoretically win and live a comfortable lifestyle with that. But today it's, it's not the best

2:12.5

strategy in my opinion. Oh, it's, I don't think it's, I think it's been proven to be a horrible

2:16.0

strategy. You know, I'm doing a speech at bigger pockets in the very first slide is this is what they told us, the 40, 40, 40 life. But here are the stats of 65 year olds, right? This is what they're worth. This is what they have. And it's horrible, right? Most people's answer at 65 today is going to be, I have to work another decade. So it's not the 40-40 life. It's the 40-50 life or the 40-60 life. So I would argue that it was always a bad strategy. It was something that was marketed by the school systems that, you know, the government to get everybody to work and kind of follow along. But if you want to break free from the matrix, you've got to be a business owner or you got to find a way to invest in real estate over a decade. And then you can bus free and you own your own time. Otherwise, the Matrix or what I call the Rat Racer, get you. And there's just, there's no winning. You just can't win. Yeah. It's crazy because they don't teach this in school. And I didn't really learn this until,

3:26.7

you know, the last few years. But, you know, I take the boat out to Catalina. There's 300 other boat owners out there. And every single one of those 300 boat owners are either real estate investors or business owners. Those are really only two vehicles to get there, unless you're going to be a professional athlete and become LeBron James, a celebrity movie star, famous musician, but that's the point zero one.

3:58.3

If you don't win the DNA lottery, you know, you're not that lightning in a bottle, Taylor Swift or LeBron or whatever. There is just no other way, real estate or a business, right? But all of them are hard, right? Choose your hard. I personally believe, again, I think there's, you know, you can either be born an entrepreneur or born an employee. When I look at someone like you, Rich, I think entrepreneur, right? You were made to be an entrepreneur the way you think. It's just different, right? I was born to be an employee, right? Go follow the rules. Go do this. And, you know, that led me down this 40-40 path. And it wasn't until I read that freaking purple book rich dead poor dad that it kind of opened my eyes to like oh my god yeah i read i read i read that book too

...

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