Epic Real Estate Investing - EPREI 032 : Linda Pilagas - An Interview with Self-Made Real Estate Investor and Publisher of Realty 411 Magazine

Episode Date: April 19, 2012

On this episode, Matt Theriault, interviews real estate investor and publisher of Realty 411 Magazine... Mrs. Linda Pilagas. Linda and her husband started with a small loan from a friend and a little bit of seller financing and grew a portfolio 24 units in 5 different states. She timed the market right and cashed out before it crashed in 2008. Linda is now using her pre-crash profits to sieze as many opportunities in today's market as she can. Get your free real estate investing course at FreeRealEstateInvestingCourse.com Download a copy of Realty 411 and get information on their Cinco de May Cashflow Expo in San Diego at Realty411Guide.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Epic Real Estate Investing Podcast, episode 32. Without further delay. Your guru. Sorry. Your guide to a better life through real estate investing. Matt Terrio. Hello and greetings from the Epic Real Estate Investing podcast, the podcast that'll show you how to build wealth through creative real estate investing.

So you'll have the option to realistically retire in the next 10 years. or less and enjoy the good life while you're still young enough to do so. My name is Matt Terrio, author, full-time real estate investor and family man. If this is your first time listening to the show, welcome. You're going to want to do two things. First, I want you to go back and listen to episode one to get the ground rules of the show, to get the gist of what this is all about. And two, I want you to download the free real estate investing course,

how to do deals, no money required, at free real estate investing course.com. free real estate investing course.com. It's a step-by-step course of which I unveil the mystery around doing deals with no money or credit. It's where if you're looking to get started, this is where you start. And I've laid it all out for you in a step-by-step process. I've got 10 videos and four hours of audio, two hours of video. It's all there and that's yours for free at free real estate investing course.com.

Okay, on today's show, I'm joined by an exceptional human being and accomplished real estate investor and she's becoming a really good friend. And she's actually establishing herself as one of the centers, like the focal point, the epicenter of the California real estate investing networks. And she's the publisher of a phenomenal real estate investing magazine. She hosts frequent networking and educational events all up and down the coast. I mean, her reaches from San Diego to Washington, and her message and her mission is moving east. So you definitely want to keep your eyes and ears open for today's guest, Mrs. Linda,

Pallagas. Thank you for joining us on the epic real estate investing podcast. Thank you so much. Awesome. I'm really happy to have you here. And, you know, we've known each other for a while and we've seen each other out in the real estate investing community. And I've learned a lot about you recently that I really didn't know that you're really an accomplished real estate investor.

Thank you. Yeah, definitely. And we've got, we've had a lot of very successful real estate investors on this show that But, you know, this is just they are, that's all they do. They live, breathe, eat, and sleep that. And I know you have a life outside of real estate investing as well. Right. And I wanted you to come on the show because, I mean, as impressive as your accomplishments are

and as it is attractive and nice looking as your portfolio is, I think it's what most people, the average person or slightly, yeah, the average person, I guess, is the way I want to put it, to what they should aspire to, to where they can really create that financial freedom and have the time to do what they want to do and when they want to do it and with whom they want to do it. And you're certainly just a walking example of that. Can you just kind of tell me, yeah, can you kind of just tell me how you got started to start there? Sure, no problem. Well, I got started at age 24 when we purchased our first home in West Los Angeles in Culver City. I came across a deal that I just absolutely had to have.

I stumbled upon a home that I really loved. It was a total fixer up, or nobody wanted it because it was in such bad shape. And at the time I was in college and my husband was the only one working. I only worked part-time and I was in college and wrapping up my degree in journalism. And we didn't have any money. And so we came up with an idea that let's try and, you know, raise the money, come up with money within our sphere of influence. And what we'll do is we knew the house was a deal. It was priced really well.

So we said, let's go ahead and get a loan from people we know for the down payment. And then we can put them on the note and pay them monthly. And then in a few years, say five years, we'll refinance them out and paid them the cash, plus all this time they're going to be making interest on their money, much more than what the banks were paying, you know, at the time. So we found one of my husband's family members to loan us the money to get in the property. And then, but unfortunately, we still didn't qualify because the bank, turned us down, we needed a second loan. So thank God our agent was well-versed in creative deal-making

because she told the seller of the property and the seller was a gentleman that had inherited the property. They didn't have an emotional tie to the property at all and it was a probate. It had been on the market a long time because it was a fixer-upper. So essentially, we were one of the only people that made an offer. So the agent said, hey, how about if you carry a portion of the notes because they will only qualify for this amount, they won't qualify for the full amount,

but if you carry a second, then they'll qualify for the note. And he agreed to do that, and that's how we got into our first deal in West Los Angeles, with zero money out of our own pocket, and creative, total creative dealmaking, and they say it can't be done in California, which is not true.

And we did it in one of the most sought after areas of Los Angeles, Marina Del Rey adjacent Culver City. Right, right. Yeah, there's a saying that those that say it can't be done are being passed up by the people that are doing it. Right, right. So, exactly. And then we refinanced them out of the property in five years by then. was, you know, out working and the working force, and my husband was making more money. So we were able to qualify for a larger, you know, larger financing. So what we did was we refinanced

them out. And we also took more money out and we bought our first rental. So that's how we did it. We utilized our appreciation. We utilized equity to purchase profits. And then after that rental had appreciated, we did the same thing with the rental. Then, you know, we sold a single-family property, which was the rental. We sold that, and then we did a 1031 exchange into a four-unit property, which was a multi-family, more cash flow. So basically that's how we got started, and we would wait for appreciation and then refinance properties,

pull money out, but do it in a conservative fashion, so you're not over-leveraged. Not to say we've never got over-leverage. You know, we've also experienced with any growth of either a portfolio or a company, you use leverage in order to grow, but it has to be done conservatively and intelligently to sustain that leverage and the growth. Otherwise, you know, you can put your portfolio at risk or a business or whatever it is that you use for leverage, you know.

So you waited for appreciation and you took the money out and you purchased another property and just... More properties, yes. And then I got to a point where I couldn't buy in California because the properties were appreciating at such a high rate that I started venturing out outside my state. And how did I find out about that concept? Through a seminar and an event in Marina del Rey. And that's why I love doing events and going to events and going to seminars. I will admit I am a seminar junkie and I produce seminars too.

And that's why I do it because I learned so much about real estate and about financial intelligence at events like this. And I found out about the concept of out-estate investing in a seminar put on by Lisa Vanders and Marina Del Rey. And I purchased right after that seminar like within four months. months, we have purchased outside of our state, first in Arizona, we purchased two multifamily properties there. And then after that, we just continue to also start investing out of Spain.

So I am, you know, a California, a local investor and an out-of-state investor. My last deal, I closed seven months ago in Santa Barbara County because we can, moved and I bought a we bought a great deal. It was a probate. It was on the market one day before it had three offers because it was listed at such a

low price. It was $2.99 which is what condos go for. I mean this is like the price of a condo instead of a three bedroom two bath and it had three offers within the first day and

we came in a very strong offer and they took it and you know we got a great deal and everybody that I tell in this area that we paid for the house they were like what it was recently recently we brought in a broker to get a BPO broker price opinion and they said that we could list our house for 410 and we did you know of course pain it we did a lot of work we spent a lot of money you know, well not a lot of money, but we spent a good deal of money and we did the landscaping, painting, we put mahogany doors. We really like did it up and but we made our money plus a lot of profit if we ever decide to sell it. And then I'm yeah, and then I'm currently in

escrow on another deal in West LA. I'm trying to purchase a duplex and my goal is to have one unit rented and another one I'm going to utilize for business when I go to the city. And then that one I'm really proud of Matt because it's my first private money deal. I actually, yeah, I actually got a private money. I'm not going through a bank like I normally won. I'm doing a private deal with an investor I found at our event in Newport Beach, the one you went to, remember? Right.

Yeah, I found a private money person at one of our events, so that's how I'm getting it. So that's kind of neat. Well, you did private money on the first deal, right? I did do private money, but, you know, because it wasn't really, it was someone that we knew. Of course, we didn't know the seller. So, yeah, you're right. We have used private money before with a stranger. But this, it was really neat because I just kind of put.

it out there and I got when I needed, which I, you know, is a law of attraction, which is what I really believe in. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. I think, you know, and I'm not surprised that those types of things happen to you because it's something that we talk about here on the show and I preach it in the academy. It's a people business and you've got to be out among the people and when you're out among the people, opportunities just show up and you are everywhere and I'm not surprised that

all these opportunities show up for you. Oh, yeah, really. And now I'm at the point where I have, you know, people that I have developed relationships with that want to do deals with me on a personal level. And, wow, that's such an honor, you know, to have people say, you know, Linda, I trust you. I want to do a deal with you. I want you to be my partner and I'm willing to put my money on the line, you know. And, I mean, to have that, that's such a compliment for me and a source of pride, you know. And that's something I definitely want to start doing as well in the future is doing deals with people that I develop relationships with.

Well, cool. So let's back up a little bit. And I know that in the last few years, you had a little bit of foresight of what was coming down just because you run in good circles and you probably have some good information. and by choice you've chosen to downsize your portfolio. But tell me how big your portfolio actually got before you made the decision to downsize. Sure. Well, we started selling a few properties in 2007 when we could foresee that things were not going to get pretty. So at that time we owned 20.

four units in five states, and we also had three single-family properties. So, yeah, we built a nice, large portfolio by, you know, it was just my husband and I, and, you know, I'm really proud of building that because it was something that we did as a team and no, you know, partnerships or anything. It was just us, and it was great, but for one person to run everything, it was. was tough. And, you know, it left little time for anything else. I was basically just, you know, doing full-time real estate. I didn't have the publication in 2006 at the height of when I was overseeing everything. And then in 2007, I started the magazine and I realized I needed, you know,

more time to put that as well. So, and then I could see that things were economically were not getting better. In fact, I was starting to get really nervous. I mean, for a few nights, I actually had like sleepless nights. And that's how you know that, okay, you know what? There's a lot of stress in my life. There's a lot of pressure. I had a few sleepless nights and my husband was like, what's going off? Are you so nervous? And I'm like, I just, you know, felt nervous. I felt like we were a little over leverage. I certainly was having stress trying to keep up with everything and, you know, all the time it took. And also, you know, I started examining our portfolio. I felt like we weren't diversifying enough as well. And I do believe in having a diversified portfolio,

which will balance your portfolio out. So I just made the decision that, You know what? I'm going to sell a few properties off, and we're going to increase our cash reserves, and we're going to also be able to take advantage of deals that are going to be coming our way, because I could tell that things we're not going to get any better, and we were able to sell properties, you know, out of profit. And, you know, a few times we broke even, but we got back our capital, so we were able to make intelligent choices, and our portfolio actually got much better.

And now we were able to take advantage of deals that are truly really great deals and are available. Awesome. Mm-hmm. That's fantastic. So you had good timing, so I'm happy for you. Thank you. Thank you.

You know, speaking of diversification, and you mentioned that you started venturing out-of-state, And I really think there's some bad advice out there. And you hear it all the time. I say, if you can't drive to your property, you shouldn't buy it. And I think that's just, there's so much opportunity missed there. I agree. What would your advice be to people that adhere to that advice?

And I've heard that before, and now they live by it. I mean, what would be your advice to those people? What would be your tips for investing out of state? Well, I like to say, you know, because I lived so long by LAX, I mean, Marina Del Rey is literally like 15 minutes from LAX, 10 minutes from LAX. And yes, will I say that I didn't get nervous going out of state? No, a part of me was nervous because I'm like, wait a minute, how is this going to work? And, you know, what's going to happen and what if I get in trouble? I mean, I'm not going to say I was not nervous.

You are nervous, but you know what, Matt? I would tell myself, Linda, you're only a plane right away, which is true. And living so close to LAX, it was easy for me to hop on a plane and go anywhere around the country I wanted within the short, you know, I mean, literally I could say, I want to go there and go because L.A.X was right there. and so that's what my mind said. I'm only a plane ride away. And to tell you the truth, Matt, I have multifamily properties close to me, especially when I lived in the west side.

Now I'm in Santa Barbara County, but, you know, I am going back to the west side. I'm in escrow now, and they're around there. I do have multifamily properties. And I don't even see them, Matt. I mean, I haven't, I mean, I drove by my multifamily unit maybe like seven months ago. Uh-huh.

You know, I have a property manager. I decided that I didn't really want to manage it anymore, so I gave it to someone else because I'm so busy. But I managed that property for a long, long time. And I just, I don't have a reason to really go and see it. So what I'm getting at is if your properties are managed correctly and well, you're, it's, you're totally fine. You're going to be great. The thing and the trick is to deal with companies and people. Again, it goes back to relationships to deal with people that you know are going to take good care of your properties.

You know, and in the beginning, when I started investing out of state, I would go annually to view my properties. And I would just, you know, know that I'm going to make a trip out of it. I'm going to go have fun, see my property, see my property manager. I made it something fun and something enjoyable. And I just would, you know, know that I'm going to incur, you know, a $500 expense or whatever to go see my property. year and you just think that and know that but if you invest in an area you like and you do a good investment you're gonna want to go see your property if you choose to but I haven't chose I haven't seen my properties out of state in many

years now because I have full confidence in my property managers so right that's really where it is I mean I've got 35 units in Illinois and I have never even been to that town before Wow. I made an investment in the property management and that's really where I think the secret to investing out of state is and not necessarily investing in the market but investing in the property manager. Correct.

Absolutely. Yeah. And the horror stories that you hear just from people that didn't do that. Of course you're going to have a bad experience if the property is mismanaged. I mean you've got that's your asset that's supposed to produce for you and if you have bad management it's not going to produce. And, you know, I'm going to knock on wood here real quick because I have yet, I don't own anything in California. Wow.

Everything I have is out of state and I have yet to have a loser. And like I said, I'm going to knock again. But I just, I love out of state just because here in California, I mean, you need so much money to play the game here. And you can play, and maybe it's not so much money, but you can play the game elsewhere with a whole lot less and get. great returns. Absolutely. Absolutely. That's why I started investing out of state in 2005, you know, because I just really believed in it and knew that it was the right thing for me and for my family in order for us to get more for our money, cash flow better, and truthfully mapped for diversification. Again, I'm so big on diversification.

And as we know, California is an earthquake place. It's an earthquake state. And most people, and this is something that a lot of people don't realize, most people in California do not have earthquake insurance because of the high, high cost of earthquake insurance. Most people don't have it. So the thing is, for me, for diversification, I like having probably. properties out of state because it diversifies me. I know that if something were to happen, not all my eggs are in one basket. Right, right.

Awesome. It's certainly working for you. So you've pulled in 2007-ish, you pulled out, you sold some properties, you pulled out some capital, and now it sounds like you're back actively in the game. We always like to get into a lot of how-to and tips on these interviews if we can, So how do you find most of your deals? What are your best sources for deals? Well, certainly wholesalers are an excellent source.

You know, I've also gotten deals from bird dogs, but I was just talking to someone else today about it because they told me, how did you find your great deals that you just found? Because I did find an excellent deal in Santa Barbara County, and I found an excellent deal in West L.A. and I apply all, you know, my research the same way, even when I go out of state. First of all, I go into the local MLS that they have.

And most people don't know this, but you could pretty much get into any MLS around the country. You may not be able to see the private remarks and the inside information that agents in that area see. But nevertheless, you will be able to. to tap in as a guest to most MLSs around the country so you can start doing your research. You can see what are prices going for in a particular ZIV code. You know, you can start finding people that you can call and say, hey, is this a good area? You know, what's one of the best rental areas in your area in your city?

I'm trained as a journalist, so for journalists, it's all about research. And investing, it's all about research. It's about asking questions, calling people, tapping into the MLS, getting to know your areas, which are the best areas, which are the areas to stay out of. What are prices going for in those particular areas? And once you know that, you can spot a deal. And then when I'm looking, like the way I found my two deals in California, I was looking in the MLS every single day, multiple times a day. I also had connections with realtors that knew what I wanted.

I also put the word out to wholesalers and creative real estate investors whose job it is to find creative deals. So I just completely put the word out there in many different ways. And then I actively did my own research, and I actively looked for my own deals. You know, utilizing, you know, loop net, the MLS. There's so much information out there on the Internet that you could literally spend your whole day looking for deals in the areas that you want to find a deal in.

You know, but again, it's a relationship business. It's important not just to sit in front of the computer, but to actually build relationships with people that specialize in the areas you want to tap into. Right. So real quick, if you were to, say, land in Lexington, Kentucky, and you wanted to start investigating that market, what is the first thing that you do when you go and you start to find their MLS? Okay, well, if I were to land in, you said Lexington?

Mm-hmm. Okay, if I were no Lahn in Lexington. Okay, that's a great, that's great though, because I have no connections in Lexington, Kentucky. But what I would do, I land there, bam, the first thing I would do is, yes, go into the MLS, type in Lexington MLS. Okay, so just a basic Google search. Yeah, basic Google search. Tap into it. A lot of times if you can't find the actual official MLS website, you can, number two, build a relationship with the local professional that you can get access to the MLS too.

I'm not saying the professional site. I'm saying the guest site because most realtors will allow guest searches for, you know, the people they're working with. So, you know, get into the local MLS, build relationships, also attend your local RIA in the area. You know, I recommend going to RIAs, going to cash flow groups, clubs, people that get together that are of like mine and that love real estate and whose mission is to get deals and start building. relationships that way too and you'll get to know your local wholesalers, your local bird dogs, your local, you know, heavy hitters that have access to bank deals and REOs even before they hit the market because that's really how you get the deals is even before they get the market, you know, they hit the market before they hit the MLS. Not to say there's no deals in the MLS. There's a lot of

deals in the MLS, but, you know, the extra special deals tend to be under the radar. Yeah. Right. You know, I've got a question for you because there's just, I haven't, there's no mystery around it to me as to why you are a successful real estate investor and you continue to find deals because it is a people business and that's where 100% of all my deals come from now. I was let's say about 95%.

when you go to these clubs and you go to network, there's typically two types of people out there. There's the talkers and then there's the walkers. And I know you interact with a lot of people and, you know, a lot of investors, people that want to be investors, people that are investors, people that used to be investors, whatever it may be. Do you have anything that you look for or anything that a, let's say, a detector that would separate, like from the players from the people that are just kind of pretending or just kind of, you know, trying to figure the way around. Well, that's a really good question. And I do come across all types of people.

I mean, I come across people who want to get in the business and, you know, may not have money or credit. And then I also meet, you know, very wealthy investors who are totally immersed in the game. So, first of all, on a personal level, I like to know that every person is unique and can offer me something. And, you know, everyone has something special to share. So I really like to listen to people because you can learn from everybody. You don't have to just learn from truly successful people. There's a lot of people that are getting into the game that have so much. much fire and so much knowledge and they just need a break you know they just need a helping hand

and you know what i've been in that situation i do not come from a wealthy family in fact um you know we lived pretty much in poverty most of my childhood and someone gave me a break and sometimes you know people do need that extra encouragement or that extra help and it's important to give back when you can and also it's important not to think that you're so above that no one can teach you or no one can help you. I think everyone has something special to share, so it's important to try and treat everyone with respect and also to listen to them because they could give you a tip and technique that could really open your eyes and it could lead to something absolutely wonderful and very prosperous. But, you know, you don't have to be wealthy and prestigious to have great ideas.

So it's, you know, that's just something I believe in. I like to really give everybody the benefit in the doubt and really listen to what they have to say. Because even if you're mingling with people that don't really, have that much experience, they may, they may be the connection and the lead to your next deal. You don't know. Right. They may have a neighbor that's, you know, that's losing their home or they may know of, you know, an elderly person that just, you know, died and they inherited the property and

nobody wants it. I mean, that could be a connection. Sure. Sure. What would you say to say someone that would be? going to these types of events and the RIA clubs and some like the types of stuff that you put on and the meetup groups and they're looking to go make a connection they're like okay i get it i'm listening to you it's in relationships i'm going out to build a relationship what's the best

approach do you think for a brand new person to go and start creating those relationships i would say definitely you know be for me i think it's um Be who you aspire to be and be that person today. If you want to be a successful investor, you have to be that right now, even if you're not. So always be presentable. Go there and look like you mean business. Have the business card. Dress appropriately.

you know, bring some marketing information if they allow that information to be disseminated because a lot of clubs do have booths in the back where people were guests, people, guests, and members of the club can put information out. So definitely be prepared and be prepared to network and know what your goal is. If your goal is to meet people who want to deal with you, you know, when you introduce yourself, don't be afraid to put that out there, to let people know. Say, you know, I'm here, this is what I'm doing, and I'm interested in finding a deal. Hey, do you know anyone that you think is interested in an opportunity like this?

And like I said, be professional, dress apart, you know, walk the walk and act like you mean business. And if you do that, if you present yourself in a successful manner, in an intelligent way, and you're there with the mission of doing business, you will attract like-minded people. And, you know, you will attract the people and the deals that you go after. Right. Right. Awesome. Awesome.

Tell me about the, for those that don't know, that you have a very, you know, popular real estate investing magazine, Realty 411. Yeah. And, you know, that gets distributed around. And is that just West Coast right now? No, actually, we ship it to real estate groups, cash flow clubs around the country. We also do joint sponsors of a lot of events around the country where we are a media sponsor. and we'll let people know about the event and in exchange we'll have the magazine shipped to them and they'll pass them out at those events as well and we're also

available in high traffic areas and one of the places that carries our publication is Whole Foods markets which is a really high-end brochure yeah and we're also available at some private country clubs as well as high traffic areas and like Rite Aid, CVS, places like that. Of course, we are completely free and also digital, and not only are we on our website, but we have multiple websites, plus we're on about 16 public domain websites,

so the publication really gets out there on the Internet as well, and we're one of the only free real estate investing magazines out there that are fully accessible. at no cost. So, you know, we really get out there and we believe in free resources, free education. We really want to reach investors. Let them know about the people that we do business with because we believe in them, such as you, we do business with you.

And, you know, we really just try and let people know about the benefits of real estate because real estate has personally, on a personal level, changed my life and my family's life. You know, I'm really blessed, and like I said, I didn't come from money and I didn't have a silver spoon in my mouth. I did create the life that I have, and my wealth came from real estate. And, you know, I was able to pay my home off in L.A. by age 39,

which I think is a great accomplishment, and I did it all through buying and selling real estate. And by 39, I not only was able to pay my home off in L.A., but I had other properties that were free and clear. So, I mean, I'm living the real estate dream, and that's why I do this because I know it can be done. Even if you start, you know, from very little or nothing, if you do, you can create a life of abundance and security through real estate investing. Awesome. Awesome. So is that how the magazine actually got started, just your passion for it? Yes, it was my passion and also my passion of marketing.

I absolutely love business and marketing. And when I started the magazine, I was actually. selling real estate full time and also was overseeing my portfolio. Those were my full-time jobs. I was overseeing my personal portfolio and also selling real estate full-time. And my niche was selling properties out of state to California investors because I started buying out of state and people saw that I was doing well. And they were really curious about it.

They were like, Linda, everything's working out okay. estate and I'm like yeah everything's great I'm you know getting my checks and the properties are fine and I'm fully occupied and they became really curious and then they started asking for my help they were like well can you refer me you know to the you know the broker you work with out there can you help me you know buy a property out of state so I started selling real estate out of state to California investors and after I I tapped into my sphere of influence, I realized that I had to do some marketing and, you know,

reach more investors who were interested in the properties that I was offering. So because of my journalism background, I've been in media since I was in high school and also have a degree in journalism, and I've owned publications before. So I said, you know what, I'm going to start maybe like a little newsletter or a little magazine. and that way I can promote the properties and have some real estate information. So that's basically how I started in. I tapped into my sphere again and I told everybody I knew that I was starting a magazine and I was able to come up with the advertising revenue to pay for even the very first issue I did.

Awesome. Yeah. And then my first issue had like three full page ads of, my company, but now I don't even have an ad for that company anymore because I'm so, you know, busy and also my advertisers take up all my space, which is okay. Right? That's a good issue to have. You know, a lot of magazines, I think there's a lot of magazines out there. I'd love to trade places with you. Definitely. So I know you put, you host, this is how I know you is from the many events that you've hosted in connection with the magazine.

First of all, if someone wanted to check out your magazine, where would they go? Sure, they can go to realty-411guind.com. That's our main website. That's realty-411-gine.com. Guide.com, G-U-I-D-E. Okay, got it. I also recommend they do a Google search and just type in Realty-4-1 or type in Real Estate Wealth and boom, we're going to come up.

We have a lot of information and we're all over the internet. Awesome. Awesome. Definitely. And then I know you do a lot of events affiliated with the magazine and I know you have something come up here on in Cinco de Mayo and San Diego. Yes. If someone wanted to attend that or was interested in that, what can they expect at that event?

Sure. Well, that event, we're really excited about it because we're going to have vendors not only locally, but also from out of state coming to that event. We're also going to have some RIA clubs at the event, so you'll get to meet the directors of some of the local clubs in the area. Then we have a full day of education. We're going to have different speakers, and they're going to be talking about investment opportunities,

and just they're going to be giving their knowledge, their tips, their expertise about real estate, whether you want to invest locally or out of state. We're going to talk about hard money, what that is. We're going to talk about wholesaling. We're just going to talk about an array of real estate niches. And then in addition to that, I'm bringing in a social media expert because social media is so important in real estate. estate. Also for investors, I mean, investors can really tap into social media to sell their deals, to find people who work in the areas they want to reach and do deals in. So we're going to be

bringing in a social media expert to tell us what the best way of marketing, our company, our business, our deals, how to do it, some tips on how to really get out there. And right now our social media outreach is close to 30,000. So we're doing really good out there. We're really connected in all these different types of platforms, even things that people don't even think about, like Yelp and also like script in, plague. So, I mean, we're all over the place and we really utilize social media. And I'm bringing in one of our experts to give our guests advice on how they too can really get out there. Oh, awesome.

Awesome. And is that a free event or people have to pay to attend? No, it's absolutely free. Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors. We're making it accessible for everybody. And it is May 5th in San Diego at the Double Tree by Hilton in San Diego on 1515 Hotel Circle. Okay, perfect.

and no registration or anything like that required. Well, yeah, they should register, and the best way to find out about all the events is to go to our website. The backslash is the page is Realty 411 guide.com backslash events, and you'll see all the different events that we have going on. So just go to our website and, you know, click on events and you'll get a calendar.

Awesome. Awesome. Yeah, because we're going to Phoenix, Arizona. We just got back from San Jose, Silicon Valley. We're going to Washington, Seattle, Washington. We're going to be doing a lot of things. Fantastic. Awesome.

I'm glad to hear that it's growing for you. That's great. Thank you, Matt. Thank you. You bet. And I will certainly see you on May 5th. I'll be down there celebrating Cinco de Mayo with you. All right.

And, you know, it's been an absolute pleasure. You're inspiring and you're a wealth of information. So are you. So, thanks. Thank you. Thanks. So I don't know, is there anything that I didn't ask you that you think I should have? Anything else that you have to offer?

Well, I just want to offer, you know, some inspiration. That's really what my mission is. It's to inspire people. And I mean, we all get down and we all feel like, oh, is it ever going to happen for me? I mean, personally, I have goals too. I have even bigger goals than what I am and what I have. And so I know what it's like. Sometimes we get discouraged, but just know that work hard, get out there, do business the right way, be honest and ethical.

and, you know, build strong relationships with people based on respect and things will happen for you. I mean, if you really put out good energy, you're going to get more business and more deals than you can even imagine. I can totally concur with that. Absolutely. Awesome. Well, thanks a lot, Lynn. I know you're busy. And thank you for taking time out of your day to sit in with us here.

at the Epic Real Estate Investing podcast. Thank you. You know, certainly if something comes up and I ask you back, would you be open to it? Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Thank you for having me. It's such a pleasure. You bet.

You bet. Have an awesome day, and I will see you on May 5th. I can't wait. I know, me neither. Take care. Okay, bye-bye. Bye. Okay, if you'd like to download the latest edition of Linda's Magazine, Realty-411, go

to Realty411 Guide.com. And you can download that magazine there for free. It's a really good magazine. I recommend it. And I think you can get all the back issues there as well. And if you happen to be in San Diego on Cinco de Mayo or are inclined to travel out to network with a great community of real estate investors, look out for me. I'm going to be out there.

So if you see me, just come up and say hi. I love the chat. And I'd love to meet you in person. All the details for Linda's Cashflow Expo in San Diego on Cinco de Mayo. They're on her site. Realty 411 Guide.com under the events navigation or dot com forward slash events. Okay, that's all I've got for you today. So until next time, as a very wise person once said,

the vision must be followed by the venture. It's not enough to stare up the steps. We must step up the stairs. To your success, I'm Matt Terrio, living the dream. Hi, Matt. I just want to take a moment just to explain to you how much I've learned within your academy over the last couple of weeks. I mean, I've invested in real estate for quite some time now, but I did not realize how much

information I still did not know. Just the other day, I began to implement some of the concepts on negotiation from lesson four, and I was actually able to get the seller to give me the terms that I wanted. And now I'm actually excited about real estate all over again. Thanks a million. Thank you for spending this time with Matt Terrio and the epic real estate investing podcast. When you have a moment, stop by iTunes to leave your comments and let us know what you think of the show. And if you haven't done so already, get started investing today by visiting free real estate investing course.com. To access Matt's free course, how to do deals, no money required. Until next time.

To your success. To your success. This podcast is a part of the C-suite Radio Network. For more top business podcasts, visit c-sweetradio.com.