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Welcome to The Hotel Investor Playbook, hosted by real estate investors and hospitality experts Michael Russell and Nathan St Cyr. As the founders of Malama Capital and Howzit Hostels, Michael and Nathan have a wealth of experience in owning and operating boutique hotels, hostels, and other experiential lodging properties. With over $30 million in real estate investments, including short-term rentals, long-term rentals, commercial retail, and hospitality properties, they bring a unique perspective on how to turn passion-driven investments into financial freedom.
In this podcast, they share their roadmap for transitioning from traditional real estate investments to boutique hotels, offering listeners the insights and strategies needed to succeed in this niche market. Whether you're looking to learn about identifying the right property, managing operations, or understanding the financial complexities of boutique hotel ownership, The Hotel Investor Playbook has you covered.
Join Michael and Nathan each week as they document their journey towards building a $400 million real estate-based business and bring you along for the ride. Subscribe now and start turning your real estate investment dreams into reality.
60 Episodes
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Turning an international hospitality dream into reality sounds exciting, until you’re standing on a swampy patch of land in Belize, wondering how many years it will take to shape it into something guests will love. That’s where today’s guest, Odis Martin, began. He and his wife spent nearly a decade transforming a remote island into Sindiri on the Reef, a private eco lodge built without outside investors and rebuilt multiple times after hurricanes. Odis and his wife went from small US ...
Most hotel investors struggle to get brokers to take them seriously. The result is the same handful of buyers getting the first look at every good deal while everyone else fights over leftovers. In this episode, Michael sits down with Hunter Johnson, President of Investment Sales at US Hotel Advisors, to break down how brokers actually decide who gets deal flow. Hunter shares what he looks for in a real buyer, what turns him off immediately, and the simple behaviors that make brokers wa...
Want to know what it’s like to go from short-term rentals to owning boutique hotels while still maintaining a healthy relationship? This week on the Hotel Investor Playbook, Michael Russell sits down with Mitch Ehly and Katie Wanzer, the husband-and-wife duo behind Fresh Coast Motel and Spruce & Shore Motel in Door County, Wisconsin. They share how they scaled from Airbnbs to a full-fledged hospitality brand, revived two historic motels, and used automation to stay profitable without losi...
Looking for hotel technology that can actually increase profit and reduce expenses without hiring an IT department? This week on the Hotel Investor Playbook, Michael Russell sits down with Sue Graves, founder of Experience Alive, who has spent over 30 years in hospitality and now helps hotel owners implement practical, affordable tech solutions that make a real financial impact. In this episode, you’ll discover several technology use cases you can implement today, including: Offload up to 50%...
Ever dreamed of quitting your six-figure job to build real wealth through hotels? This episode shows you what it actually takes. Tim Ensmann, founder of the T.C. Hotel Fund, shares how he went from tech sales to owning a multi-million-dollar boutique hotel portfolio in under five years. He reveals the sacrifices, systems, and strategies behind turning a $1.5M property into a $4.5M success story. He then shares how you can follow the same path without losing your sanity. You’ll learn: The real...
Ever wonder where the money actually goes in a hotel deal? In this episode, Michael Russell breaks down real estate syndications in plain English. How investors and operators really get paid, what fees are fair, and how to structure deals that build long-term trust. Whether you’re looking to raise capital for your first project or invest passively, this is the playbook for understanding the math behind every syndication. You’ll learn: The simple breakdown between LPs and GPs and how each gets...
When most people say they want to buy a hotel, it’s just talk. Jacobo Hernandez sold his entire $10M short-term rental portfolio, packed his car, and hit the road for 90 days to find one. He toured 35 hotels, underwrote 2,000 deals, and slept in random motels across the U.S. before discovering a hidden gem, a 59-room hotel on 10 acres in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, for just $1.2 million. Now he’s turning it into Forest Springs Hotel & Spa, a wellness-focused retreat with saunas, cold plunge...
We’ve all dreamt of quitting our bland corporate jobs to buy a hotel in Costa Rica… well, today’s guest did that. After leaving a private equity career in San Francisco, Bill Graf traded suits for surf towns and founded Onda, a hospitality brand in Costa Rica that blends the style of a boutique hotel with the social energy of a hostel. You’ll learn: How to uncover hidden opportunities in small hotels that big players ignoreWhat U.S. investors should know about buying real estate in Costa Ric...
The hotel industry is changing: costs are rising, AI is here, and investors are getting more selective. This week on the Hotel Investor Playbook, we sat down with Bob Rauch, better known as The Hotel Guru. From starting out as a dishwasher to building and selling a 20-hotel management company, then launching Brick Hospitality and managing nearly 1,000 rooms, Bob has seen it all. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to spot hot markets (and avoid the ones that eat your profits)The truth about us...
Where is the hotel market headed in 2026, and how can investors succeed in a challenging environment? This week on the Hotel Investor Playbook, we sat down with Jan Freitag, National Director of Hospitality Analytics at CoStar. With over 30 years of experience analyzing hotel performance data, Jan is one of the most respected voices in the industry. Here’s what you’ll learn: How to use data and analytics to spot opportunities others overlookWhy conviction and strong operations can outperform ...
The most powerful part of a hotel stay isn’t the design or the amenities, it’s the feeling guests take home. That’s the philosophy of Bashar Wali, one of the most candid and creative voices in hospitality, who's spent 30+ years building, operating, and reinventing hotels around the world. In this episode of the Hotel Investor Playbook, Bashar shares: Why “give-a-shit-ability” beats corporate playbooksThe power of emotional intelligence in hotel teamsThe biggest mistakes first-time owners make...
How do you turn a struggling hotel into a profitable asset? This week on the Hotel Investor Playbook, we sit down with Naveed Khan, co-founder of London Rock Partners, a hotel management and advisory firm that oversees everything from branded hotels like Holiday Inn to boutique independents and even a 650-bed hostel in London. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why the first step in turning around a hotel always starts with people, not P&LsThe advantages (and risks) of branded vs. independent...
Few people have left a mark on hospitality like Richard Kessler. He started his hospitality career by helping scale Days Inn into a household name as the early CEO Then he founded the Kessler Collection, one of the leading boutique hotel portfolios in the U.S., which ultimately helped launch Marriott’s Autograph Collection. In this episode, Richard shares the biggest lessons from his 50-year career, including: • How to lead through downturns and find opportunity in distress • Wh...
What if your first hotel deal could be funded almost entirely through Instagram? This week’s guest, Soli Cayetano AKA lattes.and.leases on Instagram, went from barista to building a $13M real estate portfolio in just four years. After exiting her residential investing business, she turned to hospitality and now co-owns a 13-key boutique wellness hotel in Palm Springs that’s already been featured in Forbes, Vogue, and Travel & Leisure. In this episode, you’ll learn: How Soli raised $2.5M i...
Most hotel investors default to syndication — raising capital from dozens of limited partners and layering in complex waterfalls. But what if there’s a smarter, simpler path? This week’s guest, Brandon Gore, is building The Outlier Hotel, a 10-cabin luxury retreat in Arkansas designed to last 100 years. Instead of chasing the traditional syndication model, he’s structuring the project as a joint venture — lowering pressure, creating strong cash flow, and unlocking tax advantages that limited ...
Think great marketing is only for big hotels with big budgets? Think again. In this episode, we talk with Steph Weber, a marketing and branding expert who helps boutique hotel and STR owners drive direct bookings. She breaks down how she finds her audience, tells a compelling brand story, and uses limited resources to drive big results. You’ll learn: How to identify your property’s unique selling pointsSimple marketing strategies that work for small hotels and innsWhy guest experience is your...
Think you need a perfect plan to start investing in hospitality? Think again. In this episode, we sit down with Jonathan Mueller, an everyday investor who went from zero experience and a failed multifamily deal to buying a $250K roadside motel and building a growing hospitality portfolio. He didn’t have a background in hotels, didn’t have much of a strategy, and still made it work through pure action, problem-solving, and a willingness to pivot. You’ll learn: Why taking action beats waiting f...
Is your marketing helping your hotel or just draining your budget? In this episode, we sit down with Anthony Chiaravallo, founder of Vallo Media, who has managed over $100M in ad spend for brands like Nike, Resorts World, and boutique hotels across the country. Whether you're trying to fill beds or scale a brand, Anthony breaks down how to think about hotel marketing in a way that actually drives bookings. You’ll learn: How to build a full-funnel strategy that drives real bookingsWhat makes a...
Ever wondered how people raise millions to buy real estate without using their own money? In this episode, Desiree Doubrox breaks down the world of syndication and how she built an eight-figure fund while empowering hundreds of others to do the same. Whether you're new to investing or ready to raise capital for your first deal, this conversation simplifies the path to building generational wealth. You’ll learn: What syndication really is and how it applies beyond real estateHow to gain credib...
Instead of chasing bookings, the founders behind Bolt Farm Treehouse create an obsession amongst their guests, and they do it with love at the center of everything. Their hospitality business heals relationships, attracts top-tier employees, and doesn't require the use of OTAs In this episode, Seth and Tori Bolt break their iconic hospitality business where luxury stays meet emotional transformation. You’ll hear: How to design experiences that emotionally move your guestsWhy 100% of their boo...
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