Eric Spofford Section 8 Course

[Manuel Angeles]

Have you heard of Eric Spofford?

He has a webinar about investing in properties with Section 8 tenants, and has a course teaching how to invest in Section 8 for $1,997.

I wanted to see if anyone here has invested into his systems.

[James Wise]

Quote from @Manuel Angeles:

Have you heard of Eric Spofford?

He has a webinar about investing in properties with Section 8 tenants, and has a course teaching how to invest in Section 8 for $1,997.

I wanted to see if anyone here has invested into his systems.

 All the info you need to learn how to deal with Section 8 tenants is online for free. Check out YouTube, literally 1,000's of videos from 100's of creators on Section 8 investing.

[Account Closed]

That dude is a scammer! Stay away!

[Monika Ruszaj]

Quote from @Account Closed:

That dude is a scammer! Stay away!

 Can you elaborate? I was actually thinking of working with his team on section 8 properties but I’m on the fence  …

[Danielle Price]

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

[Monika Ruszaj]

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

[James Wise]

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

 I clicked on his YouTube. He's got some video saying he's worth $100M. lol If anyone believes that dude is really worth $100M, they'd also have to believe I am an actual Blue Genie because that's a lot more probable.

[Monika Ruszaj]

Lol 😂😂😂 right, he’s a great story teller, I will give him that! I guess I shall be princess Jasmine then ;)

[Jose Martinez]

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

Did you do the course? Did he give you property managers, lenders and areas to invest? Was he really involved in your deals? Was there really deals to do seller financing and that were already in good conditions? Thank you!!

[Andrew J Coleman]

Quote from @James Wise:

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

 I clicked on his YouTube. He's got some video saying he's worth $100M. lol If anyone believes that dude is really worth $100M, they'd also have to believe I am an actual Blue Genie because that's a lot more probable.

 I mean he did sell his Rehab business for $115M so im not sure that's a total lie about being worth that much. I will say that I hate how whenever someone asks about a course everyone and their grandmother responds "scammer!!! you can find all the info online"...it's like, no sh*t you can...all the information ever is online! BUTTTT there is sooooo mcuh garbage out there that you'll have to sift through to find the gold and then you have to learn it, put it in proper order, THENNNN take action. 

Look, I have no idea who Eric is, what type of person he is but I will say after a quick search I saw that he did in fact sell his company for MAJOR $$$ and that he is active in Section 8, no idea if his course is good or garbage but still felt the urge to respond because I am so tired of hearing SCAMMER, find it online to EVERY SINGLE post asking about any course.

[Danielle Price]

Quote from @Jose Martinez:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

Did you do the course? Did he give you property managers, lenders and areas to invest? Was he really involved in your deals? Was there really deals to do seller financing and that were already in good conditions? Thank you!!

I signed up for the course.  He gives you 3 lenders info.  There is a chat room that everyone asks questions in and try to get answers.  The answer to all of your other questions is NO..  You can try and ask questions during the coaches call if you can get in around his buddies but he is not a teacher nor a public speaker.  
Honestly, it may work for someone, it just wasn’t exactly what was being sold..  

[Danielle Price]

Quote from @Andrew J Coleman:

Quote from @James Wise:

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

 I clicked on his YouTube. He's got some video saying he's worth $100M. lol If anyone believes that dude is really worth $100M, they'd also have to believe I am an actual Blue Genie because that's a lot more probable.

 I mean he did sell his Rehab business for $115M so im not sure that's a total lie about being worth that much. I will say that I hate how whenever someone asks about a course everyone and their grandmother responds "scammer!!! you can find all the info online"...it's like, no sh*t you can...all the information ever is online! BUTTTT there is sooooo mcuh garbage out there that you'll have to sift through to find the gold and then you have to learn it, put it in proper order, THENNNN take action. 

Look, I have no idea who Eric is, what type of person he is but I will say after a quick search I saw that he did in fact sell his company for MAJOR $$$ and that he is active in Section 8, no idea if his course is good or garbage but still felt the urge to respond because I am so tired of hearing SCAMMER, find it online to EVERY SINGLE post asking about any course.

I don’t think anyone used the word “scammer.”  I stated my honest opinion for the person who asked and told him to save his money.. He may have done all those things as I looked him up (a little too late) but also found some unsettling info as well as all the money making projects he’s done. 

[Monika Ruszaj]

Quote from @Danielle Price:

Quote from @Andrew J Coleman:

Quote from @James Wise:

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

 I clicked on his YouTube. He's got some video saying he's worth $100M. lol If anyone believes that dude is really worth $100M, they'd also have to believe I am an actual Blue Genie because that's a lot more probable.

 I mean he did sell his Rehab business for $115M so im not sure that's a total lie about being worth that much. I will say that I hate how whenever someone asks about a course everyone and their grandmother responds "scammer!!! you can find all the info online"...it's like, no sh*t you can...all the information ever is online! BUTTTT there is sooooo mcuh garbage out there that you'll have to sift through to find the gold and then you have to learn it, put it in proper order, THENNNN take action. 

Look, I have no idea who Eric is, what type of person he is but I will say after a quick search I saw that he did in fact sell his company for MAJOR $$$ and that he is active in Section 8, no idea if his course is good or garbage but still felt the urge to respond because I am so tired of hearing SCAMMER, find it online to EVERY SINGLE post asking about any course.

I don’t think anyone used the word “scammer.”  I stated my honest opinion for the person who asked and told him to save his money.. He may have done all those things as I looked him up (a little too late) but also found some unsettling info as well as all the money making projects he’s done. 

 Agreed. I never thought he was a scammer. I researched him for days, looked into his prior drug rehab he built and sold, and watched his videos of the new ones he was putting up across the US. I thought it was admirable and for a good cause. I think his net worth is def in the millions. And good for him! Someone like that deserves it!

But I will say that as much as I love his background, I wasn’t sold on the course. I atttended a “live” seminar and all the people in the chat were bots (called out several by name and asked qs, no response) attended same seminar again w same bots and same statements. That rubbed me the wrong way. Just say this is a pre-recorded informational session, no harm… then someone named Ramsey called me and it was a young kid from NY and the total for the course was 2-3grand I believe. Something in my gut told me I should just research these things online. So I started listening to the BP podcasts and buying books on the topic, and that’s where I am now.

The course also claims  they will give you 25-30 properties that are buy ready for section 8 in the Midwest…. But I’ve been doing my own research as well. In a nutshell, IL (where I live) too expensive of a market, but WI, MI, OH etc seems like you’d get more bang for your buck. also,  you can look at a City’s  consolidation plan and what their plans are for development to get a good forecasting of housing booms. They also list their section 8 property housing needs, and list of people with vouchers on a waiting list for vouchers (detroit is huge right now!) I followed a lot of the guest speakers from the podcast as well, and their pages have been a wealth of knowledge! All things I learned so far from BP Rookie podcast :) lots of section 8 episodes! So after all this, I’d say start with your own research first. We are all a lot more capable than we give ourselves credit for! And I say this because I didn’t have that mentality a month ago, but here I am now :)

Monika 

[Michael Smythe]

Besides MANY self-labeled "gurus" exaggerating their success, many of them just supply readily available info.

If you're too busy to find the info and are willing to pay for it, no problem as you accept their time vs money solution.

REGARDING S8 GURU ISSUES SPECIFICALLY

Most of them don't share all the facts about how Section 8 actually works.

They claim you can get HIGHER rent from S8 tenants vs private-paying tenants.

Why would the government allow our tax dollars to be spent this way?

The S8 program was never designed to put S8 tenants in Class A rentals! The program was created to give low-income tenants an alternative to living in federal project housing.

S8 sets their rental rates to the LOW-END of market averages, if not slightly below.

What the gurus do NOT tell you is they expect you to get a Class C S8 tenant to rent a Class D property. 

That's pretty much the only way you can consistently get higher than market rent via S8.

Also, don't make the mistake of assuming the S8 voucher amount is 100% for rent. S8 standard voucher amounts INCLUDE all utilities. An owner would be foolish to cover all utilities for an S8 tenant. Think of all the horror stories about tenants maxing out the heat with their windows open during the winter, deliberately running water bills up, etc.

[James Wise]

Quote from @Michael Smythe:

Besides MANY self-labeled "gurus" exaggerating their success, many of them just supply readily available info.

If you're too busy to find the info and are willing to pay for it, no problem as you accept their time vs money solution.

REGARDING S8 GURU ISSUES SPECIFICALLY

Most of them don't share all the facts about how Section 8 actually works.

They claim you can get HIGHER rent from S8 tenants vs private-paying tenants.

Why would the government allow our tax dollars to be spent this way?

The S8 program was never designed to put S8 tenants in Class A rentals! The program was created to give low-income tenants an alternative to living in federal project housing.

S8 sets their rental rates to the LOW-END of market averages, if not slightly below.

What the gurus do NOT tell you is they expect you to get a Class C S8 tenant to rent a Class D property. 

That's pretty much the only way you can consistently get higher than market rent via S8.

Also, don't make the mistake of assuming the S8 voucher amount is 100% for rent. S8 standard voucher amounts INCLUDE all utilities. An owner would be foolish to cover all utilities for an S8 tenant. Think of all the horror stories about tenants maxing out the heat with their windows open during the winter, deliberately running water bills up, etc.

 To be fair, I've encountered situations where the Section 8 rent received was higher than what cash paying tenants were paying. We've also encountered the opposite. Given how the housing authority does their rent price determination on individual units, and government ran programs are never beacons of efficient processes, it can go either way.

Note, the examples I speak of only relate to C-Class and below areas. I'm not a Sadist so I've never attempted to place a Section 8 tenant in an A-Class property or anything crazy like that lol. 

[Travis Biziorek]

Gotta agree with @James Wise here, @Michael Smythe... I have S8 rentals in Detroit where the rent is a fair bit higher than I would be able to get with a cash paying tenant. 

I also have rentals in Detroit that I get far higher rents with cash paying tenants than I would a section 8 tenant.

There are a lot of factors at play and the answer to "why would the government allow our tax dollars to be spent this way?" is, well... it's the government. 

Too many people, especially lately, are looking at section 8 as a bulletproof or superior strategy. 

It's a tool and should be used for the right property in the right area where it makes sense. 

As far as gurus selling courses. I think courses are great as long as they are reasonably priced (think $500 or less). But when you start getting into the thousands of dollars on this stuff it just feels predatory. 

[Leroy K. Williams]

Section 8 is not rocket science. I have studied both and Section 8 is a lot easier.

Yes, Section 8 is intended to help with the issue of available housing for low income people so absolutely its not designed to compete with your Class A rentals. That said, its a great opportunity for the investor willing to accept the challenge.  

Keys to success:  

1. You must hire locals who are familiar and acclimated to the culture of the city you plan to create rentals in.  Its never going to work if you want to buy in the low income areas of a city and hire management from outside. It feels comfortable and reassuring in the beginning but guess what happens?  After a few months you figure out that your team has not really engaged your property on a regular basis. The home has been broken into, the furnace is gone, the house is open to trespass and no one knows for weeks.

2. You must not follow your instinct and attempt to invest as little as possible into the renovations thinking "If someone is willing to live in this neighborhood there is no way they have standards".  Exactly wrong. Tenants in cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, etc have options when they receive their voucher. Many of the recipients are single mothers who actually want to find stable housing for themselves and their children so initially they are looking for the best house they can find and it is only when time is running out and their voucher is expiring (Yes that is a thing) that they begin lowering their standards and will settle for a cheaply put together home.  So moral of the story make the property appealing.

3. Patience.  Section 8 is a process, it takes a few months to get everything up and running from an administrative standpoint. But once the payments start rolling in like clock work you forget about the initial crawl.  

4. If you come to Detroit get in touch with me.  But honestly I don't care how many courses you take you must have a local team or you will crash and burn. After 20 years I have seen the biggest and baddest investors come crashing down running away with their tails between their legs. 

[Monika Ruszaj]

Quote from @Leroy K. Williams:

Section 8 is not rocket science. I have studied both and Section 8 is a lot easier.

Yes, Section 8 is intended to help with the issue of available housing for low income people so absolutely its not designed to compete with your Class A rentals. That said, its a great opportunity for the investor willing to accept the challenge.  

Keys to success:  

1. You must hire locals who are familiar and acclimated to the culture of the city you plan to create rentals in.  Its never going to work if you want to buy in the low income areas of a city and hire management from outside. It feels comfortable and reassuring in the beginning but guess what happens?  After a few months you figure out that your team has not really engaged your property on a regular basis. The home has been broken into, the furnace is gone, the house is open to trespass and no one knows for weeks.

2. You must not follow your instinct and attempt to invest as little as possible into the renovations thinking "If someone is willing to live in this neighborhood there is no way they have standards".  Exactly wrong. Tenants in cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, etc have options when they receive their voucher. Many of the recipients are single mothers who actually want to find stable housing for themselves and their children so initially they are looking for the best house they can find and it is only when time is running out and their voucher is expiring (Yes that is a thing) that they begin lowering their standards and will settle for a cheaply put together home.  So moral of the story make the property appealing.

3. Patience.  Section 8 is a process, it takes a few months to get everything up and running from an administrative standpoint. But once the payments start rolling in like clock work you forget about the initial crawl.  

4. If you come to Detroit get in touch with me.  But honestly I don't care how many courses you take you must have a local team or you will crash and burn. After 20 years I have seen the biggest and baddest investors come crashing down running away with their tails between their legs. 

 That was an awesome and transparent breakdown, Leroy! Thank you for that! Def coming to you if we decide to pursue Sec8 in Detroit vs IL, where we reside now. 

[Leroy K. Williams]

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Leroy K. Williams:

Section 8 is not rocket science. I have studied both and Section 8 is a lot easier.

Yes, Section 8 is intended to help with the issue of available housing for low income people so absolutely its not designed to compete with your Class A rentals. That said, its a great opportunity for the investor willing to accept the challenge.  

Keys to success:  

1. You must hire locals who are familiar and acclimated to the culture of the city you plan to create rentals in.  Its never going to work if you want to buy in the low income areas of a city and hire management from outside. It feels comfortable and reassuring in the beginning but guess what happens?  After a few months you figure out that your team has not really engaged your property on a regular basis. The home has been broken into, the furnace is gone, the house is open to trespass and no one knows for weeks.

2. You must not follow your instinct and attempt to invest as little as possible into the renovations thinking "If someone is willing to live in this neighborhood there is no way they have standards".  Exactly wrong. Tenants in cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, etc have options when they receive their voucher. Many of the recipients are single mothers who actually want to find stable housing for themselves and their children so initially they are looking for the best house they can find and it is only when time is running out and their voucher is expiring (Yes that is a thing) that they begin lowering their standards and will settle for a cheaply put together home.  So moral of the story make the property appealing.

3. Patience.  Section 8 is a process, it takes a few months to get everything up and running from an administrative standpoint. But once the payments start rolling in like clock work you forget about the initial crawl.  

4. If you come to Detroit get in touch with me.  But honestly I don't care how many courses you take you must have a local team or you will crash and burn. After 20 years I have seen the biggest and baddest investors come crashing down running away with their tails between their legs. 

 That was an awesome and transparent breakdown, Leroy! Thank you for that! Def coming to you if we decide to pursue Sec8 in Detroit vs IL, where we reside now. 

 Wonderful, I look forward to it.  

[Michael Smythe]

@James Wise, @Travis Biziorek, @Leroy K. Williams

Guys, we're all saying the same thing, in different ways:)

[Account Closed]

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

 Dude is a spoofer! His coaching is nothing but a front business for laundering money! He’s a mafia guy, pimping and drugs!

[Betty J Anderson]

Hello yes I’m in the program! If you have any questions LMK

[Account Closed]

Do not join. It is a waste of time. You pretty much pay for bi-weekly zoom calls, where you get to ask Eric questions within an hour (which is unlikely). The course is information you can get on YouTube for freee. For $1997, I would expect he give us access to his members of his team such as realtors, agents, property management, etc but that’s not the case.

To get access to Eric’s team you’ll be have to pay extra for a program called do-it-with you or do-it-for-you.

It is unfortunate that real solid mentors are hard to find these days that will actually do what they say in the course's marketing pitch or landing page. The discord group is dead and not as helpful. After paying $1997, you'll have to pay extra $2k+ for LLC set-up with prime corporate services

[Gladimir Lobo]

A course teaching you how to invest in Section 8 for $1,997?? Damn it! lol.

Maybe I should create a course.  We have over 20 years of experience with Section 8, and our longest-standing section 8 tenant has been with us for 14 years. We've seen the good, the bad and without a doubt the ugly of section 8.

Reach out to us if you're interested in learning more.

[Jay Hinrichs]

Quote from @Andrew J Coleman:

Quote from @James Wise:

Quote from @Monika Ruszaj:

Quote from @Danielle Price:

@Manuel Angeles. Do not waste your money on his course.  He doesn’t teach you anything that can’t be found on this site.  His videos are definitions that you can find on Google or the dictionary.  His zoom calls are basically him talking to his buddies and he is very rude when you pose a question.  The whole thing is not beginner friendly….  Very disappointing….SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 Thank you! I really appreciate your honest feedback. I love his story about overcoming drug addiction and building a rehab, I guess I’m a sap lol, but it’s good to know it’s not worth the money! 

 I clicked on his YouTube. He's got some video saying he's worth $100M. lol If anyone believes that dude is really worth $100M, they'd also have to believe I am an actual Blue Genie because that's a lot more probable.

 I mean he did sell his Rehab business for $115M so im not sure that's a total lie about being worth that much. I will say that I hate how whenever someone asks about a course everyone and their grandmother responds "scammer!!! you can find all the info online"...it's like, no sh*t you can...all the information ever is online! BUTTTT there is sooooo mcuh garbage out there that you'll have to sift through to find the gold and then you have to learn it, put it in proper order, THENNNN take action. 

Look, I have no idea who Eric is, what type of person he is but I will say after a quick search I saw that he did in fact sell his company for MAJOR $$$ and that he is active in Section 8, no idea if his course is good or garbage but still felt the urge to respond because I am so tired of hearing SCAMMER, find it online to EVERY SINGLE post asking about any course.

anyone who actually sells their business and nets 110 mil is NOT going to dive into Section 8 or any real estate for that matter other than fine personal residences etc.. they retire and spend it.. so I dont think so.
Plus section 8 is simply not complicated its run by the Sec 8 folks in each city.. nothing magical about that.. its a tough way to go being a section 8 landlord lots of drama.