Take the Fast Track: #1 Lesson I’ve Learned in Real Estate Investing

Categories:

Take the Fast Track: #1 Lesson I’ve Learned in Real Estate Investing

Over the past 23 years, I’ve helped thousands of people navigate and conquer real estate investing. Looking back, there are a number of things that I would do differently to not only simplify the process but put me on the fast track as well. While there are five valuable lessons, I would like to share with you, one in particular will make a significant impact on your real estate investing venture.

How to Take the fast track

Don’t try to reinvent the wheel! Find systems and people who have worked hard and copy them. Look at what they are doing, what their systems are, and what they are looking for, as well as what they are avoiding. Discover exactly how to win by exploring what makes sense for your investments and what doesn’t. There is so much noise out there! You want to make sure that you are watching the people who are doing great and ignore those who are just talking about doing good. Here are the top three things that you need to get on the fast track!

Properties:

A valuable lesson that every fast-track investor needs to learn is how to find good properties. Find and look at as many good properties as you can.

Funding:

The most important thing as a real estate investor is leverage and using other people’s money. Funding is available through banks, lenders, or individuals.

Put together a good team:

It is vital that you partner with good contractors, knowledgeable realtors, stagers, and property managers. By putting the whole team together, they can support you by knowing what you are looking for as well as what they can or can’t do.

How can we help you?

Our goal is to make you successful! There is no need to start from scratch and struggle along the way. By researching and following what others have done, you can quickly and easily set your business up to win. 

Watch our most recent video to find out more about these 5 valuable lessons. 

Have more questions on how to get started with your business and how you can win in real estate investing? Call us today! 

 

by

Credit Score 911 How to Qualify for a Utilization Loan

Categories:

Credit Score 911 How to Qualify for a Utilization Loan

A utilization loan, or 911 utilization loan is useful for both flippers, as well as real estate investors. Unfortunately, not everyone can qualify for a 911 loan, but it is available to those who pay their bills on time and need to quickly raise their credit score. Many of the clients we see get stuck in the trap of using their personal credit cards for business expenses. This in turn can have a significant impact on credit scores in the long run. There are three things that we look for to determine if you qualify for a utilization loan. Let’s take a closer look!

First, make sure payments are on time.

This loan is ideal for clients who spiral into personal credit card debt from using their cards for business expenses. The most important requirement to qualify is that they have been paying on time every month. If you haven’t been paying on time, then you will need to get back on track in order to be considered.

Second, have something to secure the loan with.

We are an asset-based lender and require a piece of real estate to secure the loan. We want to not only ensure that we have the security for lending, but that you also have leverage for your next step.

Third, how do you pay a usage loan back.

In using the 911 loan, you are able to increase your credit score. Which, in turn, allows you to get your next loan, qualify for a refinance, purchase your next flip property, and so much more! However, it is important that you think ahead about how to pay off this usage loan once you get back on track. This can be done by either getting cash out or using a HELOC to pay us off. 

Is a usage loan right for you?

We have a client for example with 200K in credit card debt who is paying 6-7K per month now. By doing the 911 loan, we were able to cut their debt in half to 3K per month in credit card payments. Another client was able to raise their credit score 12 points and receive a HELOC. While someone else was finally able to qualify for a SBA loan. Again, this is not a long-term loan! This is a 911 loan that will help get your credit score back on track and provide the leverage you need to be successful.

How can we help you?

Not sure if you would qualify for a credit utilization loan or where to go next? We have resources that can help guide you through the process. It only takes about 10 to 15 minutes to run through the information and see if we can help. After that, we will also help to set things up correctly to ensure you aren’t faced with these issues again. 

Before reaching out, there are a few things you can do to see if this is the right move for you and your business. 

  1. Go to MyCredit, MyFico or another credit website to run a simulator. This will show how your credit score is impacted once you pay off certain debt.
  2. Look at your payments and leverage. Are you paying everything on time, and do you have a real estate property that can be used to secure the loan?
  3. How can you get out of it in less than 12 months? You need to have a way to pay off the 911 loan in a short period of time. 

These are good loans for real estate investors who are trying to get credit card payments paid down. So many people go into credit card debt, and it can take a year or two to recover by paying them off as they build. It’s easier however, to pay 8-10% interest on a HELOC then 29% interest on a credit card. 

Watch our most recent video or contact us today to see if you qualify for this quick fix, so you can enjoy investing in the future! 

Go to our website to fill out an app and set up an appointment to discuss more. The more information you can give us, the more we can do to get you back on track! 

 

by

Boost Credit Scores Overnight With 911 Loan

Categories:

Does your credit score need some CPR? We have a 911 loan that can boost credit scores overnight.

In the current economy, credit scores are one of the primary determiners in whether or not you get a loan. Previously, there were more loans available for people with lower scores. More flexibility meant a larger safety net.

However, currently people with low scores are struggling to find loans.

If you do manage to get a loan, your credit score will likely affect your rates, terms, etc. 

Essentially, a good credit score can make you money. But a bad credit score can burn a hole in your pocket.

What is a Credit Score 911 Loan?

A Credit Score 911 Loan essentially comes in and pays off your credit card. It moves that balance to a non-reporting loan.

This lets your credit score skyrocket the moment the next report is processed.

This loan also moves quickly. We can work through the process efficiently on our end, meaning you could see results in as little as two weeks.

Should You Get a 911 Loan?

If your credit score needs an overnight boost, the first thing to do is figure out why your score is low. 

Typically, it’s due to one of two reasons:

  1. You haven’t paid on time
  2. You have a usage issue

If you haven’t paid your bills on time, then unfortunately, there isn’t a quick fix. You’ll just need to heal your score slowly over time.

However, if you have a usage issue, then you’re in luck!

Credit Usage Explained

Credit usage measures the percentage of your total allowed balance you use each month. 

For example, if your usage limit is $10,000, and you’re frequently using $7,000 of that, you have 70% usage.

Ideally, FICO wants to see you using about 20%-30% of your available credit. Any higher than that, and you become riskier for banks.

Especially when you’re beginning as a real estate investor, it can be so easy to rack up the usage: getting supplies at Home Depot, paying contractors, etc. with your personal credit cards.

When that usage percentage goes up, your score goes down.

When your score goes down, your costs go up.

That’s where a Credit Score 911 Usage Loan comes in to pay down that debt and boost credit scores overnight.

What’s Next?

If you’re wondering if a Credit Score 911 Loan is right for you, what steps should you take?

  • Look at sites like Credit Karma or TransUnion. See where your score is at, and run simulators to see what would happen if you paid off certain credit cards.
  • Consider the qualifications for a 911 loan. Are you paying on time? Do you need to fix the problem quickly?

If you’re ready to take the next steps or have questions, reach out to us at Info@TheCashFlowCompany.com. 

We’re always happy to talk you through a 911 loan, how it can pay down debt, and how you can set up your business to avoid this problem in the future.

by

Are You Making These Common Real Estate Investing Mistakes?

Categories:

Are You Making These Common Real Estate Investing Mistakes?

There are a number of common real estate mistakes that investors are facing. These mistakes occur when buying and holding rentals, flipping properties, and dividing land. Nowadays, these common real estate investing mistakes undoubtedly create frustration and can lead to defeat. With this in mind, let’s take a closer look at the five major roadblocks to make sure that they don’t affect you!

First, Cash Flow 

The first mistake that real estate investors make is immediately purchasing a property before evaluating the cash flow. To put it briefly, you want to make sure your profits are in fact greater than your expenses. Avoid this mistake by making a plan and know your numbers upfront! 

Second, Understanding Escrow

The second mistake is not understanding escrow, let alone what is needed to receive the escrow funds. Escrow is a portion of the loan that a lending company puts aside for repairs to the property. By understanding your lenders policies, you can optimize your profits by completing repairs quickly and correctly. 

Third, Too Many Projects

The third mistake is having too many projects. From multiple property costs to paying contractors, investors can get too big too fast. It is important to “err on the side of caution” to prevent the “finance crunch” that often occurs. 

Fourth, Rentals

The fourth mistake is not properly navigating rental cash flow. The deal needs to be a positive investment not a negative one after considering all costs. In real estate investing, you cannot afford losses or simply break even.

Fifth, Personal Credit Usage

The fifth and final mistake is the misuse of personal credit cards for business expenses. If you want to avoid spiraling into debt, then quickly set up your business and begin using a business credit card. 

By understanding these common real estate investing mistakes, you can ease your frustration, prevent a finance wall, and learn how to create a constant cash flow.

Watch our latest interview to discover more about the 5 Major Roadblocks

by

Understanding the Credit Score 911 Loan

Categories:

If you’re struggling with a low credit score, a 911 loan could help you get back on track!

A Credit Score 911 Usage Loan is essentially a non-reporting loan that pays off all credit cards, allowing your credit score to shoot upwards.

These loans act as a fast-acting antidote to your credit score usage problems. The next time your credit report generates, you should see significant improvement.

Essentially, it’s a quick fix for people who pay their bills on time.

Who Should Use a 911 Loan?

If your credit score is weighed down by a long history of late payments, this loan is not going to help you very effectively. 

These loans are perfect for people whose credit has been plagued by high usage, who need to fix their credit score FAST.

In short, here’s what you should know about a 911 Usage Loan:

  1. 911 loans pay down debt that accumulates through usage issues, not late payments.
  2. We’re an asset-based lender, so make sure you have some real estate to secure your loan.
  3. You need an exit strategy. We want to make sure you have a way of paying that loan back.

Real estate investing is a fast-moving business. It’s important to have a quick solution for an issue that could otherwise cost you thousands of dollars in higher payments or declined deals. 

How Long Before it Pays Down my Debt?

We call this a “Credit Score 911” because we understand that a low credit score can be an emergency need.

It can take as little as 2 weeks (or up to 30 days) to get this loan and see results in your credit score. The timing depends simply on when your credit cards report and when your statements come out.

You still owe the money, but now you owe it to a non-reporting entity.

Although it can be daunting to take out an unexpected usage loan, a delay of a month is far better than a long term delay where you can’t refinance or buy.

 

Read the full article here.

Watch the full video here:

by

5 valuable lessons learned in real estate investing

Categories:

5 Valuable Lessons Learned in Real Estate Investing 

In the past 23 years, I’ve helped thousands of people become successful in real estate investing. Looking back over those years, there are several things that I would do differently to not only make me successful but also, ways to do it quicker. There are 5 valuable lessons that I’ve learned and want to share with you about real estate investing.

1. Take the fast track

Don’t try to reinvent the wheel! Find systems and people who have worked hard and copy them. Look at what they are doing, what their systems are, and what they are looking for, as well as what they are avoiding. Discover exactly how to win by exploring what makes sense for your investments and what doesn’t. There is so much noise out there! You want to make sure that you are watching the people who are doing great and ignore those who are just talking about doing good. Here are the top three things that you need to get on the fast track!

Properties:

A valuable lesson that every fast-track investor needs to learn is how to find good properties. Find and look at as many good properties as you can.

Funding:

The most important thing as a real estate investor is leverage and using other people’s money. Funding is available through banks, lenders, or individuals.

Put together a good team:

It is vital that you partner with good contractors, knowledgeable realtors, stagers, and property managers. By putting the whole team together, they can support you by knowing what you are looking for as well as what they can or can’t do.

2. Times VS Time

The question that all investors ask is, how long does it take to be successful? Success is heavily reliant on the number of times you practice evaluating properties, as well as exploring your lending options. The more you practice and look at properties, practice and comp out a property, and reach out to lenders, the more knowledgeable and confident you will become. It takes 100 times to walk through these steps before an investor becomes confident in the process. Some investors can achieve this in a week, while others may take 6 months to 6 years. Again, it’s not the amount of time it takes to be successful, it’s the number of times you practice.

3. Set your business up to win 

You must set up your business correctly from the beginning. To do this, make sure that your business is properly set up with the state, has a bank account, and has an office location. Every correct step will ensure that the business is set up to win the leverage game. One of the most important steps in this process is selecting your business name. Avoid putting “real estate” directly in your name because it will impact your funding moving forward. Instead, you can use “management”, a name, or a group in order to make your business name unique.  Once everything is established, find local banks that love to work with real estate investors. While national banks are great for unsecured lines of credit and credit cards, it is the local banks who will partner with you long term.

4. Create simple processes

Investors can easily become overwhelmed by all of the components that need to be considered before purchasing a property. By walking through the steps over and over again, it makes it easier to not only set up a simple process for yourself but then allows you to hand things over to others. Begin to find people who can support you and follow your established processes. You must ask yourself:

  • How do I comp out a property?
  • How do I walk through a property to see what needs to be fixed or repaired?
  • How do I pick a contractor?

5. Scale with flexibility

To add volume to your investments, you must bring in more people. However, these individuals are not on the payroll. More importantly, their partnership and expertise can guide you on the fast track to success. From having real estate agents help comp out properties, to bringing in more wholesalers, this can help you win with flexibility with your scalability. As long as you have your systems established, there is no ceiling to your success.

Bonus

6. Do whatever it takes

You must do whatever it takes to get you to where you want to be. Only you can determine what that means to you. Identify what you need to do upfront, and just do it! If you get into that mentality, you will be able to navigate the road to success within your market. The people who have the “do whatever it takes” attitude will not only win in this market but in every market thereafter!

Our goal is to make you successful! By following these 5 valuable lessons in real estate investing, you will be on the fast track to success! Watch our most recent video to find out more about these 5 valuable lessons. 

Have more questions on how to get started with your business and how you can win in real estate investing? Call us today! 

by

How to Build Wealth Through Real Estate Investing

Categories:

If you want to build wealth through real estate, the key is leverage.

In the investing world, leverage is using other people’s money (typically in the form of loans) to build income.

If you master the art of using leverage, you’ll be able to build wealth easily in the real estate game.

Especially at the beginning, it can be tempting to try and use only your own savings for your real estate projects. However, those funds are limited, and it can take forever to save up for a full down payment on your own. Using loans and debt wisely will help you turn larger profits faster, ultimately making you more money, even factoring in the cut of the lender.

Leverage Makes Real Estate Investing Accessible

Especially in the central USA area, other people’s money (OPM) makes real estate investing accessible.

You don’t need to have generational wealth built up in your savings or your parents’ bank account. You just need leverage.

Leverage lets you grow your investing business from little-to-nothing. We see this over and over again in the industry. All you need is the willingness to take a little bit of risk and use OPM.

Types of Leverage and OPM

Leverage comes in many forms. When we talk about using OPM, we’re not implying you need to take up a collection at Thanksgiving dinner. 

These are the most common types of leverage/OPM:

  • Bank loans
  • Private loans
  • Hard money loans
  • Financial gifts

Obviously, in most of these cases, you need to pay the money back (with interest). However, that’s fairly easy to do once you’re selling an improved property.

What Does the Process Actually Look Like?

Most lenders want to see you put a portion of your own money into projects as well. But that doesn’t mean you need an extensive backlog of savings to get started.

Step 1. Buy

Hypothetically, if you wanted to buy a $200K property, you would only need around $10K of your own money. The rest could be covered with OPM. 

Step 2. Improve

If you put $30K-$40K into a property, you’ll significantly increase its value by more than you put in. These improvements can also be covered with OPM. 

Certain loans are created specifically for property-improvement projects, so look into options like DSCR or hard money.

Step 3. Sell 

This is where the money comes rolling in. You pay off your loans, and everything else is money in your pocket.

For our example of a $200K property, after $40K worth of improvements, it’s likely worth closer to $300K. 

That’s a worthwhile investment!

From $10K out of pocket, you end up with around $40K net worth that you’ve created with leverage.

The Long Haul Option

If you don’t want to do a basic fix and flip, you could go the rental route. If you keep a property like that as a rental, you’ll be able to pay the loan all the way down and own the property outright.

In today’s housing economy, hanging on to properties long-term is also a great investment. A property that began as a $10,000 investment could turn into your million-dollar retirement fund!

 

If you have questions about leverage or OPM, reach out to us at Info@TheCashFlowCompany.com or fill out a contact card.

You’re also welcome to check out our YouTube channel where we talk about how to WIN in real estate investing.

by

Why You Need to Find Other Money Sources Now

Categories:

Why You Need to Find Other Money Sources Now

Banks are experiencing a significant decrease of money flowing into the lending pool. This has created a bank collapse that is greatly impacting real estate investors today. As a result, banks are forced to swim upstream in search of the “best of the best clients”, thus leaving investors to find other money sources. What can real estate investors do? We are here to help navigate you through these rough waters.

Private Lenders

A waterfall effect occurs when banks are focused on the “best of the best” clients. Thus, forcing investors to cascade down to private lenders in order to keep their business afloat. The influx of new clients has led private lenders to begin swimming upstream alongside banks in search of new borrowers. These borrowers are more experienced, have more money, and more liquidity. Unfortunately, this is making it harder for many investors to qualify for loans.

Other People’s Money 

In addition to private lending, another funding source is “other people’s money” aka OPM. These are individuals that are within our community and can lend $10,000 to $100,000. By knowing who to ask and where to look, you can easily ride the wave to success. So dive in and discover additional lending options and how to succeed during this bank collapse.

What you need to succeed

Investors can prepare for this lending squeeze by making sure they have cash, high credit scores, and are keeping up on projects. By getting into a deal now and holding it for 2-3 years, it can set you up for success in the near future. We can help guide you through the process of starting your business, increasing your credit scores, finding ways to improve your income, and helping with OPM options.

Need more help navigating these rough waters watch our most recent video!

 

by

Does Credit Score Matter in a Bad Real Estate Market?

Categories:

When the real estate market tightens up, you might ask “does credit score matter anymore?” The answer is YES! Credit score matters now more than ever.

Once you’ve been in the business for as long as we have, you start noticing patterns. The investing world goes through cycles every few years where things tighten up before flowing normally again. 

However, a ‘bad market’ doesn’t necessarily mean bad news. 

If you’ve prepared beforehand, you can actually take advantage of the challenging landscape to build some wealth.

What is a ‘Bad Real Estate Market’?

Essentially, what’s happening right now is banks are tightening up. This means most are lending out less money, making it harder for investors to get the money they need.

This also means that, over the next 6-9 months, people are going to be getting rid of some properties and fewer people will be buying.

If this sounds like bad news, don’t worry. If you’re ready for these market changes, it can actually be the perfect time for you to buy. 

Get Your Credit Score in Line

In the past, 660-680 used to qualify you for an okay loan. Not anymore! As lenders tighten up, most will be looking for scores closer to 750-799+. 

Lenders are depending more and more on credit scores. Make sure your credit score isn’t holding you back!

If you’re using personal credit cards for your investing projects (using them to buy supplies, pay vendors, etc.) stop now! 

Personal credit cards aren’t made for that level of usage, and most cards will drop your credit score if you’re using too much of your balance on a regular basis.

This can lead to a significant usage issue. There are two things you can do to help fix this problem:

Once you raise your credit score, make sure you maintain it. Since lenders look so closely at your score, you should too!

 

Read the full article here.

Watch the full video here:

by

Why business credit cards make real estate investing easier

Categories:

Why business credit cards make real estate investing easier

70%-80% of investors are overwhelmed with business expenses and are resorting to using their personal credit. By using personal credit cards for business expenses, investors are jeopardizing their credit score and endangering the success of their business. How can you get your personal credit in good standing and back on track? What can you do to stabilize your business expenses? The answer to both of these questions is business credit cards. Let’s look closer at how they can make your life easier.

First, personal credit scores are no longer taking the hit.

While personal credit cards are easily accessible, they make life more complicated for investors. Whether it’s a fix and flip, or a rental property, expenses can easily add up and jeopardize your credit score. Putting expenses on personal credit cards drives down your score due to the utilization rate. This in turn makes everything harder, from trying to apply for a loan, to putting more money into the investment. The ultimate solution is business credit cards because they do not impact your credit score, nor do they have the same utilization rate restrictions. This is a simple step that every investor should be taking to alleviate future strain on personal credit scores.

Second, making things easier, faster, and cheaper

How can you make things easier, faster and cheaper for your business? The answer once again is applying for and using business credit cards! Once a card is established, you can start moving expenses over to consolidate balances, thus making your life easier. They have the same benefits as personal credit cards if not more! By using them more often and making payments in chunks, investors are able to increase their credit limits quickly. In doing so, personal credit scores will increase and create more leverage for additional loans, as well as create better funding options. 

Third, we are here to get you on track.

In having better credit scores, it then opens the door to endless possibilities that will create wealth. We can help you by providing a usage loan that can be used to pay down personal credit cards. With the utilization rate then decreased, your credit score will increase, allowing you to make the switch. We can help guide you through the entire process from setting up your business correctly, to researching credit cards, and provide usage loans to get you back on track. Don’t wait for corporate credit to take effect! Call or message us today to find out more.

Watch our most recent video to discover more about the importance of business credit cards and how we can help guide you to success.

 

by