When Disaster Strikes: Tough Lessons Learned From The Real Estate Trenches

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I put together a special video for you with all the mistakes that I’ve made in my real estate investing biz over the years so that you can learn from them… and I’ve made some BIG ones.

It’s important to keep in mind that everyone, EVERYONE makes mistakes… doesn’t matter if you’re brand new to real estate investing or if you’re a seasoned veteran.

You’re going to make mistakes… period!

BUT, it’s how you respond, how you react, what you learn… that makes the difference.

I remember when my mentor said that when you’re actively investing in real estate over time… it’s not a matter of “if” someone will file a lawsuit against you (whether it’s a tenant, contractor, seller, lender, etc),  it’s a matter of “when”.

I read about a poll that was done at the end of the nineteenth century. People were asked, “If you were to get rich, become wealthy, how would you do it?”

The answer… build a business.

The same poll was conducted a hundred years later and the answer unfortunately was… sue someone.

… just goes to show how the mindset of the masses has shifted.

In real estate investing, when things go south, it can mean broken agreements, payments falling behind, liens, judgments, foreclosure, bankruptcy.

You’re undoubtedly heard many stories of hardship over the last few years… from huge multi-million and billion dollar real estate investment companies, developers, banks, mortgage companies…

… but regardless of the adversity faced, there are KEY lessons to be learned and leveraged into your next deal, your business, your personal life.

In the video below, I go in-depth explaining specifically the BIG mistakes I’ve made, how I’ve responded, how I’ve weathered the storm… and my hope is that you can experience these through me, learn from them, and avoid them in your own business and life.

This is a very PERSONAL video (and it’s also 25 minutes long)… but please, I urge you to watch this video NOW.

You know, whether you’re just getting started or whether you’re doing a HUGE volume of deals… you’re gonna make mistakes. Everyone does. And that’s ok.

If you’ve had an agreement go south or if you do in the future, don’t be surprised if someone yells “scam” or “lawsuit”! That’s unfortunately hard wired into the minds of the masses these days.

But, hang in there. Take the lessons from this video and apply them in your business, your life.

… and realize that sure… there’s a lot of risk investing in real estate. BUT, there’s also a lot of risk driving your car everyday.

When investing in real estate, take calculated risks. Educate yourself. Surround yourself with a team of experts. Do your due diligence. Learn from other investors. Do the best you can with what you’ve got.

As for me, I’m just gonna keep moving forward. No matter how long, how hard, I will persist until…

Patrick

… aka P-Rid

Tags: creative real estate investing, Creative Real Estate Investment, Foreclosure, Foreclosures, patrick riddle, Patrick Riddle - Is It A Scam, Patrick Riddle foreclosure, Patrick Riddle lawsuit, Patrick Riddle Real Estate Investing, patrick riddle real estate scam, Real Estate Foreclosure, real estate investing, real estate investing mistakes, Real Estate Investment Mistakes, Real Estate Mistakes
Posted in Business Management Systems and Tools, Personal Development, Real Estate Investment Buying Strategies, Real Estate Investment Financing Strategies, Real Estate Investment Selling Strategies, Tips and Tricks | 29 Comments »

Susan Lassiter-Lyons – The Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing

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This week, Susan Lassiter-Lyons – The $24 Million Dollar Woman – is bringing us our final segment, Part 8 of MustKnowInvesting.com’s “Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing” series.

New to the series? Start w/ the introduction.

It’s been quite a ride so far… over 200 comments, over 200 people have shared it on Facebook, not to mention all the tweets.

And before we dive in today, just wanted to say “Thanks!” for your active participation in the series.

We – myself and all the “Best and Brightest” women – appreciate you :-)

Alrighty, now for our final segment  with Susan Lassiter-Lyons…

I’ve had the great pleasure to get to know Susan both personally and professionally over the last couple years. Susan joined the Private Money Blueprint faculty back in the fall of ‘08. And as many of your know, we had our Getting the Money Bootcamp this past June in Denver (her home town… which I LOVE by the way!).

And lemme tell ya, Susan knows her stuff! I’ve learned a TON from her.

Here’s a little background info…

Susan began investing in real estate in 1994 and owned a mortgage company for 7 years where she specialized in residential, commercial, and hard money financing for real estate investors. And get this… she’s participated in over 600 investment deals and since 2006 has raised over $24 million in private money for real estate syndicates.

Pretty incredible, ehhh?

Well, Susan’s about to tell you all about how she went from being a corporate drone to becoming The $24 Million Dollar Woman… and she’s gonna share her “secrets” of success.

Susan Lassiter-Lyons | Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing

Without further ado…

Great video Susan! Thanks so much for sharing your secrets :-)

Connect with “Best and Brightest” Susan Lassiter-Lyons

It’s often said “it’s not what you know but who you know that makes the difference.”

So, get to know Susan by connecting below…

Friend Up on Facebook

Follow on Twitter

Subscribe to YouTube Channel

Your FREE Real Estate Investing Resource Download

Susan has gone the extra mile and is donating two killer resources to you.

As she mentioned in her video, you’re gonna not only get her 88 page Mortgage Secrets for Real Estate Investors eBook. You also get a 90 minute training Susan put together for her blog, The Investor Insights, called The 3 C’s: Credibility, Confidence, and Contacts.

Click below to grab your copy of Mortgage Secrets for Real Estate Investors:

And here’s the link to download the 3 C’s video:

The 3 C’s: Credibility, Confidence, And Contacts

A BIG thank you goes out to Susan and all the “Best and Brightest” for making this an awesome kick butt series.

Like always, we LOVE feedback from y’all. If you enjoyed this post and the series, click the Facebook “Like” button and leave your thoughts and questions in the comment area.

Happy Investing!

~ Patrick

… aka P-Rid

P.S. – Here are the links to the series for you:

Julie Broad | Esi Benedict | Shae Bynes | Christina Mellott | Stephani Davis | Surprise Special Guest | Rachel Hernandez | Susan Lassiter-Lyons

Tags: best and brightest women in real estate investing, creative real estate investing, mortgage secrets, real estate investing, susan lassiter lyons, susan lyons, the investor insights
Posted in Business Management Systems and Tools, Cool Stuff, Personal Development, Real Estate Investment Financing Strategies, Tips and Tricks | 13 Comments »

Rachel Hernandez – The Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing

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This week, Rachel Hernandez – aka Mobile Home Gurl – is bringing us Part 7 of our “Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing” series.

New to the series? Start w/ the introduction.

Now, you may not have known this, but Rachel wasn’t always the “Mobile Home Gurl”. She actually got her start in single family homes and built up a sizable portfolio. But all was NOT well (as you’ll hear in her video below).

Here are a few things that you’re about to discover:

=> Why she chose to become an investor even though she NEVER thought she would be in real estate

=> The book that made things “click” and ultimately sent her on the path towards financial freedom

=> How a phone call to a local property owner turned into her first deal and a nice five figure profit

=> How she ironically went from profiting from burned-out landlords to becoming one herself

=> and Much More!

Rachel Hernandez | Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing

We’re all ears Rachel. Take it away…

Good stuff Mobile Home Gurl!

Connect with “Best and Brightest” Rachel Hernandez

You know, they say that your net worth equals your network.

So, put your networking shoes on and connect w/ Rachel below…

Friend Up on Facebook

Follow on Twitter

Subscribe to YouTube Channel

Your FREE Real Estate Investing Resource Download

Now for your free REI training resource…

Rachel has donated a great tutorial on how to get started investing in mobile homes. Now, as a fan of mobiles myself, I definitely recommend checking this out. Mobile homes can be excellent little cash flow machines… and often times (as long as you buy ‘em right), you can get your total investment right back out of them in no time flat.

So, click below to learn how to get started in mobile home investing…

10 Do’s and Don’ts to Get Started in Mobile Home Investing

Alrighty, that does it for Part 7.

Be cool and show Rachel your support by clicking the Facebook “Like” button… AND leave a comment before ya go.

See y’all soon,

~ Patrick

… aka P-Rid

P.S. – Here are the links to the series for you:

Julie Broad | Esi Benedict | Shae Bynes | Christina Mellott | Stephani Davis | Surprise Special Guest | Rachel Hernandez | Susan Lassiter-Lyons

Tags: best and brightest women in real estate investing, creative real estate investing, mobile home gurl, Rachel Hernandez, real estate investing, real estate investing series, women real estate investors
Posted in Business Management Systems and Tools, Real Estate Investment Buying Strategies, Tips and Tricks | 13 Comments »

Real Estate Cycle Investing: When to Wholesale, Buy, Flip, Rent, or Sell

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In today’s post, Marc Tonzillo shares buying and selling strategies  for real estate investors based on the market cycle…

I’ve been involved with real estate investing for over 15 years and have done my share of deals. These have included wholesaling, lease options, land contracts, straight rentals, land-lording and a foreclosure or two. This has given me large chunks of cash when I sold my rental properties, long term rental income and short term sums of cash when I flipped a contract.

Now I won’t say all of my real estate ventures have been a success. In fact much of what I’ve done, or tried to accomplish, has failed. I have realized though, through trial and error, what I’ve done right and what I’ve done wrong. And hopefully this article will help you avoid the same mistakes I’ve made. Who knows, maybe we learn more from our mistakes than from our successes.

The number one lesson I’ve learned is that an investor must invest along with the market cycle they’re in and they need to tailor their strategy to the current opportunities in their local marketplace. Now I know real estate investors make money every day in every market situation. I’m not saying you can’t accomplish any type of deal at any time. I’m sure you can. What I am saying, however, is that it can be MUCH better to look at the market condition your currently in, review local real estate conditions and then employ a strategy that lends itself to the HIGHEST probability of success in that marketplace.

Most of my career has been spent, wrongly, trying to use strategies that don’t work very well in the market I was in. Here’s an example…

When I first started out in the mid 90’s I learned about buying houses for no money down and then renting them out for positive cash flow. So I set forth trying to find no money down deals. Now I was living in Boston at the time in a pretty robust real estate market. Buying with no money down typically calls for finding sellers who will finance the sale for you. Once you locate a seller willing to finance, you turn around and attempt to lease the property for positive cash flow.

I had two things going against me before I even began. First, the market was good and the sellers were not willing to finance at all, let alone 100% of the purchase price. Secondly if I ever were able to find a seller to do this, it would be next to impossible to rent the house for a positive cash flow since the payments would far exceed the rental value. I was able to buy one low priced coop foreclosure for 10% down during this time and rent it for a profit, but doing this on a steady basis was difficult.

Another example… in the early 2000’s when the market was HOT I put all my focus into doing lease option deals with sellers. This was in South Florida. I was trying to have the seller lease their property to me with a long term option to buy at a predetermined price. It wasn’t working well at all. This was the WRONG strategy for a hot market. The owners didn’t need to sell on lease option when they could just stick signs in front of their homes and have them rented or sold in a few days. They didn’t want to tie up a price either. Meanwhile, other investors were making bundles by offering sellers all cash, putting the homes under contract and then flipping their deal to a ready list of hungry cash investors.

So what I’ve done, based on experience, is separate real estate market cycles into 4 segments: These are, declining market, bottom market, even (modestly ascending) market, hot market. Then I’ve determined what I would consider the most highly successful strategy to use in each particular market. Here goes:

Declining Real Estate Market

This would be after the peak when the market is definitely on a downward trend. The overall real estate market peaked around 2006. So I would liken this to the years between mid 2006 until late 2009 or the beginning of 2010.

In this, declining market, sellers tend to owe more than their homes are worth. This makes it difficult to purchase houses with equity. The market is going down so you certainly wouldn’t want to buy a house to hold as a long term investment. Better to wait for the market to hit the bottom.

You can try wholesaling short sales at this point but it grows more and more difficult to find an investor to flip your deal to. In my opinion the best strategy to use in this market is to focus on rentals. By rentals I mean either offering to lease a house directly from an owner with the right to sublet and making a cash flow that way or becoming a real estate agent and leasing homes for landlords. When the market is going down this is a great strategy since sales are slow and more and more people are willing to rent.

Bottom Real Estate Market

The market has stopped going down and prices have hit bottom. Sort of similar to the way the market is now. There are tons of foreclosures and short sales around.

In this market you want to focus on making money on these great deals. This includes buying foreclosures for all cash from the money you made when the market was hot and keeping the property as a long term rental, buying with private money or with partners, wholesaling foreclosures and short sales to cash buyers or becoming a real estate agent and specializing in selling foreclosures and short sales.

If you’re going to wholesale you’re probably better off becoming an agent since most of your cash buyers are going to look first to real estate agents anyway. Great deals are already direct to the public so you might as well sell them the way most investors want to buy them, thru a real estate agent.

Even (Modestly Ascending) Real Estate Market

An even market is where things have leveled off. Appreciation is slow, something like 3% per year.

In my opinion the best technique to use here would be to buy properties on terms. Terms meaning lease option, seller financing or perhaps subject to. The theory being is that in this market there isn’t any reason why sellers would not want to sell you their properties this way, especially if they are at all motivated. Think about it, when the market was going downward they couldn’t sell with terms because they had negative equity and when the market gets hot they won’t be motivated to tie up a long term price for little or no money down.

In an even market many sellers are motivated by debt relief and therefore are willing to allow an investor to just step in and pick up their payments. I’ve done this several times in even markets with some pretty good success. A great thing is that you have choices with what you want to do with the property after you have it under contract with your seller. You can rent the property and ride the appreciation wave to the top of the market, sell on terms and generate a cash flow from the spread between what your paying the owner every month and what you’re collecting from your buyer or you can flip the contract you have with your seller for a quick payday.

Hot Real Estate Market

Finally, there’s a hot market. This is a market where homes are selling like hotcakes. I’m talking in weeks to days rather than months. This market is NOT the time to attempt to buy rentals, buy foreclosures or buy on terms. This market does not lend itself to these opportunities and you will be beaten out by the tons of buyers out there who are ready, willing and able to pay the seller all cash.

I’ve found that in this market, above the other markets, it’s vastly more important to have a strong marketing system in place to find good deals. It’s imperative here to locate the deals before anyone else does. Not to mention have an agreement signed, notarized and recorded as quickly as possible. There’s too much competition in this market to take any chances.

In this market you want to offer to buy the house as is, with “all cash” and a fast closing. You want to make this strong cash offer. Then place the property under contract at the best discount you can get. Once under contract you will want to assign your deal to an all cash buyer who can close quickly. If the seller will allow it you could put the deal under contract with the right to get a mortgage and then sell to a mortgage buyer.

The point is that in this market you want to focus on deals where the owner gets all cash and then quickly assign your position. You won’t have any trouble locating buyers to pay all cash or obtain a mortgage because in a hot market, cash is extremely liquid and credit flows freely. Rather than assigning the agreements you have with sellers to end buyers you could be a real estate agent and sell homes as regular listings.

Much of what I’ve written here is theory combined with practice combined with many deals. I realize this is somewhat controversial in that many gurus teach that a real estate investor can accomplish any strategy at any time. I personally believe it can be done. All I can say, however, is that when I’ve gone against market cycles I’ve struggled but when I’ve followed the trend I’ve had some good successes.

Keep in mind that this is a model for using buying and selling strategies in different markets and doesn’t focus on marketing or how to find the deals before your competitors (which is also crucial). That’s another article…

________________________________

Marc Tonzillo has invested in real estate since the mid 90’s using creative financing techniques such as lease options, seller financing and contract assignments. He now specializes in advertising rental properties for landlords.

Tags: creative real estate investing, marc tonzillo, real estate cycle investing, real estate investing, real estate market, real estate market cycles
Posted in Real Estate Investment Buying Strategies, Real Estate Investment Selling Strategies | 6 Comments »

Patricia Ridelle – The Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing

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Wow! You guys and gals are in for a treat this week…

Our surprise special guest, Patricia Ridelle, is bringing us Part 6 in the “Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing” series (and I REALLY had to pull some strings to make this happen!).

New to the series? Start w/ the introduction.

Now, you probably haven’t heard of Patricia before, but she’s been in the real estate investing trenches full time for over 7 years… and has actually been working side by side with me.

Patricia has a TON to share with you. So I’m gonna shut up and let her take it away…

Patricia Ridelle | Best and Brightest Women in Real Estate Investing

Enjoy :-)

Connect with “Best and Brightest” Patricia Ridelle

As you heard in the video, Patricia works “behind the scenes”… so she suggested connecting with me since I’m the face of the biz.

Click below to connect…

Friend Up on Facebook

Follow on Twitter

Subscribe to YouTube Channel

Your FREE Real Estate Investing Resource Download

As you know with our “Best and Brightest” series, each woman is donating a free real estate investing downloadable resource.

Well, Patricia reached into the MustKnowInvesting.com education vault and is giving you access to an audio tutorial called the “25 Must Know Mistakes to Avoid as a Real Estate Investor.”

By avoiding these common mistakes, you’re gonna save yourself both time and money.

So, click the link below and avoid these mistakes like the plague:

25 Must Know Mistakes Tutorial

Hope you enjoyed this week’s newest addition to the “Best and Brightest” series.

Does Patricia remind you of anyone???

I just can’t put my finger on it… hmmmmm…

See ya soon,

~ Patrick

… aka P-Rid

P.S. – Here are the links to the series for you:

Julie Broad | Esi Benedict | Shae Bynes | Christina Mellott | Stephani Davis | Surprise Special Guest | Rachel Hernandez | Susan Lassiter-Lyons

Tags: best and brightest women in real estate investing, creative real estate investing, patricia ridelle, real estate investing, real estate investing blog
Posted in Cool Stuff, Marketing, Real Estate Investment Buying Strategies, Tips and Tricks | 16 Comments »