Epic Real Estate Investing - 20 Deals and Growing in His First 18 Months... w/Paul Thompson | 250

Episode Date: March 6, 2017

Join Epic Real Estate Investing for a special podcast interview with investor Paul Thompson. Share in the commitment to action and dedication to personal growth with a look at how Paul achieved 20 deals in his first 18 months investing. Learn how Paul acquires his sweetest deals through networking. Discover some ways that you can enhance your marketing message and explore the variety of challenges real estate investors face marketing to sellers in the digital age. ______   The free course is new and improved!  To access to the two fastest and easiest strategies to a paycheck in real estate, go to FreeRealEstateInvestingCourse.com or text “FreeCourse” to 55678. What interests you most? • E.ducation • P.roperties • I.ncome • C.oaching   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is Terrio Media. Broadcasting from Terrio Studios in Glendale, California, it's time for Epic Real Estate Investing with Matt Terrio. And welcome, welcome to Epic Real Estate Investing. This is the place where I show people how to escape the rat race using real estate. If you're just getting started and or you're looking for new and creative ways of making money in real estate, I've put together a free course just for you, including a checklist on how to find motivated sellers, property owners that are.

are willing and able to sell you their property at a discount. So to access that free course, go to free real estate investing course.com, free real estate investing course.com and that will be yours. All right, you got a great show for you today. But before I get there, just a couple announcements, March 17th and 18th, the Epic Wealth Experience and Bus Tour departs in one of the more powerful cash flowing cities in the country, St. Louis, Missouri. There are a few, maybe just a couple at this point.

Seats available. And if you'd like to join us, go to Epic Wealthexperience.com and reserve your seat. March 17th and 18th. And if you can't make both days, if you wanted to just join us, say, after work on Friday for Grub and Grow Rich, you can do that. That's Saturday,

or excuse me, Friday, March 17th at 5 p.m. in St. Louis as well, obviously. The location that will be available upon request. And this is really just an event where there's an opportunity to meet the epic and cash flow savvy team

as well as other like-minded investors in the area in person. And, you know, we understand that investing for the first time can be full of, of new experiences and concerns. So bring your questions and bring your appetite. And it's a very relaxed atmosphere.

It's going to include food and a workshop, maybe even a presentation or something like that and plenty of time for open format questions and answers as well as personal conversation with the team and myself. So you'll also get the opportunity to mix and mingle with other investors. All righty. So we won't leave until all of your questions are answered and all of the food is gone.

So if you want to come to both days, that's at EpicWealthexperience.com. That gives you grub and grow rich and the bus tour. If you want to just come to the Grub and Grow Rich event and eat, drink, be merry, and talk shop. That's at grub and grow rich.com. All righty. So on the phone today, I'm joined by Epic Pro Academy member, successful real estate investor. I think he had some decent amount of success even before he joined the Academy.

And this past Epic Intensive, I got to spend some time with him and get to know him a little better. And I thought of him to be in just a totally awesome dude and an ideal guest for the show. So I invited him on and he's here waiting. So please help me welcome to epic real estate investing, Mr. Paul Thompson. Paul, welcome to the show. Thanks for having me, Matt. You bet. All righty.

So, Paul, remind me, what market are you in? Little Rock, Arkansas, Central Arkansas. Okay, perfect. That's really close to Memphis, isn't it? Mm-hmm. Two hours away. There you go. Super.

I'm just familiar with that because that's one of our markets. And, Paul, what made you get involved in real estate investing? A real estate investing for me when I first started was a way to help me invest in myself. I for many years thought about it, read all the books, everybody talks about, that get all inspired. And then 15 years later, I don't have any houses or investments. I kept telling myself, I'm a risk-averse person. And at some point, I just finally decided that that was a lame excuse for being afraid of a failing. Right, right.

Got it. So yeah, I think that's a very similar story for people. Who was or is, would you say it was your biggest influence for real estate? You're talking about when I first got started? Yeah. I found a local, well, I found a local investor here in town when I first got started. The message is constantly, how do you get started? Well, you find a mentor.

And I went scrowling around on the internet, found somebody local in a local market about an hour away. And I just emailed him and said, hey, I'm new to this. I want to help you out. Anything I can do to learn to exchange for something. And he didn't take me up on the offer as far as actually helping him out. But he directed me to a bunch of air quote gurus that aren't really gurus. They're just old school guys. And so those guys were like John Schaub and Dykes-Boddaford.

and Pete Fortunato, and I go to their conferences pretty consistently and consume about everything. And by the only way you can learn their stuff is to go to the conference, they don't really sell courses too much. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

Yeah, Pete Fortunato has been a big source of strategy for me, he's very much into the creative strategies. Is that why you like that? Oh, yeah. I mean, I like to be a transaction engineer, and when I was exposed to him, you know,

As one person once described, you can do real estate investing in a lot of ways. And most of us are just playing checkers. And then people who are really experienced, they're playing chess. And Pete Fortunato is three-dimensional chess from Star Trek. Yeah, absolutely. That's a good way to put it. So it took you 15 years to finally take that first step and get involved from the time you first started talking about it. So how long have you been actively investing in real estate now?

About 18 months. Okay, so it's relatively new. Got it. So, yeah, I would say that you spent 15 years educating yourself because I was really under the impression that you had been in this business a lot longer than that. Is this your full-time business or is it a part-time thing for you? It's part-time. I have a day job that I enjoy and I do this on the side. And the point behind it for me is that I give myself the freedom to not have to work if I want to, but I'm always going to work doing something.

But it's just a way of constantly investing in myself and I can control. more of my life, so I'm not dependent on just one stream of income. Sure. So in 18 months, how many deals have you been able to do? I think about 20. About 20. It's fantastic. Would you say you've developed an expertise up to this point, or you just kind of all

over the place? I do owner financing, creative real estate kind of thing. I try not to do bank loans anymore if I can all. I'll help it. I'm still not an expert. I'm an aspiring expert, but I'm always striving to get to that level where I could actually help other people out. But I always kind of practice that, but I'm not, you know, an expert yet.

Right, right. No, I don't know if any of us ever really become experts. There's so much to learn in this business. And, you know, any transaction is a lesson of itself. So 20 deals in 18 months. I think that's a really good pace for when you're just getting started. What would you say was the big difference between, you know, what you're doing now and then the 15 years where you sat around and thought about it?

I decided that action is what it takes. And the experience that I had in the work life was rewarding, but it never really felt like I was truly investing in it in myself. and it just hit me one day. It's like, what are you doing? You know, do it. You know, and I just decided that I'm going to do it. And I was determined and probably didn't even make the best decision on the first investment.

But one way or the other, I was going to buy a real estate investment so I could just get past that threshold and then learn the rest of the way. Right. You know, that's exactly how it hit me too. One day I just kind of woke up. I was like, wow, nobody's going to do it for me. I guess I better do something. Right. So today and with your business right now, after, you know, you've got the almost two years in,

what would you say is your number one strategy for finding your deals? I would say networking. I do all the traditional direct mail and Craigslist and Zillow techniques, but I still have found, even being relative to new in the business, that the best deals and, you know, in the, And the real estate, you know, as an agent, they refer to it as pocket listings. It's those pocket deals that are the sweetest. The ones that you have to go look and searching for, you can still find good deals, but they just don't, they aren't, they typically aren't as sweet.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah, I couldn't, I really couldn't agree more because when I got started, I didn't even know people still open direct mail. I didn't even know that was even a thing. And that was like, gosh, what were that, 11, 12 years ago. And so all I really had to go on was networking. And, you know, it's up to this point or to this day.

It's still our number one source of leads are all the people that we've met over the years. But certainly that's how I got started. I'm really glad to hear you say that because I think it's the best way to go and generate deals and or find those deals, generate a business. But it can be a slow way, too. It's like it takes some patience, right? Oh, I totally agree. It's a long game. and I'm not in a rush.

I mean, you may think that's a lot of deals in short amount of time, but I'm not in a rush. And those came and fits and starts. I would go three or four months and not get any deals, and then I would have one deal where I bought six properties at once because some landlord was done with it. And so one of the best sources that I found is I became the, after a few months of attending the landlord association,

someone decided I should be the president of it, which I don't even think I was probably qualified, but the fact that I had a pulse, I think, may be qualified. And because the pay is, free. So it takes a giving soul to do so. And I just do it as a networking opportunity. And it's a way for me to do public speaking and to just kind of practice the craft of

being a landlord and then by virtue of being an investor. And I've made the best friends that I've had in the business by doing the Ria's in the landlord association. It's fantastic. Fantastic. So networking is how you're finding your deals, find most of your deals. sweet ones for sure. What is your favorite excess strategy right now? I have been practicing or dealing with land contracts selling on owner financing.

I've done a few rent-to-owns. Those are kind of take a while to kind of process. And actually, I've had the tenant buyers actually execute on the big buy-to-the-applet of the end or the end of it. But the owner-financing, I've been doing lately selling on purchaser contracts or contract for deeds or whatever it's called in your area. And I just really like that because you get almost all the benefits of ownership without any of the or as many of the responsibilities of being a traditional landlord. Right, right. You know, at the intensive in January, we were talking,

and one of the challenges that you were having, because you had a bunch of deals under contract or had a bunch of deals under ownership, and it was locating your resident owner buyers. How is that shifted for you? It shifted quite a bit. I adjusted the marketing quite a bit. And once again, networking typically finds those deals better, are those buyers better than anything else you do?

I actually know people locally here that sell on land contracts and they never advertise whatsoever. They buy a house and as they're rehabbing it, they have people lined up because they have the network. So for me, I just do Zillow and Craigslist and the signs in the yard. And then I just got better at processing the calls coming in because you will get absolutely overwhelmed with the calls.

So my wife has stepped up and helped him to do that. I tried to get that to a VA too soon, I think, and it just, it's too complicated for the instruction set that I gave the VA. Got it. What would you say after this point is the single biggest lesson that you've learned in your business that is helping you get, where you are today. I've recently taken on a, so the real estate stuff, I think I've picked up on that very quickly.

I like the transaction engineering. It's my muscle. But what I wasn't good at was managing and running a business. And so lately I've picked up this idea of called profit first accounting. And so it takes something like accounting, which is basically not something I'm very good at or care anything about. and turns it into a system that somebody, even like me, that doesn't really care about it, can process it. And so that's been successful in managing my cash flow so I could spend more time actually finding deals, doing the marketing and doing what I enjoy more. Got it.

That's a book, isn't it? Yeah, by Mike McCalliwick. It's one of his later books. I've recently discovered his books, and I think the stuff he says is just gold. I've kind of been on that lately. Oh, he's the – that was the toilet paper entrepreneur guy, right? Yeah, yep. And the pumpkin plan.

And, yep, and his latest book is The Surge, which I haven't read yet. But I'm still processing the first three books. Yeah. Oh, so he's just a regular chicken soup for the soul guy. Yep. That book, Profit First, has been recommended to me several times, and I have not picked it up yet. And maybe you're the one that's going to push me over the edge.

I'll check that out. Maybe that. So, you know, we're talking about, also, I think, in the intensive, we were talking about shifting markets and stuff. And what are you noticing in the market, and how is it changing the way you're doing business? the marketing, I don't have just tons of personal experience. I only have been doing it for 18 months,

but even in the short while I've been doing it, all the traditional marketing techniques aren't working as well. They still work, bandit signs still work, direct mail still works, just not as well. And so you have to find a way to differentiate yourself online advertising, which I'm still not, certainly not masterful at, is starting to really take off. and you have to kind of look at things just with a different perspective, I think,

and recognize that buying things the old way don't work as well and that you have to be open to adapt. I think that adaptation on the buying side is offering some value-added service other than here's a cash offer. So we do the three-letter option in it, and we make this consultative approach, and we try and separate ourselves from our local competition by that touch. Because I want it to be the easiest,

or most friendly experience that any given seller, motivated seller might be going through, such that they have that trust. And so I think that's one thing that I'm, what does separate me is I put forth, I'm trustworthy. The name of our business is a win core, because the core of our businesses,

that we want the deal to be a win-win, towards no deal. And so when you go into that, the presentation like that, that I'm here to help you solve your problem and I really care about you, not just the deal, that is what is the best way to adapt to that congested market that is motivated sellers have a lot more options now. So I have to make my option sweeter. Right, right.

Yeah, I couldn't agree more. What are some of the adjustments that you were making online that has it taken off for you? that have not taken off of me. Oh, you said, did I say that? I meant to say it that has taken off. You said it was really taken off for you. Oh, okay. Yeah, I would say it hasn't taken off because I don't know what I'm doing yet.

I'm still new enough at it. Oh, you said it has not taken off for you. Okay. Right, right. But I think those techniques are that, you know, the paper click and having that serious social media experience. and then creating like real genuine content online and creating a conversation about you as a person, as a company and who you are, and then being very genuine and authentic about that. And then that creates this kind of long-term relationship.

And so maybe in two years, you're more established in the online business space. and then that creates kind of credence when someone calls and they do the Google search. I mean, people, like you're saying, people aren't opening mailing more like they used to. Will it still work, yes. But the people who are going to adapt to the business are going to be figuring out a way to get past people's even email. You have to be in Instagram and some Snapchat, you know, these kind of things. How can you use Snapchat, which is swinging out, I think, with public today, to advertise your motivated sellers. Whoever cracks that is what's going to move the needle in their business.

Right, right. Yeah. It's funny, as you said, Snapchat just went public today. And I feel like everybody in the world knows exactly what it is, and I don't have a clue. Your son will. If he gets a hold of it, you'll get it. Give it to him, show it to him, and then you'll figure it out. All right.

Yeah, they showed some of it on this morning. I was watching the stock market stuff on the news, and they were showing Snapchat, and there was just people with funny noses on their head, and they put their ears on themselves, and the freckles. And I was like, what is this? How is this popular? How is this an IPO today? But okay. Right.

That's the sign. That's old grandpa, Terrio talking. I'm finally getting that age. So, Paul, what keeps you going when the going gets. It's tough. You know, it's always back to those reasons. It's always back to your why. And for me, real estate is not really it.

Real estate is just a really cool vehicle. For me, it's that I always want to personally grow and get better. And I always want to forever invest in myself. And if I'm not learning something new or I'm not doing something different that I've become good at before, then I personally get bored and that is not interesting to me. So for me, I just want to create that freedom of time and energy so that I can spend my time and energy around and with the people that I respect and have interesting conversations and engaging conversations. That's why I like the mastermind kind of concept of you're always pushing, you know, the level of three, you know, to spend a third time below and even in a third time above you. and I'm just kind of push my network so that I have bigger people around me and more interesting

people around me so that I'm always growing personally. With that said, what about the future of your business has you the most excited? For me, it's scaling because I've kind of figured out how to buy properties. I'm getting better at selling properties, and I'm getting better at being a landlord and kind of managing that. But I haven't scaled that up to the point to where I have to hire full real-time employees and scaling that up. And so that's what I've been spending my time lately on is how to create that business

operating system such that I don't have to spend more of my time and it still be successful. That scale is my next step. Mm-hmm. Nice. Hey, if any listener wanted to reach out to you, what would be the best way for them to do that? Well, I'm on all those, my moniker almost everywhere is ToolSoup, T-O-O-O-L-S-O-U-P. And then you can go to my website at W-N-C-C-O-R-Homes.com, W-I-N-C-O-R-E-Homes. Fantastic.

Well, thank you, Paul Thompson. I was wondering what the tool suit meant. What's the basis of that? Well, back when Gmail first came out, even in the early 2000, it was hard. to be original. So I thought this is how I'll be original. And so anytime I was working on a project in the garage or whatever, and I would look through my bag of tools,

and I would just kind of sort through this pile of mess in there. I would just always feel like this is just a bunch of tool soup in here. And so I guess I'll use that as my moniker. That's great. Well, it's been an absolute pleasure. We'll definitely do it again. And can I expect to see you out in May? that you come back to the intensive?

I'm looking forward to it. I sure ain't. Sweet. Great. Well, until then, all the best to you and yours, and I'll see you next time. I appreciate it. You bet, Paul. Take care.

All righty, that's it for today. I'll see you next week on another episode of Epic Real Estate Investing. God bless to your success. I'm Matt Terrio, living the dream. You've been listening to Epic Real Estate Investing, the world's foremost authority on separating the facts from the BS in Real Estate Investing education. If you enjoyed this show, please take a minute to visit iTunes and share your thoughts. Thanks for listening. We'll see you next time here at Epic Real Estate Investing with Matt Terrio.

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