Cash Flow Guys Podcast

Recently I sold a property and prior to listing it for sale, I searched for sold properties in MLS and public records.  I prefer to keep tabs on what’s happening in this ever-changing market to be sure I am capturing the most up-to-date data available.  My searches did not reveal any other recent sales that were comparable to the home I was selling. The seller got an appraisal which came back at $320,000, we then listed it at that price. The same day as listing it, I began my paid Facebook ad campaign.  A Facebook friend of mine saw the ad and messaged me that he has just bought the house across the street from the one I was selling and sold it for $55,000 MORE than we were asking. Needless to say, the seller wanted the price raised, which we did, and subsequently sold the home for $370,000 even though it was smaller than the other house. Stories such as this remind me of how powerful a network can be.  Had my Facebook friend not offered up this otherwise unavailable information, we could have wound up sellin

Do you have the courage to crash? While watching a seabird hunt recently I watched him take action to go in for the kill on his next meal. He tucked his wings to reduce wind drag and slammed himself into the ocean (head first) to capture his dinner.    The seabird spends much of his day flying around as opportunistic feeders do, but, when he sees the opportunity he does not think much about it, instead, he tucks his wings and splash!   This is how he eats each and every day.   Sometimes he misses, storms arrive, and churn up the water which hides his meal from him...does that mean he should go home? Nope! He simply keeps looking by flying around and when the right meal is caught he swallows it.   So what’s stopping you from doing the same? Are you looking for opportunities each and every day? Are your actions intentional?   It's easy to say everything is overpriced, or complain about how "hot" the market is, but know this...there are still plenty of deals out there for those who are willing to do that work.  

In this episode, I interview Mike Marino who recently realized a $288,000 Tax-Free Profit earned from his real estate activities.  Many don’t realize that if you take the time to educate yourself on financial matters, the benefits can far exceed your wildest imagination.  By surrounding yourself with a team of people who have expertise in subjects you do not, unimaginable wealth is possible.  In this episode, Mike breaks down the under-the-radar strategies he has employed to supercharge his wealth-building results.

There was a time where I thought it was best to do just about everything myself, partly because I lacked the patience to invest the time to find good people to handle specific tasks for me on a regular basis. There was also a time where I mistakenly thought of some of the experts in the real estate industry to be a thorn in my side or worse...deal killers.  This was a clear example of a misguided mindset holding me back. Once I began to realize that bringing in the experts meant that insure my business against losses everything changed for me.  You might be wondering what losses I am referring to, those I discuss in this week’s episode.

As many of you know I have moved to Key West this year as a full-time resident.  I decided to ramp up my business as a Realtor down here in paradise because….why not, it’s hard to say no to the commission on the sale of million-dollar houses. Moving down here meant starting from scratch for the most part. None of my Realtor marketing applies down here because I am now needing to target a completely different type of client. As a Realtor, I focus my marketing dollars on attracting sellers. This same approach is what I have used for years to find motivated sellers. But moving to a new market means I have to learn this market just like I did the Tampa Bay Market. What does that mean? First, every day I walk, ride my bike, or drive down a different street. Every day I do this when I leave the house, never taking the same way home twice if possible. I do this to discover the nuances of my new home city. Often I meet new people when walking or riding my bike which is why I prefer those methods over driving. By walk

Many say that inflation estimates are unreliable. This theory can be proven by simply watching just about any press conference involving Fed Chairman Jerome Powell as he struggles not to squirm when asked questions relating to inflation. The US Department of Labor recently reported a 4.2% increase in the annual consumer price index which means the cost of goods we purchase has increased by almost 5%. That's ninja super secret code for INFLATION A recent Wall Street Journal article mentioned that economists feel that during inflationary periods, real estate far outperforms the stock market since its a known fact that stock valuations often suffer as inflation increases (which may be why Washington is supporting Wall Street Denial). The problem is that far too many landlords are afraid to raise their rents because they feel they will lose a tenant if they do. When a tenant leaves it means rehab is needed between tenants and for cash-strapped landlords, this presents a real problem. The reality is that if y

It’s not new news that we are still in a seller’s market and very likely will remain like this for a while yet. Some choose to sit on the sidelines, allowing their money to get swallowed up by inflation instead of taking steps to buy property despite market conditions.   As most of you know, I’m not a believer in named markets, because there is always more than one way to accomplish a goal, especially if it’s buying a house.  In this episode, I discuss a few little-known tips to help real estate buyers get their offers accepted.

Over the last several years many people have asked and wondered how I specifically earn my income.  Was I a drug dealer?  Did I have rich parents?  Nope! In this episode, I peel back the curtain for everyone to learn where my income comes from. What's important about this episode, in particular, is that you understand that it's because I have multiple streams of income that I don't have to ever go back to work. By focusing more on several smaller streams instead of one larger one I bet insulate myself from sliding backward financially because if one income stream suffers, the others continue to produce. The same is true in real estate, it's not a bad idea to spread yourself out a bit, perhaps by investing in different types of assets or deals while also doing some passive and active investing. As you see an opportunity, capture it, add it to your portfolio and then go out and get another.

Early on I learned from my Dad that if you want something in life you better go get it because nothing will ever be handed to me.   He also taught me the importance of “going for the close” also known as asking for the business. Humans tend to spend a great deal of time thinking about what they want and more time coming up with reasons they cannot get what they want. Such thoughts often lead us down a rabbit hole of doubt which eventually leads to our belief that whatever we want is behind some sort of roadblock that we won’t be able to overcome. Here are a few examples of what I am referring to: Not applying for deal funding because you don’t feel you will be approved. Not wanting to answer the phone when a potentially motivated seller calls because you don’t know what to say to them. Being resistant to spend any time with a seller in fear you will look stupid by asking questions or not feeling like you know the right questions to ask. Refusing to make offers in fear of being rejected. Feeling that a larger

For the last several years, many have enjoyed the rewards of investing in various forms of cryptocurrency under the assumption they could avoid the prying eyes of the government.  Some bragged about being able to conduct business and earn capital gains free of the worry of taxation. Those days are over… Last week I was listening to an episode of Rich Dad Radio titled “The IRS Versus Bitcoin” where I stumbled upon some shocking news reported by CPA Tom Wheelwright, a Rich Dad advisor. Tom warned listeners by saying that anytime you use or trade cryptocurrency, it becomes a taxable event!  He went on to say that if in 2020 you did ANYTHING besides buying cryptocurrency you must declare it to the IRS when filing your taxes, if you don’t, it’s a FELONY. It seems that any transaction except buying bitcoin is subject to a tax beginning at a rate of15% for both the user of the bitcoin and the receiver.  There is also capital gains tax that will apply to many transactions. So much for bitcoin being unregulated! We wi

Asking price does not matter For Sale By Owner Properties are overpriced Properties sold by wholesalers are overpriced Bank Foreclosures are overpriced Listed Properties are overpriced ALL off-market properties are overpriced and actually “on market” so stop saying off-market people All contractor bids are too high All Real Estate Commissions are too expensive All Lawyers are too pricey All closing costs are too costly All Lenders charge too much in fees All Banks charge too many fees Income Tax is a Ripoff Sales Tax is Theft Property Tax is a scam All Cable bills are too costly All water bills are ridiculous All electric bills are feeding a monopoly All new cars aren’t worth what they are asking All Hotels aren’t worth the nightly rate All meals at fancy restaurants are price gouging Mixed drinks sold at a bar are a rip-off, the price of a cold beer is crazy… Regardless, each and every one of us buys or pays for these things each and every day of our lives. Look at the property anyway, find the value, if the

This episode was born from a listener question in regard to what sort of questions should you ask when speaking with a seller.  For me, this was a struggle in the beginning because I didn’t have any points of reference to keep me on track.   Many years in sales taught me to avoid scripts if at all possible so I could better craft the meeting into a more conversational style.  I did not want to risk sounding like a robot, instead, I wanted to build rapport and ease into the conversation so that I could learn what I needed about the seller and their pain points without sounding like a lawyer in a cross-examination. As a result of learning to get better at talking with sellers, I created my property information form.  I looked at tons of examples I found on the internet and took bits and pieces from each one in order to craft one that best fit my needs.  In fact, I still use the form to this day in each and every Seller encounter.   To obtain a free copy of the form visit my website at CashFlowGuys.com and click

It’s really simple...People can’t buy what they cannot find. Every minute of everyday people incorrectly spell things when listing items for sale. Find those items and you will find motivated sellers. This could be on eBay, Amazon, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, Offer Up or other online sales sites. Here are some examples of things I have bought at a huge discount because the ads were misspelled or miscategorized or under-advertised and then sold the items at a huge upside after marketing them properly.  By under-advertising, I mean limiting exposure to items for sale, being lazy, not telling the world.  This is a common mistake that Realtors and House Flippers make. I bought 6 sets of Halcyon Technical Scuba Gear being sold by a fire department on eBay.  All new and unused, no idea why they were selling, frankly don’t care.  The seller spelled Halcyon wrong so nobody bid on the auction.  The starting bid was $500.  I was the only bidder and won the auction for the opening bid amount.  ONE set of the gear

Post credit to Alissa Walker and Wade Sutherlin, the lucky husband of Amanda Young who was my guest on episodes 172 and 173 A CONVERSATION ABOUT PERCEIVED VALUE: A customer asked a contractor friend of mine how much it would cost to do this project.  My friend gave him a proposal: $4500 The customer responded: That seems really high.  My friend asked: What do you think is a reasonable price for this job?  The customer answered: $2500 maximum My friend responded:  Ok, then I invite you to do it yourself. The customer answered: I don't know how to. My friend responded:  Alright, then how about for $2500 I'll teach you how to. So besides saving you $2000, you'll learn valuable skills that will benefit you in the future. The customer answered: Sounds good! Let’s do it!  My friend responded: Great! To get started, you are going to need some tools. You will need a chop saw, table saw, cordless drill, bit set, router, skill saw, jigsaw, tool belt, hammer, etc.. The customer answered: But I don't have any of those to

The truly successful real estate investors and Realtors are the ones who are most skilled at solving problems.   Less successful people focus only on the deal or the potential profits. In this episode, I discuss the five most common examples of Real Estate Malpractice and how to avoid them. If you are able to avoid these pitfalls and learn why they are pitfalls, you will virtually eliminate any competition you might have in the marketplace. Always remember that your beliefs and needs are not identical to the seller’s beliefs and needs which means to understand the seller’s problem, you have to get good at asking questions. How do we get good at asking questions that are easy to answer?  We practice and learn by doing.  Listen in this week and add another set of tools to your investor toolbox.

In this episode, we discuss where to get started.  In this case, I am replying to one of our listeners who is just getting started in real estate.  He has done a great job so far getting himself lined up well to earn a profit now we will dive in and help guide him through the process.  I’ll be brief in the notes this week since I think you’ll get lots of value by simply listening to the episode.  Enjoy!

Once you make a decision to put yourself out there by marketing yourself to sellers, the next part (and often the most challenging) is knowing which leads to focus the most time and energy on. When I first started marketing, I quickly learned that leads of any kind don’t come for free, so I had to be careful to be sure I did not waste them.  By wasting a lead, I mean underestimating the value of a lead and therefore not putting much (if any) time into reaching them with my message. Honestly, I didn’t think much about the value of one lead over another.  I mistakenly thought that all leads were the same and therefore had equal value.  Soon, I realized how wrong I was about the lead evaluation process and it was then that I found out that I was throwing money away (literally, in the trash) When using direct mail in your approach it's common to get returned mail back when your mail piece cannot reach the seller.  This of course only happens if you a sure to include a return address on your mail piece (using a re

Recently I listed a property for a client in the Tampa, FL Market.  Yes, I am still living in the Florida Keys, however, I have a real estate team in the Tampa, FL, and Key West Markets now. I often find it shocking how easy it is for Realtors to kill deals for their clients and for themselves.  I thought I’d bring value this week by educating you on the most popular way Realtors are blowing it this year. For those of you planning to buy in 2021 or ever again this applies to you. If you ever plan to sell any real estate of your own in the future this topic also applies to you. Granted, if I was to discuss every way Realtors, Buyers and Sellers kill deals this would turn into an 80-hour audiobook instead of a podcast. Tons of buyers are shopping before being sure they are fully qualified for a mortgage.  Clearly, if you are using 100% cash then this won’t apply to you. This week I have had several instances of this happening.  I believe every Realtor should know this already but since this week proves they don

According to Hud’s Housing Market Indicators Monthly Update for January 2021,  40.3% of Mortgages in America are reporting as delinquent as compared to 28.1% at the same time last year (Comparing January 2020 to January 2021. 2,056,000 mortgages are considered seriously delinquent (which means over 90 days past due) Only 5% are in forbearance That means that there is a title wave of defaulted assets building up looking for a shoreline to destroy. What does this mean for you?  MASSIVE OPPORTUNITY! When the title wave hits it will be epic, beyond imagination and that’s not a conspiracy theory...that’s a fact! The Federal Government will likely extend the foreclosure ban when it’s up for renewal in an effort to plug a leak in the dam that’s only temporarily holding back the water. It doesn’t really matter whether you are for or against the foreclosure ban because it’s already happening, and there is nothing you can do about it, except PROFIT!. The mounting debt that is late mortgage payments won’t simply disappe

Today we will uncover the most often overlooked critical detail when it comes to closing on your next deal.   Skipping this one detail could cost you thousands of dollars and possibly result in you losing ownership of the property you intend to buy. I am talking about the details found in your title insurance commitment, precisely the info found in section B 2 of the commitment where exceptions to title insurance coverage are listed. Before we dive in, I’d like to briefly explain what title insurance is and why you need it. Title insurance is designed to protect a buyer of real estate if any past issue relating to the marketability of title has been overlooked over the entire history of ownership for that particular property.   Title insurance only protects you in the event of PAST title issues, not future ones.  It’s designed to protect you from problems that may arise from things that happened before buying the property.   By the way, when I say “property,” I mean any real estate where ownership transfers w