One Property To Owning Multiple...Here’s How!
“A List Of 4 Actionable Items For You To Use To Grow Your Portfolio!”
By Van Sturgeon
Real Estate Investor
Over the last 30 years of actively investing in real estate, you get to meet a lot of interesting cats…
I have met so many smart people and investors, who have successfully implemented so many different strategies to scale their real estate investment portfolios.
And in most cases, these people just wanted to buy as much real estate as possible, so that it will make them financially independent.
Everyone’s goal should be to model a proven system, that will allow you to scale and increase the residual income that you desire. There is nothing wrong with asking questions and learning how someone else has done it, so that you can replicate that same success in your portfolio.
They say that the “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!”
So...I am glad that you are here to learn from me.
I am flattered...and would be even more flattered if you copied me too!
So...I will share with you what has worked for me, what has worked for my coaching clients, and what will work for you. As long as you have the discipline to consistently take action and implement what you have learned, you will become successful.
- Reduce your spending, control your budget, and invest the difference in your education and/or real estate.
This option is often overlooked because many people like to spend more than they earn. You need to set up a strict budget and a lifestyle that will allow you to save a significant amount of income from your day job. This means that you will have to make some difficult decisions on your lifestyle. You will have to sacrifice, so that you can have the lifestyle that only a very few people enjoy, later on in life,
Even once you begin to make some money from your real estate portfolio, you need to have the discipline to take your profits from the first property and leverage them into buying your next investment property.
The name of the game is to leverage and scale your portfolio.
Far too many investors take their profits and blow it on materialistic items, rather than having the discipline to sacrifice today in order to live their dream life tomorrow.
There is an old saying…”The rich buy assets, the middle class buy liabilities, and the poor collect junk.
Don’t be a junk collector!
An asset is defined as something that can support itself growing value and put positive cash flow in your bank on a consistent monthly basis. Owning a home that you pay for and it does not provide you with positive monthly cash flow is not an asset, it is a liability.
Think about that for a while...
I remember when I first got started to scale my real estate investment portfolio, I was driving a beat up GMC pickup truck and saving capital to invest in properties. Meanwhile, my peers had much nicer clothes, drove much nicer cars and went partying every weekend.
30 years later...things have kind of changed for everyone.
I can buy and do whatever the hell that I want, and I don’t rely on anyone for money. It is a pretty nice feeling to have, while my peers are struggling to figure it out and plan for their retirement.
- Private capital, joint venture partners, and the B.F.R.R. are the strategies that we use to grow our portfolio.
I did not scale my real estate portfolio to over a 1,000 rental units because I worked really hard as a construction and renovation contractor.
I did not rely on the money that my company produced to grow my real estate portfolio to the size that it is today.
Here’s my secret to success…
I took the money that I was able to save from my day job running a construction and renovation company, and I invested in myself. I invested in personal education like :
- Real estate investment books
- Seminars
- Real estate courses
- Attended local real estate groups
- Hired a real estate coach
I have spent over $250,000 over the last 30 years on personal development.
The person that I am today is the result of the investment that I made in myself. I was able to start and grow my real estate portfolio without using any of my own money and credit.
I had the education and connections from the real estate associations and my coach, and I started to buy multifamily properties, fix them up, rent them out at a higher rent...and then I would refinance the property and do it all over again.
I was doing the BRRRR strategy, way before there ever was even a BRRRR!
The other secret to doing this over and over again is to use other people's money and credit, and there are plenty of people out there that want to invest in real estate. You don’t believe me? Look at the options that people have to invest.
Where can you get a consistent rate of return of 8-12% with the backing of a real estate property?
Do you know what banks are offering for money sitting in a savings account?
Do you know the interest rate for a 1 or 5 year treasury bill?
Can you accurately predict the future course of direction of any publicly traded stock out there, or get me a mutual fund that will consistently generate 8-12% return on my money?
Trust me...I have been doing this for a long time. There are many people who desperately need a consistent rate of return on their investments, and they do not have the time, knowledge, or desire to do it on their own. Once you understand how to raise capital to fund all your deals, there is no limit to how many properties you can buy.
This is one of the fundamentals that I teach everyone that is with me. Once you have the confidence to do this effectively, your entire life will change.
- Using a home equity line of credit (HELOC)
A home equity line of credit or HELOC, as it is called, is a form of revolving debt, like a credit card with simple interest that is not amortized. This means that you are able to withdraw money up to an approved limit, using a bank transfer, card or check, repay it and draw it down again within the predefined terms of the loan. As a HELOC is a secured loan, you are able to obtain a lower interest rate which is much better than credit card rates or private money rates.
Wise real estate investors will use the equity in their primary residence or rental property to withdraw money at low interest rates and re-invest the funds into another cash flow rental property and make money on the spread. Because you are cash flow positive in this scenario, you can effectively continue this cycle until your HELOC is fully utilized.
Just be careful that you are investing into a deal that has significant upside, as a HELOC typically has variable interest that may jump up and eat into your profits.
- Joint venture partnerships.
Every person that you meet from this day forward could potentially be your next partner.
I have bought properties across North America with joint venture partners.
Once you understand how to position yourself as the expert and effectively communicate how you can help the other individual earn a return through investing in real estate, it is easy to attract joint venture partnerships.
I have found joint venture partners just about anywhere you can imagine from teammates on the basketball team, to a wedding party, to a customer that I had completed some house renovation for. There are partners out there, everywhere that are looking for someone with the knowledge and skill set to take their money and make more money with it.
Are you that person?
For more information on house renovations and real estate investing, visit www.vansturgeon.com to help you in your real estate investment journey.