Sleaze-free Real Estate Investing

How do you add more units to your existing portfolio, without buying more properties? You master the art of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)!  ADUs are additional units that many cities and towns allow you to add to your existing single family homes.  In this episode, Jeff interviews Derek Sherrell, known as “That ADU Guy.” Derek is a passionate advocate for ADUs, and an extremely knowledgeable resource about all aspects of them.  In this conversation, Jeff and Derek discuss a wide range of ADU topics, from how to find the right properties, to important construction considerations, to financing strategies and more!

In a word full of Extroverts who get their energy from meeting with and talking to as many people as possible, where do Introverts fit in?  If you’re a fan of the Thoughtful approach to real estate investing, there’s a good chance you feel at least a little like an Introvert yourself.  In this episode, Jeff interviews Ashley Harwood of Move Over Extroverts, who specializes in coaching real estate professionals who are Introverts.  Jeff and Ashley discuss what it’s like to wonder, “what’s wrong with me?” and feel frustrated and lost when extrovert-oriented business strategies don’t work for us, and also discuss the incredible super-powers that introverts are gifted with, and how they can be extremely valuable traits in the real estate business.  

Real estate investing starts with actually being able to buy a property, right?  But is that “Acquisition and Finance,” or is it more accurately, “Finance and Acquisition”?  Many real estate investors make one big mistake:  they think of their “deal-finding” and “deal-financing” strategies as being two separate and unrelated efforts.  In this episode, Jeff explains that in order to build a scalable portfolio, you need a repeatable process for Acquisition and Finance:  FIRST, choose your financing strategy, THEN design your acquisition strategy accordingly.  

When is the right time to consider transitioning your acquisition and finance strategy to buying properties off-market, directly from Sellers?  A lot of people think that you should only make this transition after you’ve exhausted all the “low hanging fruit” ways of buying and financing properties.  Others think you should only make this transition after you’re more experienced.  In this episode, Jeff explores the notion of what “low hanging fruit” really is in real estate acquisition, and explains why buying properties off-market directly from Sellers is actually lower-hanging fruit than conventional ways like shopping on the MLS or working with wholesalers.  

Ever feel like you could make more progress in your real estate investing endeavors if you just had more CASH?  Sure, many investors do as well.  But it turns out that in most cases, you probably don’t need quite as much cash as you may think you do.  In this episode, Jeff explains why when you feel like you have a cash problem, you usually don’t really have a cash problem.  Instead, what you have is an acquisition and finance strategy problem.  Jeff explains the problem and what to do about out it.  

When you embark on a new path, learning new skills and attempting to do something you’ve never done before, that new path is by definition full of uncertainty and challenges.  And while many people address their fears and discomfort by stepping off the path entirely, others continue to move forward bravely and boldly.  In this episode, Jeff interviews Michael Monteith, a coaching client from The DEALS Workshop. Michael shares insights about his journey and experiences doing his first off-market deal with Seller Financing, lessons learned and aha moments that not only got the deal done, but make him more confident moving forward into his future deals as well. 

When you think about appraisals, what comes to mind? Expensive, time-consuming steps that are a necessary evil in the process of getting a loan?  Or do you think of them as helpful tools to make sure you’re buying the property for a fair price?  Either way, you probably think of appraisals as REQUIRED.  But what if an appraisal could be an OPTIONAL step in your acquisition process?  When you buy properties with Seller Financing, appraisals can indeed be optional.  In this episode, Jeff discusses the situations in which optionally choosing to have an appraisal could be very helpful in your acquisition and finance process.  

One of the most contentious topics in the real estate investing community is coaching—do you, or don’t you, need a coach? Each side has strong opinions. Those who do not believe in coaching will often say, “everything you need is available in books and podcasts.” But is that true? In this episode, Jeff explores this topic, and explains why he believes—without a doubt, based on his experience of both being a coaching client and coach himself—that you do indeed need a coach if you want to be the best possible real estate entrepreneur. Jeff explains why you need a coach, and how to pick the right one for you.

When does “the negotiation” begin, when you’re talking directly to a Seller, off-market? While many regular real estate investors would say it begins after the pleasantries are done, we Thoughtful Real Estate Entrepreneurs think differently. To us, the negotiation begins the second we first have contact with the Seller, and is conducted through a million tiny little “touch points” that the Seller has with us. In this episode, Jeff explains what touch points are, and how the secret to winning the invisible negotiation is to thoughtfully and intentionally manage those touch points.

Many investors get excited about the idea of Seller Financing because they think it will give them one big benefit: being able to make low—or no—down payments. And while that may be true sometimes, is that really the biggest benefit of Seller Financing? In this episode, Jeff breaks down the many different benefits of Seller Financing and proves that the real benefit of Seller Financing is the fact that you as the Buyer have a huge say in the loan terms.

“Financial Independence” is the holy grail for many of us real estate investors….and it should be! But there’s another level beyond financial independence that’s even better and more valuable: Financial Resilience. In this episode, Jeff explains the difference between Financial Resilience and Financial Independence, and discusses why Financial Resilience is an even more valuable goal to achieve.

For many real estate investors, when they are considering which loans to get, they want to pay those loan off as quickly as possible. But is the goal really to pay off the debt on the property? For some people, it may be; but for many others, that’s not the goal at all. In this episode, Jeff explains why the goal may not be to pay a property off, and explains what the real goal is instead: to create a sustainable deal that buys you the time to get the real win you bought the property for.

“Should I do this deal?” It’s one of the most common questions we ask each other in the real estate investing community. Real estate “entrepreneurs” will have a different answer to this question than real estate “investors.” In this episode, Jeff explains the difference between “mundane deals,” and “entrepreneurial deals,” and discusses why as Thoughtful Real Estate Entrepreneurs, we avoid the mundane deals. Jeff discusses the critical question we must ask ourselves as we evaluate each opportunity: “what do I love about this deal?”

As Thoughtful Real Estate Entrepreneurs, we see problems as opportunities—chances to apply our entrepreneurship that create equity and cash flow. In this episode, Jeff shares and describes the expression, “Beautifully Mismanaged.” Beautifully mismanaged properties are those in which the Seller has left us with a lot of opportunity to create value by fixing the mistakes of their mismanagement. Jeff discusses the many different types of beautiful mismanagement, and explains how to win from identifying these opportunities.

Following up on recent podcast episodes about The Five Currencies (Financial, Effort, Time, Expertise and Relationship), Jeff hosts a live discussion with friend and coaching client Joe Hefley. In this episode, Jeff and Joe have an engaging conversation about the real-life, day-to-day dynamics of growing an “account” full of Relationship Currency.

When real estate entrepreneurs learn about Seller Financing, they tend to get really excited—for good reason! But this enthusiasm can lead to one big mistake, that actually decreases their success. In this episode, Jeff discusses the #1 mistake that real estate investors make when pursuing Seller Financing deals, and explains how to correct that mistake and get much better results!

For many people, a growing real estate investment business means “scaling”—buying more properties, and doing a higher volume of deals. And that often leads investors to consider hiring an “Acquisitions Manager”—an employee whose sole job is the negotiate the purchase of properties, so that the investment company has enough “inventory” to repair, remodel and improve. For Thoughtful Real Estate Entrepreneurs, though, this is a huge mistake. In this episode, Jeff explains why TREES never hire Acquisitions Managers (Hint: it’s because that would mean outsourcing he most important part of the entire business: the negotiation with the Seller.)

Being a great off-market real estate investor—and a Thoughtful Real Estate Entrepreneur—is like being a great travel agent: you need to know where the Seller wants to go, and then you need to present them with an amazing plan and vehicle to get them there. In this episode, Jeff discusses the art of approaching Sellers with this mentality, how to understand what they really want, how to make proposals they will accept.

How do you establish enough credibility with the Seller, to get them comfortable with the idea of doing Seller Financing with you; to being your lender? It’s an important question, with an important answer. In this episode, Jeff provides the top three keys to establishing that credibility with the Seller, so that you can get all the Seller Financing loans you need!

The topic of balance is something we all think about, and strive for. But as we know, it can be elusive. In this episode, recorded on the go, Jeff discusses what it feels like to always be striving for, but often failing to achieve, a state of balance. He explains the difference between balance, the noun, and balancing, the verb, and encourages us to strive for balancing (verb) rather than balance (noun).