Who Are The Real Fake Gurus?

I was featured on Raaja’s podcast “Real Estate with Raaja” and I was able to share my story. In this blog, I’m sharing a few things Raaja and I talked about.

Our Conversation

Raaja: I think it’s important to try a lot of different strategies to see what fits you. Everyone has different strategies in mind and if you haven’t actually tried, how are you supposed to know which one works best for you? There are a lot of people who talk about lease options and rent-to-rent but they haven’t even done it. They might speak badly of it, but they haven’t actually done it.

Samuel: I know! Don’t talk about something badly if you haven’t done it. It’s painful to see, honestly. People talk badly of it if they haven’t done it, or when they have tried and failed. If you haven’t got first-hand experience of it, don’t talk about it.

I had talked to you, you’d asked me about searching houses. And I told you that I’ve got properties myself but I don’t talk about it, because I don’t deal with it, my wife does.

Raaja: People talking about the strategies when they haven’t done it, is like the same thing about the crash course. I didn’t come to the crash course earlier because people told me not to go. They said it was just another sales pitch. However, I regret not coming to the crash course earlier. I would have been a lot more successful a lot earlier if I had come earlier.

Samuel: People who say that don’t know what they’re talking about. The crash course is one of the best on the planet and it’s free! People say that you shouldn’t go on a particular course or even into property because it’s risky. Why should anyone listen to you when you’re working 70 hours a week and you’re on 26,000 pounds a year and you’re miserable?

Raaja: There is also the networking side of the course that people don’t talk about. When you’re there, you get to meet so many people with different backgrounds than yours. There is great opportunity in that.

Samuel: I think it is very important to surround yourself with winners. You should be in an environment where success feels normal because you can’t win with willpower alone.

Raaja: So how did you go from working on one property to entire development? Would you like to give us a breakdown?

Samuel: Developments came a lot later. My first house was a mini development because I converted it into an HMO. But it wasn’t the development you’re referring to in terms of the developments I’m working on right now So, deal packaging was something that made me wealthy. It made me financially free. At the time I started it, it wasn’t a thing; no one was talking about it.

When I left Bible College and was about to get married, I was making six-and-a-half thousand pounds passive. I was doing joint ventures and lease options. I was probably worth about half a million pounds and I was 23. I was doing okay.

However, I owe people money and I had to think about ways to make it work. I thought if I played safe, I wouldn’t be able to do it. I was doing well, but I also had a wedding to plan. I was going to charities in Africa. I was networking; I was growing. I was doing great as a single man, but I also had to think about my future family.

So, I started viewing houses, but I offered someone to come with me. I was doing great in property, so anyone who was interested in buying houses could come with me and I’ll do the dealing, but they would have to give me a thousand pounds for it. I didn’t know it was deal sourcing, but I was doing it.

Raaja: Were those deals through estate agents, or were they off market?

Samuel: They were both. I even became an estate agent just for networking.

Raaja: I believe the deals through estate agents are worthwhile.

Samuel: Exactly! With time, I brought more people with me. However, as time progressed, I thought, why not view the houses myself and then reach out to investors? The first time I sent the email, I made 6500 pounds and sold 3 houses. That was in 2014. I then went to package and sell 200 deals. That made me a millionaire. It also grew me a massive list of investors. So, about your question, as I got more money, I started looking for bigger deals.

Wrapping Up

Hope you enjoyed the conversation! For more information on property investment, head over to my YouTube channel! Don’t forget to subscribe and hit the notification bell icon too.