Collecting Keys Podcast

What did you think of todays show??

Who's actually getting paid when you donate, borrow, or hire? In this episode, we break down how a Spokane charity boss pulls a million dollars a year, how Dylan replaced his lead manager with Claude and cut $1,200 a month in overhead, and why a major mortgage lender just dropped its credit floor. Plus, why investor loans now run cheaper than a regular mortgage, and why Mike's lending shop still won't sell you his rates in the sixes.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why your vote gets ignored after...

What did you think of todays show??

How much money makes you regular rich? Probably less than you think. In this episode, we break down the $2 million liquid number going around Instagram, why Mike says more people are already there than would admit it, and why Dan thinks your rentals don't make you as wealthy as you believe. Mike also explains how he is saving well over $100K a year by building his own software with Claude, and why a former guest's $10 million SEC settlement proves fraud is a choice.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
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What did you think of todays show??

Two weeks ago we bashed AJ Osborne on this show. The story was fake, and he came on anyway. In this episode, AJ breaks down why the self-storage numbers you read come from less than 1% of the industry, why no institution is coming to buy your $1M facility, and why he's buying developers' stuck deals at 40% under replacement cost. Plus, the AI phone system that holds his missed calls under 10% while the industry runs 30 to 40%, and why he calls AI hate a psyop.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
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What did you think of todays show??

Stop paying for software you can build yourself. In this episode, Mike explains how he built his own e-sign tool with Claude in about an hour instead of paying $1,000 a seat, and why the platforms you rent are about to get cooked. Dan shares how ChatGPT wrote the demand letter that killed a $1,000 cancellation fee, we break down why home sales just hit a 31-year low with rates headed for 8%, and Dylan lays out what you should own before the Fed inflates its way out of the debt.

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What did you think of todays show??

The people selling you the deal get paid whether you make money or not. In this episode, we go through the accusations piling up around Pace Morby's sub two fund, the investors who say they can't log in or get their money back, and the payroll theft case that came long before the fund. You'll hear why the gurus are all selling the same dream, plus what Trump's $5,000 check promise would really cost.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
The Anthropic quitter and the AI fear grift (00:01)
Dylan...

What did you think of todays show??

The guys who got rich in 2021 will tell you it was skill. It wasn't. In this episode, we break down why almost every big investing win is timing you didn't control, from Northwestern Mutual reps who get paid whether or not you stick around to the real estate gurus who quietly stopped saying go bigger, sooner. Plus what Japan's yen crisis has to do with Bitcoin, and the insurance you should already have before any of it matters.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why lending companies cannot advertise...

What did you think of todays show??

Nobody tells you the most expensive thing in a deal right now is time. A payoff takes three weeks when a lender can pull one in 15 minutes. A finished flip sits 42 days at a price cut below both comps. In this episode, we break down Dylan's 36 unit seller finance deal and the two year balloon inside it, why note servicers get paid to stall you, and when it makes sense to hire your own property manager. Plus Berkshire Hathaway's bet on home builders.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
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What did you think of todays show??

Every washed up influencer on your feed suddenly found God, and the timing is not an accident. In this episode, we break down faith as a sales pitch, the borrower who filmed himself explaining how to lie for an Airbnb loan, and why real estate advice from 2015 is still ranking on YouTube and still wrong. You'll also hear what a $20 million yacht really costs to keep, and what Mike learned about insurance checks after his house burned down.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why washed up influencers suddenly...

What did you think of todays show??

You will hire ten people to find one good one. Are you firing the other nine fast enough? We get into why you hire fast and fire faster, what every bad hire teaches you about the role you actually needed, and why your best next employee might be a $20-an-hour rockstar in the Philippines. Mike is also rebuilding from a wildfire, and it changed how he thinks about coverage, public adjusters, and why cheap policies are the real scam.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why entrepreneurs and hobbies...

What did you think of todays show??

Three hours. That's all it took for the Spokane fire to explode to 3,000 acres and take Mike's house with it. In this episode, we walk through what actually happens after a total loss: why you hire your own public adjuster instead of trusting the insurance company's adjuster, the difference between actual cash value and replacement cost, and the mortgage wrinkle that can leave you owing money on a house that no longer exists. Plus the crisis lessons nobody teaches you until you need them.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)<...

What did you think of todays show??

Think your CPA, your realtor, and your lender are all on your team? This week we unpack why nobody in your deal is actually protecting your money, and what it costs you when you stop checking their work. We get into shaving thousands off your insurance and property taxes, the $106,000 overpayment that somehow felt like a win, the CPA who pocketed his clients' tax money, and why every incentive in real estate is quietly aligned against you.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why old real estate advice will...

What did you think of todays show??

Is the guy with the highest net worth in the room actually the happiest? Probably not. In this episode, we get into the psychology of money: why net worth is mostly ego, why it can't buy groceries when it's all locked up, and why comparison quietly wrecks how you feel about your own wealth. Plus the fake business valuations inflating everyone's numbers, whether a guaranteed windfall would kill your drive, and what actually gives money meaning.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Promotion and relegation coming to US sports (04:06)<...

What did you think of todays show??

Mike and Dylan spend the hour on the money stuff nobody performs on Instagram. In this episode, we break down how the lending business actually grew, the assignment fee trick that juices your spread, and the COVID relief loans sellers forget they ever took. Plus why investing now looks like gambling, how the wealthy borrow to dodge taxes, and the honest math that dropped Mike's real net worth by 35%.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Dan no-shows right after episode 500 (00:07)
How the lending side hustle actually grew (04:00)
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What did you think of todays show??

Five hundred episodes. Zero missed releases since 2021. In this milestone episode, Mike, Dan, and Dylan go back to the beginning: the seller who got abducted from a closing, the Spokane duplex that nearly broke their partnership, the hire that changed everything, and the disaster deals still bleeding money today. Plus why they stopped chasing passive income, what actually built the business, and the mindset shift that reshaped how they define success. If you've been here since day one, this one's for you.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why...

What did you think of todays show??

You call them junk fees. The lender calls them the cost of staying in business. In this episode, we break down why almost every money decision, yours included, runs on how you feel instead of what the numbers actually say. From the real reason closing costs hit 10%, to a deed theft that cost a title company six figures, to the phantom wealth on display in Maui and the credit apps built to make you feel richer than you are.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why America suddenly cares...

What did you think of todays show??

While everyone chases the next AI tool or crypto moonshot, Shane Schrader is quietly building wealth out of concrete boxes and plastic totes. In this episode, we break down the self-storage development most people said couldn't pencil, the $6-a-tote arbitrage hiding inside a single storage unit, and why preparation and relationships beat the marketing grind you've been told to run. Plus Dylan's read on Bitcoin, the debt cycle, and why boring hard assets win the next decade.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Dylan's Bitcoin bet with Scott Trench...

What did you think of todays show??

Most of what sounds like a smart money move is either a scam or a bad bet. In this episode, Atlanta commercial broker Eric Rubin joins Mike, Dan, and Dylan to break down the lending fraud wave, the borrower they caught indicted the morning of the wire, why a winning trade doesn't mean you bet smart, and why your high-paying job beats the side hustle. Plus micro salons, grave plots, and the red flags that should make you walk.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Flipping grave plots and...

What did you think of todays show??

Kiavi just sold for $717 million, SpaceX is about to IPO at a $1.77 trillion valuation, and the through-line is the same: the people selling deals get paid whether you win or lose. In this episode, Mike, Dan, and Dylan break down why lenders are built to be flipped, why every standard metric on the SpaceX IPO makes zero sense, how AI data centers actually help your town, and why bigger funds quietly hand you worse returns. The lesson: before you invest, follow the incentives.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
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What did you think of todays show??

Pace Morby blocked Aaron Bihl for explaining the Morby Method out loud. In this episode, Aaron fills in for Mike while he and Dan break down the contradictions piling up around creative finance's loudest salesman: personal guarantees that aren't real, the 50-year mortgage Pace now calls a deal he hates, and the sub-two horror stories that haunt wholesalers forever. Plus why the only thing that survives a weird economy is buying real equity, not the hype someone's selling you.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why Aaron got blocked...

What did you think of todays show??

Most people chase money for stuff they don't actually want. In this episode, Mike, Dan, and Dylan break down the lies about luxury, real estate, and the stock market that keep people stuck. Why your $1,000-a-night hotel doesn't make you happier. Why MDs keep buying Cincinnati 4-plexes at $600K. Why the S&P 500 is really the S&P 7 propped up by 401k passive bids. The guys close with some Robinhood "what if" nostalgia.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
The luxury trap and why most wealth purchases don't make...

What did you think of todays show??

The appraisal is dying. Big lenders are building their own AI valuations, one broker rebuilt his entire MLS in a single weekend, and the people whose whole job was telling you what a house is worth are about to be gone. In this episode, we break down which real estate middlemen AI is about to wipe out, why Cincinnati could be the next market lenders blacklist, and why filing an insurance claim almost never pays off.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Revisiting the Brandon Turner and Pace Morby...

What did you think of todays show??

Before you write a six-figure check into a syndication, listen to this episode. Brandon Turner's Class B investors just lost 100 percent of their money on a single Houston deal. We break down who you can actually trust with your money: the spokesperson-versus-operator filter, the cash floor that protects you, why oversharing tanks your loan, and what the Buffett yardstick at 230 percent is signaling about the market.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
The Brandon Turner fund just wiped out Class B investors (07:18)
Why losing 100 percent in real estate...

What did you think of todays show??

A Hawaii broker tracked Mike down by email to warn him a Pace Morby sub-to deal had collapsed, the investors were headed for the SEC, and the people at the top had already paid themselves. In this episode, Mike and Dylan break down who actually profits when a deal goes wrong, from wholesalers who squeeze the seller after the inspection to syndication fees you pay whether the fund performs or not. Plus, why a record slice of the stock market belongs to almost nobody.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)<...

What did you think of todays show??

If it doesn't have wheels, Aaron Bihl doesn't want it. After splitting with his Texas business partner and watching the San Antonio flip market grind to a halt, he moved to South Carolina and went all-in on new mobile homes on cheap lots. In this episode, we break down why FHA buyers love new manufactured homes, how Aaron sources lots for $10-15K, the trap of paying retail for land, and why hard money loans aren't part of his game anymore.

Topics discussed:
Introduction (00:00)
Why Aaron...

What did you think of todays show??

Most fund operators get paid whether your money performs or not — acquisition fees, management fees, prefs that don't actually pay until years in. Drew Wiard built his fund the opposite way: zero fees, and he personally guarantees every loan, so he doesn't get paid until you do. In this episode, Drew is back for round four on why that skin-in-the-game structure is the alignment most operators won't touch, why industrial is the unsexy corner of the market nobody posts about on Instagram, and bonus depreciation that puts 20–30% of your capital back...

What did you think of todays show??

If you're spending your weekends building AI agents for your business, there's a good chance you've already fallen into the trap most entrepreneurs are walking right into.

In this episode, we break down how AI is hurting most entrepreneurs' businesses, the one case where Mike actually used AI the right way, and what the S&P 500 hitting all-time highs during a war really says about the economy.

Topics discussed:

Introduction (00:00)

AI and...