REI Talk Detroit | Weekly News and Interviews With Active Real Estate Investors in Metro Detroit, Michigan - REITD 009: Steve Londeau - Full Time Wholesaler and Direct Mailer

REITD 009: Steve Londeau - Full Time Wholesaler and Direct Mailer

07/02/14 • 53 min

REI Talk Detroit | Weekly News and Interviews With Active Real Estate Investors in Metro Detroit, Michigan

In this episode I talk to Steve Londeau. Steve is currently a full time wholesaler here in metro Detroit. He had a pretty rocky start to his real estate investing career, but he got focused and got busy, and ultimately co-founded and helped grow a profitable short sale and non-performing note business. He then had to leave that business rather abruptly due to some family issues, and in the process had to reinvent himself and recreate a six figure income in order to support his growing family. In the process he created a workflow and set of processes that lets him run his business as a one man operation. I’m copying some of the processes he mentioned, and you should consider it too. REI News NO REI news this week in the podcast. My conversation with Steve went long so we skipped the news and went right into the interview. But I did want to mention a few things I’m working on that might be of interest: 1) I received a request a couple of weeks ago for bulk rentable properties in the city of Detroit. So that makes two groups looking in the suburbs and one in the city. If you’d like to get together on one of these drop me a line at REITalkDetroit.com/contact. 2) I’ve kicked off my six week REI Quick Start coaching program. If you’re new to real estate investing or you’re frustrated by your lack of progress, then this might be for you. Part of the program involves walking you through - and giving you access to - my source of leads. The source I’ve used for over ten years now with GREAT success. Get more information at REITalkDetroit.com/coach. And if you have a news item to contribute or an event coming up, drop me a line and I’ll get it on the show. Current Business Steve is currently a full time wholesaler here in metro Detroit. He’s also coaching new investors on how to get started in wholesaling. How He Got Started in REI Steve had a rocky start - he was working at a title company when a short sale investor came in and asked him for a rush title search. Steve helped the guy out and got a free lunch out of it. A short time later the guy came back and asked him to help again. He did, but this time he asked the investor what he was doing. So the investor told him - and then invited him out to do some door knocking. Steve got a lead that day that lead to his first check - for $6000. And he was hooked. After a couple of starts and stops, and some mistakes, Steve made the decision to focus and do this. He did. And he succeeded. Biggest Mistake His biggest mistake was his first property - a rental house he bought in Pontiac at almost the top of the market. He lost his job and had other challenges that lead to him unfortunately losing the property to foreclosure. Biggest Success Steve has two great successes - the first was the short sale business that he helped found and grow to a really profitable business. The second was when he left that business behind abruptly and turned on a dime and reinvented himself and replaced his six figure income without skipping a beat. Money Talks Like all of my prior guests, Steve exclusively uses private money to fund his deals. Answer to Listener Question Steve and I talked a lot about how he’s using direct mail in his business, because I also use it heavily. So I asked him to outline his direct mail workflow and talk about the tools that he uses.

He uses various sources for leads
He uses Click2Mail for his mailings
He directs the incoming calls to Pat Live
He then contacts the leads that are real

He uses this simple process to send around 3000 pieces of mail per month and he’s looking to ramp that up to over 4000 pieces shortly. Links and Resources 1. The best way to contact Steve is via email at [email protected] 2. You can get signed up to be a cash buyer of his wholesale deals at http://313cashdeals.com 3. If you’re interested in his coaching program or CRM solution, you can find them at http://propertymob.com 4. Don’t forget that Steve is looking for interns or new people to learn the business and help him automate his business at the same time. If you think you qualify contact him via email. If you have feedback on the show, a question you’d like answered, a news item, or perhaps a recommendation of someone you’d like me to interview, or if you’d like to be a guest on the show, go to http://www.REITalkDetoit.com/contact and let me know about it.

He uses various sources for leads
He uses Click2Mail for his mailings
He directs the incoming calls to Pat Live
He then contacts the leads that are real

Previous Episode

REITD 008: Eric Persha - Owner of Rehab Detroit and Processes That You'd Kill For

In this episode I talk to Eric Persha. Eric is a native Detroiter who went away for college then decided to come back to the area and get into real estate. He’s in REI to make money, but he also likes participating in the renaissance of the city. REI News NO REI news this week. My conversation with Eric went way long, so we skipped the news and went right into the interview. Current Business Eric’s company is called Rehab Detroit. It’s he and his mom working together, and together they’re rehabbing and selling everything from single family homes to four-plexes. They’re focusing in specific areas in the metro area, and they also do quite a bit in the city of Detroit. How He Got Started in REI Score another one for Carleton Sheets! Eric’s parents had been investing down south, so when he moved back here after he graduated from college, he asked his parents why he couldn’t invest here. His dad went over to the bookshelf and gave him his copy of the Carleton Sheets program. He went into business with his dad, and four months later he found his first deal. And he hasn’t stopped since. Biggest Mistake Eric’s biggest mistake was his first deal. Like most investors, he made a lot of mistakes on his first deal. He hired a friend of a friend to do the work, and it was a disaster. So much so that it cost him almost $15,000 to sell the house. Biggest Success His biggest success was a house that he bought just after New Year’s this year. He did a six week rehab, and then had it sold within SIX hours of listing it. He would have sold it in TWO hours if he hadn’t demanded that the buyers actually go and physically visit the house. Money Talks Private money is the main source of funding. They had been strictly using family monte, but when they lost out on a couple of deals because they couldn’t sell their current inventory fast enough and free up cash they decided to start using private money. Answer to Listener Question The question that I asked Eric was “How do you keep contractors honest on a job?” He had a great answer - he screens them heavily in terms of prior references and work completed. Then he has then fill out six documents on every job, which include: 1. Scope of work 2. W9 3. Release of Lien 4. Proof if insurance 5. Payment schedule 6. Materials list Like most of us he had to experiment to find a great contractor. And unfortunately it seems that they all go bad at some point. Links and Resources Eric is looking for: 1. Wholesalers 2. JV Partners 3. Private Money And if you’re an aspiring wholesaler who’s serious about learning the craft, Eric will spend the time to teach you how he does business and what he’s looking for. To get a hold of him, you can call him on his office line which is (248) 817-2224 (x3) or send him a message through his facebook page which is here: https://www.facebook.com/RehabDetroit If you have feedback on the show, a question you’d like answered, a news item, or perhaps a recommendation of someone you’d like me to interview, or if you’d like to be a guest on the show, go to http://www.REITalkDetoit.com/contact and let me know about it.

Next Episode

REITD 010: Brent Maxwell – Broker and Investor in the City of Detroit

In this episode I talk to Brent Maxwell.

Brent is a real estate broker who works exclusively with real estate investors. He also primarily focuses on properties in the City of Detroit. His clients include both local and foreign investors who have risk capital available to put to work in the city.

He started in real estate investing eight years ago, after having his interest piqued in high school by a late night infomercial.

REI News

NO REI news this week in the podcast. My conversation with Brent went long so we skipped the news and went right into the interview.

A Cash Flow Mercenary Rant

I'll put my CFM hat on and tell you that I'm really tired of the calls and emails I'm getting about how hard it is to find motivated sellers here in Metro Detroit.

I'm tired of it because I've been using the same source of leads for ten years. All of my wholesale deals came from this source. Half of my flips came from this source. And half of the houses in my rental portfolio came from this source.

And this source is just as profitable and just as easy to use as it was when I started using it back in 2004.

What's the source? Probates.

If you're someone who's having trouble finding motivated sellers, then I highly encourage you to start chasing probates.

And I also encourage you to use my educational program as your roadmap.

It's $97 and it includes my six letter sequence and my excel tracking and follow up spreadsheet. In short - it includes everything you need to start chasing probates today.

Check it out at Probate Real Estate 101.

Current Business

Brent is primarily wholesaling properties in Detroit to investors and individuals who are looking to buy and hold properties in the City.

How He Got Started in REI

Brent started out trying to be a rock star. Literally! He moved to LA and pursued that dream. When it didn't work out, he moved back and contemplated grad school. But he found success in a series of sales jobs, and decided to skip grad school and dive into real estate.

Biggest Mistake

His biggest mistake was not anticipating the crash in 2008 - and it cost him a cool million dollar loss that he's still paying off. He did a gut check and realized that the experience would end up defining him, so he decided to take the high road and not declare bankruptcy. That decision has paid off so far, as his business is booming and he's attracted a whole new slate of investors to work with.

Biggest Success

Brent told me that his biggest success in real estate was his daughter.

This was a great answer. It turns out that real estate has giving him the freedom to have full custody of his daughter, and be extremely active in her life as a single parent. Things would have turned out significantly different had he pursued grad school and gotten a job.

Money Talks

Brent uses investor funds to fund his deals.

Answer to Listener Question

The question I put to Brent was "What do investors need to know before they invest in the city of Detroit"

His answer was - it's not "what" it's "who", which makes a lot of sense. He made the analogy that he wouldn't dream of investing in a place such as Calcutta India from Michigan without having someone local in his back pocket as a guide of advisor. The same goes for Detroit. If you're going to invest here you need to have someone here who will actively look after your interests and not just give lip service to it.

Links and Resources and Information

1. You can contact Brent via his cell phone at (313) 461-6747

2. Or you can reach him via his website at Live In the D

3. Brent is actively managing over 200 properties in the city of Detroit. If you're not happy with your property manager, I encourage you to give him a a call and see if his approach would be a fit for you.

4. Also - if you're an investor with risk capital to deploy, you should call Brent to see if what he's doing in the city is a fit for your risk tolerance and your portfolio. You never know - a simple phone call could end up making you a 30% ROI next year.

If you have feedback on the show, a question you’d like answered, a news item, or perhaps a recommendation of someone you’d like me to interview, or if you’d like to be a guest on the show, go to http://www.REITalkDetoit.com/contact and let me know about it.