What Is The Best Way To Start Real Estate Investing For Beginners?

 

In this episode, the Not Your Average Investor Show features two JWB clients, Nadim Shaw and Zach Correa. Nadim is a new rental property investor with JWB, while Zach has invested with JWB for a few years. Together, they share helpful information about real estate investing for beginners and why they chose to work with JWB. 

How Did You Get Into Real Estate Investing?

Nadim Shah:

Nadim bought his first investment property in the 1970s, and he would eventually get out because it was not an ideal fit. He would later find JWB and listen to the NYAI shows, and he thought it would be an excellent place to invest his money. He bought his first property with JWB in June 2021 after attending our online program for six months. 

Nadim is 74 years old, and there is no age limit to learning, and he said, “Don’t be afraid to invest in your Golden Years.” Nadim had a long career.

He bought his first property in Lake Taps, WA. He cleared the property, raised horses, and showed horses professionally with his family for about 20 years. Nadim then got out of the horse business. During that time, he also owned three fast-food restaurant franchises for several years.

Zach Correa:

In a previous episode of the Not Your Average Investor Show, Zach detailed how he got into the real estate business. He and his wife work in the high-tech industry and first started investing in stocks, bonds, and traditional corporate investments. Later, their strategy would be running and selling multiple businesses before getting into real estate. 

Almost by accident, Zach got into thoroughbred horse racing 20 years ago. Later, they would enter the alpaca business. Zach then started getting into single-family home real estate investing in 2019 to help them retire. 

What Types Of Real Estate Were They Looking At, Apart From Single-family?

Nadim Shah:

His son-in-law sent him the link to Keith Weinhold, who mentioned JWB in his podcast. That’s how he got interested in single-family properties. Keith Weinhold is a podcaster who focuses on real estate investing for beginners. 

Nadim’s first investment was in a single-family property. He’s also considered 4-plexes as part of his investment strategy, but he’s doing single family for now. In the future, it’ll be easier for him to do a 1031 Exchange with single-family homes in the long term than it would be for a four-plex apartment complex. 

Zach Correa:

Zach has a more diversified investment property portfolio. The plan was to start in residential real estate properties. Toward the end of 2020 and 2021, Zach decided to shift into commercial real estate investing. He explained there are some significant advantages in commercial real estate. 

Part of his passive income goal is to have a diversified real estate portfolio. He feels that diversity in the types of real estate he owns is his preferred way to go. He likes having a stake in luxury apartment complexes, business centers, and single-family homes. Zach’s portfolio includes all of these.

What Real Estate Markets Were They Looking At Before Deciding Upon Jacksonville?

Nadim Shah:

Nadim decided to invest in real estate first in Texas and Palm Desert. His third property is located in Jacksonville. He plans to buy a couple more properties in Jacksonville soon. When he “leaves this good earth”, he’ll leave it to his daughters so they can continue growing their wealth through real estate.

Zach Correa:

For Zach, it’s all about Tech Migration. Follow where the big jobs are located. In the markets they’re investing in, Jacksonville is a great market due to population migration. The top indicator to determine what market he goes into is the technology and tech migration. 

Advanced technology is what Zach does for a living. SF and Silicon Valley are moving into Nashville, Austin, and other tech-heavy markets. Zach said that Jacksonville is ranked highly — #4 out of 6 markets — for tech migration.

Real Estate Investing For Beginners

What Are Three Factors Beginning Real Estate Investors Should Consider Before Making Investments?

Zach shared the three factors he looks at when analyzing investment strategies:

  1. Time — How much time do I have before I retire?
  2. Timing – What is the timing when you invest? Is it the right time in the market to invest? Zach looked at commercial properties in mid-2020, and he knew the timing was good for his goals. 
  3. Capital – All the money they are making from residential rental properties is being invested in commercial properties. 

Zach explained they are looking at refinancing to pay back their investment in commercial properties. The deal is in debt. The longer the debt is, the better off you are. If the debt can help you grow your portfolio, that’s a great way to increase your cash flow too.

How Do You Evaluate Real Estate Markets?

Nadim Shah:

Nadim agreed with Zach’s view on tech migration. Nadim doesn’t have the same portfolio, but his goal is to have at least ten homes, and he’s on his way to having at least five rental houses by the end of 2021. He’s a rookie, but he’s been a part of the community for six months.

Zach Correa:

He talked about his real estate investment strategy like a seasoned pro! Zach recommends that real estate investing for beginners should include the following:

  • Create an investment team.
  • CASE = “Copy And Steal Everything” they teach you so you can leverage from their knowledge.
  • Figure out how much money you need to invest.

“Most important to us was finding a great rental property management company with solid ROI in a strong market. That was JWB!” They fit all of the things Zach wanted to build a substantial rental portfolio. It is a stress-free investment strategy, and JWB is best in class for building rental property portfolios. “As rental property investors, our expectation is all about performance and being stress-free as passive investors.”

How Did They Go From NYAI Listeners To JWB Clients?

Nadim Shah:

The NYAI show is a great place to learn and hang out with like-minded people. Nadim said he felt he could trust JWB with his money. Listening to Gregg Cohen, Pablo Gonzalez, Mike Stetson, and Lee Bishop helped him feel confident that JWB is a company he could trust and do business with as a partner. 

They are professionals at JWB, and when they promise to do something, they do it. Nadim’s portfolio manager, Hannah at JWB, is very accommodating. Good direction and good help from JWB make being a property owner very easy for him. Listening to other people who speak highly of JWB convinced him to invest.

Zach Correa:

Zach came from Fortune Builders, who recommended JWB. He decided on JWB due to its good reputation and great track record.

“Our mentors helped us learn that JWB is the premier property management team in the country.” These well-reputed coaches are said to work with JWB. Because of that credibility and reputation, Zach went with JWB. 

For real estate investing for beginners, education is essential, but when your educated investment team already has the education and says to do it, he does it. “I learn from others. CASE. Copy And Steal Everything. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.” JWB has been great about providing reliable and predictable income for Zach.

Real Estate Investing For Beginners

How Does The Jacksonville Real Estate Market Compare To Others?

Nadim Shah:

Is he having the same experience with his rental properties in Texas and Palm Desert? They are similar, but the JAX market is better. 

The properties are all doing well, and Nadim is trying to get 2-year leases with his other properties, copying what JWB does. JWB’s management team takes care of all that, and it’s stress-free with positive cash flow. That’s what Nadim looks for in a rental property management company.

In the other two markets, it’s the same model as JWB. The management team in Texas sold him the properties, and they are doing the property management. In Palm Desert, he’s managing it himself, and he wants to have his son-in-law start managing it. 

Nadim’s kids are involved in real estate. Nadim says they are a little bit ahead of him. They own properties in different states, in WA state, and just bought a place in Belize. Is Belize a cash flow positive country? Yes. All of their properties are positive cash flow, plus they are doing time-share rentals too.

Should Beginning Real Estate Investors Put Their Money Into Time-shares?

Nadim Shah:

He doesn’t like time-shares. What stopped Nadim from getting into time-shares? Nadim said that he prefers single-family properties because time-shares do not have a good return on investment. You cannot build good debt or equity into time-shares.

Zach Correa:

Before Zach got into real estate investing, he got into time-shares. It’s flexible and allows you to trade it in for cruises and such. But it’s more an investment in fun than it is in real estate. Zach was going home to Hawaii every year, and instead of paying for a hotel, he invested in a time-share because it was more affordable.

When asked about Airbnb, Zach said there are two types of investors: Active and passive. Airbnb and vacation rentals are more active work than passive work, so he’s not considering it right now.

What Was Their Financial Situation Before Buying Rental Properties?

Nadim Shah:

How did Nadim get into the horse business? Nadim did eventing and the show ring with different styles of horse riding. If you have a successful breeding system, you can make a few pennies. Otherwise, it is a money-losing venture if you’re not making money off of breeding. 

Nadim was in Seattle, and he moved his family to Lake Taps in the countryside. When he got the property, he thought he would get animals. As a kid, he rode horses. So he started with 4H, then he got into breeds, then into the show ring.

His kids learned how to get confidence, make confident decisions, and learn how to work hard and how hard work pays off. The idea of having a horse business is a long-term investment, and his kids learned that lesson well.

Zach Correa:

Zach got into horse racing later in life. It’s not something you grow up doing. Surfing, yes! But horse racing was something they stumbled into unexpectedly. 

He met with his accountant, and he said they’re getting killed on taxes. He told Zach to meet him at the racetrack, and Zach’s wife does horse showing/eventing. We already had a business mindset, and we discovered that whether it’s horses, alpacas, and real estate, they’re all similar. 

Before jumping into the horse racing business, he committed to accelerating his education around horse racing. Zach explained, “We built an advisory team that had been in the horse business for a long time. Before purchasing our first thoroughbred, we did all of this work and then Copy And Steal Everything to leverage their knowledge. It’s the exact blueprint we use for alpacas and real estate. We buy and sell these kinds of businesses to build generational wealth!”

He wants guaranteed cash flow in all of the businesses in which he invests. He’d rather have three horses that are Kentucky Derby winners than have 20 horses that don’t win. “If you don’t have cash flow, it’s not a lucrative business.” It’s a great model to follow.

Real Estate Investing For Beginners

How Much Of An Emotional Or Rational Move Was It Getting Into The Horse Business And Real Estate?

Nadim Shah:

Nadim said it’s a mixture of both. “You have to make the right decisions. Otherwise, you are going to lose money. You should be both emotionally connected, and to earn, you need to make rational decisions.”

Zach Correa:

Zach built a 3-page business plan for horse racing. At the bottom, it says in BOLD type: “Do not fall in love with the horses. This is a business!”

Today, Zach owns several single-family homes, luxury apartments, and shopping centers. “Toes in the sand with a beer in my hand.” That’s what Zach is looking for in the long run, and he’s following his formula to financial freedom.

What Advice Do These Two JWB Clients Have For Beginning Real Estate Investors?

Nadim Shah:

“For real estate investing for beginners, do your homework. Trust your partner. The partner is your management company. Go with your gut feeling.”

Nadim trusts the management team at JWB to take care of issues. He doesn’t have a team of advisors as Zach does. Nadim IS his own team. He has one property in Palm Desert, and he wants his kids to manage it. 

“Rental properties are way better than running three fast-food franchises,” which Nadim owned in the past. He feels that JWB is a great partner for both novice and seasoned real estate investors.

Zach Correa:

“The deal is in the smart debt. The genius is in the cash flow.”

For those who have not started working with JWB, you may have stress and worry. When you work with JWB, they handle all of that for you. Zach depends on the expertise of his team to manage that. He trusts in their ability to manage the property without him having to intervene.

Here are the five phases Zach uses to grow his wealth:

  1. What is your goal?
  2. How long do you have to get there?
  3. What capital do you need?
  4. What does your custom blueprint say to build your portfolio to get you there?
  5. Start accumulating with capital growth.

The end result = Toes in the sand with a beer in your hand, and you can be financially free.

You’re not with JWB to be a technician. You are here to be a passive investor. Let JWB take the worry out of real estate investing. 

For example, JWB thinks about stuff long-term, and they build relationships with the residents with long-term leases and proactive communication. That relationship drives a positive experience for investors. It’s a win-win situation that keeps people in their homes and has positive cash flow for the investors working with JWB. That is why the average rent collection was 98% during COVID.

How do you get started with JWB?

Join our Facebook Group, Jacksonville Rental Property Investing, our new name, if you enjoyed today’s show about real estate investing for beginners. You will find an active Facebook community at www.jwbfacebookgroup.com

If you are thinking about investing with JWB, tune into our Not Your Average Investor show on Tuesdays and our Property Of The Week on Thursdays to feel more comfortable about our approach.

You can also go to www.jwbinventory.com to see what properties are currently available. We encourage you to contact the JWB team for a consultation to determine how our property management team can be of service in providing passive income cash flow. 

When you are ready to take the next step with Jacksonville real estate, visit www.chatwithjwb.com. We will walk you through the numbers to show you what your potential Return On Investment will be.

We hope you enjoyed learning about real estate investing for beginners. Isn’t it amazing that these two JWB investors who don’t know each other are both in the horse business and live in Washington State? Because of their successful careers, Nadim and Zach each found the means to invest in real estate. We hope they get together in person soon and have an opportunity to share more stories.

If these two members of the NYAI community can find a great experience with JWB managing their rental properties and improving their financial situation, so can you. If you have questions about real estate investing for beginners with JWB, contact us. You’ll be glad you did!

To Your Success,

Gregg Cohen

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