Finding SDIRA investors for note deals is like chasing ghosts

[Gordon F.]

So where are all of these self-directed IRA investors that supposedly want to fund note deals? Over the last three to four months, I've attended just about every REI event and meet-up under the sun in my city (yes, including the Quest events), even traveling to attend some meet-ups and events in a few other cities, and all of them have been a dead end. If 100 people show up to these things, 1 guy will actually be an account holder with money, while the other 99 people are all looking for money. And that right there is how they've all played out. The "just attend an REI event and get to know people answer" is bunk here. I've exhausted that avenue, and it's a mostly dry well.

I have enough cash to comfortably fund one deal, but not five or six, which is what I hear you need to get started. My family and most people in my network have less money than I do, so asking them obviously isn’t going to work, either.

I keep seeing people say, “Oh, I just closed 10 note deals using investors in the last week,” and I’m like WTF, how...

What's the real answer as to where everyone is finding these SDIRA investors, because REI events and six degrees in your network clearly aren't going to cut it?

[Bob Malecki]

I would say patience and persistence is the key along with constant networking. I've spent the past five years or so building my network of potential investors by creating a local meetup group of interested parties and getting on webinars with self-directed ira companies and providing free education to their clients.

What I found is that first of all of course you have to be competent and knowledgeable about the area in which you are investing and offering your potential investor to participate with you. The second key factor I found is that as you develop a rapport with potential partners they learn to know like and trust you -- and that's just as important as knowing that you are competent and knowledgeable note investor. 

It doesn't matter to me whether my potential money partner is using self-directed IRA funds or personal funds, what's important is that they understand the risk and reward offered in the deal.