Josh Linnes

Title

“I am committed to a boots-on-the-ground, start-with-seeing-things-as-the-locals-see-them approach to scouting opportunities. It’s why I live in Latin America and why I’m frequently on the move. My son who is 3 years old has already been to over 10 countries my daughter who is only one year old has been to 5.”

Josh has:

  • Bought first property in Costa Rica while still a teenager
  • Made Real Estate full time business at age 20
  • Worked in and lived in close to 30 countries.
  • Founded Home Asset Management and participated in over 100 transactions in 6 States.
  • Founded and sold several successful start-ups including several import/export businesses and two clothing companies, notably Dominical Surf, Conscious Design, and Sacred Earth superfoods
  • Worked in Central America real estate in everything from entitling, infrastructure, building, infrastructure installation, and acting as principle for several developments.

Josh started in real estate at young age, initially applying a far more intuitive and gut-level approach than most adult investors. An investing style that forced, and taught, him to pay exquisite attention to how places change and grow and what hidden details often signal an imminent rise in property values: what a new road does for a town, how changing commuting patterns, and labor markets all impact investment opportunities. And especially how demographic changes can signal the time to invest – or sell.

And while Josh also matured into incorporating a whole host of analytical techniques for evaluating investment opportunities, he’s continued to observe and apply this scouting knowledge to his investments and businesses for a decade and a half. Experience that gives him a rather unique perspective when compared to typical real estate investors.

Frankly, we think there’s just no substitute for this kind of insight when looking for the indicators that a location is about to quickly gain value. This is especially the case in Latin American markets, with dramatically differing stages of development from one sub-market to the next combine with semi-erratic infrastructure growth. As new roads, airports, and utilities arrive, so do those interested in purchasing property. Staying ahead of that curve creates incredible windows for acquisition and profits.

For example, the sleepy mountain town of Boquete, Panama was relatively unknown a few years ago. When the spotlight of International Living and AARP combined with the self promotion of the Valle Escondido development, property values in Boquete skyrocketed. Prudent investment in these types of markets requires a careful analysis of the market cycle and a keen observation of early signals to determine the optimum timing and type of acquisitions.

Since meeting up with Park Wilson through a mutual mentor Josh has acted as the chief “scouting officer” for Emerging Terrains, a position in which he has run point for over $8 Million in investments.

Bottom Line: Anyone who can figure out how to navigate emerging markets will find an abundance of gigantic investment opportunities. As a vital part of Emerging Terrains, and as your on the ground partner, Josh is key player in navigating these emerging markets and finding the very best of those gigantic investment opportunities.