I updated my score.org profile because of my move and as I was doing it I was called to take a step and a stand. I have complained about the sketchy coaches, gurus and such but haven't done anything about it. Today, I realized if everyone who has the experience and financial ability each agreed to help just one person get their first deal AND DO IT AT NO COST like Score does we could really make a difference. So, I agreed to mentor someone who contact me awhile ago. We met this evening for dinner at the club and we set down some basic ground rules. I will leave it up to them to disclose or not who my new mentee is. I won't charge him for my time. I won't fund any of his deals. I won't do the work for him. We meet each Wednesday evening at the club. Etc. We discussed the ground rules, shook hands, had dinner and got to work. I will post more about our first encounter on my blog as soon as it is back up. The technicians are looking at it now. Now, I know many here have plenty of experience but are busy building their holdings and managing their day to day business. But, I know there HAS to be others like me here. People who have the experience and the financial ability to NOT CHARGE for their time to help the newbies get started. So, who else will step up and give a hand up to a newbie?

@Duncan Taylor - thanks for the call to action. I've definitely appreciated some of your posts, and your willingness to call people out, and I'm glad to see you're taking a positive step towards solving a problem you've been very vocal about. I'm not yet at a place where I can offer to be a mentor in the way you've described, but here's what I AM willing to do: Take a few beginner investors on a front seat ride with me on my next rehab deal. I'm closing on March 21, its a gutted 2-family, down to the studs. The plan is to rehab and either re-sell as a 2-family or potentially condo it and sell the two units separately. If you live in Boston, metro west or the South Shore, and are interested in coming along for the ride, shoot me a PM. I'll have to see how many responses I get and then figure out a way to manage the whole thing....looking forward to it! Here's why I'm doing this: http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20131101150259-658789-pay-it-forward-give-and-ye-shall-receive (no affiliation and nothing being sold there, its a link to a great blog post on LinkedIn, not written by me)

I'm far from being a really experienced Investor. I've read, read and read. And I own a couple of properties, hopefully a couple more in this coming year. I find myself at REIA's being approached for lunches/coffee and sit downs. I always lay out my experience and how I got there. I let them know I don't know everything, and haven't done a lot of things. But I've read a lot and I can turn you on to some different ideas. Last week I met with a gentleman who as a realtor was involved in putting together a development deal that fell apart during the crash. He feels the prices are right and inventory tight enough that he should get it going again. He asked me for some advice. Not knowing anything about development I was very hesitant. But I sat down over lunch with him (his treat!) and we talked. After listening I heard the realtor mindset on his approach. Find a buyer or buyers who would close the properties and hold on to them one by one as they fell. I suggested, as a realtor, why don't you approach the owners with set prices, and see if you can get an exclusive listing with them? Once you've done that you can market the whole area to a developer. It was like a light went on and he started talking about first rights of refusals, option contracts and all other sorts of things. I don't think of myself as a mentor. And definitely do not present myself as one. I disclose that fact and state, "But I am happy to be a sounding board". No one I have been a sounding board too has done anything (Oh wait, one!) but I just enjoy talking about real estate, and myself. If someone wants to take me to lunch to hear my thoughts I'm happy too. My time is cheap and freely available.

@Alex Bowen I would be more than happy to, send me a PM with your contact info andy

Joe, go back and read my challenge on the first page. The whole point of this thread is you can't hire a real mentor. I never paid any of my mentors anything for their time and no mentee has ever paid me anything. This is the first time I am mentoring anyone outside of family or very close friends in real estate investing. It is a different world because of the sketchy gurus and coaches who can't make any money doing it so they teach what they don't know. The bottom line.... Real mentors do not charge for their time.

Great challenge to throw out there. Though a mentor will only be as good as their mentee's willingness to take action and follow the sage advice. I certainly try to help and give back by being active here, doing the podcast here, talking at my local REI meetings (I've done case studies, no selling stuff), talking with newbies sometimes for hours at these meetings, talking on the phone and writing long emails to people that get in touch asking for help. I have had one true mentee that I met with to talk about stuff and had lots and lots of communication with. The only difference between him and dozens of others that I've talked to is that he aggressively sought me out to sit down and talk, he asked really good questions, and he took things to heart and took serious action. When we talked about 10 days after our first lunch and he told me that he had been out and looked at a dozen properties and put in 5 offers I knew he was legit and continued to cultivate the relationship. He has done a deal and made like $23K on it and has his next one under contract now. I don't get paid for the time I put in and we aren't partnering on anything. All I got was a few free lunches but it was well worth it and I would do it with anyone else that showed the same drive.

I am in... ...just committed, a couple days ago, to help a young couple get started. They came down hung out with me three or four times in the past year, they have finally lost the Guruitis they had been infected with when they first called. They have given up on the get rich quick, no money down wholesaling idea, and appear to be ready to learn how to make a good living running a solid rehab business. We will see if I can teach a couple total newbies, with no investing or remodeling experience.

I Agreed To Be A Mentor To Someone From Here Today

Cody Marchant

Rental Property Investor · Manchester, NH · Member since 2014 · 37 posts · 4 votes

I Agreed To Be A Mentor To Someone From Here Today - Will You?

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