All Forum Posts by: Kai Van Leuven

@Nick Rutkowski

Keep crushing it!

"Run Your Own Race"

This is probably the most important thing I was taught at a young age. My mind really started to wrap around it when I was wrestling out in Washington, Pennsylvania at 17. For most of my wrestling career I was an underachiever. I had won a big tournament in N. Idaho a few weeks before but I think most would have thought that was a "fluke". I remember warming up in a back corner of a gym, it was late, there were only a handful of people there, and it would have been the perfect time to sandbag a match and have some fun with my buddies that night. Most all of them had already lost, and usually I liked the idea of fitting in with my friends. I remember this dilemma in my mind and at that point I made the choice that what other people were doing, really didn't matter. I wanted to win. I rattled off a few (4 or 5) 1 point wins in a row and made my way onto the podium. It was a pretty cool feeling to have control of my destiny, and chart my own course. 

I have taken that with me through life. In the ups and downs I know that no one has control over my life but me. I have to make it happen. With every major choice I have made, there have been more than a fair share of critics. It usually makes me smile, and know that there is no one more capable of big things than me.

@Alex Heidenreich @Assaf Arie

I use the assessors website but in a different way. In my area they split land and improvements. I look for investments that have a high land value and low improvement value.

The high land value tells me it’s in a good area and the improvement value being low indicates it needs work.

As a side note. If you renovate a property like that, the taxes don’t update quickly or in some places not at all.

@Carlin Barney

I would think Utah would be a brutal place to invest. Lots of young, ambitious, and talented guys coming off the mission ready to take over the world... this is the only market I would probably pass on.

@Khaled El Dorry

I look at someone who is taking action. Oddly right now I am mentoring a few friends. They are all working their a** off and I can appreciate that. When they call I try to push them in the right direction.

I would look for someone in your same space as a peer that you could build trust with and bounce ideas off of.

@Russell Butler

Building is pretty tough. I have remodeled 20+ places and really done 90% of the work. Not bad.

Building is a big challenge. Lots of sequencing issues, contractor problems, and is not my cup of tea.

I built my personal house for about 110/sf. It was not easy, and there is a big learning curve. Should have started with a spec house. Our house was designed by my wife and lots, lots and lots of change orders...

@Jacob Morgan

Head wrestling coach at Lake Stevens High

Great kids and family life

@Zachary Ray

I have been close to switching to Buildium. Can you talk about the features you feel are the most useful? I am in the same position as the original poster.

@Cory Lucas

This is a big problem with being part-time in the business. I did it for 10+ years. Sometimes it’s better to go slow and make sure you have the “mental space and capacity” to take on the next phase. I have purposefully finished projects, waited a few days advertise them, and when I felt like I was ready put them on.

I don’t think you made a mistake. It is a process trying to learn the business.

@Soniel Estime

Dude, this reminds me of so many deals I have done, especially in the beginning.

I had one, years ago that I thought would break me. I told myself “kai you will never be the same”. Years have gone by and really I feel like it was just a distant memory that is in the rear view mirror.

Those times really put life into perspective of what you want and what makes you tick. Now, I use very few subs and represent myself. There is zero drama.