Everyone learns from someone, and when it comes to real estate investing, I have definitely spent a considerable amount of time and money studying “at the feet of the master.” I’d like to share the top tips from the top real estate investing gurus that I’ve learned the most from over the years.
- Ron LeGrand© – Anyone who needs to register their name is probably worth listening to! LeGrand is definitely the big name in our business. Although people have been investing in real estate long before Ron Legrand, I don’t think anyone has taught it to the masses like Legrand has. Legrand made famous the MAO (Maximum Allowable Bid) formula that everyone has used for years. What I took away from Legrand the most was the MAO formula and the mechanics of the quick-change business. Ron Legrand’s famous quote “the less I make, the more I make” was also my first inspiration to systematize our real estate investing business.
- robin thompson – Once I learned the mechanics of flipping, I decided I wanted to focus on flipping rehab. I invested in Robyn’s courses and attended her Real Estate Investment Marketing and Rehab Bootcamps. Robyn is one of the top real estate investing gurus for delivering great value at all levels of presentation (from free to high value bootcamp). I learned TONS from Robyn about the rehab turnaround process, but the number one takeaway I got from Robyn was how quickly you could actually turn around rehabs if you put more resources into them.
- David Lindahl – I met Dave through Robyn’s events, attended his bootcamps and invested in his courses. Dave teaches how to hunt for “chunks” of cash, but no one knows the markets or departments better than Dave. The most valuable thing to me about Dave was his home study course ‘Managing for Maximum Profits’. An investor with no experience or training in property management is like a lamb to lions. I started off on the right foot and have successfully managed properties for years.
- louis brown – Lou Brown is the undisputed king of forms of real estate investment. I’ve used Lou’s forms for real estate investing since the beginning and have always appreciated having an amazing library whenever I need a new document. Lou’s forms, therefore, are my #1 lesson from Lou, and I still use many of them today for flipping.
- kris kirschner – Kris’ Auto-Pilot Real Estate Systems(TM) for buying and selling real estate set the standard when we were growing our resale business. Kris is a systems expert, and his real estate systems are used across the country to really automate a lot of our business. What I took away from Kris the most was her approach to the “drive-through” display. Putting a lockbox in the house, giving people the code to look at, and then offering a self-service kiosk in the kitchen with brochures and applications was pure genius, and I can’t imagine we ever displayed properties in the “old time”. “Flipping real estate is definitely the best self-service.
- dan doran – Dan is truly the master of the real estate investment sales process, although that barely scratches the surface of what I’ve learned from him. Dan’s “Sales Mastery” course has had a greater impact on our real estate business than any other system we have implemented. If I have to pick just one great lesson learned it’s this… “If there’s equity, GO!” Dan was the first to coin this sales strategy, which was contrary to what EVERYONE else was teaching about flipping (everyone said you need to seek motivation and overlook unmotivated salespeople). Dan is also a master of the inside game, business building, and pre-foreclosure niche.
- richard roop – Richard is Dan’s partner, and together they teach real estate marketing, systems and have a fantastic training program, which I’ve been on for years. Richard is an excellent copywriter, and his catchphrase “Sell your home as-is, for a fair price, on the date of your choice” is probably the most copied real estate headline in our business. Pressed for the main lesson, he would have to say that it is the importance of marketing in our reselling business. The first time I implemented one of Richard’s messages into a long-running campaign, I was literally overwhelmed with phone calls from people who had received my messages before but never responded.