Hey everyone , welcome to Shmooze #7
Let's get into it. Nursing home deal flow has definitely slowed down. Which brings me to something I've been trying to do: I reached out to a few of you to see if anyone would be willing to let me feature a building you maybe don't love, one you'd let go of for the right price, as the Shmooze Deal of the Month. Completely anonymous, bed count changed, no way anyone could identify it. A chance to quietly test the market, see what your building might actually be worth.
And none of you wanted to do it. Which I genuinely don't understand.
You guys have been trying to figure out market value on your buildings for 25 years using your Rolodex, a broker and a gut feeling.
In other news, the geniuses over at the New York Times - in between condemning Israel for defending itself - found the time to dream up a story claiming that nursing home operators paid Trump to kill the staffing mandate. Meanwhile, the staffing mandate was a disaster that everyone on both sides of the aisle knew was unworkable and it was dead before Trump met with any nursing home guys. I made a cartoon about it. I think you'll enjoy.
Speaking of the government, I know a lot of you are breathing a quiet sigh of relief that the feds have paused the new ownership disclosure requirements , the ones that would have forced you to reveal who actually owns what beneath all the layers. So congratulations, you've got maybe another year to hide everything. Use the time wisely :)
I also took some time this month to make fun of the usual government inefficiencies and some industry nonsense. Cartoons inside. You're welcome.
Now, a moment of honesty with you guys.
Edition 7
The Shmooze just hit its seventh month. We cracked 2,000 subscribers. I know you all share and reshare everything I write - I see it bouncing around every WhatsApp group and I love that you guys get a kick out of it. But here's the thing: without exaggeration, putting out the Shmooze costs me $13,000 to $15,000 a month in time and resources. It brings in about $6,000 to $8,000. My wife has taken to calling me a very generous word that roughly translates to "sucker."
So I've been thinking. What if the Shmooze went to a paid subscription? Something like $30 a month. And maybe - just maybe - you'd give me your word that you won't immediately screenshot everything and blast it to 14 group chats. (I know. I'm dreaming.)
I'll be honest - part of me feels like an idiot charging for this. The Shmooze should just be free.
But another idea I've been kicking around: what if I printed the Shmooze as an actual newspaper?
A real, physical paper that shows up at your door every month. Thirty bucks a month, and you get the Shmooze in newsprint form, the way Hashem intended people to read industry gossip.
I don't know what the right move is. So tell me:
Would you pay? Would you subscribe? Would you actually stop sharing it? (Don't answer that last one.). Send an email to me at thesnfshmooze@gmail.com
In the meantime, I'll keep writing, my wife will keep rolling her eyes, and you guys keep doing what you do.
Stay sharp out there.