"Inspired to Invest" Real Estate Investing Podcast

How To Become Financially Free By Investing

• Serena Holmes • Episode 46

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Embark on a transformative voyage through the world of real estate the chief operating officer of CPI Capital and founder of Canada's largest real estate conference.

Welcome back to the "Inspired To Invest" podcast. This week Seth Ferguson is with us! To watch rather than listen, click here

Discover Seth's incredible story, shifting from ice rinks to the echelons of property investing. He reveals pivotal moments that catalyzed his move from duplex deals to master of multifamily portfolios, all while juggling the profound impact of fatherhood. 

Seth's tales aren't just about transactions; they're about the life-altering goals he set and achieved, offering an inspiring blueprint for scaling your own ambitions in the bricks-and-mortar world.

We peel back the curtain on the growth dynamics within real estate, recounting the audacious expansion of a multifamily conference from its modest inception to a grand convention center. 

The episode takes a more personal note as we consider the intrinsic growth parallel to business scaling, emphasizing systematic development over haphazard progress. Our exchange on mentorship reveals the transformative potential of guidance, whether it be the grounded advice from industry veterans or grand vision from a global CEO, each shaping our entrepreneurial journey.

In an industry built on solid foundations, we stress the significance of legal fortifications to protect your investments and partnerships. Hear harrowing stories that serve as stark reminders of the perils that skirting proper legal documentation can bring, juxtaposed against the safety net that rigorous legal protocols provide. 

Furthermore, embracing the spirit of generational stewardship, we celebrate initiatives like Beyond Success Program, fostering youth financial literacy and the enduring impact of equipping budding minds with the tools of the trade. 

Seth's insights and our collective wisdom invite you to aspire to greatness, employ exceptional talent, and wholeheartedly engage in the pursuit of financial liberation through the lens of real estate.

To connect with Seth, go to @sethfergusonofficial or @themultifamilyconference on social

Thank you to the Multifamily Conference for bringing us this month's episodes of “Inspired To Invest”.  Check them out @themultifamilyconference on social and to get tickets to this year's event May 24-26/24, go to:  https://multifamilyconference.ca/ref/serenaholmes/

“Inspired to Invest” is proud to support the Beyond Success Program, a not-for-profit financial literacy program for students, launched by More To Give & MAK Investments. Find out more at https://more2give.ca/beyond.

Join us again on Wed., May. 15 to hear from a woman who is investing in real estate while inspiring others to take charge of their financial future. 

Thank you for tuning in & remember, “when you invest in yourself, the sky's the limit!"

Never miss an episode! https://serenaholmes.exprealty.com/ask/896312e0f685fdd06401c1e53ca6fd17

To connect with our host, Serena Holmes, go to https://www.linktr.ee/serenaholmes.

To buy a copy of The Accidental Entrepreneur, go to https://www.linktr.ee/serenaholmesauthor and for a free copy go to https://serenaholmes.exprealty.com/ask/f813c4efdfaead4980a467b614d73604 

And, for everything related to real estate and real estate investing, please make sure you've subscribed to @serenaholmesrealtor on YouTube & other platforms. 

We also have a page dedicated to this podcast on Instagram and Facebook @inspiredtoinvestpodcast where we preview guests each week, highlight their episodes, top takeaways, tips, quotes and more.

00:02 Real Estate Investing Journey and Portfolio
09:30 Lessons in

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Speaker 1:

Welcome to the Inspired to Invest podcast, where we're sharing stories from real estate investors and how investing has changed their lives. This episode of the Inspire to Invest podcast has been brought to you by the Multifamily Conference. Hey everybody, welcome to the Inspire to Invest podcast. I have Seth Ferguson joining me here from Toronto today. He is a chief operating officer at CPI Capital, a real estate investment firm that offers investment opportunities for Canadians and Americans by acquiring and improving underperforming apartment buildings. He's a 15 year veteran in the real estate investing industry. He used to host a cable TV real estate show. He's also launching a new real estate investing podcast called the Cool Shit Podcast, which will be airing, I guess, in February. And then he's also the founder of the Multifamily Conference. I'm sure many of you have seen that in the last couple of years. And interesting fun facts about Seth he is a former professional and junior hockey referee, he plays the bagpipes and he's a huge history nerd. So thank you so much for being here today. How are you?

Speaker 2:

I'm doing well. I guess you were sent the embarrassing bio.

Speaker 1:

You're like wait, we didn't go through that, that's awesome. Well, obviously you have lots of experience in the last 15-ish years. Can you talk a little bit about what you were doing before real estate investing came into the picture and really like how that came into the picture?

Speaker 2:

Oh yeah, a hundred percent. So, kind of like you said, I was doing hockey and that was my first love and that is still my passion, and if I could do hockey as a full-time job I would stop everything and hop over and continue. So I was doing hockey, went down to the States, lived out of a suitcase for a while traveling all around the country. I came back, got my real estate license because I thought real estate agents oh, you can set your own hours, it would be really flexible and then I could do a hockey and sell houses at the same time. Little did I know that you actually work a lot as a real estate agent.

Speaker 1:

Or the're always on call, or the most people realize.

Speaker 2:

No, no. And so that was a wake up call and I was doing really well selling real estate, making some pretty good money, and then I realized that I had nothing left over at the end of the day, so the commissions would come in. And then I was silly as a young guy, so I had the nice car. I had this four bedroom house. I was silly as a young guy, so I had the nice car. I had, you know, this four bedroom house I was living in by myself, like it was just ridiculous. And so I realized I needed to start building some type of portfolio or pool of assets, and that's when I discovered real estate investing.

Speaker 1:

So who introduced you to that specifically? Like obviously you know you're involved with CPI Capital, but was there someone on your journey that specifically was like hey, what are you doing? You're spending all your money, or like how did that conversation come about?

Speaker 2:

No, that was my own realization, because every month I was, it was stressful because, you know, the mortgage payment was ridiculous, the car payment was ridiculous, yeah, and it's like I'm making all this money like the on paper, I have all this money, but there's nothing in the bank account. It's like where did I go wrong? And it wasn't really a specific person, because nobody in my family was really investing in real estate and none of the people I really knew were true real estate investors. One one person would have like another property but it wasn't serious investing. So I really kind of learned.

Speaker 2:

I went first, I went online and I ordered. I remember I ordered this one course. I spent a couple grand on it and they shipped me a binder. It was a paper binder, like this thick and this $2,000, I think it was like two grand 1500 bucks. It was basically you flip through thick and this $2,000, I think it was like two grand $1,500. It was basically you flip through the pages. I was like, are you serious? This is ridiculous. And then I read a couple books. Being Canadian, I read the basics, don Campbell's books, and that kind of got me going in terms of educating myself. But yeah, I wish I had a person because I would have. I would have missed a whole bunch of mistakes, but that's the way it goes.

Speaker 1:

No, that makes sense. So then, what was your first real estate investment? And then how did you ladder that to scaling into apartment buildings and multifamily?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, yeah. So the first one was a duplex conversion. So my partner and I at the there was a duplex it was like a 50s construction type of thing where they're rock solid, hurricane proof, as I call them and duplex conversion there. And then, you know, you leverage that one to get the next one. And at the time I had some limiting beliefs because I thought you had to do everything on your own and you had to save up all the money and then do another property. I didn't understand that you could actually get capital from other people and do more deals. I just didn't know. And so that was a learning journey.

Speaker 2:

And yeah, in terms of the hop over to multifamily, I blame my son, who's now seven, because when he came along, everything changed in the blink of an eye and I realized that I'd made more money owning the real estate than I had selling the real estate, and I was doing well at that. But I just realized with my new goals because I was a new father, I wanted to do a lot of stuff and I worked out I'd have to own a thousand houses to hit my real estate goal, and it was. It just didn't make sense. So now I had to start exploring. Okay. Well, does it make more sense to own office buildings? Uh, the mobile home, park, self-storage retail. And then I've discovered multifamily and it made a whole lot of sense. Uh, and we can get reasons why, but that was kind of the catalyst.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I always find it really interesting talking to people. I interviewed someone else earlier this week and he kind of indicated industrial space, self-storage, strip malls and then multifamily in that order of his preference. So I found that just really interesting, because you don't hear about warehousing quite as much but that seems to be like an area of focus for him with like 30 years under his belt. So everyone's got kind of what they really love and like from an economies of scale perspective, obviously, buying like an apartment building with a hundred units. It'd be a lot harder to buy a hundred single family homes, cause you're going through that process a hundred times when it comes to financing and tenanting and all of that stuff, right, so that makes sense.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, for sure, and industrial, that's a great business to be in. I think that the thing for people to understand is there's a million different ways of making money in real estate. It's just figuring out what best aligns with your goals. So when we're working with people, the number one thing we do is figure out okay, what are we aiming for in 10 years? We build that out, so it's real. And then we work backwards because apartment buildings aren't for everybody, just like strip malls aren't for everybody, or self-storage. But until you know where you're going, you can't figure out a game plan right, so that's step number one.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, I think that makes sense Now. Are you comfortable sharing what your portfolio looks like today?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, yeah. So with CPI, we're just under 1,000 units right now. So we're currently working on a deal that's going to take us over 1,000. So we're all pretty excited with that. And then obviously, we have some big goals. Just with the way the market is right now, we are in full buyer mode. So, we are ready to rock and roll in 2024.

Speaker 1:

Now, I know you mentioned Canada and the US Are of rock and roll in 2024. Now, I know you mentioned Canada and the US Are there any sweet spots that you're looking to focus on right now?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so with CPI we focus, like right now we're doing a lot of hunting in Florida. That's where Paul Arbor, acquisitions Director, is putting in a lot of work in terms of our deal flow, and so you know Tampa is a market we really want to enter right now. You know we're also working, you know, jacksonville, the periphery around there. Yeah, because Florida, like we really like the drivers in that market, we feel there's a lot of runway left. I don't have to deal with snow, like I have enough snow here in Toronto.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, so landlord friendly.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, exactly so. You know, for those reasons we focus there, but in the single family space everything was in Ontario. And you know, for those reasons we focus there. But in the single family space everything was in Ontario. And you know, I got a firsthand experience in terms of rent control. I decided that's not something I want to deal with anymore and we could go on a two hour rant about rent control.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I mean there's a lot of things about Ontario that aren't necessarily favorable.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that's. That's another episode by itself, yeah no, I completely understand that.

Speaker 1:

Now, obviously you have done a lot in the last 10, 15 years. What would you say you're most proud of or you feel like is maybe your biggest success?

Speaker 2:

This is going to sound and yeah, I'd have to say the conference, to be honest, is not even a deal related because just the way we launched it it was in the middle of the pandemic Everybody said I was crazy, like nobody was doing anything and we pulled it off. So the way the team did it, I'm just I'm proud of myself for doing it, but I'm more proud of everybody we work with because they put in so much work to make that happen. And yeah it's, it's been really, really successful. Never would have thought. But like here we are.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I don't know if you remember I volunteered at it that first year and it felt like everybody was coming out of fighting because it was kind of the first big event I'd been to throughout all of the pandemic, right, like, and it's like some people wearing masks, some people weren't everyone's like, can we shake hands? We have, like what do we do here, right? So it was a very interesting dynamic. But you started at a hockey arena north of the city and then obviously moving down to the convention center and you know, just being able to fill that up with some bigger names and stuff like that, like that's pretty huge to go from year one to year two, right.

Speaker 2:

Oh yeah, like in the second year, I think we had like 160,000 square feet, something like that Huge space. But interesting fact, do you know why we were at the hockey arena? Did I tell you I?

Speaker 1:

don't know.

Speaker 2:

Okay, so everything was locked down right. The CAA center was the only place that would sneak us in to actually look at the venue during the lockdowns that hopefully nobody gets in trouble now, but the only venue that snuck us in. So that was the. Obviously we didn't tell them when we were doing the contract, but that was our only option. Yeah, okay, uh. So it was a really crazy time for everything and uh, but yeah, we pulled it off.

Speaker 1:

So because of people like you who helped out. Right, yeah, no, that's amazing. Now, I guess, going back whether you want to talk about this in context of the multifamily conference or just real estate investing in general what would you say is the biggest obstacle that you have faced, whether that comes to again scaling or launching an event in a pandemic.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I think the biggest obstacle is myself, to be honest, because it's I found, you know, as you get to different levels estate investing workshop. It was a guy I interviewed on my old podcast Went down to Philadelphia, maxed out my credit card because my life had blown up at that point when I lost everything, and so I maxed out the credit card. I got in the room and I didn't belong there because it was full of real estate syndicators, fund managers. These people were raising a lot of money and I had no idea this world existed in real estate. But that, like three days, opened my eyes to what the other side of the real estate fence is all about. But before that I had no idea, totally ignorant.

Speaker 2:

And I find, as I keep progressing in terms of whether it's building up the conference or building up real estate, each time I hit a new level it's like you're opening your eyes again because you don't see what's really there. So the good example I use is the night sky. You look up in Toronto at the night sky. You see a couple of stars. You go way up a couple hours to Bob Cajun. You're looking at the same sky, You're just seeing different things in it. And yeah, it's every time it blows my mind, because there's always something new that you don't know.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, agreed. I mean, there was one younger investor actually that I spoke to and his philosophy is that you would try to learn from people that are always like one or two steps ahead of you, not necessarily 20 steps ahead because they can kind of give you some of those tangible steps to kind of continue along your pace, where it can be just maybe unachievable or unrealistic if you're trying to. You know, compare yourself to a Grant Cardone or something like that.

Speaker 2:

Right, for sure I might. I might push back a little bit on that, though We'll get some controversy in the podcast. This is good. Yeah, I might push back a little bit because for me personally, I find it helpful to speak with the guys who are like 10 steps ahead.

Speaker 2:

Yeah because this is what I've kind of discovered as we scale, because you know, on the conference side we're scaling rapidly with it. Yeah, so if I'm looking at somebody who's one or two steps ahead, their, their systems are built for that size. Yeah, I get somebody 10 steps ahead.

Speaker 2:

Their systems are built for that size. Yeah, I got somebody 10 steps ahead. Their systems are very different. So the thing I've learned is well, why not just build the foundation for the winning system now and not have to switch halfway through? Yeah, so, in terms of an efficiency standpoint, and not having to break everything down and rebuild it? Um, talking with people who are, you know, filling stadiums with people like that's who I want to talk to, because that's where we're going anyway. So might as well just start learning right now. So, yeah, but that's just my personal preference.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, I can understand that completely. I mean just I had my own business for 18 years and I had a lot of different mentors and coaches and one of my mentors that I felt like resonated the most literally broke down my whole business and kind of gave me an action plan like do this, stop doing this, do more of this.

Speaker 1:

And it was very tactical and it helped me with my roadmap to get where I wanted to go. But then I did the same mentorship program again a few years later. I was partnered up with the CEO of Edelman, so like a huge PR, global PR firm, and it was like as a CEO of a company that big, she just couldn't understand any of the issues that I would have as like a small business owner, right. So when I would talk to her about things, it's like she just shouldn't deal with stuff like that, right. So we she was great lady, had great conversations, but it didn't give me that tangible stuff that I could go back and actually like improve in my business.

Speaker 1:

So I see value on like both sides of the fence.

Speaker 2:

Oh yeah, for sure, and especially like what we find. Like we try and run our company like the least corporate you can get and so if somebody's coming, cause we talk with people all the time and they're coming from a very corporate bracket background, even when we're hiring people it's, it generally doesn't work out because they're used to these rigid systems and we tried to have none of that stuff.

Speaker 1:

But that's what's nice about events, right, like that's what my business was. I was in events, so you can really like create your reality and kind of think outside the box, right.

Speaker 1:

So it's nice to have that blend, but at real estate investors are the exact same way, right, like a lot of them may not have formal educations or they're trying to leave the corporate career. So, yeah, I can see how that works well. Now, in terms of lessons and things like that, is there anything that you think you know now that maybe you learned a lesson the hard way and if you'd known that, you would have gone and done something differently with that same level of knowledge?

Speaker 2:

There are so many mistakes. I'll give you probably the most entertaining example, and this will apply to a lot of newer investors starting out. So when I was in the single family investing space, I was working with my partner at the time and we were acquiring some properties and so we didn't have anything written down on paper. And a lot of people end up investing with partners and getting into things like this, so you don't have anything on paper.

Speaker 1:

It's just a handshake agreement.

Speaker 2:

Maybe you're living with somebody or you're best friends with somebody. Oh no, everything's going to be fine. Well when all the money disappears from the bank account and and then there's negative dollars in the bank account and all the mortgages start bouncing and and all this kind of stuff and of stuff and you end up in the court system.

Speaker 2:

If you have nothing on paper, you're screwed. So that was the biggest mistake I ever made. Also, making sure you have two signers on things so one person can't take all the money out of the bank account definitely helps too. Out of the bank account definitely helps too. So just not speaking with a lawyer and being like, hey, listen, I want to invest in these properties with this person. What do we need to put on paper to make sure everybody's protected?

Speaker 2:

Because it happens sometimes you get in a deal. One partner starts doing things that can jeopardize the deal or they're non-responsive. They disappear for months and you need them to sign on things. You need to have shotgun provisions or other types of clauses in there to make sure not only you're protected they're protected but also think of the poor tenants in this property, and things are going rough. In one property we had a flood. The basement flooded and if one person's taking on money, who's going to pay for it? So all this stuff has to be taken care of well ahead of time. Don't be like me and just make sure you speak with a lawyer.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, I agree 100%. I mean even my business. That's something that we found. Like we had a bad experience where you know we needed a signature, that manager was traveling, you know, can't you just take this email? And ultimately, because we didn't have the signature, that gave us no recourse, when you know everything was booked in plan and then they canceled on us a few times in a row. So we learned from that and then where it saved us is that we actually started working with a real estate developer, of all things.

Speaker 1:

So this is years and years ago, but they build luxury student residences all around the country and we were hired just for like a two day move in type of PR campaign and they were so far behind in construction we were like moving students into a construction zone and basically what should have been two days went on continuously for five months and we hired like hundreds of people in like short periods of time. So we're getting money, we're getting money. Then all of a sudden, we not getting money. So at this point they owed us, I don't know, 250 or $300,000. And you know, everything kind of got put on hold and it got to the point that, like we filed a lawsuit. They ignored it and ultimately, how we got money is we started to share some information about it on social and reviews and stuff like that and within like a day. It's like can you meet me tomorrow? And like it was wired to us by the Friday, Like it was just we had to.

Speaker 1:

You know, go rogue on them, right, but we tried, but it's because we had that first signature that it protected us and we could have been out like a very significant amount of money. So always get it on paper.

Speaker 2:

Always, always, always. And if you have a good conversation with somebody, like send an email later summarizing the conversation, because you're always, yeah, like send an email later summarizing the conversation Always always yeah, I'm the same way.

Speaker 1:

Per conversation ba ba, ba, ba ba. Yeah, I'm the exact same way. So, on that note, we're just going to take a really brief break for a word from our sponsors and we'll be right back. The Multifamily Conference is back May 24th to 26th at the Metro Toronto Convention Center. Get your tickets at multifamilyconferenceca.

Speaker 1:

Inspired to Invest is proud to support the Beyond Success Program. In today's complex world, it's absolutely crucial for our youth to learn how to take charge of their financial future. We believe that every young person deserves access to accurate, practical financial information, that every young person deserves access to accurate, practical financial information. Designed to bridge the gap, the Beyond Success program leverages a comprehensive educational boot camp to equip young minds with essential financial literacy skills. At Beyond Success, it's not just about teaching financial literacy. It's also about fostering a foundation for a prosperous and empowered future. Join us Together, we can build a brighter financial future for the next generations. Join us Together, we can build a brighter financial future for the next generations.

Speaker 1:

I value transparency, integrity and trust. If you choose to work with me, you can be assured that business will be conducted honestly and openly. Time is of the essence in this industry, so you can expect nothing short of quick, clear communication from me. I'll keep you informed every step of the way so you feel comfortable throughout this entire process. Our homes are where we eat, sleep, relax and play. My clients' best interests are at the heart of everything I do and, with this said, my service to you doesn't end when the transaction does. As your realtor, I'll not only help you buy and sell your property, I'll also educate and support you along the way. I want to help you fulfill your goal of homeownership and become your trusted real estate resource for life. I can't wait to share my passion for real estate with you. More importantly, find you the perfect house to turn into your home. Looking to buy, sell or invest in Durham Region or Toronto?

Speaker 2:

Let's chat, hey everybody who's the sponsor. Do we have to plug them?

Speaker 1:

Oh, I don't know who the sponsor will be at this point. I have, like February and March, confirmed and then the rest of the-.

Speaker 2:

I was going to work it in, but I guess not.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I know I don't usually have them like that far in advance yet, unfortunately.

Speaker 2:

So yeah All good.

Speaker 1:

Hey everybody, welcome back to the Inspired to Invest podcast. I have Seth Ferguson here with me today. He's sharing about all the crazy things that have happened to him as a real estate investor, which leads to my next question what is the craziest thing that you think has ever happened to you as a real estate investor, or maybe even someone that's planning real estate investing events?

Speaker 2:

Oh man, yeah. Well, I think on the event side, covid was the craziest thing that ever happened to us. That was ridiculous. But in terms of real estate, I remember cleaning out this one property. My dad had somehow got this duplex kind of thing and the tenant wasn't paying and the tenant moved out and we went to clean up and I could not believe the mess that was left behind. There was shit in the toilets, dirty like diapers.

Speaker 1:

Everywhere there were needles, like it was that's actually really sad when you think like diapers and needles, like oh well, that's the thing, like like, and everything was left right, so like you have toys there.

Speaker 2:

So you've got like this little like jungle gym kind of thing for obviously a little kid, and then under the couch is a bunch of needles it was sick, yeah, and uh yeah, and I think that's the the craziest sight I've ever seen in there, because you're just like who? Who is this person and what are they doing with a child? It was. It was really scary. So, yeah, that that was that kind of showed me what kind of goes on in some unstable households.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, I understand. You can kind of see how just some people live. That would be so unfathomable to maybe how your day-to-day life is Right. So I know you talked about going back to things like mentorship and coaching. You have been in these big rooms. What do you say is some of the best advice you've been given from someone that is very successful.

Speaker 2:

Oh man, so much. I think that, if I can summarize it because you know you get little tidbits from everybody the thing the biggest thing I've learned is the the bigger the project, the easier it gets. And and this applies to if you're going from a 10 unit building to a 40 unit building or a 100 to 300 and now I've got some friends just buying like five, 500 to a thousand unit portfolios at a time and they will never go back to a 200 unit building because doing the portfolio is so much easier. Because I think there's a couple of things that play there. Number one it's bigger.

Speaker 2:

So the sex appeal is there. It's more exciting. And the bigger and more exciting something is, the easier it is to sell, either to raise money for or, on the flip side, for events for the conference. If I ran a 200 person conference I would just like it wouldn't be exciting, but because we went big, more people like get, get involved, and it just makes it easier. So if I could go back in a time machine to visit my 20 year old self, I would just tell myself skip doing the houses, go right into the big stuff and you're going to skip like a decade of frustration and yeah, it's just yeah. So biggest piece of advice just go bigger.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, it's just the irony in it, right. Like no one coming into it necessarily think that, right, but even with me, like I look back at some of the purchases I made and they're kind of the opportunities at hand, multifamily is just not even on my radar whatsoever, right. So I think you just that's part of the learning and getting to know people and building all those connections, right?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, a hundred percent. And a lot of people get intimidated, right? So they think, oh, I got to go small because I'm just getting started. But when you like, this is how I break it down. If you do a small single-family home deal versus an apartment building single-family home deal, cash flow is non-existent. You probably have to manage it yourself, so you're going to make a ton of rookie mistakes. The financing is going to suck on it. But then if you go to the flip side with an apartment building, you can hire a professional property manager because now you have more cash flow. You can probably bring on a partner who's done it before because there's more meat on the bone. Somebody moves out. Your revenue doesn't disappear because you have more units. So I argue that the apartment building is a safer investment for a new person, rather than like the single family home, which is the exact reverse of the way most people think.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, I can understand that completely. Now, just looking at where you are and where you want to be, is there anything that you would define as your financial freedom number, whether that's cashflow number of doors like? Are you there already?

Speaker 2:

No, no, definitely not even close to my goal yet. We've got some pretty big goals and you know we talk internally, we always talk about when we buy the helicopter. So that's, that's getting there. No, I think I don't necessarily have a set number in mind. I really more think about it in terms of people we impact, because I've kind of learned the more people you can help and impact, the more it pushes you. So I've got a goal to help get 10,000 people involved in real estate investing and I know for a fact, once we hit number 10,000 in that like money's never going to be an issue ever again, because I've given the value to the community and then it's going to come back to me. But in terms of numbers, like obviously a billion dollars, like the B number, is nice, not in terms of AUM but in terms of net worth, would be amazing, and that's certainly like the big, hairy, audacious goal down the road.

Speaker 1:

Yeah no, I love that. Now, obviously, the name of this podcast is Inspired to Invest, so I always like to ask people I'm interviewing if they have a particular quote that motivates or inspires them.

Speaker 2:

Oh, this is going to sound kind of corny because it's my own quote, but we use it all the time internally. Now, it's average people are too expensive, right, and it applies to everything. So we apply it to our hiring practices. So, or even if you're a real estate investor and you're hiring an attorney or hire or working with a agent or whatever, if you hire the average person, you are going to lose so much and it's going to cost you so much, so pay a little bit more. It's like Hormozy talks about this too. You know, if you just pay 10% more, the the better person you get is worth a five or a 10 X, and it doesn't matter if it's on the lending side, agent side, capital raising side, whatever professional service. So now, internally with us, we are always looking for outstanding people because when I think back, all of the average people we've worked with in the past ended up costing us money. So I'm not sure if I'm allowed to throw my own quote, but like we've, been using it.

Speaker 1:

No, no, it makes perfect sense. And obviously how you translate that in your own business and your life. I think makes perfect sense and it's good wisdom for anyone that could be tuning in and I guess, on that note, as we're wrapping up, is there anything in particular that you wanted to leave with anyone that could be watching or listening right now.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, the biggest thing is don't think about it too long, just act. And not taking action and being scared and afraid has stopped way too many people from achieving their life goals, especially with real estate investing. You can think about it as long as you want, but until you actually take action, do your first deal, it doesn't matter. So if you're listening right now and you're on the fence, oh, I'd like to get in real estate, but I don't know. Just do it. Worst case scenario you end up owning a piece of real estate which, over time, is going to go up anyway. You'll have learned a whole bunch of life lessons and you're going to be better off for it yeah. Is it going to be stressful? Yes. Are you going to sometimes cry? Yes. Is it going to force you to learn new things? Yes, but those are all good things, so nothing bad can happen.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, no, agreed, and I think, just the way that the economy is going, it's the only way to really like inflation proof yourself. So I think you just have to do something, because the average salaries these days are just not cutting it. Now, for anyone that wants to learn more about you, or maybe the multifamily conference, what's the easiest way for people to get in touch?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, best thing to go for the conference is multifamilyconferenceca, and that is the portal into the whole crazy world of MFC.

Speaker 1:

Awesome. Well, we'll include all those details in the show notes below as well. Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to be here for today Anyone watching or listening, of course. Thank you for your time as well. If you've liked this episode, make sure you like comment. Thank you.