1. Sensei, as a martial arts instructor and owner of instructional martial arts schools, how did you find the time to learn about real estate, let alone actually become an investor?

When I started learning about real estate. I owned 7 martial arts schools, 1 boxing gym, newly married, purchased my first home (fixer-upper) and my wife and I had our first child. You speak of being busy and a lot on your plate; I definitely had a lot going on at the age of 26.

When I bought my first home using only 3% down with built-in equity and created sweat equity, I soon realized the power of leverage. This was astonishing to me that all I had to do is give 3% and the bank will match me with 97%. This blows away any retirement plan from your employer that matches a dollar to your dollar.

As soon as I got a taste of investing I had to go for more, so I put in long hours and late nights studying different strategies to learn the niche that best fits me. I found that to be rehabbing. I just went through the process with my own home and this strategy was most familiar to me. So I flew over to Ft. Meyers, FL to grab my first deal. Yes I was told that I am crazy among other things for investing across the states and remotely rehabbing my first project, but they ate their words when I did my first flip and made just over $9,000!

When I received that first paycheck it super charged me to get more in the pipeline. I did several more flips out of my area simply because it was cheaper and made better number sense. Once my new business built a strong capital base I started focusing on deals in my backyard.

2. Would high income earners and business owners continue w/ their “day job” and invest part profits part-time?

Absolutely! And I wouldn’t just seclude high income earners as I deal with many types of people that want to get involved in real estate while they focus on their career. As many people are not content with their J-O-B and would love to transition out of their job to real estate, some of us love ours. For an example, I still teach the martial arts, not because I have to, but because I love to.

Let’s face it… Prices on EVERYTHING are going up and our incomes remain the same. Then we have our passive investments that are deflated. So these average to high income earners are knocking on our door to help them get a faster and better return on their investment and re-coop what they have lost from the past few years. They also realize that becoming an active investor requires time, education and wisdom and the biggest hurdle is time. The average American no longer works 40 hours a week, we are now working 50, 60 and 70 hours per week and trying to balance a family life. Most realize becoming a real estate weekend warrior is not a successful plan. This is where Black Belt Investors and my program Remote Rehabs comes into play.

3. You’ve devised Remote Rehabs w/ that busy executive in mind, tell us about it.

Sure… I have created a way in which investors can rehab properties from the comfort of their own home without lifting a finger (or hammer). Remote Rehabs is a hands-off approach designed for the investor who may not have much experience and/or just simply doesn’t have the time to rehab properties, but wants all the cash! Remote Rehabs is a well planned, calculated and successful cash and wealth building program. It is 100% hands-off rehabbing system to produce the investor massive profits.

4. That’s very interesting… Can you elaborate why an investor would need your program and how does your Remote Rehabs work?

Remote Rehabs is designed for the investor that needs experience on their side. Investors are looking for a rock solid company that knows exactly what they are doing when it comes to targeting areas of operation, utilizing multiple strategies and executing the investor’s goals. We will hand hold throughout the entire process and there is no need to do it alone.

Remote Rehabs is also for the investor that does not have the time to rehab houses. Speed and efficiency is the name of this game and if you are not on top of the project then you are losing money. Investors… Here are a few words of wisdom… Don’t be a Weekend Warrior!

This program is also for the investor that desires a higher rate of return. Face it, savings accounts, CD’s, mutual funds, are not producing. In fact, some of these accounts are actually losing when you figure in taxes and inflation. We all need income streams to produce paydays and build our retirement. Currently our investors are averaging 13% ROI (Return on Investment) and some have returns in the 30’s. Where are you going to find solid returns like that? I know where…. Real Estate!

Remote Rehabs is a proven program for the investor that does not want to lift a hammer but wants all the profits.
4. With real estate it seems an investor can have full control over how busy he wants to be in the field, can you elaborate on this?

This is very true. You have a few options…

1) You can be full time real estate investors by wholesaling, rehabbing or landlording. It is a business and a business requires work.

2) You can be a part-time investor on your off hours while working your 9-5. This is how most people start. Some love their careers and only want real estate to be passive and others are looking for a transition out of the work place. I suggest if you want to transfer to real estate full-time then build the business until you can match your current income consistently, then make the change.

3) Or you can work both businesses full-time and get all the benefits with the help of my program Remote Rehabs. We do all the work and you collect all the checks.

5. I know you do prosperity tours in Arizona and teach investors about the local market there, it’s great that they are on weekends for busy professionals. Tell us more about your next tour and how can they get started?

I have been offering tours since 2003 to several emerging markets across the states. These tours are for investors to get familiar with the program, my team that works behind the scenes, the neighborhoods and the properties we are targeting. It’s a full day of education and in the field experience with no pressure sale.

The phoenix market has been hot for our investors. Some of the benefits of Phoenix are;

• the prices are very low
• the rental cash flow is large
• newer houses start in the low $70’s
• and these houses are great as rental or lease options

You can’t go wrong with the properties we are buying in Phoenix. Just to give you an idea how strong investors and I feel about Phoenix, we sold over 1,500 houses in 2010 and 1,056 were flips. We did the same in 2011 selling over 1,500 properies, most of those as rentals. We would not be able to perform these numbers unless we had a proven system.

I want to invite the readers to see for themselves and to join me on the next Phoenix tour that is scheduled in the fall and spring. Just call us for more details.

6. What can you do for these people who may have been hit hard by the economic meltdown yet want to get started?

Great question. My company offers our clients options. We can either feed you a fish or teach you how to fish. What I mean by this is that we can help you build a real estate business through wholesaling, creative financing, rehabbing and landording. If you have been hit hard by the economy then my first assumption is that you need to produce a paycheck. Now we can get paid several different ways through real estate, but if you are lacking the capital to buy and/or lack the credit to obtain loans, then you need to focus on wholesaling. Wholesaling real estate is the life blood of my company. This real estate niche allows investors to flip properties without the use of credit, cash and without taking title. It is definitely the quickest route to get paid in real estate without the risk.

7. Do you have anything else you’d like to add about how investors can work real estate part time for full-time profits?

Yes… GET IT GOING NOW no matter what it takes. We all know there is great opportunity out there otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this. We’ve all have heard to buy low and sell high, well… we are in the low part of the market. It’s not going to get any better than this, so get it going. If you need help building a real estate business or a performing portfolio, Black Belt Investors will be in your corner.