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Think Differently to Uncover Huge Hidden Profits
By Karen A. Walker
Nobel Prize-winner Albert von Szent-Gyorgy once said that “discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.” It’s a description that captures what sets LuxHomePro, its processes and its co-founders apart from others. In a nutshell, they think differently about luxury vacation rental property.
Founding partners Jerry Conti and Dave Bynum were introduced by a mutual friend. At the time, Jerry was looking for a fresh, innovative and lucrative opportunity to market.
Dave had just completed an eight-year, remarkably innovative and profitable lead generation program he had developed and managed for a number of major banks from 2001-2008. With that project finished, Dave was also looking for something new that he could really embrace and enjoy as much as he had enjoyed the lead-gen project.
Keep an open mind: Unexpected connections
In truth, nothing innovative happens in a vacuum, and rarely at a convenient time.
As it turns out, Dave was in the midst of planned chaos on the day Jerry called to follow up. That chaos included a camera crew and live taping session with Dean Graziosi. Just days earlier, someone else previously unknown to Dave had tracked him down in an effort to become a silent financial partner on any project Dave had in mind. At the time, Dave didn’t have anything in mind.
Dave kept an open mind to see where it all would lead.
Something clicked in the conversations with Jerry. Their synergy, diverse areas of expertise, shared ethics of openness and trust, serving others, and creating win-win-win opportunities that also allowed for big, ethical profits resulted in the launch of LuxHomePro at the end of 2017.
Culling from his years of experience fixing and flipping homes and short-term rentals, Dave applied his knowledge to what he saw as a new emerging trend: an increasing demand by travelers to rent luxury homes, rather than stay in hotels. AirBNB, VRBO and similar platforms were beginning to pay attention to the trend as well, which opened up even more opportunities for the untapped win-win-win Dave recognized.
“I see opportunities that people don’t see,” said Dave. “I can align the dots enough to get it going and then work through any failures to fix things and make it work.”
And that’s what happened.
Further fine-tuning was needed and the business was in full operation by April 2018, now offering about six seminars a year, with turn-key systems and a variety of optional, more intense training levels to participants.
“I have always led my life by being the quiet guy,” confesses Dave. “When I’m at a meeting or in a crowd, I tend to read the room, figure it out, plant a seed and then listen. I spend more time listening than talking. I find you learn more from others that way.”
In contrast, Jerry is a front and center, get onboard and let’s have fun on the journey kind of person. The two co-founders complement each other wonderfully, and they forged a bond of mutual respect and trust, which makes for engaging, in-depth and hands-on, achievement-oriented learning for their students.
Keep it Real, Keep it Simple
“For us, it always has to be a win-win-win,” underscores Dave. “It’s a whole lot better if everyone is upfront and transparent. When you have a problem, get it out in the open so we can solve it together and move forward. Otherwise it can fester, people sneak around behind others’ backs and it’s just a waste of time and energy. Keep it real! In every negotiation, every relationship, keep it open and upfront.”
“One of the most exciting things for me,” Dave adds, “is when I finally put together all the pieces of a problem or project and it works! It’s exciting for me when people say yes, believe in us, take action on what they learn, and then achieve the same or better results. It’s exciting because it helps change other people’s lives for the better. That matters a lot to Jerry and to me.”
Core Concept
For those who’ve not yet experienced the LuxHomePro opportunity, the core concept is brilliant.
There are basically three components:
▪ Luxury vacation renters. Offer dream housing options to those seeking luxury vacation home accommodations.
▪ Luxury home owners. Offer owners of qualified luxury homes an option to sell at a good price and also to earn significant revenue prior to selling, without any work on their part and without having to wait many months and even years to sell their high-end luxury home.
▪ LuxHomePro Student “Connectors.” Earn high profits, on a consistent basis, following a proven-successful strategy and easy-to-follow templates and systems, without the need to own anything or have good credit.
It’s essential, of course, that the person connecting all parties (“the connector”) follow the system correctly. Everything is laid out for seminar attendees, including how to properly market a property, how to develop attractive pricing, how to upgrade for vacation renters and how to manage the operation efficiently and profitably.
Leave out—or even worse, cut corners—on any one of these components and the promised, sure-fire success is in jeopardy.
For example, rent a luxury vacation rental home from Dave and you’re sure to find such amenities as a hot tub, in-home games, pool or foosball table, baby-sitting and personal chef upgrade options and super-discounted access to local golf club or other luxury amenities. You can count on your experience in one of his homes to be truly luxurious and of more value than that for which you paid. Not cheap, but over-the-top value. That’s what LuxHomePro trains its students to provide.
So, if the LuxHomePro plan is followed as laid out, and if it’s managed correctly, it’s a beautiful thing all around—amazing profits for you within 4-6 months or so, amazing experience for the renter, and amazing profits for the home-owner. A win-win-win.
Not to mention, a no questions asked, money-back guarantee.
What others say
A broker in Michigan who had done fix and flips for years and recently got into short term rentals said he found himself struggling with the short term rentals. “I tried do it the traditional way like you see on YouTube,” he explained “and really struggled with it. I met Dave and he helped me with it, looked at the resources I had to work with and took it from there. He’s thorough. He’s patient and he starts working with you at wherever you are starting out. He can take it to where you want to go.”
Shelly Clayton from Scottsdale echoes the Michigan broker. Shelly raves about how Dave’s system took her from 4% booking rate, which translated into two bookings a year (one of them even cancelled) to a 96% booking rate.
That’s a small segment of real-world, first-hand feedback from those who implemented the LuxHomePro training and systems. And all of it is music to the co-founders’ ears!
For Jerry and Dave, it’s all about helping to change other people’s lives for the better.
Looking forward
Jerry and Dave recently introduced a super simplified option in which they’ll act as a partner for select students who have financial limitations, but a strong desire to participate in the vacation rental industry.
To learn more about all of LuxHomePro’s offerings, go to www.LuxHomePro.com
Top Five Take-Aways from LuxHomePro Seminars:
1. Keen eye. Walk away knowing exactly how to identify profitable luxury rental properties.
2. Love what you do. Find your own niche or niches in the industry from which you’ll be able to master and profit year after year.
3. Only win-win-win. Learn the secrets to setting up deals and negotiations on the basis of a win-win-win where no one gets a bad deal.
4. Positive negotiation. Learn how to successfully negotiate with homeowners so they will jump onto your side and will want to work directly with you.
5. Systems and Automation. Learn which systems to put into place to automate your business for maximum profits and efficiency.
Stratton Equities: Hard Money Loans Versus Fix & Flip Loans
New Jersey based mortgage lender, Stratton Equities, reviews Hard Money and Fix & Flip Loans Programs
Regardless of the type of investor you are, Stratton Equities (www.strattonequities.com) has an array of loan programs that are designed to meet all your mortgage needs. Our background in real estate, mortgage lending, and finance, puts our expertise and experience far above our competitors. We bring something dynamic to the table, and we help you close your loans quickly, efficiently, and professionally.
Hard Money and Fix & Flip Loans are among the most popular programs that investors utilize for their real estate investments. Although, they are two different programs, many in and outside the industry believe them to be the same loan…but this is the furthest thing from the truth.
Hard Money Loans
A true Hard Money Loan (www.strattonequities.com/hardmoneyloanprograms) is an asset-based loan, which means the financing is based on the Loan to Value (LTV) of the Asset. Unlike the Fix and Flip loan, it doesn’t go through full underwriting and there’s no minimum FICO requirement for the borrower, as it doesn’t have many guidelines and criteria.
This type of loan doesn’t have as many restrictions as one might think considering that it’s just money, so no more having to worry about bankruptcies, foreclosures, collections, etc.
Due to the lack of guidelines and underwriting, a true Hard Money Loan is generally capped at 65% LTV or less. For example, let’s say you have a home worth $1M, if you want $500K against it (50% LTV), you’re able to receive the money within 1-2 weeks (from day of application), commonly as a first lean position – because it’s just money. It’s normally in the form of a Bridge Loan, which is short term financing in a period of 12-24 months.
One of the reasons why Hard Money Loans are for investment properties ONLY, is due to the high cost regulations and predatory lending – you can’t put such high interest rates and cost on an owner occupied property.
In certain states, there are non-judicial foreclosure laws, which allow a Hard Money lender to get their money back quickly if the borrow defaults on the mortgage.
These foreclosure laws make the lender more comfortable doing high-risk loans, usually the money is not sold on the secondary market – the lender holds the note, they don’t sell the paper.
Fix & Flip Loans
Fix & Flip Loans (www.strattonequities.com/fixandflip)are also asset-based loans, however they utilize more underwriting guidelines and criteria. While Hard Money Loans focus solely on the asset, Fix & Flip loans look at both the asset and the borrower.
The reason why people confuse Hard Money Loans with Fix & Flip Loans, are because both the loan and the laws are very similar – they are both private money to an investment property.
Virtually all fix & flip and hard money loans are funded by hedge funds, the money comes from the same place, but the underwriting is different.
Contrary to Hard Money Loans, Fix & Flip Loans are usually sold on the secondary market and goes through a full underwriting with tighter guidelines. For instance, depending on the lender, Fix & Flip loans have a minimum FICO requirement. Additionally, the borrower can’t have late payments, foreclosure, judgments, or bankruptcy on their credit for 24-36 months.
Furthermore, a Fix & Flip loan is a rehab loan, a loan that you utilize to acquire a property and then receive the funds to rehab that property in short term financing (12-18 months).
Stratton Equities
As the leading Nationwide Direct Hard Money & NON-QM Lender, our reliable and professional team aims to help all real estate investors succeed. Our programs support projects like hard money, fix & flip, stated income commercial loans, blanket loans, and more! In 4 simple steps, you can apply for your mortgage and hopefully get approved quickly!
For more information on our services, please contact us today at (800) 962-6613 or visit our website at www.strattonequities.com
Meet Michael Mikhail
Michael Mikhail is the Founder and CEO of Stratton Equities, the nation’s leading hard moneylender to national real estate investors, with the largest variety of mortgage loans and programs nationwide.
Having launched Stratton Equities in early 2017, Michael has always been an entrepreneur and innovator in the real estate market, purchasing his first home at 19.
A serial entrepreneur with a foresight for business opportunities, Michael had a slew of small businesses prior to launching Stratton Equities. One of his most prolific ventures was a car wash connected to a gym he was affiliated with in Florida during 20012002 while attending college.
It wasn’t until he graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Business, that he officially joined the mortgage industry in 2003 and decided to travel to explore his options globally.
After travelling to 19 countries in 5 years, Michael knew two things; he wanted to start his own business and launch it in the United States. He knew that moving back to the states was the best place he could start something small and grow it into something infinite.
In 2017, Michael noticed how the mortgage industry had transformed after the regulations presented from 20082012, and knew it was time to set out something on his own, thus creating Stratton Equities.
Under Michael’s leadership, Stratton Equities has grown into one of the biggest leaders in the Mortgage and Real Estate industry across genres and platforms.
BUILDING WEALTH IN REAL ESTATE: HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE?
By Glenn Mananeng
This is a question on the mind of investors. There is no definite answer for this. This topic is always up to debate no matter how you look at it, as wealth is measured differently by every individual. Here are a few factors you need to know when building wealth – allow us here at Unique Wealth Education to teach you some important pointers to consider:
#1 Wholesaling
This is the easiest point of entry for the majority of the investors, as it requires the least amount of capital. You find a seller who wants to put their property for sale and find a buyer for that property on “as is” condition without the fixing part to try and get the market value higher. After the property has been sold, you’ll get a cut on the sale. Basically you are the intermediary that builds a buyers list to locate undervalued properties using a multi-pronged approach. This relies heavily on how good and how broad your real estate network is.
#2 Fix and flip
You don’t have to be an avid real estate investor to know what fix and flip is. Anyone who has cable and passed by HGTV has a basic idea of what it is. You buy a house below the average market value, renovate it, sell them for a profit! This is one of the most widely used real estate investment strategies used around the county.
Keys to fix and flip investing success:
· Preparing yourself by understanding how to locate undermarket valued properties in the right locations
· Understand values (make sure you are comparing apples to apples and going with the highest comp when doing our due diligence as a conservative approach)
· Aligning yourself with multiple capable and competitively priced renovation contractors to not only give you a bid prior to purchasing the home, but also to deliver as agreed on
· Understanding how far to go with finishes and layout changes to keep within the budget and comps in the area
· Stay away from potential losers such as foundation issues and bad layouts
· Having a sales strategy in place prior to the purchase that accounts for commissions, closing costs, holding costs, etc…
Contrary to “reality” real estate shows, getting rich doesn’t happen overnight. The longer it takes to flip the property, the more expenses you would incur for maintaining it while waiting for a buyer. Working with getting coached by or partnering with a seasoned investor is a huge advantage, as you learn best practices and pitfalls to avoid, which only years of experience can provide.
#3 Rentals
Mortgage Paydown
Let’s use a rental property as an example. In a normal scenario, you have a tenant who is essentially paying the rent in exchange for living privileges. If you bought the rental property with a mortgage, your loan will eventually cancel itself out over time. Why? The rent you receive from your tenant is basically used to pay the loan, which is increasing your equity in the property. The money left over is your cash flow divided by the amount you put down to come up with your CAP rate. This is a GREAT way to build long term wealth.
Cash Flow
We can all agree that this is very important. For those who are new in the game, cash flow is basically the income you get from your investment property (usually rental properties). This is a major factor in generating a high return for your investments and savings. Once you increase cash flow by accumulating properties, this allows you to plan your income and determine the course of future investments.
Taxes
If taken into account optimistically, you’ll see a lot of tax benefits when it comes to real estate investments. Consult your CPA to see how you can depreciate properties that you are holding onto for rental income and also discuss with them acceleration methods used to front load depreciation to give you more capital to buy more and keep building your portfolio.
The answer to how long it’s going to take, as you might’ve guessed already, is up to you. Your real estate skillset, determination, experience, and risk management are major players in this ballgame. it’s all about how smart you invest in the industry. If you make due diligence and play your cards right, you’ll one day realize that you’ve gained a considerable amount of wealth already. Unique Wealth Education can help you in your real estate career in helping you avoid common mistakes & pitfalls, is something that we take to heart very seriously. Contact us at(734) 224-5454 or email us at [email protected]to learn more.
The Rise of Private Capital Lenders and Why It Matters for Fix and Flip Investing
By Ryan Roberts
Things have changed dramatically since the crisis of 2008. Spurred by a collapse of the housing market, the most financially tumultuous time in recent history drove large-scale, well-known banks to pull the e-brake on real estate lending. While the jury is still out, there’s no denying that the crash of the late-2000s was exacerbated by banks handing out mortgages to risky borrowers who, frankly, couldn’t afford them.
So, suffice to say that, even to this day, those latter-mentioned banks are still quite hesitant to give out speculative loans. It’s like selling the same jug of milk within the same financial bounding box. You either fit within the parameters of that box, or not. However, it’s this exact hole in the market that’s allowed private lenders to enjoy a massive second wind of popularity.
Lending from Non-bank Intermediaries
Private lending has turned the tables on the traditional banking industry’s foremost product: Loans. Ten years since our nation’s most recent economic downfall, investors, from all industries and niches, having poured literally billions into companies and business that have been deemed by “Big Banks” to be too trivial or volatile to lend against.
Well, it’s turning out that this is an incredibly lucrative, healthy, growing market. Money flowing in is feeding the ten-year-long trend of private lending. In fact, its valued at $500 billion, according to figures recently published by Bloomberg. The numbers are only growing, quarter after quarter; by 2020, it’s estimated that private lending could top $1 trillion. Much of which is within a completely unregulated financial market.
Tech-savvy Entrepreneurs are jumping on the proverbial train to, quite literally, capitalize on this boom, all while making it easier for small-scale borrowers to find applicable lenders. Jordan Selleck, for example, created DebtMaven, which is like a financial Tinder of sorts, is matching borrowers with lenders. These types of tools are yet to exist at scale in the real estate investment sphere.
Now after just two years, almost 500 lenders are signed up on the platform, ready to match with a growing amount of private lenders on the hunt for lending opportunities. “They’re hooked on deal flow and willing to pay,” Selleck told Bloomberg in regards to his lenders. “It’s grown at a crazy pace.” It’s not the same type of lending were used to, but a great analogy of the overall market trend.
What this Means for Fix and Flip
Since the financial crisis of ‘08, non-bank intermediaries—i.e private equity firms, hedge funds, and other private capital lenders—are continuing to flourish, making up a greater proportion of all global real estate assets. For private real estate lenders, this surge of private capital is amazing news.
So, just why is private credit so intriguing to the lenders? Well, it all boils down to yield and regulation (or lack thereof). Ten years ago when the central bank, essentially, came to a standstill, profits from loans all but disappeared. To this day, those large-scale banks are still struggling to pull yields from those same-era loans.
To the contrary, those who are in the business of private lending can see incredibly lucrative returns. All-in yields of around 8 percent are normal with these loans, sometimes accruing even higher profit percentage rates (spread, interest, junk fees). When you compare that to the dismal 4 percent regularly touted by investment-grade firms and corporate bonds, it’s no wonder why private collateralized lending is enjoying its current hay day.
For outsiders, e.g. borrowers who are looking for loans collateralized by real estate assets, the benefits of these private lenders are nearly endless. For one, credit ratings are often not nearly as important in underwriting, due to the collateral and high-security nature of those loans. It’s obviously not the borrower that’s anchored to the loan. It’s the asset. Rates are also typically higher on these financial products. A caveat to the risk vs. reward profile.
Also, unlike bonds, private loans aren’t generally traded in the open market, meaning their interest rates and financial fragility will stay intact over the duration of that loan. These loans, too, aren’t commonly held on the books of a private lender. It’s common to see heavy paper trading of these debt instruments between private financial institutions the second they are funded. It’s a capability that lenders with lower capital costs can enjoy the luxury of profiting from.
Why is this important? Well, in a very compact nutshell, it means this: Your loan (or loans) aren’t bunched together with other financial assets associated with a said private lender. So, heaven forbid that private entity goes under, your loan is associated with company quotas, revenues, etc. when they do inevitably file and fold — the assets still stand.
It just so happens the larger banks are also noticing a favorable risk vs. reward profile — and investing heavily. Prior Blackstone, KKR and Goldman Sachs employees have created young startups and are amongst industry veterans that have amassed $9.5 billion in private assets over the past few years.
The Future of Fix & Flip Collateralized Lending
is ripe for the picking
Private lending is booming and likely on the cusp of a major market shift. The unregulated nature of our industry probably won’t last, however it’s favorable to lenders and even real estate investors who don’t check the normal financial product (QM) lending boxes. Big financial institutions rarely touch these funding scenarios or our financial products, but are clearly interested in the upside.
There are ~1.3m realtors in the US. The profound industry question is, how do you find those individuals sourcing investment opportunities in the real estate market? They self identify as investors, yet in most cases have little to no capital.
Upwards of 60% of these “real estate investors” (purchase decision makers) are realtors themselves, or hold a real estate license. They defer to private lenders to save deals falling out of escrow or even to poach an investment opportunity with their advantageous position in finding that property first.
Deal flow isn’t about the borrower. Given that private lending is anchored to a physical asset makes lending an entirely different game. It’s no longer about the credentials, income, credit or liquidity of an individual – but their aptitude and ability to hunt and gather strong investment opportunities on behalf of a private lender. Contrary to industry standards these individuals are your sales team. In the coming months or even years, keep your eyes peeled and stay fully focused on this market opportunity.
Ryan Roberts
Ryan Roberts is the Sr. Director of Marketing @ Triumph Capital Partners, Triumph recently formed a Joint Venture with Brixton Capital, a San Diego based real estate investor and operator. The firm’s principals have a combined 40+ years experience in property development and real estate finance. Brixton’s portfolio totals 10M+ square feet and is valued in excess of $1.4 billion. Reach Roberts at (616) 635-9732 or [email protected]
