For accurate economic forecasting, investor, entrepreneur and author David Parker looks no further than — the past. “The laws of business and economics and money are timeless,” Parker said in a recent interview. “And rates of return are timeless.”
Some may feel that Parker himself is timeless. Now in his seventies, he has spent a lifetime challenging and defying “conventional wisdom.” When he began his career as a teacher in the city’s public schools more than 50 years ago, he chose to ignore those who advised him to get used to living on a tight budget and instead invested a portion of his limited income in residential real estate.
Today, Parker is one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s most successful residential and commercial real estate investors. When he was told that his busy schedule as a teacher/entrepreneur would preclude him from developing his talent as a musician, he ignored those naysayers too, and became a member of the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra for 20 years and then formed a six-member band that headlined at the city’s prestigious Fillmore Jazz Festival twice. When this lifelong educator chose to go back to school to take graduate level courses in History and Economics, his dismay that all his textbooks were written by academics rather than those “in the trenches” like himself inspired him to write two books, in which he shares his real-world lessons with readers. And, most recently, not content to leave the world of social media to “the younger generation,” Parker launched a video podcast series called A San Francisco Conservative designed to put the major challenges of our time into helpful historical context.
Of his five simultaneous careers, Parker says, “I have 150 years of experience!”
David Parker’s Books
Having achieved an impressive level of success as an educator and as an entrepreneur, Parker enjoys a life that allows him to perform live jazz on a weekly basis in several San Francisco venues, spend part of every year in Paris, and even remain active (and at the top of his age bracket) on the tennis courts.
In keeping with his “can-do” mindset, after completing several thousand hours of graduate classes at Golden Gate University, Parker was inspired to share his unique insights with readers. His first book, Income and Wealth (2021), provides readers with a thought-provoking examination of the foundation on which the nation’s freedom rests. The book opens with a captivating chapter in which he demonstrates, line by line, how even someone currently earning minimum wage (“a McDonald’s employee,” for example) can create financial freedom in only 10 years. His playfully titled second book, A San Francisco Conservative (2022), is intended as “a letter to progressives,” and as a message of reassurance and challenge to the conventional political thinking of the day. Parker is careful to stress that the title of his second book does not imply that he’s a Trump supporter, but instead that he believes in the value of minimal government and is troubled by the tendency of politicians to promise costly programs without acknowledging that they all come with a price tag attached. This book also offers a much-needed reminder that the timeless principles of economics are essential to the preservation of American democracy.
Offering a Message of Confidence and Optimism as a New Year Begins
As 2023 unfolds, Parker encourages all those who aspire to achieve financial freedom to keep a few fundamental ideas in mind, all based on decades of his own personal experience.
In interviews, Parker looks forward to discussing:
· Why successful investors know that the idea of studying the lessons of one year to apply them to the next is flawed logic.
· Why gaining experience listening — and practicing patience — can override any skeptic’s warning that “it’s not the right time to invest.”
· How to keep an open mind regarding the changing field of commercial real estate, and why desirable deals can always be found.
· Why it’s essential for investors to keep the timeless laws of money in mind, and the timeless principles of human behavior.
· Advice for first-time investors, for making the best possible impression on bankers.
· How to be successful in real estate investing while defying conventional wisdom.
· How to persuade bankers that granting a loan for a real estate transaction is in their best interest.
· How to avoid widespread worries about inflation and recession — and fears stoked by many in the news media — and succeed anyway.
Sharing His Insights Through “A San Francisco Conservative: A Podcast”
Coinciding with the publication of A San Francisco Conservative, Parker recently launched a new video podcast series sharing that title. Each episode in this podcast series showcases Parker’s views on the proper role of government and how individuals can arrange for the principles of a free-market economy to work in their favor as the podcast’s co-host, longtime journalist Tom Martin, has noted, “David Parker’s scholarly approach to the study of political economy provides much needed historical context to important topics dominating the news, including the progressives’ call for dramatically increased government spending.”
About Author David Parker
David Parker is the author of Income and Wealth, published in 2021, and A San Francisco Conservative, published in 2022. He began his career in education at the age of 24 and served students in San Francisco’s inner-city public elementary schools for 40 years as a music teacher, followed by 10 years as a volunteer. While pursuing his career in education, Parker became a very successful real estate investor. It was success in business that focused his writing, teaching and career as a professional musician. Parker’s career as a musician is similarly impressive. He spent 20 years as a member of the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra, then 20 years as leader of the Dave Parker Sextet, which twice headlined the San Francisco Fillmore Jazz Festival.
Parker’s thoughtful essays have been featured in The Economist, The Financial Times and prestigious law journals. In addition to being an author, entrepreneur and investor, David Parker is also a proud husband, father and grandfather. His mother, Gertrud Parker, served as a powerful inspiration, as she became late in life an international artist as well as a civic leader in San Francisco. She passed away in 2021 at age 96. David Parker, her son, is still a young 76. He is already hard at work on his next book.
To learn more about David Parker, including his essays and music, visit:
https://davidparkeressays.com/ and https://daveparkersextet.com/.
To enjoy episodes of “A San Francisco Conservative: The Podcast,” featuring David Parker, visit:
