Most people think of their apartment as a home. But if you live in a co-op, condo, HOA, or shared residential building, you are also part of a business, one with budgets, vendors, reserves, repairs, insurance, board politics, and financial decisions that can directly affect your monthly costs and property value.

In this episode of The Real State, Alex Norman and Jamie Blond sit down with Tina Larsson, Co-Founder of The Folson Group, a former Wall Street analyst who organized a board coup in her own New York City co-op after questioning years of maintenance increases. By applying business discipline to building operations, Tina helped uncover $340,000 in savings and went on to build a consulting firm helping co-op and condo boards run their buildings more effectively.

The conversation begins with the difference between a co-op and a condo, then moves into Tina’s personal story: how she went from Wall Street analyst to co-op reformer after discovering that her own building was wasting money. She explains what a board coup actually looks like, why transparency matters, and how residents can take a more active role in protecting what is often their largest lifetime investment.

Alex, Jamie, and Tina also explore the hidden business inside residential buildings: maintenance fees, vendor contracts, staff roles, reserve funds, capital projects, special assessments, and the decisions that boards often inherit without questioning. Tina explains why many boards are not intentionally mismanaging buildings, but often lack the technical expertise, time, or business framework needed to make better decisions.

The episode also looks at the pressure facing New York City buildings today, including aging infrastructure, rising repair costs, Local Law 97, sustainability mandates, electrical capacity, heat pumps, boilers, and the financial tension between doing what is necessary and keeping buildings affordable for residents.

The conversation also touches on the Champlain Towers collapse in Surfside, Florida, deferred maintenance, structural assessments, and why residents and buyers need to pay closer attention to how buildings are maintained and managed.

Whether you live in a co-op, own a condo, serve on a board, manage a building, or are thinking about buying in New York City, this episode reveals why your building is not just where you live. It is a shared business, a shared investment, and a shared responsibility.

Topics discussed:

• Co-op vs. condo ownership
• NYC co-op boards and condo boards
• Why buildings need to be run like businesses
• Tina Larsson’s $340,000 co-op savings story
• Maintenance fees and annual increases
• Vendor contracts and building staff
• Board transparency and communication
• Property managers and resident managers
• Special assessments and capital repairs
• Local Law 97 and sustainability requirements
• Aging NYC buildings and infrastructure
• Deferred maintenance and building safety
• Champlain Towers / Surfside lessons
• What buyers should look for before purchasing
• Why Tina recommends looking at the basement

Guest: Tina Larsson, Co-Founder of The Folson Group Website: thefolsongroup.com

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In this episode of The Real State Podcast, Alex Norman and Jamie Blond look at the changing movie theater experience and ask whether going to the movies can ever feel magical again.

For decades, movie theaters were more than places to watch films. They were social rituals, date nights, family outings, teen hangouts, mall anchors, and shared cultural experiences. From popcorn and multiplexes to first dates, crowded theaters, and everyone talking about the same movie the next day, the theater created moments that brought people together.

But the experience has changed. Streaming has made staying home easier. Big-screen TVs have narrowed the gap between home viewing and the theater. COVID changed how people think about germs, crowds, and cleanliness. Ticket prices, premium seats, food costs, and parking have made moviegoing more expensive. And phones, talking, and changing public behavior have made the shared experience harder to protect.

Alex and Jamie discuss what has been lost, what has improved, and whether premium theaters, IMAX, recliners, event screenings, concert films, franchise movies, and audience participation can help bring people back. They also look ahead to upcoming theatrical releases and ask whether theaters need to stop simply showing movies and start creating events again.

If you care about movies, malls, streaming, public spaces, entertainment trends, or the future of shared cultural experiences, this episode is for you.

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In this episode of The Real State Podcast, Alex Norman and Jamie Blond sit down with DJ Carroll, entrepreneur, investor, author, business strategist, and creator of the AI platform Alli.

DJ shares his journey from starting a lawn care business at 18 to building and selling companies, investing in real estate, owning 70+ rental units, and helping entrepreneurs sharpen their sales, systems, and mindset. The conversation explores how AI is changing real estate, why speed-to-lead and follow-up still win deals, and why sales remains the lifeblood of business even as technology advances.

Alex, Jamie, and DJ also discuss entrepreneurship as a path to freedom, the risks and rewards of betting on yourself, the “Hunter Mindset,” and why businesses that fail to adopt AI may be left behind. DJ breaks down practical ways AI can help real estate professionals manage leads, follow up faster, update CRMs, write emails, and create more efficient sales systems.

If you’re interested in real estate investing, AI tools, sales execution, entrepreneurship, or how business owners can adapt to a rapidly changing market, this episode offers a grounded and energetic look at what comes next.

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