Traffic in the DC area yesterday was horrible.  Luckily, we spent most of the day in the office filming and spending time with a live class that we are running via webinars.

Just as we were wrapping up, one of the guys in the office said “Man, it has to be a full moon out.  Traffic was crazy everywhere this morning.”

Sure enough, I looked on my calendar last night – it was a full moon yesterday.  Was it me, or did you notice people being a little more “on edge” yesterday?

Regardless, it did lead to an interesting point.

The same person then said “What amazes me is how many people just sat there in traffic.  I paid $3 to get across the whole county and saved 30 minutes, or more.  No traffic at all.”

You see, near my office they recently completed a toll road that goes nearly the whole way across the county, and it costs a little over $3 if you drive from one end to the other.

People are stubborn, and willing to spend hours more of their time – in order to save a couple bucks and not pay a toll.

The same thing happens in our business.  People try to “save” a few dollars and do everything online – “for free”.  In the end, it causes frustration, loss of time and a tremendous loss of energy.

We have one of the longest running investor groups in the country – 13 years and counting.  Many groups in our area and beyond have come and gone, stopped and started, or renamed themselves through the years, trying to put a fresh face on their groups.  Which is fine, right?

However……

Most of those groups have tried to do the same thing – month after month.  They invite a national speaker to speak in front of their group who of course has something to sell and is “guaranteed” to make you more money.  You buy the speakers stuff – and away he or she goes, back to the city where they come from, and very seldom will you hear from him or her again.

You are on your own.

Alone.

Trying to figure it out.

You get frustrated and think to yourself – “this doesn’t work”.  “Not here in my area.”

And next month, here comes another trained salesperson to sell you something again.  But this time, you don’t buy it.

Why?

Because you learned your lesson last month – right?

At WREIA we deliberately changed a few years ago.  And our members have noticed.

Listen, we have a strong group of ACTIVE Washington area investors.  People who are doing things, and getting stuff done. And, we know when to slow down so our group doesn’t miss important details.

Last month, we ran short on time and decided to slow down and expand the topic, Wholesaling Houses, to this month.

While we had the cameras out, we filmed a short video inviting you back to WREIA this month for Part 2 of Wholesaling.

Many of our members that were with us last month signed up for a class we are teaching, mostly online.  By the way, it was the first time we have offered a class in a long, long time.  Nearly all of our meetings we just deliver great content – with nothing to purchase at the end of the meeting.  We focus and the only thing we talk about is what is working in our area – right now.

I was just talking about our members being “doers”.  Well, as a result of that class, some of the members have raised just shy of $1 Million dollars for their deals, and found dozens of potential properties.   That happened for them just since our last meeting on April 28th.  With just a little bit of instruction and follow through, massive changes can happen for you in our business too.

If you are tired of getting “pitched” day after day, and month after month – come on out and visit with the members at WREIA.  It’s a good time, with good people, and we also give you a little bit to eat (as long as you get there early).

We open the doors at 6:30 and usually start around 7:15 or so.  Depends on traffic, topic and if we are having some small group discussions that month.  You don’t want to be late, because we have started every meeting for 13 years with our Wholesale deals.  It gives you a chance to either offer your deals, or listen for other deals that you might have an interest in.

In 13 years, we have never missed a meeting where one of our members didn’t have at least one property to present to our group.   13 years and every month there has been at least one opportunity for our members to make some money. There have literally been hundreds of chances for you to hear about a property and act on it.

Oh, and the price to attend WREIA is only $25 at the door, or $20 if you reserve your spot online. You can save a few dollars more if you want to purchase a 6 month, or year membership.

Are you one of those people who likes to stubbornly sit in traffic just to save a couple dollars, then have to call ahead and apologize for being stuck in traffic, and then show up late for your meeting?  Or would you rather spend a couple bucks and get where you are going on time, or even early and stay fresh, ready and on point?

Back to our business.  You can find a ton of information online – for free.  However, most of it is horribly dated material.

Some of what you find online is good, and there is a little advice, very little, that is something you can act on and actually turn a profit in your business.

Start asking yourself – “What’s in this for me?” and “Am I just trying to be sold something?”

If you start getting that feeling that you are just being sold something – walk away.

We have new people at WREIA all the time.  I see how they walk in the door, with their guard up, waiting to push away this months speaker/salesperson from Ohio, New York, or Utah.  I get it.

That same person usually comes up to me at the end of the meeting and says “That was some great information, and it was nice to not have to buy something.  You just delivered good content.  Thanks.”

I usually see them again the next month. As time goes on, they either slip away because they realize this isn’t as easy as the late night infomercials make it out to be.  Or – they keep coming out and become a member of our community – and they start having and sharing their success.

And that Ladies and Gentlemen is why I founded and still love leading WREIA every month.  Helping other people gather information, take action and have success is one of the things I feel called to do, and it gives me a great deal of pleasure to see other people do the same.

We will have our May 2014 WREIA meeting this Monday, May 19th.

Join us at WREIA Monday night May 19th, and let me know if there is anything I can do to help you and your business.

John Peterson

Remember this couple from our article last month?  The two people sitting on their front porch, with boxes packed, and obviously getting ready to move?

Imgagine it’s now a month later and they moved.  New owners are all ready to renovate the house and move in themselves.

But, did you know that the new owners never even met the old owners?  The new owners discovered the property through a “wholesaler”.  The wholesaler put the property under contract and then took that contract to the prospective buyer to see if they were interested.  They were excited.

The new owners paid cash for their house, and plan to refinance after they renovate the property.

This type of transaction takes place all the time.  People just don’t know about them.

As renovators, we buy property that is “off market” all the time. It’s totally legal.  We pay the county transfer taxes, file a deed, get insurance and all the other stuff that takes place in a “normal” realtor assisted transaction.

In fact, about 9 out of 10 people use a Realtor when they buy a home.  But that leaves 10% that don’t use a Realtor.  When you think about it, that is a lot of transactions that do not go through the agency system.

It’s a huge market and one most people don’t know much about.  Lucky for you, we are continuing to talk about the wholesale process at WREIA this month.  Last month, we just had too much to cover, and halfway through I decided that we would be extending the topic over into our May meeting.  Nearly everyone at WREIA last month agreed, “Let’s slow down and go into more detail.”

I have been buying homes at wholesale rates for nearly two decades.  I have a lot of experience both buying the homes directly, as well as working with other wholesalers who have originated the deals themselves.  In fact, I do a lot of deal with other wholesalers in the DC area.  They bring the deals, I bring the transactional experience along with some capital,  and we mix up our contractors.  We complete the project, and finally we both are happy when a retail sale is made.

I get excited talking about wholesale real estate.  And that is exactly what we are going to continue talking about next Monday night at our next Washington REIA meeting.

Join us at WREIA Monday night May 19th, and let me know if there is anything I can do to help you and your business.

John Peterson

 301-881-5541