John Todderud - Cardinal Oak Investments

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John Todderud - Cardinal Oak Investments

Acquiring and operating apartments ~ creating opportunities for investors to build wealth

02/23/2026

Most investors look at deals.
I look at the numbers behind the story.

An 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲 isn’t just a spreadsheet — it’s the filter that tells me if a deal deserves investor capital or not.

If the numbers don’t make sense on paper, they won’t magically work in real life.

𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗜 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘆𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗹? 👀
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02/11/2026

The hardest part of multifamily is not finding a deal.

Early on, I thought deal flow was the challenge.

→ Finding the market.
→ Getting access.
→ Winning bids.

That part gets easier with time.

What doesn’t get easier is what comes after.

Operations.

I’ve owned properties in good areas that should have performed better.

On paper, they looked fine.
In practice, small issues were piling up.

Here is what usually shows up first:

• Delinquencies starting to creep up
• Occupancy drifting instead of stabilizing
• Maintenance issues staying unresolved

None of this happens overnight.
That is exactly why it is dangerous.

By the time a problem looks obvious, it has usually been building for months. Changing property managers can help, but it is never a quick fix.

Bad tenants still have to be addressed.
Leases still need to be cleaned up.
Systems still need to be rebuilt.

That work is uncomfortable, but it matters.

Finding a deal is only the starting point.
Running it well is where value is created.

What’s been harder for you; buying or operating?

02/09/2026

Growth doesn’t come from “waiting for the market.”

It comes from 𝗽𝘂𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

Better deal flow. Better operators. Better underwriting. Better decisions. 📈

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻? 👇
____

02/04/2026

You don’t beat the market.
You learn how to move with it.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝘆𝗰𝗹𝗲? 🔄
____

02/02/2026

Underwriting isn’t an 8-minute task for me.

There are quick ways to pass on a deal.

If I see a clear red flag early, like no upside in rents, the condition being worse than expected, or something simply not lining up, I’ll move on.

That part doesn’t take long, and it saves time. But if a deal gets past those initial filters, I don’t rush it.

Underwriting, for me, means bringing several pieces together so I can understand what I’m looking at:

• Physical condition and deferred maintenance items
• Profit and loss statements over multiple periods
• Comparable rents and broader market context
• Rent roll details and trends inside the property
• What information is missing and why it matters

At that point, I’m not trying to move fast.

I’m trying to decide what the next step should be.

• Do I ask the broker for more information?
• Do I spend more time digging into the numbers?
• Or do I decide it’s not the right deal and move on?

That takes real, uninterrupted time. I’ve spent an hour or more on properties that didn’t feel right at first.

Only later did it become clear there was an opportunity worth pursuing.

If I had stopped too early, I would have missed it.

Fast underwriting helps you say no quickly. Thoughtful underwriting helps you make better decisions.

What usually makes you pause on a deal?

01/29/2026

𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸: managing your property manager.�

Great deals don’t fail on paper, they fail in ex*****on.

How do you keep your PM accountable without micromanaging? 👇
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01/27/2026

Real estate taught me this fast: deals come and go, but 𝗷𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀.

Learning how to think long-term, stay patient, and decide under pressure matters more than any single win.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻? 👇
____

01/19/2026

I’m not running properties day to day anymore.

That wasn’t accidental.

Early on, I was involved in almost everything.
Operations, decisions, follow-ups, details.

That’s normal when you’re building.

But as the portfolio grows, the job changes.

Today, I stay close to the properties.

I stay informed.
I stay involved when it matters.

I’m just not the one handling the daily work.

There are people who are more available than I am.
More immersed in the day-to-day.
And frankly, better at it.

My time now is spent reviewing information.

• Reviewing property financials
• Watching early indicator metrics
• Asking questions when something doesn’t look right.

That’s how I can stay proactive instead of reactive.

Stepping back from daily operations didn’t reduce responsibility. It changed where my attention goes.

And that shift is necessary if you want to grow without creating risk.

How has your role changed as things have grown?

01/16/2026

Cash flow is great. Paying less in taxes? Even better.

Tax deferral is one of the most underrated wealth tools in real estate.

𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁—𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲?

*𝘒𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘵𝘢𝘹 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳. 𝘐 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘐'𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴.
____

01/14/2026

Good tenants don’t just pay rent — they 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝘆’𝘀 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲.

Attract better residents → stronger income → higher valuation.�Simple, but most miss it.

⬇️ Link of the full podcast: https://youtu.be/Otx71OHxQSw?si=bBfWEtS6iIm6r4C4

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀? 👇
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01/12/2026

I ignored northern markets for a long time.

For years, I stayed focused in the same direction.

Not because I hadn’t looked at them.
But because I thought I already had the answer.

I followed the same narrative most investors do:

• Population moving south
• Companies relocating
• Jobs following

It wasn’t limited to Texas, Florida, or Arizona. It extended across much of the southern tier, including parts of the Midwest.

It worked, and consistency made it easier to stay focused.

But recently, I started seeing strong investors succeed in places I had mostly ignored.

Not fringe markets.
Not short-term spikes.

Cities with:
• Real job growth
• Stable populations
• Business-friendly rules
• Rent growth that continued after COVID

That forced a pause.

The original belief wasn’t wrong.
It just wasn’t complete.

Sometimes the right move isn’t changing direction.
It’s checking whether your assumptions still hold.

What belief has changed for you over time?

Address

Newcastle, WA

Website

http://www.cardinaloak.com/

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