Sharon Vornholt - Let's Talk Real Estate Investing

If there is one skill that will change your business faster than anything, it’s learning how to build rapport with sellers when you meet face to face at the property.  Honing this skill is how you will stand out from all the investors you’re competing within your market. Show Notes Here are 6 surefire tips for building rapport with motivated sellers that you’ll learn about in this show: Be prepared.  Do your research before you get to the property. The importance of properly introducing yourself, and the one thing you may think you don’t need (but you do). How to become an engaged listener. The art of the conversation. How to become memorable, get more signed contracts, and ultimately put more dollars in your pocket. It’s all about the seller. How and when to transition to the discussion about the property. One Final Tip… The way you end the conversation is important.  Motivated sellers will remember you when this is done correctly. Thank them for the time they spent with you and be sure to use their name. 

Today I want to talk about how to set goals that stick, and how to set yourself up for success using the principles in the book, The 12 Week Year.  But first, let’s talk about goal setting in the broader sense. Setting and Achieving Goals that Stick (Year After Year) Most people I know set annual goals. It’s a well-known fact that if you write your goals down, you’ll get drastically better results than if you don’t. According to Inc.com, you are 42% more likely to achieve your goals if you write them down.  That number goes up even higher if you spend a few minutes each day focusing on your goals and visualizing them.  However, goals without a plan for implementing them are useless. For most people, it is the implementation piece that has always been missing.  That’s why the framework in the book the “12 Week Year” is so powerful.  It gives you a roadmap for implementing your goals that is easy to follow, it gets you out of overwhelm, and most of all it shows you that those big annual goals entrepreneurs set

Using creative real estate financing to fund your deals will change your business.  Specifically, it will change how many deals you can do when you no longer need to depend on banks to fund your deals. Doing more deals in a shorter period of time allows you to scale your business faster. If your investing strategy happens to include building a portfolio of rentals, that means you’ll have more passive income sooner.  Using creative financing also allows someone to buy property that doesn’t have perfect credit or the typical 20% down payment required by traditional lenders. It opens up a whole world of possibility for real estate investors. When is the Best Time to Use Creative Real Estate Financing? You probably know that great deals are plentiful in a down market. Sellers can jump on board quickly when it comes to creative real estate financing during those periods of time. However, what about when it’s a seller’s market?  Is this still a viable strategy?  You bet it is, and my guest today is going to show yo

When someone brings up the subject of content marketing for real estate investors, folks generally fall into one of two groups; those that are currently creating content to build their business and their brand and those that say, “what the heck is content marketing”? Why Should Real Estate Investors Care About Content Marketing? Real estate investors should care about content marketing because when done correctly, it makes all your marketing work better.  To put it another way, every dollar you spend on marketing yields greater results because of it. The bottom line is if you aren’t actively creating content today you’re getting left behind.  It’s as simple as that.  It’s no longer optional for your business. Understand that you don’t need a blog or a podcast.  Today you’ll discover how you can easily create content that works to create visibility, brand awareness, and credibility that will ultimately get you more deals and better deals.  After all, that’s what we want, isn’t it? Today’s Show My guest today i

As we find ourselves in this last week of the year, I want to talk about 20 things that I learned in 2020 and how to use that to make 2021 better than ever.  As we close out what has been an incredibly challenging year, people are walking away from it feeling a lot of emotions. There has been a lot of heartache and a lot of hardship not to mention a lot of worry and anxiety.   Today I wanted to look at things at some of the things that affected me and my business. And in that process try to put a positive spin on some of those things.  I wanted to find the benefit and look for the lessons that I could take away from this year so that I entered 2021 on a positive note.  So, if you’re ready, let’s dive into 20 things I learned in 2020. Show Notes - 20 Things I Learned in 2020 Here’s a recap of what you’ll find in this show: Things don’t always work out as planned. On January 1, 2020, no one could have predicted that we would be facing a pandemic. I needed to look at my original goals and figure out what I coul

My guest today is investor Stephanie Betters, and we are going to talk about how to juggle your real estate investing business with a demanding career and a family. I’m excited to learn how she manages to do it all. Stephanie has 3 businesses.  She is the co-founder of Better Path Homes, a single-family residential wholesaling and new build company in Charlotte, NC.  Stephanie is also the founder of SocialMediaREI, a Facebook Marketing company specializing in finding motivated sellers, and the founder of Left Main, a CRM for Real Estate Investors via a partnership with Salesforce.  As if that weren’t enough, Stephanie has customized Salesforce so that the software can be used in your real estate investing business. She is a wife and the mother of 3 children, and she continues to work part-time as a Cardiothoracic Surgery Nurse Practitioner. Stephanie believes that her background in Medicine has been the key to her success in the business arena. Show Notes Learning how to juggle your real estate investing busi

My guest today is mindset expert, Nina Cooke. I am excited to have Nina on the show because it gives us a chance to dive into the topic of imposter syndrome. I don’t know a single person that hasn’t experienced it, and it holds us back not only in business but in our personal lives. Imposter syndrome isn’t something that you only feel when you’re just starting out. It plagues entrepreneurs no matter what their level of success is. When I say no one is immune from this feeling it’s true. How many times have you second-guessed yourself or wondered when you will be “found out”?  Or maybe this sounds like you.  Do you constantly downplay your expertise?  Imposter syndrome prevents you from living your best life, and today you’ll learn what to do about that. Nina Cooke is a Business Mindset Coach helping entrepreneurs to release their deep inner blocks so they can hit that sweet spot of continually growing their impact, income, and downtime. In today’s show, you’ll get some actionable tips on how to leave imposter

I want to talk about something that's on a lot of people's minds and that is this feeling that they are on the verge of burnout. It’s often something that you just can’t put into words. There's no doubt that we're all feeling Covid fatigue not only from all the restrictions but from the worry that comes along with this illness itself.  Most of us know someone that has suffered from Covid-19.  As a result, most of our lives have been changed.  We have a new normal.  Many people are working from home that has never done that before. Parents now find themselves homeschooling their children at the same time.  There's little time for self-care, and a lot of people feel like they are in survival mode. This puts together a pretty dangerous situation for millions of people.  If you feel like you are on the verge of burnout or even stressed out to the degree it’s affecting your ability to get through everyday life, this show is for you.  Show Notes How to know if you’re on the verge of burnout Why resting and taking

The two biggest problems real estate investors have no matter where they are located are finding deals and funding their deals.  Today, we are going to talk about funding your deals. In this show, you’re going to learn the secret to raising capital without rejection.     One of the biggest roadblocks to raising private money is our own mindset around this process. The other is problem is that people just don’t understand that this opportunity to grow their money exists. They have come to accept low-interest rates in the bank and the uncertainty of the stock market.  Once you change your thinking from asking people for money to providing potential private money partners with an outstanding opportunity to partner with you and grow their money, everything changes.   You can then move on to learning the process of raising private capital without rejection.  My guest is Canadian investor, Dave Dubeau. Dave has a wealth of experience having invested in single-family homes, rent to own deals, and multifamily propert

Today I have some seasonal fire safety tips for landlords and tenants. If you are a buy and hold investor, these would be great to pass on to your tenants. You could put these tips in a newsletter or just send them a quick email.   Covid-19 and the Holidays Everyone needs a little cheering up as we deal with Covid-19. This is our new reality at least for this holiday season. Since many of the traditional holiday events, parties, and large family gatherings will be scaled back or canceled altogether, families are getting their decorations up early to get in the holiday spirit.  I hope these tips help make everyone’s holiday a little safer. This is valuable information is helpful for anyone, but it's especially important for investors that have tenants. It’s the perfect time of the year to pass these reminders on to your tenants so they can help keep YOUR property and their home safe during the holidays.  Each year, hospital emergency rooms treat about 8700 people for injuries, such as falls, cuts, and shocks,

I believe there are 3 things that will ultimately determine the success (or failure) of your business. My top 3 success tips for real estate investors have to do with mindset, motivation. and mentors no matter what your investing strategy is.  My guest today is Pili Yarusi.  I’m excited to have her on the show because she truly represents everything good about the younger generation of female real estate investors.  What I especially love about Pili is never-ending positivity and her big smile.   One thing I’ve learned over the past couple of years is that this new generation of female real estate investors still face many of the same challenges I did when I started more than two decades ago.  I’ll take that one step further to say that in many respects, nothing much has changed. 3 Success Tips for Real Estate Investors Discussed in this Show Mindset: You are the only person that can change this. Motivation: Lack of motivation is almost always fixed by changing your mindset. Mentors: You can go faster and gr

Today I want to spend a couple of minutes talking about a reader question that I get frequently about probate marketing for real estate investors and the reasons behind the process I follow. The question was, “Should I send direct mail to the PR and the heirs, or just to the personal representative”? Another way to put it was, “Why should I only send direct mail pieces to the personal representative rather than the personal representative and all of the heirs”? Why Would You Only Mail the Personal Representative? The answer is simple.  Because it’s cheaper and there's not any real benefit that I found over time that you get from mailing all the heirs. The executor or the administrator is the “decision-maker”.  This is the person you want to mail. They are the only person that can legally sign the sales and purchase agreement if you decide to purchase the house.  That doesn't mean that there's not another family member that might contact you or even show you the house. In fact, that’s often the way it works. 

Today we are going to talk about a hot topic, and that is investing in tiny homes for short term rentals. My guest is Nashville investor, Cindy Maxson. Cindy has a wealth of experience when it comes to real estate investing. She has completed over a dozen flips and two new construction projects. Cindy also got her real estate license within the past year.   What she discovered along the way was that she wasn’t a fan of long term rentals.  However, she did discover her passion for short term rentals after converting a vacant, run-down boarding house into her first Airbnb on the second floor of what would become her personal residence.  Cindy’s most recent project is investing in a tiny home for a short term rental.  Show Notes Investing in tiny homes for short-term rentals is a fairly new concept for most investors, however, it is definitely a fascinating topic. Here is just some of what we talked about in this show. How Cindy got started: buying foreclosure homes and rehabbing them The process of figuring ou

My guest is the Anti-Financial Advisor, Chris Miles of Money Ripples, and we are going to talk about how to retire early through real estate investing.  Chris teaches entrepreneurs and professionals on how to get their money working for them today.  He’s an author, the host of podcast, “The Chris Miles Money Show”, he has been featured in US News, CNN Money, EOFire and he has a proven reputation with his company Money Ripples getting his clients' fast financial results.  Show Notes This previous financial advisor will show his reasoning for putting your money in real estate rather than Wall Street. Listen in and hear Chris tell you his story including all the mistakes he has made along the way.  The reason this former financial advisor ended up leaving that field to invest in real estate Why he calls himself the “the anti-financial advisor” How to retire early through real estate like Chris did at 28 (the first time) What happened that caused him to come out of his first retirement Why buying property for ap

I’ve heard from a lot of folks that their direct mail results have been dismal for probates, so today I want to be sure you’re setting up your probate list criteria to get the best results possible.    Ever since Covid-19 came into our world, the courts quickly shut down in most areas.  For some cities, they are either still mainly closed to the public or there is limited access.  If you live in a state where everything is online, you are in a much better position than a large portion of the country.  No matter what your exact situation is with regards to the courts, I am hearing from investors everywhere that there is still a huge backlog of cases still waiting to get through the process.  That is certainly true in my area.  How long will it take to get back to normal?  I don’t think anyone has the answer to that one. In the meantime, we can focus on what we can control.  One of those things is the quality of your list.  Today I want to go over the steps I take when I am creating my list for probates.  Setti

I’ve been getting a lot of questions and concerns from investors about working probates during a pandemic.  They are worried about how to build rapport with sellers of probate property during this difficult time. How do they not come off as cold-hearted opportunists?  First of all, I would like to address the fact that this is a valid concern for investors. It affects the way you interact with sellers. If you don’t understand the probate process it won’t take long for the seller to figure that out, and you may say the wrong thing.    However, once you have an understanding of 2 things, you realize that this isn’t a problem but rather a golden opportunity to help these overburdened, overwhelmed sellers move forward with settling the estate. What are those 2 things? Understanding the Process and the Knowing How to Start the Conversation Understanding the Process  Understanding the probate process is the first step when it comes to knowing how to build rapport with sellers of probate property. You simply cannot

It’s just a fact that there will always be obstacles and adversity that come along in our businesses.  After all, if real estate investing was easy everyone would be doing it. However, for most of us, there has never been a time quite like what we are experiencing today. That means that today’s show couldn’t be timelier since it’s on how to overcome adversity in your business no matter what obstacles you come face to face with.  My guest today is the host of the “Rock Your Money Rock Your Life Podcast”, Rock Thomas.  This man has faced a lot of adversity in his life. He was the youngest of 7 children that lived on a farm in Canada. Life wasn’t easy. His family didn’t have a lot of money which forced him to become resourceful at a young age.  He learned the value of hard work and became determined to create a better life for himself.   Quotes “Show up, say yes, stay late. Do whatever. Don't make excuses and the world will bring opportunities to you. That's what's worked for me.” “Do what you fear, and it will

Today I want to show you how to use Bonjoro videos to grow your real estate business and create a little bit of marketing magic. As you know, the competition is fierce for both real estate investors and agents now.  Learning how to stand out is more important than ever. Who doesn’t need “an edge” after all?   Be sure to stop by the Louisville Gal’s Real Estate Blog and pick up your freebies!       .  

For everyone that feels like there just aren’t enough hours in the day, flipping 1000 houses while raising 5 children probably seems like an impossible task. But that’s just what San Antonio investor Melissa Johnson has done since 2003.  Melissa is a successful real estate investor who has also built a portfolio of rental properties and real estate notes. She coaches other high-level real estate investors, and she is the co-founder of the San Antonio, InvestHer meet up group.   Show Notes Here are some of the highlights of this show: Melissa’s story: getting started almost 20 years ago in a very male-dominated field Why she chose flipping as her main investing strategy How she did owner financing on properties, then sold that note for 95% of its value Women in real estate: why Melissa thinks it has taken so long for women to catch up Why real estate is the perfect business for women and especially working moms The reason mindset and confidence are two major stumbling blocks for female real estate investors C

I am asked this question a lot.  Is marketing to absentee owners after Covid-19 still a good marketing strategy?  I have to say that I think it is and here’s why.  You’ve probably heard me say this before that “time and circumstances change all things”.  And as we all know, Covid-19 has changed a lot of things.  Owners that previously weren’t motivated sellers, may be very motivated to sell now. However, there are some things to consider especially when buying tenant occupied properties.    It’s Always About Motivation Think about a typical absentee owner before the pandemic. What was their level of motivation?  Not at all motivated Thinking about selling but not doing anything about it Getting really fed up with being a long-distance landlord but still not taking any steps Planning to sell in the next few years when…. (You fill in the blanks.)  Up until Covid-19 interrupted our world things were pretty good for out of state absentee owners.  Home prices were great.  The inventory in most places was low so