Rental Property Owner & Real Estate Investor Podcast

Today we're going to talk about an asset-class that I love: Performing & Non-Performing Notes.  Notes are the underlying contract or mortgage that a home-owner is paying on, or sometimes not paying on.  Whether they're performing or non-performing, notes can offer a lucrative opportunity to make money and help distressed homeowners in the process. Wylea Griggs, the owner of Eleesee Solutions, LLC, is a local Grand Rapids investor who has been purchasing non-performing notes.  Today she is going to walk us through three of her recent deals and show us how she was able to make 30 to 60% returns, while helping several homeowners get past some difficult setbacks and get current with their mortgage payments. Wylea also hosts a local meet up group: "Grand Rapids Note Closers - Wine & Notes for Self Directed IRA Real Estate Investors".  They'll be meeting this Wednesday, May 8th, from 6 to 9pm at the Cascade Winery, 4665 Broadmoor, Kentwood, MI  49512. I know you're going to enjoy hearing Wylea's story of ho

Jason Pero bought his first duplex in 2001 and never looked back.  He quickly acquired more units, started a management company, and left his W-2 job by 2012.  He now owns over 650 Units that he manages through his company, Pero Real Estate, located in Erie Pennsylvania.  Jason recently completed his first syndication of 86 units and is going to share with us how he structures his deals for investors.  We'll also learn how & why he prefers to acquire properties in his own backyard, off-market, and directly from sellers.  And Jason will share the tools and software he uses in his property management business. Jason is also the President of his local REIA, the Apartment Association of North West Pennsylvania.  We discuss why its important to be active in your local real estate groups and how its helped both of us make huge progress in our investments while giving back to the investor community. I know you're going to enjoy this conversation with Jason.  He shares a lot of the details on how he grew his port

With the recent legalization of marijuana in Michigan and other states around the country, many real estate investors and landlords have been wondering what this means for their investment property. Are tenants now able to smoke marijuana in their units? Do we need to change our leases to accommodate this new law? Can we get in trouble if we evict a tenant for smoking marijuana? How can we as investors profit from this new law? How do we identify these new opportunities? At the recent RPOA annual conference we held an expert Q&A discussion with Justin Wheeler, a real estate attorney with the law firm Bolhouse, Hofstee & McLean. Justin practices in the areas of business and real estate and has several clients in the marijuana space. If you are at all concerned about the implications of the legalization of marijuana on your investment property, or you're excited to know where the opportunities are in this space, then you'll enjoy hearing Justin discuss the in's & out's of this new law. Justin can be

If you're looking for opportunities in today's hot market, and chasing after those that are listed on the MLS by realtors or brokers, chances are you're experiencing a great deal of competition and frustration.   My guest today has managed to avoid that agony by finding off-market deals.  Of his last 20 acquisitions, he's only gone through the MLS one time.  That's 19 off-market deals that he's been able to find in the past year! Today, Patrick Spitzley is going to take us through his most recent rehab acquisitions and how he found them without going through the traditional channels.  Patrick is a SFH rehabber and long-term investor who specializes in buying the worst house on the block and turning it into a cash cow.  He's also a friend of the show who has appeared on episodes #13, 87 & most recently #168. Patrick's going to take us through, deal by deal, how he found these opportunities.  From auctions to hoarder houses, from his insurance agent to a contact he made through the Deal Room at the RPOA's A

Jack Bosch owns rental houses, commercial properties and even large apartment communities.  However, Jack's main passion is for buying and selling Lots and Unimproved Land. Jack and his wife began investing in land back in 2002, and it took them only 18 months to make over $1 Million dollars.  Now Jack is known as "The Land Guy", and he teaches his strategies to investors all over the world.  Today he's going to tell us how he finds, funds, and profits from buying land. Jack is also the #1 Best-Selling Author of the financial literacy book "Forever Cash: Break the earn-spend cycle, take charge of your life, and build everlasting wealth".  Jack also hosts the successful podcast "Forever Cash Life- Real Estate Podcast". This is a great episode for anyone who is interested in investing in real estate but doesn't want to deal with tenants, toilets & trash.  Jack shares a lot of real-life examples and detailed knowledge from his experiences buying & selling land.  You can contact Jack in the following ways

I met Ramond Harris II at the RPOA's Annual Conference last month, and after hearing his story I knew that we needed to record a podcast immediately.  You see, Ramond is seemingly a successful Detroit-based wholesaler, rehabber & flipper.  But there was something wrong with his business model, and he was trying to figure out how to fix it. So I invited Patrick Spitzley and Justin Workman, two experienced rehabbers and Friends of the Show, to join us for a Mastermind Session, in which we learned about the challenges facing Ramond in his business, analyzed his situation, and helped him come up with concrete solutions to improve his systems and create more profit for himself. And I thought we were doing a pretty good job.  Until half-way through the mastermind session Ramond dropped a bomb into the conversation.  At that point we realized what the real problem was...! I know you're going to enjoy this conversation with Ramond.  You'll learn a lot about what it means to be an entrepreneur and investor, and ho

As Rental Property Owners and Landlords, we need to be aware of the changing demographics, trends, and technologies that are shaping the future of Real Estate Investing, especially when it comes to the impact of Millenials and Generation Z on our businesses. Linda Liberatore speaks on these topics all over the country and is the Founder & CEO of Secure Pay One, a company dedicated to Landlord Empowerment.  She's also the author of the bestselling books: "Landlord's Secrets", "My Landlord Helper: The Keys to Managing Your Real Estate", and "Daily Inspirations to Achieve Your Real Estate Investment Goals". Linda's going to help us understand Demographic Trends and the expectations of Generation Z that you must consider, Cost-Effective Technology Solutions that you can apply to your rental business, Social Media Marketing, Navigating the Friction Points in Leasing & Marketing, and her projections of what changes we should expect in the coming years. Linda shares a lot of great knowledge and experience in

Hiring Contractors, handling Maintenance issues and dealing with City Inspections are a reality of owning residential rental property.  The level of efficiency and quality employed in handling these issues can either add huge value or create huge problems for your investment properties.  It can be helpful to understand the best practices employed by the professionals in our industry to make sure we're following the rules and not wasting money. That's why today's conversation is a must listen for anyone who owns or is thinking of owning Rental Property.  We are going to break down the process of taking proper care of your investment property.  We're going to discuss the logistics of scheduling repairs with your tenants, managing expectations of owners and residents, finding and hiring the best vendors and contractors, and handling city inspections. Having this conversation with me today are two experts in their field: Amanda Szabo is a general manager at LeaseGR, a West Michigan Property Management Company tha

Joseph Gozlan is a Multifamily Investment Specialist with a portfolio of over 500 units in strong secondary markets in Texas.  He's also a former lieutenant in the Israeli Defense Force and has over 17 years of leadership experiences in the software industry, which helped him sharpen his business and analytical skills as well as his "big picture" perspective. Joseph is also a fascinating guy with a lot of great real estate wisdom to share.  In today's conversation Joseph takes us through his thought process comparing multifamily investing to other types of investing, and how this helped him go from zero to 500 units in less than three years.   We also discuss the massive generational shift in demographics that is having an enormous impact on rental housing, Joseph's three rules of investing that will see him through good and bad economic cycles, and how he's in the process of changing out his management team. Joseph also makes it clear that Multifamily investing is not as easy as some might say.  It takes a l

Last year we saw the passage of the Trump Administration's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act which created opportunities for investors and small business owners to lower the amount of taxes owed.  However, there were still some outstanding questions that needed to be answered. Luckily we have Duane Culver back on the show today to shed some light on those lingering questions and how they apply to your 2018 tax preparation.  Duane is a CPA and President of Culver CPA Group.  Today he'll give us the low-down on the following topics: Qualified Business Income Deduction (QBID) and how it relates to your rental income. Do you still have to pay the Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Penalty? Reminder on the larger Standard Deduction you're able to take. Change in how you can deduct charitable contributions. What you need to know about Opportunity Zones. If you're about to sit down & do your own taxes, or you have a professional prepare them, it pays to learn as much as possible about tax rules & how they appl

My guest today started investing in Real Estate by buying and selling over 100 single family homes before transitioning into multifamily.  Within 3 years he went from owning zero to 300 units across the country! Sterling White is an investor and business owner on a mission to make the world a better place through principled and efficient real estate investment.  He's also helped other investors raise money for their deals and attract private money through a software platform he co-developed called "Syndication Pro". Today Sterling and I discuss how he was able to grow his portfolio so quickly, and the differences he sees between fixing & flipping and owning multifamily.  Sterling also has some great stories on the methods he uses to build rapport with sellers and investors, and how a 'thank-you' card helped him beat out multiple higher offers. Sterling will also share why he avoids brokers and prefers to find off-market deals.  We'll also talk about syndication and why he helped design and build an on-lin

In this quick update, Jeremy Cole and I share an important announcement about two events you don't want to miss: First off, today (Thursday, February 21, 2019) is the first day of the RPOA's Annual FREE Conference & Expo, and there will be a special Q&A session tonight at 6pm with the stars of HGTV/DIY's hit show 'Gritty to Pretty'.  Arrive early for the 5:30 happy hour and chance to meet Jeremy and Ramon Huerta live! You will also have the opportunity to watch their show this Saturday, February 23rd at 8pm when it airs on the DIY Network.  Your action item for the day is to set your DVR to record, or watch it live, because the more people who check out this episode, the better the show's chance of getting to the next level at HGTV.  For more information about the conference, and to register for FREE, go to www.rpoaonline.org We'll see you there!

Sue Nelson has constructed almost every type of creative real estate deal: commercial short sales, loan modifications, options, master leases, JV agreements, and note buys.  You name it, she's done it!  That's why I actually joined Sue's coaching group several years back - I knew that I could learn from her experiences to help get me to the next level as a real estate investor. And today Sue is going to talk about the different ways she's invested in Multi-Family and Apartment Real Estate.  We'll discuss how she structures her deals with sellers and investors, how she knows whether or not she's investing in a good area, what you must remember when working with a broker, and what it takes to become a transaction engineer. Sue will also be one of our featured speakers at the RPOA's Annual Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo which is happening in Grand Rapids, Michigan from February 21 through 23, 2019.  This is the largest Landlord & Real Estate Investor Conference in the

You've heard us talk about it, and you've listened to the episodes with our featured speakers from all over the country.  Now its time for you to make the commitment to be there at the "Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo of 2019", happening February 21, 22, & 23 right here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In this special episode, Clay Powell and I discuss all of the fantastic featured speakers, breakout sessions, and opportunities for networking with other like-minded investors and vendors.  This is an event you don't want to miss! Go to rpoaonline.org to register for FREE, and we'll look forward to seeing you there!

37 years ago, Jeffrey Taylor and his wife became accidental landlords.  But they had no way of knowing that long ago, that the mistakes they were making and the challenges they were facing, would someday go on to inspire tens-of-thousands of real estate investors and landlords across the country. Today you will find out how Jeffrey Taylor transitioned from being a full-time school teacher into Mr. Landlord, a highly sought-after speaker, trainer and author who has spent the past 34 years teaching landlords how to treat rental property as a business, increase their cash flow, and reduce their headaches along the way. Jeffrey & I recorded this conversation in 2017 and it originally was released as Episode #57.  You'll definitely want to listen to it again, because it includes his non-traditional ideas on how to increase your tenant's satisfaction and create more freedom for you as a rental property owner.  Plus, Jeffrey's ideas will make you more money in rental income. Jeffrey will also be one of our featu

Short-Term & Vacation Rentals like Airbnb are getting a lot of interest from investors because of their potential for exponentially increasing your income. My guest today, Beth Carson, helps investors and vacation rental owners make as much money as possible out of their investment.  Beth has been in the hospitality industry for 18 years working with mini-resorts and high-end homes, and has helped investors go from losing millions a year to being profitable in one month. Beth is a well-known expert on the subject of of Short-Term & Vacation Rentals, and she will also be one of our featured speakers at the RPOA's Annual Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo which is happening in Grand Rapids, Michigan from February 21 through 23, 2019.  This is the largest Landlord & Real Estate Investor Conference in the Midwest, and you can register for free at: https://rpoaonline.org/training-events-annual-conference-expo/ I know you're going to enjoy today's episode.  Short-Ter

Today we're going to talk about a real estate asset-class that I love.  It's one where you have renters, but they don't live in the property.  You quite often don't have to worry about heat or water, and when someone moves out you can sweep their unit clean and move someone else in the very same day. I'm talking about Self-Storage investing, and my guest today, Scott Meyers, is going to show us how this can be a great way to create massive cash flow without all of the downside associated with residential rental units. Scott is a well-known expert on the subject of Self-Storage investing, and he will also be one of our featured speakers at the RPOA's Annual Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo which is happening in Grand Rapids, Michigan from February 21 through 23, 2019.  This is the largest Landlord & Real Estate Investor Conference in the Midwest, and you can register for free at: https://rpoaonline.org/training-events-annual-conference-expo/ This is a great episode fo

Many investors are turning to mobile home investing to avoid the crazy competition in the real estate market for rentals and flips—and they’re succeeding! Mobile homes are sometimes the only alternative for those families with less money to spend on rent. My guest today, Marco Kozlowski, believes that anyone can achieve success in real estate and is betting that mobile home investing is the fastest and best way to achieve that dream in today’s market. Marco shares specific examples of the deals he's done and the systems he's put in place to ensure success. Marco is a leading expert in mobile home and real estate investing and is the owner of a variety of successful companies in multiple countries. Marco will also be one of our featured speakers at the RPOA's Annual Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo which is happening in Grand Rapids, Michigan from February 21 through 23, 2019.  This is the largest Landlord & Real Estate Investor Conference in the Midwest, and you can

One of the biggest questions real estate investors have is "where can I get More Money to do More deals?".  Or, if you're just starting out, how can you find the funds to do your first deal? My guest today has the answers.  Alan Cowgill teaches investors around the world how to find Win-Win situations and attract and convert folks into Private Money Lenders to get all the money you need to get deals done. Alan will discuss how he first stumbled upon the power of using private money, the types of presentations that attract private money, the mistakes he's seen others make, and the SEC rules that must be followed. Alan will also be one of our featured speakers at the RPOA's Annual Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo which is happening in Grand Rapids, Michigan from February 21 through 23, 2019.  This is the largest Landlord & Real Estate Investor Conference in the Midwest, and you can register for free at: https://rpoaonline.org/training-events-annual-conference-expo/ I k

Cameron Gaskill didn't start in Real Estate Investing from a place of wealth or privilege.  He was struggling to make ends meet and living paycheck to paycheck.  When he would tell people he wanted to become a real estate investor they would laugh at him.  After disaster struck he decided to follow his dream, and he's since rehabbed and flipped over 800 houses in Florida. Today Cameron is going to take us through his successful process of rehabbing and flipping, working with contractors, and the systems he's set up to be as efficient as possible.  You'll learn what type of home Cameron likes to buy, and what he avoids.  We'll also discuss the numbers - what he'll pay and how much he wants to make on each project.  Cameron also has advice on how to find the funds to become a successful flipper and rehabber. Cameron will also be one of our featured speakers at the RPOA's Annual Michigan Landlord & Real Estate Investor FREE Conference & Expo which is happening in Grand Rapids, Michigan from February 21 t