Episode summary
Struggling to find real community, purpose, or momentum where you live? Wondering why some cities feel closed-off while others seem to open doors everywhere you turn? In this recap episode of The Roots Podcast, real estate experts Max Moore and Tyler Lingle break down the biggest takeaways from their powerful conversation with fellow Roots Realty Co. agent Ian DeFelice.
What started as a discussion around faith and purpose quickly turned into a deeper realization: Indianapolis offers a rare combination of accessibility, opportunity, and community that’s hard to find anywhere else. Whether you’re a young entrepreneur, an investor, or someone searching for deeper connection, this episode is packed with insights on how Indy’s culture of openness, collaboration, and relational equity can accelerate both your personal and professional growth.
Here’s what we cover:
Why Indianapolis is a “forward-looking” city that welcomes newcomers
How community, not just housing or jobs, drives real opportunity
The power of becoming a regular and building relational equity
Why tribes, faith, and consistency matter more than talent alone
How Indy’s growth moment makes right now the best time to plug in
PLUS: Max and Tyler share real stories of how one connection leads to another, and how showing up consistently changes everything.
Ready to take the next step? Follow the plan below:
1. Stay in the Loop
📩 Newsletter: Join the Roots Newsletter
📺 YouTube: Subscribe to Roots Realty Co.
🎟️ Live Events: See Our Upcoming Schedule
2. Get Expert Advice
Ready to talk strategy? Book a free intro call with us:
Book with Max: Schedule Here
Book with Tyler: Schedule Here
3. Get Matched with an Agent
Looking to buy or invest? Let’s find the right partner for you:
Disclaimer: This video is for educational and informational purposes only. Nothing in this video should be construed as legal, tax, or financial advice. Always consult with licensed professionals before making any real estate investment decisions.
#IndianapolisRealEstate #IndyEntrepreneurs #RootsRealtyCo #TheRootsPodcast #CommunityOverEverything #RelationalEquity #FaithAndWork #IndyInvestors #MidwestLiving
Full transcript
Auto-generated from the episode audio. May contain minor errors.
We just had the most profound conversation with a local real estate agent, a local professional that happens to be on our team, Ian De Feliz. We dropped the full episode of it. Go watch it if you want to hear about faith in expanding on your journey and finding your purpose. Something I want to dissect out of it and pick Tyler's brain on is why Indianapolis right now is the best place to reside in the world. I don't think there's anywhere else that you should live besides Indie. Something Ian said that like got this all stirred up in me is the connectivity of it. You've heard of the two phone call city. We've talked about it before. That's not what he was referencing. He was referencing the ability to build community. Mhm. Uh live, work, play in Indie. Uh these local places that you can just like blow somebody else's business up super easy. How could you do that? You can't do that in any other state. M like I can't go and make my lawn guy's business 10x overnight if I'm in New York. There's not even grass. Like there's just so much opportunity here. What do you feel right now makes Indie better than everywhere else? Uh our mentor Rex Fischer uh had me to a seminar and this guy was breaking down what made Indianapolis the best city and it was like I think it was Aaron Ren who's like a super popular author and commentator and he said compared to St. Louis, Louisville, Cincinnati, all our neighbors. The first question you get there when you show up is, "Hey, what high school did you go to?" And you just kind of put your tail between your legs and go cry home if you didn't live there. Cuz you're not allowed into all the social networks. Whereas in Indie, the question is um much more uh accessible. It's like, "Hey, what do you do for work or where where are you trying to go?" Or it's like forwardlooking and you feel that, right? What industry are you in? what lane are you in? Yeah. It's like where where you at now because we want to help you get to where you're going. Whereas these other cities with their history, uh they're very old cities and they have like established family names that like ran the social networks there being like just as we're a newer city and we're a fast growing city, we're growing so much faster than these other cities. They had their heydays back in the 1900s. Our heyday is 2025. So, we're at this intersection of Midwestern egalitarianism, frugality, and yet development, which is unlike Nashville, is unlike Atlanta, is unlike Charlotte. Like, we have both the Midwestern values and roots, but also the development. And it is unlike anywhere else. I mean, you have to come here to experience it. It's being a Hooser like through and through, right? Who's your hospitality, right? We have a great friend, Nick Giuliani, who says, "I'm a Hooser by choice. I came here for a couple months was supposed to be and go back to California. He's still here going on three, four, five years. Has built a business here because we have soil that's available, readily available to plant roots in. Mhm. Um and it it does breed off of that accessibility and abundance. I where I'm at, it's insane. Three years three years ago, I I knew nobody in this I only knew where I went to high school. That was the whole reputation, right? Um, and it took like one person telling me to introduce to the next to the next to the next. Bing bing bing bing bing. Now I have a whole social community built around that um, abundance. And I think if you're in Indie currently and you're struggling to break through, you're just not you're not trying hard enough. Just go to a coffee shop and sit in a chair for a couple hours and you're going to have a best friend by the end of it, right? And it's not like uh like that could turn some people off. M it's not in a nonapproachable or um a awkward way. I feel like it's all natural. How often have you been sitting at a coffee shop working and somebody walks up to you and they're like, "Dude, what? You've been sitting in here? What are you working on?" And just like talk to you. It happens to me all day. It happens to me a lot. And when I It was like first it was weird, right? Like what is going on? Cuz I grew up same as you uh west of the city. I wasn't a city plant person. And when I got my license, it was like I want to sell in my hometown. I want to build a business here. And I couldn't figure out how to break in. It wasn't until I went to that abundance where it all started to piece together. Mhm. If you were um a younger entrepreneur, how do you start? How do you take that richness that we have and really bear fruit? Right? I'm not going to say just go to a coffee shop because we've said that a thousand times on this show. So, I don't want to I want to say I think something new, but I think you have to pick um a tribe, right? Humans evolve to be people in tribes. We don't you can't do an isolation or just you and your your nuclear family. You need to find a tribe. So I think it's really you need to pick one maybe two maybe three tribes and get in meshed. And I mean that's why I think churches are exploding again ever since honestly the Charlie Kirk assassination. Not to get controversial, they're exploding. All my friends that didn't go to church are in church now. Um, and funnily enough, like they seem happier, they seem more joyful, they have more friends. Um, who would have thought? Like just maybe go to church. But I think you do that or go to something like Citizen 7. If you're a male living in Indianapolis and you don't know what Citizen 7 is, uh, it's just like these coffee and connect with a speaker in the morning. um go to a networking group like that or there's um uh young professionals of Indianapolis YPCI um uh or a number of other ones um that I'm just put on event pray for like 10 minutes and you're going to have somewhere to go tonight or somebody small is throwing an event you're going to be one of five and don't show up once like keep showing up like roots events lastly of course because like the people that are getting the most fruit from that are the ones that have come to to three plus M cuz like they show up and like they know people and they say hey you were here last week like I have a deal that I want to share or I want to pick your brain on this contractor you're using and there's that relational wealth that builds and like we talk uh a lot and use flowery language about relational equity but it's so tangible that you can just tell when someone has it and they don't right and they just you have to I think put yourself out there and go through that first uncomfortable moment when you're like oh I don't know how this is going to go push through that to become a regular, right? It's all about becoming a regular somewhere. So, and I go to a run club the morning five. I the reason I started was not for running. I could run on my own. I did it cuz I was like this cool guy Nate Spangle goes. He has some buddies that go, I'm going to go. We wind up getting on his podcast and building that relational equity with him and uh doing deals together essentially. Uh that has to start from those social, you know, circles, right? You get imshed in. Yeah, and there there's a lot of them and they're all readily available. I I don't even care about the marketplace right now. Like I don't care about indie market. I think the housing is another great reason why we are one one of the best cities to move to. It's why a lot of people are moving here. Uh I don't care about that. Don't buy a house. Just come get connected to the community. And that's it. Come out to the next Roots event. Visit us at rootsrelady. co/events. Peace. Peace.
Episode questions, answered
Quick answers from this guide.
Why do Max and Tyler say Indianapolis is a great city to move to right now?
They argue Indianapolis sits at an intersection of Midwestern values and rapid development that sets it apart from comparable cities like Nashville, Atlanta, and Charlotte. Unlike older cities such as St. Louis, Louisville, and Cincinnati, Indianapolis does not rely on established family names or high school networks to grant social access. The city is growing faster than its regional neighbors and its heyday, according to the hosts, is happening right now in 2025.
What does the 'two phone call city' idea mean in the context of Indianapolis?
The hosts reference the concept to illustrate how connected and accessible Indianapolis is, but note that guest Ian DeFelice took it further by emphasizing the ability to build genuine community rather than just reach influential people. The point is that in Indianapolis you can meaningfully grow someone else's business or reputation quickly through personal introductions in a way that is much harder in larger, more anonymous cities.
How is the social culture in Indianapolis different from cities like St. Louis or Cincinnati?
In older Midwestern cities the first question a newcomer often gets is 'What high school did you go to?', which effectively locks outsiders out of established social networks. In Indianapolis the question tends to be forward-looking, something like 'What do you do?' or 'Where are you trying to go?', signaling that the city is oriented toward helping people build rather than gatekeeping based on history.
What networking groups or communities do the hosts recommend for newcomers to Indianapolis?
Tyler recommends finding one to three tribes and committing to them consistently rather than attending once and leaving. Specific options mentioned include Citizen 7, described as a morning coffee and speaker event for men, and Young Professionals of Indianapolis (YPCI). The hosts also point to Roots Realty events as a place where repeat attendees build real relational equity and share deals and contractor referrals with each other.
Why do the hosts say consistency matters when trying to build community in Indianapolis?
They observe that the people getting the most value from networking events are those who show up three or more times, because familiarity leads to trust and real conversations about deals and resources. Tyler uses his own run club experience as an example, explaining he joined not for the running but to connect with people, which eventually led to podcast appearances and business deals. Showing up once is not enough to become a regular, and becoming a regular is where the relational wealth is built.
Is buying a house in Indianapolis necessary before moving there?
The hosts explicitly say they do not care about the housing market in this conversation and tell listeners not to worry about buying a house first. Their advice is simply to come to Indianapolis, get connected to the community, and attend local events. Community connection is framed as the primary reason to move there, with housing being a secondary consideration.
Who is Nick Giuliani and why do the hosts mention him?
Nick Giuliani is described as a friend who came to Indianapolis from California for what was supposed to be a short stay and never left, now several years later having built a business there. The hosts use him as an example of someone who chose to be a Hoosier and found the city's soil, as they put it, readily available for planting roots. His story illustrates how accessible Indianapolis is even for people who arrive with no existing connections.