Adriel Hsu: Why I Quit Oil & Gas to Build Luxury Homes

Adriel Hsu: Why I Quit Oil & Gas to Build Luxury Homes

Today, I welcome Adriel Hsu to the Investing Secrets Podcast. Adriel’s path into real estate started in the last place you’d expect - an oil and gas job. Fresh out of Georgia Tech with an environmental engineering degree, he was shipped off to a small Texas town in 2016, and within his first days on the job he knew he didn’t want to spend 40 years behind a desk. After cycling through e-commerce and drop shipping, he landed on real estate - then spent the next five and a half years grinding two full-time jobs at once (9 to 5 at the office, 5 to 9 on his own deals) before finally walking away from the W-2 in 2021 and never looking back. Today, Adriel runs a residential development business in Houston focused on land splits, entitlements, and ground-up luxury construction - the higher end of the market, where he believes the spreads are actually worth the effort. We kick things off with his origin story - how a guy who just wanted a brand-new house without paying market price taught himself to find land, split the lots, and build it himself. From there, Adriel breaks down the mechanics of his development model: how he sources off-market opportunities, why he abandoned thin-margin starter homes for the luxury market, and how he structures deals with private investors. We close on his read of the Houston market heading into the second half of 2026 - what’s really happening across office, multifamily, and self-storage, why staying flexible matters, and the one investing secret he’s lived by for the last decade. If you’re serious about off-market sourcing and building durable, conservative returns through every real estate cycle, this one delivers. Welcome, Adriel, to The Investing Secrets Podcast… Follow Adriel: Website: https://www.adrielhsu.co Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adrielhsu YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adrielhsu TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@adrielhsu LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrielhsu Follow Me: LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3L2sTc7 Instagram: https://bit.ly/3soYxtW

Zach Levitt: How I Built a Multi-Manager Hedge Fund at 25 Years Old

Today, I welcome Zachary Levitt to The Investing Secrets Podcast. Zach's path into investing started early and moved fast - soaking up the strategies of the world's great hedge fund managers in high school, launching a derivatives trading club at university that put him in the room with some of the top portfolio managers alive, running a biotech alpha-capture strategy by 21, and becoming one of the youngest hedge fund managers you'll ever hear of by 25. Today he's the CIO and Founder of Sixth Turn Capital, a capacity-constrained multi-manager fund built for high-net-worth, ultra-high-net-worth, and family office investors - a stable of uncorrelated portfolio managers, each an expert in their own narrow strategy, engineered to deliver smooth, consistent, risk-adjusted returns. We kick off with Zach's origin story and how a college trading club turned into managing real capital before most people finished their degree. From there we get into the architecture of a multi-manager fund - how he vets and underwrites portfolio managers, why he pays each one only on their own sleeve, and why true diversification comes from uncorrelated strategies rather than simply owning more stocks. We close on where he sees the biggest opportunities heading into the second half of 2026, why now may be an opportune moment to protect against a market crash, and the growing shift toward alternatives. Welcome, Zach, to The Investing Secrets Podcast… Follow Zach: Website: sixthturncapital.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zach-levitt-428160144 Follow Me: LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3L2sTc7 Instagram: https://bit.ly/3soYxtW

Ryan Brown: Why I Quit Medicine to Build a $41M Self-Storage Empire

Today, I welcome Ryan Brown to The Investing Secrets Podcast. Ryan's path into real estate was anything but conventional. He grew up in a trailer park, became the first in his family to attend college, and trained as a nurse anesthesiologist at Rush in Chicago before landing a faculty role at USC's Keck School of Medicine. But between long shifts in the operating room and annual surgical mission trips to rural Kenya, Ryan realized he was wired to build something bigger than himself. Today he's the Principal and Co-Founder of Turnbull Equity, a vertically integrated self-storage platform with roughly $41 million in AUM across seven states - combining ownership, capital raising, and a nationwide third-party management arm all under one roof. We kick things off with Ryan's origin story and the single beachfront building (financed at a 1.75% fixed mortgage) that pulled him out of the operating room and into full-time real estate. From there, we get into why self-storage rewards disciplined operators over passive owners, how Ryan runs one of the leanest expense loads in the business, why he treats NOI - not IRR - as his true north, and how his management arm quietly feeds his entire acquisition pipeline. We close on his outlook for self-storage in 2026, how he identifies durable markets in a post-COVID world, and the one investing principle he believes matters more than any return metric. Welcome, Ryan, to The Investing Secrets Podcast… Follow Ryan: Website: turnbullequity.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanbrownla/ Follow Me: LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3L2sTc7 Instagram: https://bit.ly/3soYxtW

Brian Bradley: How the Ultra-Wealthy Protect Their Assets

Today, I welcome back longtime friend of the program, Brian Bradley, to the Investing Secrets Podcast. Brian has spent years in the trenches of asset protection and legal structuring, working with high-net-worth individuals, business owners, and real estate investors to protect what they've built - not just during their lifetime, but across generations. In an environment where lawsuits are more aggressive, misinformation is at an all-time high, and outdated strategies are still being sold as solutions, Brian cuts through the noise with real case law and real structure. We kick things off with the biggest misconceptions in asset protection right now - from the "an LLC solves everything" narrative to the dangerous advice around out-of-state entities, revocable trusts, and offshore loopholes that don't hold up in court. From there, Brian breaks down what a properly structured plan actually looks like: the layered approach using LLCs, management companies, and hybrid trust structures, and why most investors are either underprotected or protected in the wrong way without realizing it. We close on the next level of planning - how to defend your assets while you're alive and preserve and transfer wealth efficiently across generations using dynasty trust structures, while minimizing tax exposure and protecting heirs from their own liabilities. If you're serious about protecting your balance sheet, avoiding costly legal mistakes, and building a structure that holds up under pressure, this one delivers. Welcome, Brian, to The Investing Secrets Podcast… Follow Brian: Website: btblegal.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-t-bradley-esq-a47a7b12/ Follow Me: LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3L2sTc7 Instagram: https://bit.ly/3soYxtW

Shifra Ansonoff: Why Private Markets are Taking Over

Today, I welcome Shifra Ansonoff to The Investing Secrets Podcast. Shifra is a leader at Preqin, now operating under the BlackRock umbrella within the Aladdin ecosystem, and today she shares how private markets data, AI, and institutional capital are reshaping the future of investing. She breaks down why alternatives have become a core allocation for institutional investors, how secondaries and private credit are rapidly growing, and why infrastructure is emerging as one of the biggest opportunities over the next decade. Shifra also dives into the impact of BlackRock’s acquisition of Preqin, the evolving role of AI across investing and operations, and how investors are navigating liquidity challenges, deal flow dynamics, and selective conviction in today’s market environment. With a unique vantage point at the intersection of data, technology, and capital allocation, she offers insights into where private markets are headed and how investors can better understand the forces shaping the next era of alternatives investing. Welcome, Shifra, to The Investing Secrets Podcast.... Follow Shifra: Website: Preqin.com LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/shifra-ansonoff-274ab46/  Follow Me: LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3L2sTc7 Instagram: https://bit.ly/3soYxtW