All Forum Posts by: Jeffrey Donis

Hey Tyler! Would love to connect- feel free to PM. 

Hey Brian,

First off - congrats! That is an awesome and exciting step towards your syndication goals!

Our first deal was also scary. There’s so much uncertainty, and even though we’d spent months educating ourselves on multifamily, and had single family investing experience, we didn’t really feel ready or qualified to do a deal. For context, our first multifamily deal as lead sponsors was a 100+ unit apartment complex.

For our first deal, the raise took us longer than anticipated (due to the uncertainty in the market and real time changes happening with debt/interest rates/investor sentiment). But we managed to get it done with some tips we got from more experienced syndicators in our network. I’ll share some of those tips below.

1. 1. Make sure your partnership team is well rounded. You’ll want someone who’s an asset manager and has property management connections, has access to capital, construction experience, and has a good SEC attorney, insurance broker, a key principal, etc.. Vetting your sponsorship team is key too, because if you’re bringing on your investors, then you are putting their money at risk! Having a partner who has a lot of experience and has even been through an economic downturn would make it more likely for the deal to go well during the hold period. The experience of the sponsorship team makes it easier to raise capital as well.
2. 2. If you're raising capital, start reaching out to qualified investors (as in, you have a substantive relationship with them) ASAP! This way you aren’t coming off as desperate and you give them time to educate themselves and feel comfortable with the deal. Investors can sense desperation! Also, right now raising capital is becoming more challenging since many investors are scared, so giving yourself as much time as possible is key.
3. 3. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. We reached out to many experienced investors in our network who had gone through similar experiences with deals they were working on. To be honest, no amount of books or podcasts will prepare you for the unpredictable curve balls you’ll face during a deal. But this is why having a strong network is KEY! You can build a strong network in this space by reaching out and connecting with people on platforms like BP. You can also attend conferences to meet syndicators who are currently doing deals in this environment (a good one is the Deal Analysis Workshop happening in April https://thinkmultifamily.com/deal-analysis-workshop-2023/ ) 
4. ****This is not an affiliate link, but we've been to this event 2 times and loved it!****
   

Like I mentioned above, the experience on the sponsorship team should include:

• -Property management and/or asset management experience (arguably the most important part, since the real work happens during the business plan and this can make or break the deal)
• -Financial and/or underwriting experience 
• -Multifamily experience 
• -Construction Management
• -Capital Raising experience with connections to capital
• -An SEC attorney with experience doing syndications
• -An insurance broker with relevant experience
• -A mortgage broker with relevant experience

Might be forgetting something, but that should cover it.

I hope that helps! Let me know if you have any more questions, or just hit me up.

Good luck! These are interesting times, and my brothers and I are by no means experts who “know it all.” But that’s why we surround ourselves and work with smarter people who we can reach out to, leverage, and learn from. 

You got this!

@Brian Plajer

Hey @Alexis Terry!

Nice to meet you. I've been a member of Think Multifamily since around February 2021. We've really enjoyed our experience in this group!

Having previously joined another group before finding Think Multifamily, we knew we wanted more than just education. 

For some context, my brothers and I were wholesalers before multifamily. Since joining Think Multifamily, we've partnered on 1,000+ apartment units, and are leads on our first 100+ unit property (all thanks to the mentorship and connections from the group). Oh, and I'm 21 years old, as is my twin brother, and my older brother is 24. 

Here are some of our favorite parts of being in TMF:

1. You get direct access to Mark Kenney, who founded the group alongside his wife Tamiel. This is probably the #1 difference between every other mentorship program in the multifamily space. We have Mark's cell phone number, and he responds seconds to minutes when we need him to. When you do a multifamily deal, there is so much stuff going on, and having someone like Mark on speed dial is invaluable. We could approach these scary things with confidence knowing we had him in our corner. 

2. You get to leverage Mark's track record and credibility. As newer investors in our 20's, passive investors and brokers would probably not have taken us seriously without Mark. Luckily, we were able to leverage Mark's track record, because we actually partner with Mark on every deal we do (assuming it meets his criteria).

3. The awesome network of the group is unbeatable! We've made some really great friendships in the group, and these people are also partners on our deals! Nothing is better than doing business with people you enjoy being around. We also get access to Mark's insurance broker, debt broker, attorney, construction vendor, etc. 

***But, being part of the group does NOT guarantee you will do deals. It is up to you to take action and make the most of the group. You have all the resources at your disposal as a member of the group to reach your multifamily goals, but it's up to the person to put in the effort.***

Let me know if you have any more questions. No matter what group you decide to go with, make sure they align with your own multifamily goals, because these groups tend to be big investments. So, do your research, see if you have access to main founder or a coach working underneath them, ask to speak with current members and get their feedback, etc. 

Good luck!! 

Yes! I have been in the group for about 2 months now. I have enjoyed it so far- it has helped us improve our email automations, lead magnets, and my investor on-boarding process. In regards to the network, I have met many great partners through the group as well. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

Hey William,

I was one of the 1st students to join (I think it was under 200 at the time, now it has a few thousand), and it was 100% worth it when I joined. I was able to get two rentals on creative financing using what I learned. I have only great things to say about Pace and his team. I am not sure what the pricing is like now- I think it comes down to how much action you can/are willing to take on what you learn. The material is great but it is only worth what you make of it as are all mentorships. Feel free to PM me is you would like to connect!

Not at first. We ended up joining Pace Morby's mentorship which taught us creative financing. 100% worth it. 

I plan on it, yes. 

@Jesse Kerr When I analyze larger apartment deals, we get rent rolls and T12s, and input information into our analyzer. Underwriting a deal is different with larger properties. A great way to learn how to underwrite 100+ unit deals would be to walk through a case study. You should check out the Deal Analysis Workshop that Think Multifamily hosts every year in Texas. They do a deep dive into the fundamentals of underwriting, what to look for in a good deal, how to identify your investment criteria, and they even break down how to use their analyzer. Here's more info. https://thinkmultifamily.com/d...

We build relationships with brokers in different markets. Another idea is to find other solid partners in the markets you want to be in and then find a way ton bring them enough value to join the deal. 

Hey John! 

As already mentioned, getting face to face with them is the best way to build a solid relationship with a broker. If you go out to meet a broker face to face and they know you had to take a flight to see them, they will take you more seriously. Another thing is being consistent with your communication. I would reach out at least 1 time a month to see what is new- this will help you with building that connection. Create a CRM of some sort to keep track of when you need to call them again and to keep notes on conversations, etc. The last thing I wanted to mention was having a buying criteria in mind before calling and expecting them to ask about your experience. Knowing how you will answer that cause of concern is crucial to them sending you opportunities when the time comes. If there is anything I can do to help feel free to reach out! Best of luck with everything.