Christy Gessler, the Broker/Owner of the Freedom 512 Real Estate Group, an independent brokerage in Central Texas, knows how agents can sometimes internalize their client’s emotions. Listen in to hear how to navigate tough times in a healthy way, why it’s so important to have good friends in your corner, and why true connection is key to success in all areas of life.  

Please subscribe to this podcast in iTunes or in the Podcasts App on your phone, and never miss a beat from Leigh by visiting leighbrown.com. If you’re tired of doing real estate alone, enroll in  Leigh Brown University and be sure to use your special “CSIRE” discount code at checkout for $10 off your subscription.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

• 00:55 - Introducing Christy, a REALTOR® in central Texas for 15 years
  • 01:20 - She was a cop before working in real estate; she started as a real estate assistant and was a local franchise owner of The Big Red company
    
  • 02:30 - She opened her own real estate brokerage and has been doing it for 2 years and has 14 agents
• 04:00 - Christy’s CSIRE story
  • 04:20 - After being out of rehab for 2 weeks, she ran into a friend who suggested she get into real estate
    
  • 05:25 - She has more fun now and has grown into a leadership role; she believes awareness of the stress and struggle in the industry is important
    
  • 06:30 - People have a lot of emotional burdens, especially right now
• 07:17 - Her experience with rehab
  • 07:35 - At a NAR conference in Chicago, she fell down the steps outside a bar; a day later, a friend took her to the hospital 
    
  • 08:40 - After the conference, she realized that she didn’t want the life she was leading; at the time of recording, she’s 1,000 days sober
    
  • 09:45 - Her eating, body, and emotions have changed a lot since she’s been sober
• 10:30 - The reactions she gets when she’s open about her past and challenges
  • 10:32 - People wonder if she wants to be social or go to Happy Hours; she can be around booze and still be happy and social
    
  • 11:10 - People have reached out to her asking for guidance on how to get on the journey, too
• 13:00 - On The Dependent Agent podcast; the goal is to spur conversation and connection
  • 14:40 - People can seek dependencies in times of stress and uncertainty; alcohol sales are skyrocketing through the pandemic
• 16:20 - How to contact Christy: https://www.512freedom.com/ or email her at christygessler@gmail.com 

3 Key Points

1. Agents sometimes internalize their client’s stresses and struggles. 
2. Watch out for each other. 
3. Self-care is #1.

Learn more about Real Estate from the Rooftops here: https://www.leighbrown.com/podcast/real-estate-from-the-rooftops

You can find this episode on Apple Podcasts here: Real Estate from the Rooftops

“Problems are what we get to work on,” says Jim Maffuccio, the co-founder and CIO of Aspen Funds. He’s been in real estate since 1986, and if there’s something he’s learned, it’s how to fail forward. Listen in to hear what Jim has learned from his decades of experience, how he stays optimistic, and the number one thing he recommends for inspired growth in life and business.

Please subscribe to this podcast in iTunes or in the Podcasts App on your phone, and never miss a beat from Leigh by visiting leighbrown.com. If you’re tired of doing real estate alone, enroll in  Leigh Brown University and be sure to use your special “CSIRE” discount code at checkout for $10 off your subscription.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

• 00:45 - Introducing Jim; who has been in real estate since 1986 and was an engineer beforehand
• 03:00 - Jim’s CSIRE story: How to Fail Forward
  • 03:12 - He’s had successful failures; in his 30s he could have retired but he wanted to keep building
  • 03:50 - Everything imploded for him in the 90s; he built back up and lost significant net worth twice
  • 04:40 - He saw opportunity everywhere that was created from the mortgage crisis; he started a company with a partner that has grown substantially
• 05:00 - Jim’s Company Aspen Funds
  • 06:54 - They buy junior liens, non-performing, second mortgages; they buy them on a discount and can work with borrowers to create win-win solutions
  • 07:35 - They can triple investor money; he was focused on the affordable housing space for a while so he’s optimistic
  • 09:50 - They work deals out to eliminate ⅔ of people debt while making money for investors
• 11:00 - On forbearance and preparing for the other side of COVID
  • 11:45 - Less than 20 people have called to ask for relief; most people are choosing to pay their mortgage
  • 13:00 - People want to work and be productive; they’ve had their biggest quarter ever last quarter
• 13:45 - Jim’s CSIRE story
  • 14:05 - They bought a non-performing second mortgage on a property in CA; the property was worth $750K, the borrower owned $250K and they paid $30K
  • 14:50 - They got a call from the woman’s father and he was upset; they told her she hadn’t paid in 7 years and he was shocked
  • 15:53 - She was supposed to be paying the second mortgage; the father ended up paying the $275K
• 16:35 - Another CSIRE story
  • 16:40 - They’ve bought notes on pretty properties online with houses that didn’t exist
• 17:20 - Some lessons
  • 17:35 - His faith informs everything he does; oftentimes the problem is inside
  • 18:25 - Apply yourself, develop yourself, and find something that makes your heart come alive
  • 19:20 - Vet your ideas and talk to people that care about you; find mentors that are doing what you want to do and learn from your mistakes
• 21:20 - How to contact Jim: Aspen Funds

3 Key Points

1. Parents, don’t assume your kids are paying the second mortgage. 
2. Work on your core, your interior, first. 
3. Take what you learned and move forward.

What’s more fun than having to pump $12K into an investment property? Getting everything stolen and having to do it all over again! Antoine Martel, a real estate investor, entrepreneur, and owner of MartelTurnkey.com, learned a lesson the hard way when brand new major systems were stolen—twice. Listen in to hear why Antoine chose to invest in Memphis and Cleveland, and learn the key factors this 25-year-old investing powerhouse considers so he can make smart decisions for himself and his clients. 

Please subscribe to this podcast in iTunes or in the Podcasts App on your phone, and never miss a beat from Leigh by visiting leighbrown.com. If you’re tired of doing real estate alone, enroll in  Leigh Brown University and be sure to use your special “CSIRE” discount code at checkout for $10 off your subscription.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

• 00:45 - Introducing Antoine, a 25-year-old real estate investor and entrepreneur who lives in Los Angeles
  • 00:50 - He learned how to flip houses and wholesale apartment buildings and decided that investing out-of-state was best
    
  • 01:25 - He bought his first house in his last semester at university in Memphis, TN for $35K, renovated it for $5K, and rented it out
    
  • 02:05 - They now help others do the same through MartellTurnkey
• 02:50 - Antoine’s CSIRE story
  • 02:50 - They bought a duplex in Cleavland, OH that came with $12K worth of major systems; the day after closing, all of it was gone
    
  • 04:08 - He called his insurance to tell them what happened; they couldn’t prove it was after closing so they gave up
    
  • 05:40 - They replace everything and a week later, everything was stolen again; it was $24-25K total 
    
  • 06:40 - They installed security cameras and waited until they got tenants to put everything back in
• 06:50 - Lessons
  • 06:55 - They don’t install major systems until they have a tenant move-in date; they tell the tenants that it’ll be installed before move-in
• 08:25 - Why Cleveland and Memphis
  • 08:50 - Population growth, job growth, diversity of workforce, population number, and the median home and rent price
    
  • 09:20 - He also looked into economic development committees and data mined different communities
    
  • 10:30 - He looked at past data and saw that those places hadn’t spiked yet
• 11:20 - Why he lives in L.A.
  • 11:25 - His family lives in L.A. and he wants to leave the emotion out of his investment decisions
• 13:30 - He’s making a website, www.Investor-List.com that lists the top 500 MSA’s in the U.S. so people can decide where to invest out-of-state
  
• 14:40 - MartelTurnkey: They renovate and resell properties to investors
  
• 15:15 - Check out Antoine’s book: A Millennial's Guide to Investing in Cash Flowing Rental Properties and podcast A Millenial’s Guide to Real Estate Investing
  
• 15:28 - Connect with Antoine on Instagram

3 Key Points

1. Research your investments!
2. Consider investing out-of-state.
3. Keep emotion out of your investments.

Repeat after me: Always get a signed contract. Why? ‘Cause if it ain’t in writing, it didn’t happen! Trevor Mauch, the CEO of Carrot, learned this the hard way after seeing his father lose big money on a handshake deal. Listen in to hear what Trevor learned about contracts and insurance, and learn the tools he uses to stay inspired, energized, and pushing forward with gratitude every day. 

Please subscribe to this podcast in iTunes or in the Podcasts App on your phone, and never miss a beat from Leigh by visiting leighbrown.com. If you’re tired of doing real estate alone, enroll in Leigh Brown University and be sure to use your special “CSIRE” discount code at checkout for $10 off your subscription.

Time Stamped Show Notes

• 00:45 - Introducing Trevor, the CEO of Carrot and an online marketing expert for real estate investors and agents who lives in Roseburg, Oregon
  • 01:30 - He started investing as a college student; he’s a buy and hold investor and usually invests in rural places and places he has lived
• 03:40 - The hardest thing about the first property investment
  • 04:00 - He was worried about not being taken seriously and couldn’t get a loan because he was young and didn’t have credit
  • 04:50 - He realized that other people had done it before, so he figured out that there must be a way; he had to get over limiting beliefs 
  • 5:50 - He’s good at building businesses and has picked up properties every 2-3 years or so
• 06:30 - The vacation rental market and COVID
  • 6:33 - Mid-April cancellations were happening at a fast pace, but now his vacation rentals are getting booked up faster than ever; it may be the best year yet
  • 06:45 - He has commercial buildings, too, and wants to be a part of changing their downtown from the inside out
• 08:00 - Trevor’s CSIRE story
  • 08:12 - His dad’s deal in Klamath Falls, OR was for a historical building, an old Ford auto dealership from the 1930s; it was Egyptian themed
  • 8:40 - His dad tried to make it an event center; it was a handshake deal with no contract
  • 09:05 - Within 6 months, the business partner filed that he had no claim of ownership for the property, and a snowstorm hit and destroyed ⅔ of the property
  • 09:36 - HIs dad had put in a few hundred thousand dollars at that point and ended up losing the property
• 09:50 - The lesson
  • 09:55 - No matter how smart you are, or how much you trust your business partner, always get a contract signed
  • 10:55 - Get insurance and make sure the appropriate names are on the policy
• 11:40 - Roseburg, OR; an amazing gem with two rivers running through the town
  • 12:20 - They have lots of outdoor activities like fly fishing and cycling, and have about 35 wineries
• 12:50 - The Vision Story
  • 13:05 - Trevor does a Vision Story where he envisions everything he wants to experience in the future
  • 13:35 - He gets excited about his own story; ten years ago he imagined the exact home and view he enjoys now
  • 15:10 - He reads his vision story on a quarterly basis so he can get to where he wants to go
• 17:00 - On gratefulness
  • 17:25 - His previous companies didn’t energize him and he didn’t feel grateful for what he had
  • 17:45 - He created the Energy Audit to determine what’s giving and taking energy in his life
  • 19:00 - He can then determine what to delegate and what to spend more time doing; this is inspired by Dan Sullivan’s Strategic Coach tools
• 21:03 - How to reach Trevor; go to Carrot, check out his podcast CarrotCast, and find him on Facebook
• Free Live Training: How to Attract Your Best Clients by Flipping Your Marketing to "Evergreen"

3 Key Points

1. Don’t let limiting beliefs stop you from having a big vision.
2. Set a timeline for your goals. 
3. Get contracts!