Ian Ross founded SomeraRoad in 2016, bringing a fresh, entrepreneurial approach to opportunistic real estate in growing secondary cities nationwide. He has since led the firm’s rapid expansion, overseeing nearly $2.5 billion in acquisitions of 25+ million square feet in more than 70 unique markets. Ian has also augmented SomeraRoad’s core value-add business, building new verticals in industrial net lease, distressed debt, and opportunity zone investing and creating a robust ground-up development practice. Today, SomeraRoad is arguably the fastest-growing commercial real estate investment and development company in the USA.

On this episode, Jake and Ian discuss:

• Building SomeraRoad


• Micro-neighborhoods


• Having local expertise at a national scale


• Placemaking and Hospitality in Office and Hotel assets

Connect & Invest with Jake:

Follow Jake on X: https://x.com/JWurzak

1 on 1 coaching with Jake: https://www.jakewurzak.com/coaching

Learn How to Invest with DoveHill: https://bit.ly/3yg8Pwo

Links:

SomeraRoad

Ian on LinkedIn

Topics:

(00:00:00 ) - Intro

(00:03:50 ) - Ian’s entrepreneurial journey

(00:06:27 ) - Biggest lessons learned on someone else’s dime

(00:08:37 ) - Do local operators tend to miss out on macro trends?

(00:15:09 ) - Early decisions to make when considering entering a new asset class

(00:20:05 ) - Raising capital & funds

(00:28:47 ) - Focusing on neighborhoods instead of cities

(00:31:13 ) - Setting up local offices

(00:34:36 ) - How has your thoughts on placemaking changed?

(00:41:45 ) - What’s your approach to hospitality?

(00:46:23 ) - How much do you think about competitors in your local market?

(00:50:58 ) - 1 Hanover Square

(00:56:51 ) - Keeping teams interconnected and hiring, 

(00:59:39 ) - How do you keep the pulse on whether you’re hitting goals?

(01:00:45 ) - The industrial net lease space

(01:02:26 ) - Where do you get inspiration?

(01:04:41 ) - What are your goals for the next 5 years?

(01:05:29 ) - What’s been your favorite deal?

(01:08:27 ) - What’s your favorite hotel?

This episode originally aired in February of 2024