Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Short Notice: Co-operative Purchase Option - Adam King

The Perfect Strategy to make Money in this Market this Market

Have you been waiting for a creative real estate investing system that shows you "once and for all" that there\'s a proven method of getting deals anywhere in the country that is simply un-fail-able? Well the wait is over!

You will be delighted to know Adam does everything different during his presentations. You will first notice that he has a lot of knowledge for what he does, but will also see that "what he does" is very different than what you have seen in the past. If you think this will be another event where you get the same old information and then get pushed to the back table to buy an expensive course, you are sadly mistaken.

Adam will go over a day you will never forget. He will be sharing in detail the Cooperative Purchase System, which has been molded by the times and the economy. There will be an incredible amount of information shared, but the most important point is the promise this system offers. It is the easiest system to get started with in the country! There are associates who have gotten their first deals in a matter of MINUTES. And the average person usually gets a property under contract within 48 hours of applying the basics of the system WITHOUT making an offer to the seller! And in many cases without even TALKING to the seller! If you cannot talk, walk or drive a car you can still apply this system. Even if you are afraid to leave your house, you can still apply this system!

And for one more very exciting bonus, Adam is allowing our members to be the first in the country to witness the much anticipated launch of the Cooperative Purchase ILOC ™ Program. This is the final compliment to the already successful systems within the Cooperative Purchase. This system will show you how to use banks and lines of credit (yours or someone else\'s) to dominate the foreclosure market. You simply will not believe all of the incredible attributes this system has to offer. For all of you who want to live the dream but have been stopped in your tracks because of, fear or of tedious and repetitive jobs and tasks taught by most national speakers, this is y! our last chance to see how a system can compliment anyone in any market. And for those of you who are reaching to go full time and creating a favorable living for your family out of creative real estate, you will see what you have been missing.

When Adam is asked about this system, he replies with; the simplest explanation of this system is the logo on the front page of the Cooperative Purchase Website. And that of course is; welcome, you have no more excuses.




Date:Saturday, August 4th, 2007
Location:Holiday Inn Southfield
26555 Telegraph Rd, Southfield,
MI 48034
Time:9am to 4pm


For more information or to register today call us at 248-762-0800 or email us at info@megaeveningevent.com

http://www.megaeveningevent.com/

Friday, July 27, 2007

Land & Distressed Commercial Properties

. . .with None of Your Own Money or Credit

Short notice!!!

They are holding two events and I just heard about them.

They are in San Antonio, TX 7/28 and Los Angeles, CA 7/31

The cost is only $19.95 if you register online. The cost at is $99 at the door.

Go to: CRE Riches

Or call 888-667-1653 anytime 24/7 to sign up

Thursday, July 26, 2007

10 best places to own real estate

Good list of places.Of couse, if the general populace knows about them, it's time to start looking for new ones.

read more | digg story

Austin Real Estate Website

This is a usefull site if you are looking in the Austin, TX area. I just wish that it was easier to use and came with better instructions. Some people might not have the patience to play with it to learn it.

read more | digg story

Rent vs Mortgage Calculator

from real estate yahoo

read more | digg story

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Dealing with Realtors After a Seminar

"You're not going to be throwing a low ball offer at me, like the last 4 investors, are you?"

I hear this a lot from realtors. I hate hearing this because of course I'm going to make a low ball offer as one of my purchase techniques. It's just not my only technique. That question, however make me think about what happens when many potential investors come out of the seminars.

Most realtors know when a seminar has been in town. They get flooded with low ball offers from unknown people with no money and no credit. Plus, all the offers tend to look the same. I hate to tell you but almost anything they get in those email floods gets tossed out. Think of it from a realtor's standpoint. Why should they put a lot of effort working with 20 offers from some newbie unknown that have very little chance going through escrow?

So, you've spent 1-4 days learning some great stuff and you're all fired up. It's Monday and you want to dive in and put your new found knowledge to work for you. In most cases the person giving the seminar gave good advice on how to find deals. Why then do so many people think that they can get a realtor to do all their work?

In most seminars, students are taught to avoid realtors and look for direct sellers. Why then do the realtors get a flood of offers after that seminar? Because a lot of people who want to be investors are lazy. It's easier to send stuff to a realtor than to look for your own deals, market for and court your own sellers and do all the footwork that is normally needed.

It isn't that realtors, themselves, are lazy. They will do a lot of footwork. They will fax offers, meet with clients, and do a bunch of your paperwork. They just won't do it for you unless they know you and trust that you can perform and get them their commission check at the end of all their hard work.

Thus, we get to the usual catch-22. They won't work with you until you're successful and you can't get successful unless they work with you. Fortunately, this is not insurmountable. Smart realtors know that everyone has to start somewhere and if they can get in the ground floor with "That Client" they have it made for life. How do they know that you're That Client? First, lets look at the things that indicate that someone isn't That Client. Most people who fail in real estate are either lazy or they don't stick to it and follow through (and usually they are both).

The goal here is to show that you are not lazy and you do stick to it and you do follow through. To do this court the realtor. Set up lunch dates if you are local or phone dates if you aren't. First thing is keep the appointment. Next, find out what the realtor is looking for. I could tell you 95% of what they'll say but I still ask because they see that you are taking the time to find out. Also, there is still that 5% that might be key to a good relationship. During this conversation, remember that we have two ears and only one mouth. That is an important ratio. Then tell the realtor what your strategy is and how it fits into what they want.

At this point, I ask for something easy like emailed MLS listings matching a specific criteria. In most states, this is something that takes them 5 minutes to set up and it is then automatic. Then write your offers and either fax them to the realtor or convert them to PDF and email them to the realtor. That way all the realtor has to do is forward the file or punch in the phone number. Since the realtor knows you and this isn't much effort for the expected payout, they'll do it for a while. At this point, if you perform, they'll love dealing with you and you can get them to do just about anything that's legal.

Another thing that you can ask for are non competing referrals. They get referrals from people they send referrals to. So if you need a good loan officer, escrow company, real estate attorney or title company in that area, ask the realtor.

Remember that a realtor can be a valuable ally but anyone who is desperate or inexperienced enough to let you walk all over them, isn't going to be a valuable ally. When hunting for a realtor look for a partner rather than a lackey and you will do much better.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Marshall Reddick Seminars

I posted a bunch of Marshal Reddick's seminars and club meetings in the calendar for the rest of July and August.

I have all of his REO meetings listed and I'm working on the others (he has a lot of them).

Unfortunately for most of you viewers, almost all of Marshall Riddick's events are in California and most are in Orange County and the surrounding counties.

This is a very good way to learn the basics and most if his events are free. I think that the ones that charge include dinners or take place on college campuses.

Most of the services that his group offers are free. The group benefits from growing a large network of sellers and buyers to fuel his own investing. This is a very good group to check out even if you are an experienced investor. If nothing else, it provides a model for how to build a group that will fuel your investing business.

You can check out their site directly at: http://www.marshallreddickseminars.com.

Sunday, July 15, 2007

5 Proven Tips to get the most out of any Seminar

Recommended reading for Seminar Junkies. 5 great tips to maximize your time/money at any seminar. Read this before you splurge on the next Anthony/Tony Robbins' seminar!

This is very similar to an article I wrote but it has a slightly different angle to it. It is well worth reading.

read more digg story

Friday, July 13, 2007

How Many Seminars Should You Attend?

This really depends on your time frame.

For me, I saw the writing on the wall for my 9-5 job about a year before I got the layoff notice. I had plenty of time and money to look into and try various things (day trading, FOREX, note purchasing, plus various real estate sub markets). So, I did. I chose real estate for a number of internal and external reasons that I'll get into in another post.

If your time frame or budget don't support that, there are alternatives.

Limited Time

If you have limited time, spend about a month searching out all the info you can find on various blogs and seminar web sites. Avoid any seminars that are too general (some of them are very good but you will have time for those later). If you know what you want to do, look for single speaker/product seminars within your "travel zone" (whatever that is for you). If you still don't know exactly what you want to do, go to a multi speaker, multi day seminar. That is the best way to expose yourself to the many possibilities.

At the initial seminar, you will generally be given the opportunity to give them money to learn more about the topic you chose. If this is a multi speaker seminar, find out from the seminar staff what the deadlines for signing up are. The reason is that you don't have time to play with multiple seminars and if something looks good at the beginning of the seminar but something better comes along at the end, and you don't know the sign up deadlines, you either have to sign up for both or pass on the first and hope that something better comes along. If you must, sign up for both. Attend the one that will work best for you and only attend the other if you end up having the time. It is not the optimal use of your money but it is an optimal use of your time.

Limited Budget

If you have a limited budget but more than one year, go to as many multi speaker and other free seminars as you can. Don't buy into any of the products. They always have buy it now incentives at seminars. This is because they give the seminar host a cut of what they make and the host wants people to sign up at the seminar. The seminar will be back next year. They will offer the same deal or a better deal next time. When you spend your money, make it count.

If you are easily swayed, bring along a partner who have more willpower and give over your wallet. The speakers are trained to make it seem like the only people with success in their lives are the ones that pay them money "now." Once you've heard these from 2-3 dozen speakers, you learn that success does not come from giving your money to someone to learn something, it comes from giving your money to the right person to learn the right thing.

If you have Time and Budget

This was my route. I went to many multi speaker and single speaker seminars I bought a number of different products and follow up seminars (one might say too many but if I didn't I might not have found the one that did it for me). I learned that the same deal is offered every time the speaker presents it. I might have waited on some if I had known that. Oh, well. At least you can learn the easy way. So, if you have over a year and the budget, see as many different seminars as you can. Do go to the general self improvement seminars. You will want to take them eventually anyway and you have the time and the budget now.

11 Amazing Speakers at the Seminar of the Century

This is someone else's review of one of the Peak Potentials seminars.T. Harve Eker's seminar is not specifically real estate related but is good for anyone who runs a business (if you are a real estate invester, I hope you treat it as a business).

read more | digg story

Is Writing Quality Real Estate Blog Content Like Pulling Teeth?

Quality content for the real estate consumer or potential consumer is more about providing them with useful, entertaining and relevant information than penning post after post of market reports.

read more | digg story

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Real Estate Investment

Someone else's real estate and property investment at real estate investing guide.

read more | digg story

Glossary of Real Estate Terms

The site is: AboutEstate.com.

I found this site and it is really useful to me.

They list a large number of real estate terms. It has useful and, as far as I've seen, accurate information. However, the site takes a bit of navigating and I could quibble with some of their formatting choices.

They have a separate page for each beginning letter. Good so far. However, they use the underline (that normally indicates a link) to indicate a link you haven't yet followed. The links that you have followed no longer appear to be links.

Also the main display window is a bit busy. There is no separation between the definition and the ads. This does not appear to be an attempt to deceive since they are visually different but it does make it harder to read.

That being said, I did bookmark the site in my real estate links and I think that it is good enough to post here for others to use.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

The Millionaire Mind Intensive Can Help You be More Effective in Your Real Estate Business

The Millionaire Mind Intensive isn't specifically real estate based.

However, I think that it teaches good skills that carry well into your real estate business. One of this seminar's focuses is teaching you how to get out of your own way. This won't transform your life (only you can do that) but it will help you know where the speed bumps are. My own reaction: there are a couple of traits that I am working on changing and a a few traits that I like so I'm figuring out how to work around them and still improve the way I conduct business.

They have a number of events across the US and Canada for September and October: Montreal, QC; Atlanta, GA; Los Angeles, CA; Toronto, ON; Denver, CO; Ft. Lauderdale, FL; Edmonton, Alberta; Dallas, TX; and Seattle, WA.

You can check their current schedule (in case they update before I get it to my calendar) and/or register Millionaire Mind Evening.

Millionaire Mind Evening is a one evening, free preview of the Millionaire Mind Intensive program.

Monday, July 9, 2007

Luxury Homes Real Estate Training

Marco Kozlowski has the luxury homes market down pat.

He has all the tools and partners you need to buy and sell luxury homes.

His next seminar is on August 27 28 29 30 in Las Vegas, NV.

This bootcamp is pretty good for beginners. He lines it all out for you. One of the key features about this is that he doesn't just teach you how to find and how to sell luxury homes. He teaches you how to set up a business for buying and selling luxury homes. He even goes into employee hiring and management so you can spend more time doing what makes you money. If you are just starting out, this will show you how to set yourself up right. If you are already a real estate invester, this section will help you get out of your own way.

You might be able to pull a deal together in the first month but it usually takes longer to get all your tools set up and in place. It can also take a while to actually pull a deal together but that doesn't mean that you won't make some money on the way. One of the things that Marco focuses on is how to make little bits of money on each step. This way, even if a deal falls through, you make enough money to keep the lights on.

The good thing is that he sends you enough information to get started and get some potential deals before the bootcamp. If you have at least three weeks before the bootcamp and you have $100-$100 to spend on marketing, you can come to the bootcamp with 4-10 potential deals. At the bootcamp, he has people bring up their deal and he would call the seller and help them close the deal. This seminar isn't a bunch of "this is what worked for me 10 years ago." He gets up there with you and your potiential deal and works it right there.

Also, the course is always changing. There are things in his seminars now that weren't there when I took it and things that he's removed because they don't work any more (or don't work as well as something new).

You can contact them to get the specific details HERE.

Marco also has a weekly conference call in which he or his assistant answer questions and help you do some prep for the bootcamp.

After the bootcamp, you have access to a different set of calls in which he keeps people informed about the new stuff that he's adding to the bootcamp and answers specific questions.

New Seminar On Calendar

Todd Dotson has two Tactical Real Estate Bootcamps coming up.

One is on September 26-30 in Arlington, TX and the other is in November (dates TBD) in Anaheim, CA.

This bootcamp is very good for beginners and for those who have been in the field for a while but don't think they are doing as well as they should.

You can contact them to get the specific details HERE.

Todd also has a weekly conference call in which he or his assistant answer questions.

Friday, July 6, 2007

New events on the Calendar

I posted a bunch of dates and locations for Financial Power Summit.

This is a multi speaker/multi topic seminar. About a1/4 of the topics relate to real estate. Another 1/4 to 1/2 relate to business in general (and if you aren't running your real estate investing as a business, you should). The other topics may not have any interested to someone focused on real estate.

They seem to be staying on the two coasts (east coast then west coast).

I will be updating this with contact and registration information but for now, email me at reseminarlist@gmail.com. Please reference this list in the subject line to seperate your message from the spam.

Thursday, July 5, 2007

How to Get the Most Out of a Real Estate Seminar

Q: What are the two things that you get from a real estate seminar (or any seminar)?

A: Information and contacts.

How do you maximize the information you receive from the seminar?

Listen and take notes.

By listening, I don't just mean hearing what the speaker says. I mean pay attention, think about what the speaker says. Resist the temptation to say "I know that already" or "that's not right." Both of those mental statements shut your brain down. Even if you've heard something several times, think about it. Something new might occur to you or you might be in a different mental place than you were the last time you heard it. Also, you can't tell the validity of a statement until you hear it, think about it and evaluate it. You can't do that if you reject it before you hear it.

Take plenty of notes. I always bring two notebooks (computer and paper). If I can find a spot near a wall with power, I set up the computer. Otherwise, I make due with the paper notebook (I type faster and with less thought than I write). If they have handouts, glance through them before the presenter speaks and look to see if they are copies of the PowerPoint or white board, etc. If they are, follow along with the handout and reference it in your notes. That way you don't waste time writing what's already written.

Don't try to write every word that comes out of the speaker's mouth. Think about what the speaker is saying and write what it means to you. This does two things for you. It makes you think about and process what the speaker is saying and it makes it easier for you to remember what you learned when you read your notes. If you reread your notes. Most people never reread their notes. That's OK. The process of writing the notes plants the information more firmly in your mind that just listening.

There is a danger to putting your own words on the information you get: you might get it wrong. That's why it is always good to swap notes with someone else that went to the seminar and read them. For one thing, if they have something that you missed, you can add it to your notes. If they have a different take on what the presenter said, you can discuss it and figure out just what the real information is.

How do you get as many contacts as possible at a seminar?

Bring lots of business cards and meet as many people as possible.

You should always have a pocket full of your cards at the beginning of the day of a seminar and you should have a pocket full of other people's cards at the end of the day. However, it isn't quantity that you need it is quality. If you end up with a pile of cards and you look through them and can't figure out who they are or why you have their card, it does you no good. After you are done talking to the person or group that you swapped cards with, write the date, time and a little bit about what they do that can help you in your business on the back of their card. That way the card will still mean something a week after the seminar.

How do you greet people you meet at a seminar?

Practice your "elevator speech." Your elevator speech is a 15 second speech where you say who you are and what you do. Here's an example: "Hi, I'm Jeff Miller. I buy and sell high end properties and I run a list for real estate seminars." That's it. It's simple and concise. They are interested in meeting someone who buys and sells high end real estate or who runs a list of real estate seminars or they aren't. If they are interested, I try to find out who they are and what they do (and why they are interested in what I do). Am I afraid of rejection? Why should I be? They aren't saying that they have no interest in Jeff Miller, they are saying that they have no interest in high end properties or real estate seminar lists. In my mind, I thank them for letting me cut loose and talk to someone else who might be interested.

After you have given your elevator speech (and, hopefully, heard theirs), ask questions and listen. Find out why they are interested in and what they need. Don't worry about getting your information in. If they are experienced, they will be asking questions and listening too. If they aren't experienced, you can always let them know how you can help them with a particular challenge that they mention.

Where can you meet people at a seminar?

Unless you roll in late, you are probably standing in a crowd waiting for the doors to open. It's a crowd. Of people.

When you get in the room of the seminar, before the seminar, you are in a room, a crowded room. It's a crowd. Of people.

When you sit down, look left, right, ahead of you and behind you. You should see people. If you don't, move.

When you are working your way to your spot in the middle of the row, you are walking past people.

I might seem a little flip with the above examples but they are true. Also, you might be wondering (in a snarky tone): "So there's a crowd. Of people. How do I meet them?"

Well, wise guy, pick one person at random (or whoever is closest) and say: "Hi, I'm Jeff Miller. I buy and sell high end properties and I run a list for real estate seminars." Don't put a lot of thought into who to meet because you won't know who they are until after you've met them.

It really is that simple. You'll believe it once you've done it a few times.

Also, there is usually a lunch break or it ends right before dinner. Either pick someone who you want to learn more about or pick someone who you haven't met yet. How do you meet them? You say: "Hi, I'm Jeff Miller. I buy and sell high end properties and I run a list for real estate seminars." Then say where you're headed for lunch or dinner and ask if they would like to join you.

Remember they are all there looking to learn more about real estate (or whatever the seminar is about). You already share one interested with them or one of you is in the wrong place.

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

What is a Real Estate Seminar?

This is the first of a series of posts for the first time seminar attendee.

I will talk about what to expect at the different types of seminar and how to get the most out of the seminars.

The first topic is:

What Types of Real Estate Seminars are There?

There are several attributes to most seminars, I'll go through some of them.

The first attribute that most people see is cost. Cost can tell you something about the seminar but it can also be deceptive. I'll break them down into what usually goes into each cost caragory and then give some of the exceptions.

For single topic seminars:
  • Free: Expect tthat they have something to sell. No one does these seminars to lose money (if nothing else, they have to pay for the hotel space). If you go to a free seminar, you will hear a sales pitch. This isn't a bad thing as long as you know that's what you're going to get. Unless you have enough time to spend 2-8 hours listening to a sales pitch (or multiple sales pitches by different presenters, in the case of the longer ones), only go if you think that you might be interested enough in the topic to spend $500-$5000. You will generally hear a lot of "what" and "why" answers but no "how" answers (i.e. they will say what you need to learn and why you need to learn it but they won't teach it for free).
  • $100-$200: Just like a free seminar but they got you to pay for it.
  • $400-$700: Expect either a product that has a monthly membership fee (like web hosting or a data service) or some minor information with an upsell to a $1000-$3000 seminar. At this level, they should be telling you enough to get started in the field but you will be reinventing the wheel a lot. You will have to do a great deal of research or trial and error on your own.
  • $1000-$5000: Expect to get enough information that you can actually do business. You might not get the best stuff they have to offer but you should get enough info and tools (like books and CDs with forms or other info) to function well. They will offer more services, usually software packages that will do the stuff they tought and they will usually offer mentorships. If that is the field that you are going in and you want to start right away, a good mentor is the way to go.
  • $10,000 - $20,000: this is usually packaged with a mentorship program. They usually go all out on these since they will use the success of these programs to promote themselves. Expect to be able to perform well if you can follow the directions they give you.
For multi topic seminars, expect to get the information from the next lower price point.

Note that just because the seminar is expensive it's no guarantee that they will give the right amount of information. However, most of the worst ones got taken down a few years ago.

Next topic: How to get the most out of a seminar.

Monday, July 2, 2007

Enlightened Wealth Retreat - July 25th - July 29th

The Enlightened Wealth Retreat is in Washington DC. They will be announcing the Anaheim one soon (it'll be about 6 months from now).

This is Robert Allen's group: Enlightened Wealth Institute (EWI). I did my first real estate deals using information and resources from one of their seminars. This is a free seminar for current EWI students. If you aren't a current student, you need to contact a current student and get them to bring you as a guest. If you send me a note, I'll try to put you in contact with an EWI member who is going.

This event has a number of programs by different presenters. EWI started out as an almost exclusively real estate based event but lately they have been branching out into other fields. If you are interested in a topic, they probably cover it in the 5 days.

This event has a bit "Ra-Ra" (cheerleading stuff) but we all need a bit of that now and again.

Also, since this is a free event, almost all the presenters will be selling a program or product. The various products have "investments" ranging from $500 to $5000. This and the Learning Annex event are IMO the two best events to attend if you want to invest in real estate but don't know what segment of the real estate market to invest in. Do not buy every product you like, pick one to focus on and give it a good try. Do not try to learn multi tenant and rehabs and commercial properties at the same time. You just can't give any one of them the proper focus. You will be more successful if you pick one and stick with it at least 6 months.

Also, like the Learning Annex, just because the presenters have a product to sell, don't think that you won't learn anything. I've been to a number of EWI events and I only saw one presenter who just gave a sales pitch without giving useful information and he hasn't been back since. There was another who was borderline but i suspect that he got a "talkn to" since he was much better the next year. In general, you will get enough information that you can get yourself started and on the learning curve just from what they tell you in the presentation. The seminar or product that they promote will help you go faster and will give them time to go into much more detail.

Sunday, July 1, 2007

Why create a Seminar List?

4 years ago, when I decided to become a real estate investor, I had some general knowlege (I'd worked for a hard money lender for 13 years) but no specific training. So I went to a lot of seminars starting in late 2003 through 2004. In order to learn what I need to get started.

I went to seminars on just about every field of real estate investing to find what was right for me. Eventually I did, geting into 4-plexes in 2004 as a wage replacement.

I still go to a few each year because the market keeps changing and what was a good investement in 2004 no longer works.

Where I have specific knowlege about a specific seminar or a specific speaker (if my knowlege is old, I can talk about the speaker's abilities and character but the seminar info will, hopefully, have changed.

My next posts will be about what kinds of seminars there are and what to expect from a seminar in general.