The Investing in Iowa Show

EP 130 How Mark Timmins Went from Courtrooms to Commercial Real Estate in Iowa

What happens when a lawyer realizes the courtroom is the wrong room for him? Mark Timmins traded litigation for leases, and over the past decade, has built one of the more active commercial brokerage practices in the Des Moines market. In this episode, he joins his brother Neil to talk through the winding path from the University of Iowa to Ave Maria Law School in Naples, Florida, and eventually to a desk at Cushman & Wakefield Iowa Commercial Advisors. Mark reflects on his first year in commercial real estate, six deals and roughly fifteen thousand dollars in commissions, and what that grind taught him about relationships, patience, and not chasing quick money. He shares how a book recommendation from Neil opened his eyes to commercial investing, why he and partner Jordan Balaslog have worked exclusively together for nearly nine years, and how the team reads market cycles well enough to buy strip centers in 2020 and sell most of them two years later at cap rates that produced fifty percent returns for clients. The conversation also covers how Mark and his team stumbled into mobile home parks through a referral to Joanne Stevens and why that niche has become a major focus. He details the current listing of Summit and Grandview, two parks owned by the Haymes family in the Cedar Rapids market, totaling 936 sites, roughly 904 occupied, and listed at $110 million. Nine days after hitting the market, the team had 36 NDAs signed and two offers in hand. 🧠 Mark Timmins' Top 5 Takeaways: * How reading the market in 2020 led to buying retail strip centers at mid-eight caps and selling most of them two years later at significant gains for clients. * Why chasing relationships instead of commissions is the only sustainable strategy in commercial brokerage. * How a referral to mobile home park expert Joanne Stevens opened an entirely new and active niche for the team. * Why uninformed sellers in the mobile home park space frequently undervalue their assets, sometimes by as much as 300%, and why proper representation matters. * How the Haymes family's fully integrated manufactured-housing business, covering home sales, remodeling, insurance, safety, and financing, represents the gold standard for park ownership in Iowa. 👤 About Mark Timmins: Mark Timmins is a commercial real estate broker at Cushman & Wakefield Iowa Commercial Advisors in Des Moines, where he focuses on investment property sales and mobile home park transactions. A University of Iowa graduate and licensed attorney, Mark practiced general litigation before pivoting into commercial real estate in 2016. He has built a long-running brokerage partnership with Jordan Bouslog and, alongside mobile home park legend Joanne Stevens, has become an active voice in Iowa's manufactured housing and homeownership market. Contact Info: LinkedIn: Mark Timmins [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-timmins-0a896462/] Website: Iowa Commercial Advisors [https://iowacommercialadvisors.com/] Learn More: www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod [https://www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod]

EP 129 Peter Jaques on Connecting People, Managing Properties, and Lessons from Startup Life

What happens when a commercial broker spends years inside venture-backed startups and then brings all of it back to property management? Peter Jaques has worn a lot of hats. He got his start in commercial real estate through a cold call to a broker named Doug Seidenberg, found his footing in retail and restaurant leasing, and then spent seven and a half years running a family office with over a million square feet of real estate. From there, he moved into technology, working with farmland marketplace Farmland Finder, single-family sale-leaseback company Easy Knock, and farmland brokerage platform Tillable before returning to where he began. Today, Peter is a managing member of The Real Estate Department alongside his wife Megan, who runs day-to-day operations. Their focus is property management and development grants, and Megan has become a go-to resource for identifying public funding that helps investors improve both their properties and their returns. Together, they manage a mix of shopping centers, multifamily, and single-family properties across the Des Moines market. Peter shares what he learned watching venture capital money move through early-stage companies, why the social signaling inside startups often masks deeper problems, and how a FedEx truck crash once led to a house being sold twice. He also talks about why thoughtful property management built around dignity creates better outcomes for owners and tenants alike, and what three metrics he would track if he were stranded on an island for a year. 🧠 Peter Jaques' Top 5 Takeaways: * How years in venture-backed tech taught him what good data looks like and why trust drives investor decisions * Why property management built around dignity produces better long-term returns for owners * How Megan Jaques turned a cash-flow-negative 50-unit project into a property generating five to ten thousand dollars monthly with a six-figure reserve * Why the real estate brokerage and technology spaces have fundamentally different economic structures * How tracking a maintenance-to-receipts ratio helps measure both financial performance and quality of stewardship 👤 About Peter Jaques: Peter Jaques is a Des Moines-based connector, commercial real estate professional, and managing member of The Real Estate Department, a property management and development company he runs with his wife and business partner, Megan. With a background spanning retail leasing, family office management, farmland technology, and single-family sale-leasebacks, Peter brings an unusually broad perspective to every conversation about real estate and business. Contact Info: Instagram: Peter Jaques [https://www.instagram.com/dsmjaques/] Facebook: Peter Jaques [https://www.facebook.com/peter.jaques.79] | Peter Jaques - Commercial & Residential Professional [https://www.facebook.com/dsmcre] Email: peter@therealestatedept.com [peter@therealestatedept.com] Learn More: www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod [https://www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod]

EP 128 From 401k Plans to Property Plans: Steve Davis on Specializing in a Small Market

What does it take to become the only CCIM-designated broker in your entire market? Steve Davis joins Neil Timmins to share how a financial advisor-turned-commercial real estate broker built a thriving practice in Dubuque, Iowa. From his early days at 801 Grand in Des Moines to launching Equity Real Estate Group, Steve's path is a study in patience, specialization, and serving clients first. Steve walks through his transition from W-2 employee to full-time broker in 2018, the role COVID played in earning his broker license, and why CCIM training opened doors to bigger deals and a wider network. He also explains how a partnership with developer clients, retail leasing, and industrial transactions now drives his business. Looking ahead, Steve is partnering with Greater Dubuque Development Corp on a market-wide commercial inventory project, growing his brokerage team, and mentoring agents who want to move from residential into commercial work. 🧠 Steve Davis' Top 5 Takeaways: * How a fiduciary background from financial advising shapes a client-first approach in brokerage * Why does earning a broker license and CCIM designation set Steve apart in a small commercial market * How focusing on geography rather than a single asset class works when you serve a smaller city * Why collecting proprietary market data gives both brokers and the community a long-term edge * How collaboration and mentorship inside a brokerage produce better outcomes than competition 👤 About Steve Davis: Steve Davis is a commercial real estate broker and property manager based in Dubuque, Iowa. He is a partner and managing broker of Equity Real Estate Group and a partner and managing broker of Premier Property Management Group. A graduate of Buena Vista University, Steve began his career in financial advising in Des Moines before returning home to Dubuque, where he later transitioned into real estate full-time in 2018. Steve holds the CCIM designation and is currently the only CCIM-designated broker in Dubuque. He focuses on development, retail leasing, office, and industrial transactions, and partners with Greater Dubuque Development Corp on commercial market research. Contact Info: Website: www.equityrealestatedbq.com [https://equityrealestatedbq.com] Website: www.premierdbq.com [https://premierdbq.com] LinkedIn: Steven Davis, CCIM [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevedavisdbq/] Learn More: www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod [https://www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod]

EP 127 Three Generations, One Mall: Liz Holland on Pivoting Merle Hay for the Next Era

What does it take to keep a 70-year-old mall relevant across three generations of family ownership? Liz Holland is the CEO of Merle Hay Mall and the third generation of her family to lead the business that originally bought the land in 1956. In this episode, she walks Neil Timmins through nearly three decades at the helm, starting with the day her 87-year-old grandfather called her in 1997 and told her to leave her legal career in New York and move back to Chicago to take over. Liz breaks down the pivots that have kept Merle Hay alive while other malls have faded. She explains how bringing in Target in 2005 with a mall entrance reshaped the property into a weekly destination, how the addition of junior anchor boxes like Ulta, Ross, and Five Below hybridized the center, and why Flix Brewhouse became an early bet on entertainment in 2014. She also gets candid about the harder chapters: losing both Yonkers and Sears as anchors within 45 days in 2018, the long road of the Iowa Reinvestment Act award, and the eventual pivot from a Buccaneers ice arena partnership to a national volleyball league, Dinks Pickleball, and a multi-use arena that will host Drake Hockey and the Iowa Demon Hawks. Liz contrasts Merle Hay's path with Valley West's structural challenges, shares her vision for the next 20 years, and reflects on what her grandfather taught her about location, patience, and the fact that the work is never really done. 🧠 Liz Holland's Top 5 Takeaways: * Why adding Target with a true mall entrance in 2005 turned Merle Hay into a weekly needs destination * How hybridizing the mall with strip-center style junior anchors expanded the universe of potential shoppers * Why leaning into sports and entertainment fights the obsolescence of the traditional anchor box * How losing Yonkers and Sears within 45 days forced a global rethink of the property * Why real estate is a three to five year business when it comes to capital allocation and return 👤 About Liz Holland: Liz Holland is the CEO of Merle Hay Mall and the third generation of her family to run the business, which originally purchased the land from the Passionist Fathers in 1956 and built Merle Hay Plaza. A former Wall Street professional and bankruptcy attorney with federal government experience, Liz returned to the family company in 1997 at her grandfather's request and has led its evolution ever since. Under her leadership, Merle Hay has navigated the arrival of Jordan Creek, the loss of major anchors, and a pivot toward sports and entertainment, including partnerships with Flix Brewhouse, Dinks Pickleball, and a planned multi-use arena. Liz lives in Chicago and continues to focus on Merle Hay's role as a mid-market, value-driven, regional destination. Contact Info: Website: www.merlehaymall.com [http://www.merlehaymall.com] Website: www.abbell.com [https://abbell.com/] LinkedIn: Elizabeth Holland [https://www.linkedin.com/in/elholland/] Learn More: www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod [https://www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod]

EP 126 Jim Tansey's Shift from CFO to Commercial Real Estate Investor and Operator

What does it really take to go from corporate finance to building a dominant real estate business? Jim Tansey shares a grounded, experience-driven look at his path from Waterloo, Iowa, to leading Hawkeye Commercial Real Estate and Hawkeye Real Estate Investment Company. Starting as a financial analyst and rising to CFO, Jim built a strong foundation in understanding numbers, inefficiencies, and business operations before making a major pivot into commercial real estate. That transition was anything but easy. The early years in brokerage were defined by learning, hustling, and taking every opportunity possible. Jim leaned heavily into education through CCIM, which became a turning point in his career and helped him specialize in investment real estate. Over time, that focus compounded into deeper expertise, stronger relationships, and more opportunities. In 2012, Jim and his partner took the leap into ownership, acquiring their first portfolio and launching what would become their investment arm. Shortly after, they started their own brokerage, driven by a desire to build a better culture and eliminate the frustrations they experienced elsewhere. Today, that people-first, relationship-driven approach has helped them grow into the largest brokerage in their market. Jim's philosophy is simple but powerful: do your job well, treat people right, and play the long game in both business and investing. 🧠 Jim Tansey's Top 5 Takeaways: * Early career skills in finance and analysis translate directly into real estate success * The first years in brokerage require volume, learning, and persistence * Specializing in investment real estate creates long-term opportunity and credibility * Owning real estate builds wealth while brokerage creates income * Culture and relationships, not transactions, are the foundation of a sustainable business 👤 About Jim Tansey: Jim Tansey is the President of Hawkeye Commercial Real Estate and Hawkeye Real Estate Investment Company, based in Eastern Iowa. He oversees brokerage, investment strategy, and property management operations across a growing portfolio. With a background in finance and leadership experience as a former CFO, Jim brings a disciplined, numbers-driven approach to real estate. He is also actively involved in the CCIM Institute, serving as its 2026 Treasurer, and remains committed to education, mentorship, and industry leadership. Contact Info: Company: Hawkeye Commercial Real Estate [https://thehawkeyegroup.com] Website: www.thehawkeyegroup.com [https://thehawkeyegroup.com] LinkedIn: Jim Tansey, CCIM [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-tansey-ccim-b0b20812/] Learn More: www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod [https://www.littleguyloans.com/learnmorepod]