All Forum Posts by: Scott Carson

LISTEN TO EPISODE 285 HERE

Are you seeking better ways of maximizing a conference’s value? Attending these events can be a lot of fun, but you want to make sure you’re extracting their maximum potential. Don’t just waste precious time and money going around and not really getting anything out of it. Make a game plan ahead of time! Grab a pen and paper, and write down your goals for the event. What do you really want to accomplish there? What do you want to learn? Consider if there is anyone in particular that you want to meet. There might be a few key presentations that you could skip. Think about it: what if you meet someone and have a chance to talk with them? Explore better ways of maximizing a conference’s value with guest hosts Bill Griesmer of Stonegate Capital and Gail Villanueva of Noteworthy Investments.

Bill Griesmer is the Managing Member of Stonegate Capital, which buys and sells performing and distressed notes. His company invests in many markets, focusing on the Midwest states. Bill is also a physical therapist, and is deeply involved in the charity Pelotonia – raising around $40,000 to end cancer. Gail Villanueva has been a licensed real estate agent since ’84; but the market changed. When everybody was zigging towards overbidding on rehabs, Gail decided to zag into notes. How many notes? Noteworthy Investments just closed on their eighth note, going from zero to 17,500 miles an hour. That’s what you need to do achieve orbit.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 286 HERE

Just starting out? A lot of folks getting into the note business will go ahead and commit to getting the free online training courses, listening to the podcast. That only gets you so far. It’ll give you a 40,000-foot view of what the note business is about. But when you get down to it, there’s so many moving parts in a note transaction. It can just make a complete left turn on you if you’re not careful, so having that additional safety net is crucial. Learn more tips for note investors with guest hosts Chris Seveney of 7E Investments and Gail Villanueva of Noteworthy Investments.

If you’re a borrower in need of multiple options with the opportunity to stay in the home, then Chris Seveney of 7E Investments is your guy. Located in Washington, DC, Chris specializes in the acquisition of first position nonperforming and performing notes. Over the past two years, his company has acquired over 50 assets and have provided their investors with above average returns. Gail Villanueva has been a licensed real estate agent since ’84; but the market changed. When everybody was zigging towards overbidding on rehabs, Gail decided to zag into notes. How many notes? Noteworthy Investments just closed on their eighth note, going from zero to 17,500 miles an hour. That’s what you need to do achieve orbit.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 295 HERE

In May 2017, the Federal Reserve published that 44% of Americans would not be able to pay a $400 unexpected medical bill. Anne Marie Hollands from Quest IRA talks about the basics of Health Savings Accounts and how you can take advantage of it for unexpected medical expenses. Anne Marie explains basically the HSA works as a plan where you can pay for your medical expenses tax-free. In order to qualify for it, you have to have a high deductible health plan which has to be HSA compatible. Find out what HSA plans you qualify or don't qualify for, the health coverage you can structure, the contribution limits, and everything else the HSA has to offer so you can properly take advantage of its benefits.

LISTEN TO NNA EPISODE 32 HERE

No matter how much you stay positive in your life, there will always be a number of people you encounter that brings out the negative. As the year kicks off, it is time to make ourselves invincible to these people. On this episode, Scott discusses some of the “grinches” that you need to avoid and how to deal with them around the holidays. Scott dives deep into the multiple faces of the Grinch and shares some insights and advices on how you can overcome them for a great year ahead not only in business but also in life.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 303 HERE

Hustling in the Big Easy ain’t easy. In order to conjure money out of thin air, a note investor has to have a big heart for helping people. You can’t be in the business just for the money. When you’re dealing with people who are literally facing foreclosure, sometimes days or weeks out, you can’t afford to be heartless. A lot of homeowners will appreciate it if you helped them to stay in their house in the face of inevitability. This is exactly Jonathan Burden’s mission in life as a real estate investor from New Orleans since 2007. Scott talks with Jonathan Burden, a long-time real estate and note investor, about the latter’s creative endeavors in New Orleans with distressed homeowners.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 391 HERE

One thing is true of life, which is it constantly moves us through change. Whether in business or in our personal lives, we are wired to go through transitions and reinvent ourselves hopefully for the better. Scott interviews entrepreneur, the master of reinvention and podcaster of Reinvention Radio, Steve Olsher to talk about ups and downs, the New Media Summit, and overcoming obstacles. As the poster child of reinvention, Steve provides great insights and advice on how you can effectively reinvent and pivot in your industry—from pursuing a passion, to even using real estate investing to help that. He talks about the mindset of getting eight figures and beyond in business, moving left when everyone else goes right, the resilience of the human spirit, partnerships, podcasting, and more!

@Gordon F. I only wished I called 50 a day.  There are a ton of banks AND private lending institutions and funds entering the market.  If I continued to call like you said, I'd never have any time to follow up with the lenders or review any assets that they had available.  I don't need 5,000 banks and as my buddy, Brecht at Distressedpro would say, You only need a few banks to send you stuff on a regular basis.  

Banks and lending institutions come and go, along with asset managers and other employees at banks.  There is ZERO chance of me calling every bank effectively out there.  My database is about 7,500 banks with only a 8-20% open rate on my emails.  That still leaves plenty of opportunity for others to reach out.  

Most note investors who get into the business only want to spend time buying from the low hanging fruit.  So those sources do get overrun and bid up beyond prices that actually make sense to us real note investors.

It's still a small, niche business of relationships.  Calling and making contact work as long as you work it and follow up and follow up and follow up!  What it comes down is most people want to complain about a lack of inventory or pricing without actually going out and marketing.  

LISTEN TO EPISODE 304 HERE

Most Americans are investing that in the stock market, in annuities, CDs, bonds, those sorts of things, and relatively new investors might be tempted to say, "I want to buy a note," or, "I want to buy a house with my IRA that I've found." In order to do that, your IRA funds have to be sent out towards the purchase of that. What then becomes necessary is for a company like Quest IRA to intervene and help you out with all of the administration side of it. Learn how Quest IRA offers all the same types of accounts with all the good tax benefits, except that they basically allow their clients to choose – all in private assets. Scott holds an in-depth discussion about checkbook IRAs with Anne Marie Hollonds from Quest IRA.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 306 HERE

Trying to come up with a way to reduce taxes, Tyler Sheff started researching how to do that legally. The only thing he came back with was buy real estate and hang onto it. That’s what he started doing. Scott interviews real estate and note investor, Tyler Sheff, about some of the mistakes that he has made over the years, along with the multifamily market and raising capital. Tyler is a successful real estate investor and runs a podcast called The Cash Flow Guys Podcast. He focuses a lot on notes and multifamily, and raising capital in markets where a lot of people see some interest and where a lot of note investors are coming from.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 305 HERE

The market is constantly changing back and forth with pricing. Prices five years ago are different than what they are today. Scott interviews note and real estate investor, Jay Tenenbaum, about his business models and how he has adapted his note business as the market has changed. Jay has been involved in notes for almost five years now, and keeping borrowers in their homes has been his mantra. His business has evolved multiple times. Jay is always looking at closing notes and has taken advantage of the opportunities in the market that are presented to him. Discover how adapting your business models can help you create that passive cash flow.