The Only Constant Is .... Change!

As time marches forward and technology continues to evolve, things change. Do you find yourself forgetting about websites you have bookmarked? Do you get easily distracted by all the content online? You're not alone!

Our attention spans are getting shorter every day. Myspace, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, ..... you name it!, they are all taking up our time and attention. And why not? They are quick and simple. People are using these social media sites on their phones in greater numbers.

So, I too need to take advantage of the new media to keep people informed about my activities. When the time is right and when the opportunity is there for those who follow what I'm doing, they will have the means to contact me and jump on board. The only way that can happen is if I stay in front of people. This is the way to do it.

Visit my Facebook business page and, if you like what I'm doing, become a fan and watch as I grow my business.

Marketing: Everyone Does It!

Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn ... you name it, social media is pervasive. What's it all about? MARKETING! Even if people use these tools simply to stay in touch with friends and relatives and to share pictures and videos, it is still a form of marketing and networking.

There is no way around it. If the word MARKETING makes you cringe and all you can envision is some eccentric guy off in the corner all giddy about the latest glossy brochure he just developed that will make the PERFECT direct-marketing mail piece ever designed since marketing was ever conceived, then you don't understand what marketing is all about. Simply put, it's about building and maintaining relationships.

Granted, these relationships differ (business, friendship, peers, family, etc.) but the main purpose is still the same - positioning yourself in another person's mind so that when the appropriate time comes, that other person will think about you.

So, for example, what if you knew only one person who knows that you are excited about boating? And say that a boating event (boat racing, boat shows, etc.) was going to be coming to your area and that person reads or hears about it. OK, you'd want that person to contact you and let you know about it - right? That's just one person, though.

Now what if 100 people know you're excited about boating? Isn't the likelihood that more than just one person will let you know about the event? Well, the more contact you maintain with those 100 people and the more often your passion for boating is mentioned, the more likely they are to let you know when related events pop up. Got it?

Of course, you don't want to monopolize every conversation with boating, boating, boating! Keep it up and you'll capsize the conversation at least and sink your relationships at worst. Make sure you share a genuine interest in other people and their passions and do the same for them as you would have them do for you - pass along relevant information that might spark their interest. Simple!

Now, I say all that to share with my readership that I am not just marketing to build a list of prospective tenants for my properties (although that is always nice!) or to build a list of hot real estate deals (who wouldn't want such a list?), or to attract an unlimited source of private money investors (who doesn't have this list?), but I'm now also marketing myself for hire. Due to downsizing, I was let go from my sales position with my former employer after six years of service. Yes, I was one of 24 people let go without notice - escorted out of the building without even a handshake or a "thank you for your service"!

So, if you'd like to talk with me about my particular situation, please give me a call! I'd really like to hear from you. Or, you can check my profile out on LinkedIn.

Anyway, I'm on a campaign to reinvent myself and seek out new challenges that will make use of my sales and marketing experience, my technical background in engineering, and yes, especially my management and negotiation skills developed over the years as a real estate investor and property manager (landlord).

The Credit Crisis Explained

This video presentation by Jonathan Jarvis is a couple months old, but I find that many people still don't fully understand exactly what is happening that is causing so much frustration to people trying to borrow money these days and this video is an excellent presentation. It starts out very, very basic, but then becomes more detailed and you may want to view it several times till you fully understand the concepts. It's not really that complex, but to someone unfamiliar with how investment banking works, this may seem foreign to you at first.

Enjoy, and be enlightened ....


The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

Thank you, Mark Ijlal!

In my last post I was giving thanks to the man whom I feel was the inspiration to my interest in real estate from a very early age. Harry Bokano was the example I looked to in order to realize that “regular people” could own more than one house and eventually make a good deal of money over the long haul by doing so.

As the years went by, I always knew that I wanted to learn more about real estate but I didn’t know where to start. I didn’t really think to ask Harry how he got into real estate or question him about being a landlord. I was raised to treat issues like money as a very private and extremely personal matter. So, as a result, I thought it would be rude and intrusive if I were to ask Harry about his business. Besides, Harry was 30 years older than me and I wouldn’t THINK to ask such a think of my elders. Well, that was my loss and I think it was wrong for my parents to raise me that way. What could be more important than learning from your elders, the successful ones that is, about how to make money and invest?

Over time, like so many others like me, I would read books about real estate and eventually I bought the seminar tapes on the Carlton Sheets’ No Money Down program, but even that wasn’t enough to get me started. What really did it for me was learning from someone in my age category and someone who was doing what I wanted to do and doing it in my own back yard - so to speak. That’s where my business coach and mentor, Mark Ijlal, comes onto the scene.

In November, 2005, my wife, Analiza, was taking a 5-week vacation to visit her mother back in the Philippines. Our daughter had not been born yet, so it was just me and the family dog, Adam, staying home thinking of ways to get into trouble. Analiza had only been gone about 2 weeks when I took a step off the deep end!

Let’s take a step back for a moment. You see, a month or so before this time I was scanning the AM radio dial for something new and interesting to listen to. It was a Saturday morning when a lot of “do-it-yourself” shows are on. You know the kind: car repair experts, financial investment experts, nutritional supplement experts, real estate investing experts, etc. Well, you guessed it, Mark Ijlal was on the radio (WDTK, 1400 AM) on a Saturday morning with his real estate investing show, The Real Estate Warrior Show. After listening to him for a few weeks and hearing about his upcoming “Quick Start Bootcamp” for the new and budding real estate investor entrepreneur (me), I had the seeds planted in my mind.

So, while Analiza was away I decided to sign up for the one day seminar and that was the best 14 hours of my life! That is when Mark laid out everything I needed to do to get started in real estate investing. He taught me how to set up my LLC, how to get an employer ID number (which is like a social security number for your LLC), how to get free business cards printed up, how to set up a business checking account and apply for business credit, and how to find, evaluate, and bid on investment properties. There was much more covered, but needless to say more than just the basics were presented to me at that time and I had enough information to go out and get my career started.

When Analiza came back from her vacation, I presented her with what I had done.

1. ComfyQuarters, LLC was formed (filed articles of organization)
2. Employer ID Number was assigned (EIN)
3. Fax line was set up
4. Business cards were ordered
5. Business checking account was opened
6. Business line of credit was obtained

I was now in business!

After seeing all that I had accomplished in her absence, Analiza saw the vision and she was behind me in my mission. I had assigned her as the bookkeeper and accountant (CFO) and she took the position gladly knowing that I was on the right path to make this a successful venture.

So, thank YOU, Mark Ijlal, for teaching me what I needed to know to get started in the business I have wanted since I was a young boy. Mark gave me the actual tools needed to implement the dream.

What are YOUR dreams? Do you know what tools you need to make it a reality? Find others who share your dreams and who are living theirs. Ask them to show you how they did it. Don’t be shy!! Do not hesitate to ask others how they obtained something or have arrived to somewhere you would like to be. If they say no, then ask someone else -- but don’t give up on your dreams. I didn’t. And I still haven’t. I dream every day and I work a little bit more each day toward my goals.

I encourage you to do the same …

Thank You, Harry!

How I Got Interested In Real Estate Investing

I’m writing this post because I believe there are some of you who also have an interest in real estate investing, but you just don’t realize it yet. Hopefully, my story will spark that “something” within you that propels you down the path I followed and perhaps you will find your passion in life along the way.

So, here’s my short story …

As a young boy, my parents used to take us to see the Bokanos (Harry and Joan). My dad used to work in a slaughter house in downtown Detroit as a calf skinner and Harry was someone he worked with. They were friends outside of work and Harry had a cottage on a lake somewhere up north. I remember how much I enjoyed going there and skipping stones off the dock and even tried water skiing once. That trip ended early, though, when my dad tried to ski on one leg - it ended badly! Well, my dad was OK, besides the bruised ego and the beat red burns from head to toe -- I thought he was doing a trick as he cart-wheeled across the surface of the water -- but that was probably one of the best trips ever!

Anyway, Harry and Joan lived (and continue to do so) well below their means and sunk every extra penny into real estate (rentals). As I grew older and as I would listen to the stories being told, I knew that Harry was doing something very smart, although I didn’t really understand it all back then. But I can say that Harry is the original source of my interest in real estate (I was around 8 at the time) and I knew that it was a way of saving up for the future and that somehow it would mean that Harry would have money to spend when he was old.

Fast forward many, many years. While I was serving in the U.S. Army as an Infantry soldier (1982-1986), I became aware of a No Money Down program being advertised by Carlton Sheets on late night TV. Yes, THAT Carlton Sheets! I was so intrigued by his sales pitch and I new that there was money to be made in real estate so I did like many other investors have done - I picked up the phone, credit card in hand, and I bought the program! (I later sold my Selmer Tenor Sax for $500 to help pay for the program, much to my parents displeasure!)

Well, the program of video tapes and books sat on my shelves for many more years collecting dust (as they did for many other investors like me!) but I knew that money could be made in real estate if I would simply imitate the actions of others who were successful before me and if I would just work hard. I just didn’t seem to have all the pieces I needed to get started. I needed more details!

Next, (around 2001) I stumbled upon Robert Kiyosaki’s books, “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” and “Cashflow Quadrant”, and I must say that these books (among some others) helped change my mindset. I no longer see scarcity, but rather opportunity. There is no lack of money in the world, only lack of knowledge and creativity to move some of the money from the pile into my own bank account. I knew that my biggest problem was that I kept spending my money on things that took more money and didn’t return any. I learned from Kiyosaki that I had to spend some of my money on money-producing assets. That is, I needed to buy something that would produce more money over time than what I spent to acquire it. Does a car do that? Does an expensive closet filled with clothes or shoes do that? Does a swimming pool or big screen TV do that? The answer is, NO! These things take your money (liabilities) and give you nothing in return other than the entertainment and enjoyment you receive from these items.

But I wanted to start buying assets that would generate money, not just consume it. That’s where real estate comes in to the picture for me. I eventually met my business coach and the man who showed me the details I needed to get started, Mark Ijlal. In my next post, I will tell you more about how I met Mark and what he showed me to help me get past my hesitation to launch my business.

Hopefully, you will see yourself in this story at some stage. Perhaps you know deep inside that real estate is the place to invest. I hope my story encourages you to keep exploring, keep reading, and never stop dreaming about where you want to be next year, three years, and five years from now.

Dream, plan, then EXECUTE!

Where Was The Interest Three Years Ago?

I have been immersed in real estate investing since the end of 2005. I bought my first investment property in the first quarter of 2006, so I’ve been into this for a solid three years now. My business coach always taught us not to be a “secret agent” -- sure, James Bond (007) is really cool, but if no one knows who you are, then no one will do business with you or show an interest in what you are doing.

So, I have headed his instruction and I have been telling everyone what I do. I pass out business cards. Hardly a conversation goes by that I don’t mention that I buy investment real estate. So, where are the excited disciples? Where are the people who have been dying to learn this business? Why are then not asking me question, after question?

Well, actually, until recently, very few people have shown an interest in what I’m doing. But since the extreme decline in the economy, most notably starting in mid-September, 2008, I have had people approaching me and asking for my thoughts on the economy. They are visibly concerned about what is happening all around us. When I tell them that I have been working on a safety net plan since 2005, they ask me what I have been doing. I tell them I buy real estate and that’s when I get the blank stare! “You think now is a good time to be buying real estate?!” they ask doubtfully. And I reply, “Of course! Real estate is dirt cheap - literally! In fact, in some parts of Detroit that I would not invest, you can buy property for LESS than the dirt it sits on -- $1.00. The land itself is worth more than that and that is evident by the tax bill you still have to pay for that piece of dirt.

So, investing in real estate is no different than any other time. You still have to know how to evaluate any prospective property and the area the house is in. But it can still be done profitably in this economy -- in fact, this is the BEST time to buy because you can buy the property at bargain prices (40% - 60% below fair market value) and at historically low interest rates.

I’m concerned that some people interested in what I’m doing now start asking me if I have seen this or that show on late night TV with a special book offer on real estate investing. I have to say honestly that I have NOT seen any of these infomercials because I don’t watch enough TV to catch them. But I tell them they don’t need those programs. They just need ME! They can ask me any question at any time and I’ll tell them what I have learned and what books I have read -- no charge! I am not selling seminars or books. I just want to share what I know with others and watch them duplicate what I have done. So …. ask questions!

Here are some good questions to ask a real estate investor:

1) How did you get interested in real estate investing?
2) How did you get started in real estate investing?
3) How did you buy your first property?
4) How do you set up an LLC?
5) How do you establish business credit?
6) What do you use for a lease agreement?
7) How do you screen applicants?
8) How do you find and hire qualified contractors?
9) How do you manage contractors?
10) When do you ask for a signed W9?
11) When do you issue a 1099?
12) What do you look for when hiring an accountant or CPA to do your taxes?

I will commit to answering these 12 questions in the coming weeks/months if you will commit to reading them and offering up suggestions for improvement or asking questions I haven’t included in this list.

Times are tough right now for many, many people. But times can be unbearable for those who are unprepared when the worst happens. Don’t keep all your eggs in one basket. That includes putting all your trust into one employer. Prepare yourself for what may be next in your life if you find yourself without your current employer. What will you do for yourself and your family if you find yourself out of work due to this difficult economy?

We all need to find what it is that we are interested in doing that could somehow be turned into a money making opportunity. After all, when we learn to earn, we can then help others learn, too.

Don't Let 2009 Pass You By! (BUY!)

Sure, we may not have hit rock bottom yet. But, maybe we're really close? Who knows? No one does, for sure. There are a lot of experts who consider many variables and make their predictions as to when the bottom will arrive. Many believe that we have another 24 months or so before all the sub-prime adjustable rate mortgages out there adjust and do their final, fatal damage to homeowners around the country.

Many will not be able to afford their mortgage payment once the low, introductory rate evaporates and they are hit with a much higher rate and, as a result, a much, much higher monthly payment than they ever dreamed they would be hit with. As a consequence, many will simply walk away and let their house go into foreclosure. But since Michigan has a six-month redemption period in addition to the time leading up to the actual default, judgment, etc., the house may not actually make it to market as an REO (real estate owned by the bank) for about a year or more after the rate adjusts.

All this means is that there will be a good supply of empty, bank-owned properties waiting to be taken advantage of by the prepared investor for quite some time to come. (Me and you!) Even when the market begins to recover, the values are not likely to just jump through the roof. I would not expect values to just rise as fast as they fell. That's the nature of this popped housing bubble. It inflated over a number of years, but when it "popped!" housing values dropped precipitously. Granted, these values may have dropped artificially low due to the number of foreclosures being sold off at 40-60% of market value. When appraisers started looking at property values for the retail home buyer, they often didn't filter out the "sold" price of the vacant foreclosed property next door.

We are witnessing a huge correction in housing values and we may have seen the market fall a bit lower than the true market value of properties should be. You can expect a recovery beginning in about 36 months and by 2014 you should see reasonable property values once again.

The good news for real estate investors is that you can pick up a ton of houses (REOs, owner occupied, estate sales, etc.) in great condition or that need a lot of fixing up (rehab) - whatever fits your investing style, it's out there!

Don't let 2009 pass you by -- BUY today! If you are new to real estate investing, now is the time to get on the fast track. Read all the books and blogs you can get your hands on and educate yourself. Sell off a bunch of stocks or mutual funds to get the cash you need for a down payment. Whatever it takes, get into real estate now while it's so easy!

If you wait, don't worry. Real estate will always be here. That will never change. What changes are the market conditions and the tactics and strategies you will need to make the best investment. But it boils down to basically two simple strategies: Buy, fix and flip quickly for a profit (best when market is stable or rising), or you can buy, fix and hold (rent) for the long term and build equity.

I like BOTH strategies and I'll continue to do both when it makes sense (cents!) to do one over the other.

Thanks for reading! If you have any real estate related questions, don't hesitate to post a comment. I will be happy to research your question and get back to you with an answer.

Now This Is Ridiculous - But Fun!

As seen in my recent posts, I recently went to the range and was a bit proud of my marksmanship. But I am actually a LOUSY shot with a firearm. Check out this YouTube video highlighting Bob Munden, the fastest gun ever!

No Recession For Me - Thank You!

My thanks go out to Brian Kurtz and Dennis Fassett for bringing this link to my attention. Go check it out. LISTEN to the message. CHOOSE your path and run with it. I did.

Go here: NoRecessionForMe

Look, I know I haven't done everything perfectly in 2008. I have made some errors in judgment. I have chosen substandard quality contractors at times. I have over-improved on my properties a bit. I may have expanded more quickly than I should. BUT - I did something. I made choices. I followed through. As a result, I have flipped one property for a profit and I own three others that are rented and generating income. THAT is a pretty good year if you ask me.

So now what? Am I going to let the news get me depressed? Am I going to crawl into a hole somewhere and bury my money inside a mattress? (side note: Have you ever tried to stuff money inside a mattress? For real? Even if you get your hand in there, you might shred it to pieces while pulling it back out - those springs have sharp edges! No, I don't know this from personal experience, I've just heard about it somewhere before.) Am I going to stop investing my money because the talking heads on the news say that no one is lending money and no one is spending money?

No, I intend to keep moving forward and building my portfolio of investment properties. Would you like to join me? Would you like to partner up with me on some deals? Contact me and let's talk!