Blue Vikings Capital Blog | Expert Real Estate Insights

I once lost $97,000 in a real estate syndication. 

I understood the property and the business plan. What I hadn’t done well enough was evaluate the people responsible for running the investment. That loss changed how I make decisions. Today, I ask harder questions about the operator, the debt, the assumptions, and what could go wrong. 

But experience has taught me something else, too: avoiding every risk isn’t the same as making a good decision. Sometimes investors focus so much on what they m…

I bought my first home before I graduated from college. I had no cash, no credit, and a real estate course on cassette tapes.

It was 1996. Using a lease option I learned from Carlton Sheets, I found a way to buy that house. My husband, Don, and I kept finding creative ways to buy as we moved, and instead of selling each home, we kept it as a rental. Those houses became the foundation of our real estate portfolio.

Thirty years later, I have bought and sold through very different markets. I stil…

Most investments look great on paper when everything goes according to plan. That's not what tells me anything useful. What tells me something useful is what happens when the plan doesn't go perfectly — because eventually, on some deal, it won't.

I think about this constantly with private lending, because it's the part of my business where I'm putting real capital behind a borrower's promise. So before I ever lend a dollar — mine or yours — here's what I'm actually looking at.

It starts with t…

A few years ago, I watched something that stuck with me: apartment communities that were fully occupied, collecting higher rents than ever, still lost real value for their investors.

That taught me something I now carry into every deal I look at: a good apartment property is not automatically a good investment. Not at every price. Not with every loan. Not under every assumption.

Before I put my own money into a deal — and before I ever bring it to you — I want to understand a lot more than the…

For most of my life as an investor, I was taught the same formula everyone else was: stocks and bonds, diversify across sectors, stay invested, let time do the work. That formula still has value. But the world around it has changed. Markets are more interconnected, inflation has proven it can stick around longer than expected, and assets that used to move independently don't always behave that way anymore.

So I've started asking a different question, and I think you should too: What if "alterna…

The Biggest Mistake Many Investors Make 

If you asked a group of people what makes a successful investor, many would probably say, "Buying at the right time." 

It sounds logical. Buy when prices are low. Sell when prices are high. 

The problem is that almost no one can do this consistently. 

Even experienced investors, economists, and financial professionals cannot accurately predict every market movement. Every year, unexpected events change the economy. Interest rates move. Inflation rises…

Every year, something interesting happens in the multifamily real estate market. As the weather gets warmer, activity begins to pick up. More properties come up for sale. More investors start looking at opportunities. More renters move into new apartments. It is not a coincidence. There are real reasons why the middle of the year is one of the busiest times for multifamily real estate. 

If you have ever wondered why experienced investors seem especially active during the summer months, the answ…

Private lending is getting more attention in 2026 because many borrowers still need money, but banks are being careful. That is the big message from the market. Money is still moving, but it is moving toward lenders who can act fast, check deals carefully, and protect investor capital. 

For Blue Vikings Income Fund, this matters because private lending sits in the middle of a very real market need. Borrowers need funding. Investors want income. Banks are not always ready to say yes. That gap is…

The multifamily market is not booming, but it is not broken. So far in 2026, the main story is balance. Demand is coming back. New supply is still high. Rent growth is slow. Occupancy is holding up better than many expected. Investors are watching closely, but many are still careful because interest rates, insurance costs, and operating costs remain a big part of the picture. 

As of late May 2026, the U.S. apartment market looks healthier than it did during the softest parts of 2024 and 2025. I…

If you only looked at one number before investing in real estate, what should it be? 

Many people think it is price. Others think it is location, interest rate, or rent growth. Those things matter. But there is one number smart investors watch first because it tells the real story of a property. 

That number is NOI. 

NOI stands for Net Operating Income. It is one of the most important tools in multifamily real estate. In 2026, with rising expenses, changing markets, and more careful investors…