All within the last 48 hours, I've had to deal with a variety of pissy, whiny, "pussy" boys who are starting to make me wonder where the real men have gone. (I know you're out there, guys! Raise your hands, okay?)
Now, this is going to be a "politically incorrect" discussion and probably not something for the "pussy" boys to be reading so, if you're one of "them," stop reading now and go back to complaining about how life is so unfair for you and how it's always somebody else's fault as to why both you and your life sucks so bad.
Here's what happened to me within the last 48 hours which has literally pushed me over the edge...and I get dangerous when I'm angry; I'm probably about to say some things Ishouldn't say too but, oh well. I gotta get it out there to keep my insanity so here it is:
1) The "stalker" from the Detroit event is continuing to call my office this week. This time he's "whining" about how it's "unfair" because he can't get a listing agent or broker or somebody to call him back with numbers on a property so he can't turn in a deal for The $9,000,000 Opportunity before next Friday's deadline. So...it's not "fair" that he can't participate and because of his personal inability to participate, I should do something. He thinks I should give him a refund on the event he attended because he's an idiot.
By the way, the "stalker" is a white guy, presumably in his 30s, and he doesn't have asingle freaking excuse as to why he can't do anything except for what the demons in his mind are saying to him in the middle of the night. After all, I've received about 300 deals from different Detroit seminar attendees of all ages, sexes, races, creeds, and backgrounds yet we have this young "white guy" with everyadvantage you can possibly freaking get in this business and he's going to COMPLAIN that he can't get a broker to call him back. So, why doesn't everyone else have the same excuse, psychopath? Oh wait, maybe people aren't calling you back because you...well, sound like a psycho on the phone perhaps? Just a theory. Try sounding normal and somebody will probably call you back!
Then...
2) Rose clicked on something and ended up getting a virus in her computer. So, I did what I absolutely hate doing which is calling this "computer guy" who is probably one of the worst people to deal with; it's like listening to nails on a chalkboard when he talks. (He's one of these people that make you want to throw up in your mouth.) He's ridiculously condescending to women like you wouldn't believe and then he wonders why he's got a permanent account on Match.com because he can't get a date to save his life...for the past solid 5 years that I've known this fruitcake. (But it's all the women's fault; it's certainly not his fault that every woman on the planet finds him utterly repulsive, right?)
Oh, by the way, the "computer guy" is also a white guy who, presumably has the "upper hand" in society as well yet he thinks that all women are stupid and that he's God. He got very irritated about us having to call him back to actually do his job correctly since he screwed up some kind of configuration with our office Internet connection; he was actually offended that we turned the tables on him, making him feel like the inadequate piece of shit that he is.
Needless to say, I'll be looking for a new computer guy -- even desperately flipping through the Yellow Pages if necessary -- the next time my computers break down because I'll be damned if I put up with one more second of his crappy attitude about life and how he's smarter than everyone else, all the while blaming everyone else (buthimself) as to why he's a perpetually lonely and dateless loser.
Then...
3) Yesterday morning I had a friend of mine text me really early in the morning to tell me that some loser posted a rather disrespectful comment on my Facebook page about myThe 18-Month Millionaire kindle book. He basically said my 70+ reviews are "fake." Hmmmm...70+ "fake reviews," two of which were ONE stars. Like I have that kind of time or interest to post "fake reviews" over the course of a 2-month period, tardo. So, he got blocked and his comments were deleted instantly thereafter.
What really bothered me wasn't the negative comment about my book (which he didn't even read) but that he made a comment on a picture about my daughter. That's what sent me over the edge.
And I don't know the race of this guy nor do I care, but I do know it was a guy (unless people are naming girls "Duane" these days). Anyone who makes comments from the anonymity of their computer with an Internet connection -- saying things that they probably wouldn't say to my face -- is a man who has no balls at all. (Maybe growapairalready?!)
And finally, the best one yet...
4) Most of you know about the frivolous lawsuit going on with one student who attended the Detroit event. (I have NEVER had a student file a lawsuit against me for ANYTHING since I started teaching real estate in 2001.) So, let me tell you what this ball-less piece of crap had the nerve to email me the other day:
He has a listing of "demands" that he wants including that I am to allow him to come to my next 3 seminars as a Platinum VIP without him paying for it. And I guess I'm supposed to apologize for...well, telling everyone the truth about how he couldn't send me an Excel spreadsheet AS INSTRUCTED and how he thought he was exonerated from having to follow directions like everyone else who showed up to the event. He had the audacity to demand that I send out an email blast, telling all of you what an awesome chum he really is. (He's asking me to lie, basically.)
Yeah, okay! Like that's going to happen! I don't negotiate with "terrorists," bullies, or men who have no freaking balls because they want to be whiny pussies who refuse to takepersonal responsibility for why their life is so freaking pitiful.
By the way, in the state of California, there's a little felonious act called "blackmail" and "extortion." Look it up: California Codes 518-527.
So, I hope this ball-less frivolous-lawsuit-filing student of mine has bail money because he's going to need it when he comes back to California for the charges that are about to be filed against him.
Oh yeah, and this guy is an older white guy.
Am I pounding down the white men in this country?
Well, I do have an awesome solid base of students including some white men who have been incredibly amazing. So, this isn't directed to everyone, obviously. (Just the few "pains" in my side that have been mentioned above.)
What I find very sad is that the white male is supposed to be the "majority" in this country. They're the ones that get all the opportunities over women and minorities. Yet time and time again, these are the ONLY people in my groups and student base whocomplain about how direct and straightforward I am...and how I'm no nonsense and no bullshit. Yes, they are the ones whoactuallycomplainabout that.
Yet not one woman has ever complained about how straightforward and no nonsense I am. Every race (other than white men...but NOT ALL white men, I'll remind you) seem to absolutely love who I am, what I stand for, and how I don't bullshit around.
What I love about women and minorities is that we have thicker skin than the "majority" because we've been knocked around a lot pretty much all of our lives. We've been told we can't do things, we can't participate, we aren't any good, we're not smart enough, we've been called names...you name it.We've all heard it and been through it. That's made usall stronger for it. It's something we should be proud of, something we should embraceand ultimately use to our advantage; we are A LOT tougher than the "majority" which makes us have a much easier ability (easier than you think) to be successful in business. Very successful, in fact, if that's what you want.
This is why a woman never sends me an email to tell me to "tone it down" or why an African-American never complains about how bold and straightforward I am. (If anything, women and minorities tell me to "keep it up" and don't change.)
Because you guys and gals are tough! Rock solid tough!! You have thick skin. You've been beaten up and knocked around by society. And I love you for it because this "societal abuse" has given you something that you don't realize you have yet:power and strength!
So, why is it that I have the hardest time from some of these white guys? What bothers me really isn't that they take offense to how straightforward and "rough around the edges" that I am but that they are lacking personal responsibility (i.e. "having balls") when they haveeveryadvantage that women and minorities have never had in this country!
Case in point: A few years ago I had this seminar and this white guy there was complaining that (a) I didn't have a big enough t-shirt for his 600-lb. whale-like body because my XXL shirt wouldn't fit him, and (b) that somebody "took" the seat he was sitting in the day before...and he "thought" that everyone would naturally sit in the same seats as on Day One of the event. Even worse, he came to me to cry about this bullshit.
My response: "Suck it up and grow a pair." And my censored private thoughts at that moment were, Maybe you need to give Jenny Craig a call.
I'm already on my daughter about taking personal responsibility for anythingandeverything you can realistically control. Personal responsibility is very important to me because it is, in effect, everything. When you take personal responsibility for what you do, you also can direct your personal successes in life, too.
It's the difference between thinking that success is about "luck" vs. something you have the power to create. Luck is bullshit. And yes, you do have the power to create anything and everything you want in life!
So, let's talk about "balls" for a minute.
"Balls" doesn't mean hiding behind your keyboard while posting malicious comments about others online...comments you'd never say to someone's face. It's not being a grown man to whine like a crybaby about how it's somebody else's fault because, in reality, youcouldn't do this or get that. It's also not about trying to make someone else responsible foryour personal inadequacies. All of this means having no "balls" but rather being "ball-less" for burdening such pittance on others.
Having "balls" means that you essentially "steamroll" through life, allowing the pesky mosquitoes (problems) that show up to not phase you one little bit. You keep driving forward with ferocious warrior-like focus. You take full responsibility for what you cancontrol and for what could be an "effect" of your "cause." And you do what you have to do to get to where you want to be, whatever it takes and however long it takes. That's having balls, folks.
So, the point in all this?
The first thing you have to do to become successful is stop blaming other people for why you are where you are in life. You are the one who got you to this point. So, take somepersonal responsibility and simplydecide that you're ready for something else, somethingbetter now.
Deciding to be something else and to go into a different direction in your life is the first part, perhaps the hardest. Once that happens, you build a plan and stick to the plan.
It's no more difficult than that. Really, it's not!
In the meantime, I guess I'll either (a) ignore these "pussy" boys until their attention is diverted by a butterfly or some sporting event on TV and they leave me alone for good, or (b) make them the men that their mommies apparently failed to do. It will start with telling them to shut the f*** up, stop crying and blaming everybody else, grow a pair of balls, and start doing things to follow their goals and dreams.
But somehow I just don't think they're ready for that. Whining, complaining and blaming others is just too easy and comforting for them, like sucking on their pacifier and crying in their blankies all day long.
Forget about them. All that matters is that YOU have a pair and that YOU go after your goals and dreams! Who cares about everyone else at this phase in the game?
This year has already shown signs that it's going to be a different "animal" than recent years past.
And that's a good thing, right?
My business has doubled in the past 6 months or so and I'm having problems keeping my sanity right now.
This year is going to be a kick ass year. It's pretty clear that this is the beginning of our modern day "Roaring 20s" except that it's the "Roaring 2000s" that we had yet to experience for this millennium...until now!
I always say the same thing during these most exciting and quite profitable times: only those who are ultra lazy won't manage to collect the massive sky windfall of cash floating down everywhere.
The biggest problem during times like these is that it's easy to get wrapped up in the many financial possibilities to end up going after everything. And when that happens, it's harder to cash in because you're not focused.
If you need focus, I'll give you focus.
First, think about my funnel. Aggressive to Passive Income. Simple.
Choose an Aggressive Income Business. Take the cash you make from it. Funnel it into Passive Income Assets, preferably multifamily residential-commercial (apartment building) properties.
Simple. Very simple. Ridiculously simple.
Then...keep your nose to the grind for 3 years. Yep, 3 years...give or take.
You'll look up and realize that you can retire. You'll have enough Passive Income coming in that you can walk away from everything for the rest of your life.
Am I over-simplifying this? Nope. Not at all. I have hundreds of students that have followed this very simple plan and have done exactly what I've outlined above.
So, what do I recommend?
Well, I have a couple of kick ass things coming up.
1) My Multifamily Apartment Building Cash Flow Mentorship Group. This group is 8 weeks long and is 100% online. It will show you the entire process of what to do to get started in Passive Income Assets, as this is my signature group and touts the highest rate of student success by percentage.
I have a deal on this mentorship group that ends today at 5pm PST. Here's the link for it:
http://www.monicamain.com/mlk_blow_out. You can get the mentorship for a fraction of the normal price plus your choice of one of my $397 bonuses for F*REE!
2) My Internet Cash Flow System. I have a killer 2-day seminar event coming up in LA on March 14th and 15th. This will show you everything you need to know to get an Internet biz up and running in a matter of days and profiting in a matter of mere weeks. I still have a kick-ass deal going on till the end of this month. Here's the link: http://www.monicamain.com/internet_cash_flow_event_in_la
And there you have it. You're focused for the massive financial windfall of 2015.
Oh wait. I forgot to mention. You actually do have to apply yourself and implement a very simple step-by-step action plan to cash in. And that's what I'm here to help you do.
Friday night I got roped into bringing my daughter to a 7-year-old birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's. That is one place I adamantly try to avoid because it's a petri dish of every type of germ strand you can think of...and some not even discovered by science yet (until the next major disease outbreak anyway).
But I went because my daughter wanted to see her friends from school and she doesn't mind the germs or even licking the table if she wants to (usually to purposely upset me since she knows better).
I sat down and a woman who looked much older than I asked if she could sit at the table across from me. "Sure," I exclaimed. Better than sitting there by myself, I guess.
She told me that she was the mom of one of the little squirts at the party and she looked beyond tired. She complained that she didn't even want to be there because it had been a long work week. I asked her what she does. She's a doctor. Cardiology.
Not surprising. I live in a neighborhood of a wide variety and array of highly paid professionals who are methodically working their way into an early grave with each passing week of 60 to 80 working hours to clock in.
You know, I honestly don't know who to feel bad for anymore. The poor who really are in an "ignorance-is-bliss" state of mind and really don't know what to do to create a better lives for themselves or the highly-paid professionals who are literally "locked" into a dead-end lifestyle of working themselves to the bone until they are admitted into a rubber room...or they drop dead one day from being overworked and over-stressed.
She asked me if I volunteered at the school. I said I did, twice a month to be exact (except for the "short" school months where it's only once a month). She sighed, disappointed in herself, I think. She expressed how she wished she could volunteer because her son kept bugging her about it but she couldn't even put in an hour in the morning to pull it off.
Pitiful, I thought. Where is the freedom there?
And there I was thinking that life was so unfair because I could only buy one small cup of cheap blush wine from Chuck E. Cheese's per hour...and how their salad bar sucks ass because they wouldn't refill the croutons.
My new doctor friend explained to me that her dad wanted her to be a doctor and she then became a doctor. I inadvertently asked her was she wanted to be in her life but she diverted her question into something else, clearly not wanting to talk about what she would have wanted to do if she had a choice because...
She really has no choice anymore.
She's 40-something, immersed in her career, probably barely just paid off her hundreds of thousands of dollars in student debt, and there simply is nothing else for her anymore.
At least that's how she sees it.
I saw how drained she looked. She was pressing her son to leave early but he was having a good time. I could see that she was on the verge of snapping on the poor child because he wanted to continue having fun with his classmates outside of regular school hours. Yet she couldn't enjoy a single minute of the quickly-passing seconds of watching her son grow up because she just wanted to collapse into a drug-induced dreamland coma...probably till Monday morning.
And if I wasn't there, she probably would have went ballistic on the child, dragging him outside by his ear and forcefully jamming him against his will into the car. I kept telling her, "Relax. Give him a few more minutes. He has more tokens. They don't last long." I could tell that he was grateful for the welcomed buffer in the situation and she caved because she didn't want to look like a jerk-off.
What's worse? Starting from nothing (i.e. no career, no job, no "life") or being so deeply intertwined in an ass-busting soul-eating career that inhales 60 to 80 hours of your precious life a week...and it happens to be a career that you can never escape?
I'd opt for the former.
No matter which category you find yourself in (or maybe you're somewhere in an "undefined" middle category not mentioned above), as long as you have the appropriate knowledge and desire to change directions, you can change directions. Period.
Of course, if you are working 60 to 80 hours a week, it makes it much more difficult unless you taper down that impossible work schedule to make room for your new life.
I was so tempted to start talking to the doctor about how she could see a light at the end of the tunnel -- in 3 years or less, in fact -- if she just started getting involved in Passive Income Strategies, like multifamily real estate.
But I knew she was in no mood to listen to such a sales pitch from me or anyone else. So I kept quiet and silently felt a swell of gratitude that I wasn't a doctor or dentist or lawyer...or one of the many professionals I live near, talk to, and even counsel in my line of work because they are just stuck. And they're tired. And they want to realize freedom but they don't know how.
You're in a good position though, believe it or not. If you've been a student of mine for a long time (as many of you have been) or even if you're a "newbie" student, you at least had some inkling of desire to find a "different way" (ideally that's easier) to acquire financial freedom, either through Aggressive Income or Passive Income Strategies (or both).
Many professionals, believe it or not, don't even know what to do or how to do it to ever gain that sense of "freedom" that they crave. (And their local Certified Financial Planner or Investment Banker isn't going to help either.)
But you know. And you're already going after it.
I have a 100% online 8-week mentorship group coming up. It's my signature Apartment Building Mentorship Group that's been "amped up" with the most cutting-edge strategies. It's the Multifamily Apartment Building Mentorship Group and it's starting later this month (on January 28th).
I'm offering a kick-ass deal on it for the MLK Blow Out where I'm shaving 50% off plus I'm giving you my 100% LTV Secret Video Series. Plus there's another bonus added in there too.
I rarely offer a discount on my signature group but I need to set 2015 on the right track for everybody. It truly is the year of multifamily investing and if you've been talking about apartment building investing (but you haven't done it yet), it's about time that you got off your ass and did it already. Nothing happens when you keep taking about it. But everything happens when you start doing it. And this is why my mentorship groups are so powerful...because over 8 weeks we actually DO the business in the real commercial real estate world, step by step, so you get it.
If you have any questions, call my office after 9am PST tomorrow morning at (661) 295-5050.
By the way, Lea will be in tomorrow after her near-4 months of retirement. Yep, that's right. Retirement really isn't what it's cracked up to be. So start thinking of something else you'll want to do with your time in a few years when you don't have to work anymore either because "retirement" in and of itself totally sucks. (Think "old people" playing cards all day in a retirement home.)
I'm in the process of creating my outline for the 2-day Internet Cash Flow Boot Camp Seminar in Los Angeles on March 14th and 15th and I realize that I have so much information that I'll have to limit our breaks in order to pack it all in.
A student of mine sent me an email yesterday and asked me if I thought he should come to the 2-day event. In which I replied, "I don't know. Do you need to come?"
I'm imagining that anyone who is already pulling in five figures or more a month in pure profits probably doesn't need to come. Donald Trump probably wouldn't find any use in being at the event. Or anyone who has no interest in having a home-based super-easy-to-start-and-operate business probably shouldn't come.
But if you don't fit into any of the above categories then you may want to consider coming.
A year ago I filled in my "New Life" paradigm where I wanted my end-all date to be 12/31/2013 with a "shut down period" to extend through my birthday (Flag Day...in June). I took most of the summer off and realized that the idea of "retirement" sure does suck. (Ask Lea. She'll tell you. She's been retired for 4 months and now she's coming back next week because she's bored at home.)
However, during this time, I continued on with my "little experiments" that I would do to use as case studies for my students. One of these experiments was to start an Internet business from scratch using today's Internet marketing strategies instead of the Old School techniques that don't work anymore.
And here's what I did:
1) Created a one-page "squeeze" sales page.
2) Created a new Clickbank product. It's a download product.
3) Told myself that I couldn't use any of the "traditional" Internet marketing methods such as PPC (pay-per-click), banner ads, or anything online-based as a vehicle for driving traffic to my website.
So, what did I do?
I went back to my mailing list broker (who has been my brokerage firm since 1997/1998, somewhere in there) and asked him what the best pulling lists were for the type of download product I was selling (which I'll explain to you at the event).
I then rented 4 lists at 2,500 names each and rolled out a 10,000-piece small postcard mailing. This cost me $3,650. In 2 weeks after the mailing, I grossed $5,885. My "net" was $2,235. (Another $530 trickled in within another 2 weeks after that so we can "up" the net to $2,765.
Not any type of "mind blowing" cash flow or anything. Remember, this is just an experiment.
But if you do the numbers, sending out 10,000 pieces a week works out to be $2,765 a week in profits or $11,060 a month. Again, nothing mind-blowing but I'm almost certain that it's more than you're making at your job.
The awesome thing about this deal is that there really isn't any "work" involved. Once you get your super simple 1-page squeeze page up and set up with Clickbank, they do all the work processing your orders and sending your customers to your download link. You don't have to do anything else with product delivery. (Take that, health supplements!)
All you have to worry about is getting those 10,000 postcards out in the mail each week. If you get the right equipment, it's no more difficult than printing each address on the postcards using a laser printer then taking them to the post office.
All and all, you're looking at about 15 hours worth of work per week to make $11,060 a month doing this.
By the way, some of you have been asking if I'm going to be covering health supplements in the seminar event or anything having to do with websites like eBay and Amazon.
Answer: NO!
When I did my presentation on my student doing $85,000 a month on eBay at my September event in LA, I actually had students contacting him based on my presentation. And he wasn't a happy camper!
But, that's not why I won't be talking about eBay or Amazon or selling health supplements anymore. I'm not covering all that at this upcoming event because, well...there's an easier way to make money online than that. I've covered a small tiny fraction of what I'll be covering at the event but it'll be about the easiest possible way to make money online surrounding virtual download products which is 100% easier to work with and 100% more profitable.
I didn't even tell you the best part yet and how you can double that $11,060 a month without investing a single penny more in marketing while adding only about 2 extra hours to your time.
I'll be covering that at the event on March 14th and 15th.
If you can't make it, I have the Internet Cash Flow System (Complete Course) which you can still get a discount on until Wednesday. Then the price goes way up.
If you want to enroll for the event, you'll get the Internet Cash Flow System for F*REE. But that deal also ends on Wednesday at 5pm PST.
Some of you know how my "funnel" works. Many of you have no clue.
It's this "funnel" realization that changed everything for me. It actually changed my life!
I've always been good at making money but, after awhile, I felt like I was on this treadmill. (This would be around the time that I discovered the power of Passive Income Assets.)
How does this "funnel" work exactly?
It's pretty easy.
You find a cash flowing "Aggressive" business. An "Aggressive" business can be any business where you can "write your own check," essentially. This means that you create a small (preferably home-based) low/no-overhead business that creates such a massive cash flow income that it makes your neighbors sick with envy.
Then you take that extra cash flow and inject it into Passive Income Assets.
The Passive Income Business you create will be of small multifamily (apartment building) properties including "quads" (4-plexes). Any type of real estate where you can draw a cash flow with tenant income qualifies, really.
Now, here's the strategy:
Any of you who have crappy personal credit, you'll be fixing it at the same time that you're building your Aggressive Income Cash Flow Business. Ramp up time for your Aggressive Income Business is anywhere from an average of 30 to 90 days, depending on which type of business you're starting and how fast or slow you are in executing your plan.
Why fix and rebuild your personal credit during this time?
Because when you're finally ready to invest in your first piece of real estate (within 6 months to a year after you start your Aggressive Income Business), you'll be able to qualify for your mortgage at the best possible interest rates available at that time.
Okay, now that we worked out the idea of the "funnel" and what you're supposed to do with your new-found Aggressive Cash Flow, your next question in invariably..."How do you get this 'massive' cash flow from an Aggressive Income Business?"
Glad you asked.
I've had students ask me about my Internet Cash Flow System for about the past 8 months or so, as it's my very last installment of Aggressive Income Strategies before I go back to doing what I do best for the rest of 2015: multifamily real estate investing.
This complete course will show you everything you need to know to get started with the best, fastest-to-execute, and lowest cost Aggressive Income Business I've presented to this point: the Internet.
Now, we're not talking about your mama's Internet (from 5+ years ago). We're talking about today's Internet Cash Flow Strategies because, as you probably know, all that past Internet money-making crap doesn't work anymore.
Yes, that's right. Making money with affiliate marketing doesn't work. Making money with blogging using Google AdSense doesn't work. Making money with PPC campaigns, especially Google AdWords, doesn't work. Making money with banner ads doesn't work.
In fact most of the stuff you probably knew about years ago to make money online simply doesn't work anymore and never will work ever again.
That's why I created the Internet Cash Flow System but...
Going a step further...
I'm also doing a one-time-only 2-day Internet Cash Flow Boot Camp Seminar in Los Angeles on March 14th and 15th.
I say "one time only" because, again, I plan on using the rest of this year for real estate investing, training, and partnerships. So this will literally be your last shot at jumping on the Aggressive Income Bandwagon before I stop revealing my closest guarded Aggressive Income Secrets.
And in case any of you are wondering how and why I know anything about the Internet at all, I've been successfully making millions online since 2007 when I threw up my first sales squeeze page and I've been changing, molding, bending, and adapting to the ever-changing Internet marketing madness ever since.
I have to say, the past 3 years have change the most when it comes to Internet marketing just in the mere fact that the majority of worked before no longer works anymore. It used to be a matter of whipping up a squeeze page, signing up for Google AdWords, and you'd see a rush of cash coming in through your website.
Now there's not a hope and a prayer that you can make money anywhere near like the "olden days" (which were about 5 years ago if we're talking about Google AdWords).
So, what do you do to rake in anywhere from $20,000 to $50,000 a month -- cash in your pocket -- by using the Internet in 2015? Is it still possible?
Yes. Not only is it possible but people (including myself) are doing it month in and month out. It's just that it's a little trickier to do now. Tricky but simple if -- and only if -- you know how to pull it off.
This is why I'm not only offering the Internet Cash Flow System (which is complete) but an in-depth "crash course" 2-day training in Los Angeles (March 14th & 15th) to show you exactly how to work this business.
Additionally, for those who show up to the 2-day seminar, you'll get a complete online marketing campaign that is tested, proven, and has already made me a ton of money that you can use without having to reinvent the wheel. But that's only for those who show up to the event.
P.S. With so many things changing with the work force, if you don't start thinking about some type of business you can start part time from home, you may find it harder and harder to make the money you need to sustain your current lifestyle as the years roll on. Even if you don't come to this event or get the Internet Cash Flow System, at least start considering home-based business options for yourself so that you don't end up like a "deer in the headlights" with your pants down in the event that you lose your present income due to downsizing, off-shoring, or other changes in the economy.
What a weird freaking week it's been for me! I was really hoping for a kick-ass start to 2015 and instead the New Year greeted me with a bunch of weird crap that I'd rather not waste my time on. But, what can you do? It's the cost of doing business and doing well, right? (At least this week ended well. I'll tell you about it in a minute!)
By the way, I should mention that as a successful person, you'll notice that people will only want to take away what you have. I think this is because they feel like deadbeats themselves and don't believe they have the power to create financial freedom on their own...so they feel that they have to find a way to steal it from you in some way. That's just normal. The more successful you get, the more you'll notice that people will try to concoct bullshit ways of taking your money from you including, but not limited to, (andespecially) frivolous lawsuits.
But having lived on this planet for a full 4 decades, I've been noticing something a little unique happening in our most recent times. It seems that as our time-space quantum physics seems to be speeding up (to ensure that we can end up on the "light side" instead of the "dark side" metaphysically and spiritually), we have to "pay" for our wrongdoings rather quickly. The universe is set up for "instant karma," if you will. (So, I guess John Lennon wasn't too far off, was he?)
When I was little, I would see people doing some unspeakable things and wondered why they didn't pay for it. Forget about the justice system. I'm not talking about that. (We all know how skewed and useless that system is.) I'm talking about the universe and thatjustice system. This is when my dad would explain that eventually everyone has to pay the piper whether it takes days or decades...or even happens in the next incarnation.
This is when I would actually notice that decades later these same people who I wondered how/why they escaped their well-deserved karmic fate, suddenly something devastating would happen for them and in their lives. They would contract some painful and drawn-out disease, dying a painful death. They'd get cancer on an equally painful and miserable level. Someone would screw them over and they'd have a significant reversal of fortune. Or whatever.
The good thing is that I vowed at a very young age to do my best to be a good person and, most importantly, to be good to other people.
Good thing I adopted this personal belief system: if you've noticed, things are speeding up. Not just a little...but a lot!
When you wrong someone, you pay right away. It happens in "seconds" in comparison to how things played out only a short time ago.
So...for those people out there who are looking for a f*ree pay day (as with a certain loser student of mine who decided to file a lawsuit...and is now claiming "elder abuse"...interesting how I can "abuse" a senior citizen in NY when I'm in California but I must have some really long arms, I guess) you'll have to pay the piper. Even if you miraculously get your ill-gotten gains by stealing money from someone else, you'll get yours. That's just how the universe works. It's called "karma." Look it up one day on Google when you're bored.
On the flip side, I have a student of mine who's been with me since about 2010-ish. (I pretend to remember when students started with me but the fact is, my memory is next to shot these days on small details like that.) He's a really good guy all around, honest and caring. He submitted a property portfolio (a set of buildings part of the same apartment complex but APN-ed separately) in Texas that turned out to be a deal exceeding $12 million.
And that was the deal that just closed today. I just got the email confirmation from my investor in Texas that they just closed!
Whoooooo!!
Let me tell you about this student. He's been nothing but a gem. Very respectful. Studying as much as he can on apartment building investing for almost 5 years now. And he's been super nice to me (which helps, especially when you want an "in" with my investor partners; respect goes a very long way with me). Now he's splitting a $12-million deal without putting a single red cent into the deal.
What's the split going to be? He's getting 33% on the gained equity (which takes place over the next 3 years) and he's getting a nice monthly chunk of change on his 33% of the cash flow: $11,200 a month!
And my student? He can now retire if he wants but instead he's working on one more deal in the same area which will get him an additional $6,000 a month in cash flow if that one goes under contract in the next week or so (as we anticipate).
When you're a good person and you work toward your goals with conviction and desire, you get rewarded with success.
When you're a piece of crap and you do things to stab people in the back while acting like a worthless victim, you end up with a reversal of fortune (and not the good kind).
You know what the worst part about the piece of shit who is filing the lawsuit against me is? I actually sent over his PDF (and not the Excel spreadsheet that I kept requesting of him) to my investor partner right before I left on my New Year's break and 2 days ago my investor partner sent me an email and indicated that he was very interested in the deal. And when my Texas investor tells me that he's "very" interested, as long as he gets the business plan as requested after that point, it usually goes under contract within about 14 days after that.
So...seems to me like that little "karmic reversal of fortune thing" I was just talking about is already taking it's toll. (That was quick!) And we didn't even get to court yet!
(And in case you're wondering how much potential cash Mr. NYC screwed himself out of for being a dick: $8,321 a month in cash flow in his pocket and a possible estimated gained equity split over 3 years of $660,000...or a total of $959,556 over the 3-year partnership period. That is, if my investor partner decided to work with him on this deal and if the numbers presented were accurate. It's amazing how fast someone can lose a million bucks for being a dumb shit!)
Interesting how life works, isn't it? ("Instant karma's gonna get you...")
What did I tell my investor partner about that PDF deal? I simply told him that the student who submitted it wasn't able to comply with getting additional information about the property "due to circumstances beyond his and/or my control" is how I put it in my email, word for word. And we left it at that.
If my investor partner presses the issue, I'll come clean with him and explain that this student is a "legal loose cannon" and he creates too much of a potential legal liability for both of us to consider working with him on any partnership level. (Rich people will neverwork with those who they believe will create undue legal problems for them. They have enough problems to worry about than to do partnerships with someone who is known to file frivolous lawsuits.)
But the good news for me is that we have too many other opportunities in the pipeline to go after right now to worry about a kick-ass deal that just fell through the cracks...and it's doubtful that my investor partner will ask about his deal ever again.
Here's something important I want to tell all of you right now:
Success is a lot easier to attain than you think. If you've felt like you've been spinning your wheels endlessly, it's because you're going in the wrong direction or not hooking up with the right people or the right opportunities. It's not you...unless it reallyisyou. Because if you're a piece of shit like the student who filed the lawsuit against me, it really is you. In which case, you've made your bed and there you'll lie for the rest of your miserable life.
What do I mean by that?
When you take someone like me who does my damnest to provide the verybest education and opportunities for my students (that you won't get from any other "guru" out there) and then you choose to not only refuse to listen to basic instructions but you stab me in the back on top of that, the universe will have some interesting experiences to share with you in your near future...and none of it will be good. Mark my words on that.
But the good news is that -- with the exception of a very small minuscule percentage of my student database -- 99.99% of my students are freaking awesome! And I'm almost certain that you are one of them! (Unless you're Mr. NYC...then you're not. Definitelynot!)
So...I've had a couple of you ask about getting involved in The $9,000,000 Opportunitythat I presented in Detroit. (1) Since I made it clear that only those who attended the eventwill participate, I will not be going back on my word, (2) we're coming up on the end-all deadline that I can receive deals by so I can't realistically have new students send me deals right now, and (3) I will have another opportunity like this come up later this year. There are always new opportunities. I'll keep you posted on when these will come up. (Right now I have something "possibly" coming up in May and "definitely" coming up in October/November.) Hopefully you'll find it worthwhile to make the trip if you're actually interested in pursuing this next opportunity.
In the meantime, many of you have started off waking up out of coma, realizing that it's now 2015, and wondering what you can proactively do to get your ass moving in a fiscally positive direction.
My initial and original Aggressive-to-Passive Income Methodology still stands strong. Ideally you'll choose a kick-ass Aggressive Income Business to (1) replace your current job or business (so you can stay in that "entrepreneurial mindset" without having some freeway drive or cubicle drain you dry 50 hours a week) and (2) funnel those additional cash flow dollars into Passive Income Assets (i.e. multifamily residential-commercial real estate).
With that in mind, I have something killer to share with you right now. Many of you know I've been building my "suite" of New Wealth Warrior Aggressive Income Strategiessince last year. It was to come in 3 installments, each to stand alone on its own. The first was Kindle Cash Flow, the second was Direct Mail Order Millionaire, and now the third and last New Wealth Warrior Aggressive Income Strategy is finally here: Internet Cash Flow.
This is, perhaps, the easiest of all 3 to pull off for the fastest possible path in gaining traction with Aggressive Income.
What is the Internet Cash Flow System exactly?
I'm covering every method I've used to successfully make money online since 2007 when I first seriously started making money online. Then I had to eliminate the stuff that no longer works and leave behind only the stuff that works now in 2015.
And that was a challenge for me.
Too many Internet "gurus" out there are still teaching crap that used to work in 2008 that hasn't worked in years. It's imperative that when getting an education on making money online that you get the correct information otherwise you'll find yourself in a fruitless tailspin.
I have my Internet Cash Flow System available now...and also a kick-ass deal on my one-time-only Internet Cash Flow 2-Day Boot Camp Seminar I'll be doing in Los Angeles on March 14th and 15th. Here's the link for the deal: http://www.monicamain.com/internet_cash_flow_blitz
If you have any questions, give us a call at 661-295-5050. The deadline to get the deal above is only a few days away.
P.S. For those of you wondering if Lea is coming back, she's confirmed to start back here at Global Success on Monday, January 19th. Thanks for all of your cards, emails, and phone calls. You guys and gals made her feel loved and appreciated enough to want to come back.
And here I was hoping to kick off this New Year with some awesome-ness. Sorry to report that the first thing I get when I sit down at my desk this morning is a freaking lawsuit.
And from none other than Mr. NYC.
Yes, you read that correctly. You know, Mr. NYC from my Detroit seminar who refuses to follow the instructions for The $9,000,000 Opportunity by not sending his deal in the form of an Excel spreadsheet? He's suing me for $10,000 for "blacklisting" him and for "defaming" him because, after all, his legal name is Mr. NYC, right?
Hmmmm...
Strange. This whole thing is the weirdest deal I've ever experienced. First of all, I never blacklisted him. I simply asked him to send me the file in the CORRECT format so that I could forward the deal onto my investor partner to be looked at. This is, of course, a requirement that was (1) fully disclosed/discussed at the seminar, and (2) was very clearly outlined in the investor flyer that was given to each student at the event.
And here I am, still waiting for the correct file format from Mr. NYC. I was even willing to give him a second chance to send me the correct files. Instead, I get a lawsuit.
So...blacklisted is what he'll be, I guess, since he still refuses to follow instructions as clearly listed on a one-sheet piece of paper that he and everyone else at the seminar received.
Now, let me explain how mentally dilapidated this guy is. He'll spend money for air travel from New York and to stay in a hotel in LA to file a lawsuit against me. Then, he'll spend that same money next month to come back out to present his case as the plaintiff.
This is, of course, after he sends me chocolate-covered strawberries for Christmas and asks to meet me for lunch while he was out in LA last week. Not sure if he's just a manipulating douche or if he's got multiple personality disorder but...who sends someone a Christmas gift and offers to take someone out for lunch while anticipating to file a $10,000 lawsuit against them at the same time? Weird, I know. Really weird.
I'll put this experience up there with the stalker I had at this same Detroit event. This Detroit gig was the shittiest event I've done, I think, just because of all the crap that's come from it from Mr. NYC to the stalker weirdo. (What next?? Or rather...who next?) And all because I wanted to present a bona-fide opportunity to my students via my Texas investor partner, this is the thanks I get, I guess!
Un-freaking-real!!
I've been training students since 2001 and this is the very first time I have ever been sued by a student. Ever! This is freaking crazy! And he thinks he can force his way in doing business with my investor partner with this type of erratic and psycho behavior? He has to be completely foolish and out of his mind if he thinks he can establish business relationships with people like this. I swear, I have never seen anything like this before. Never!
Well, between you and I, he's in for a few surprises that I'll reveal to you after the court date next month.
Most of you know how tough I am. I've been through everything you can think of plus a bag of chips so...a bogus lawsuit is something I can steamroller over in my sleep. Furthermore, I consider myself pretty well-suited for what I call "bulletproof asset protection." This is why I tell my students -- including you, dear friend -- to choose your battles wisely. Very wisely. It's not cheap to file a lawsuit against someone, even if it is out of a small claims court. And, if you happen to win, it's very expensive, and mostly futile, to try to collect.
So, say Mr. NYC actually wins in court. (Since I cannot reveal the details of the lawsuit for legal reasons before this goes to court, I can't tell you just how unjustified, ridiculous, andfrivolous his lawsuit is just yet...and how winning for him really isn't likely.) I don't think he realizes that collecting on a lawsuit is the next part of the battle (and the hardest part). The one that most people end up losing. How does he actually think he'll collect the money from me? By putting a gun to my head? (Although as psycho as his displayed behavior has been -- including endlessly harassing me and my staff since the November event in Detroit -- I actually wouldn't put it past him to do something rash that will land his ass in jail for a long time. He's proven to be mentally unstable as far as I can tell just from his rash and rampant behavior.)
But Mr. NYC won't win because of some gross errors he's made in his lawsuit. (Again, I can't discuss what that is just yet. More on this after the court date next month...I have to keep some aces up my sleeve.) He'll have to make multiple trips out here from New York to LA to get his lawsuit right. That will cost him a lot of cash, folks.
Here is a basic business lesson for all of you from this:
1) Choose your battles wisely; lawsuits are expensive and emotionally draining. They're not worth it unless you were really "wronged" in some way AND you can prove it. (Judges these days don't take too kindly to wasting taxpayers money with nonsense, especially judges in LA.)
2) Bulletproof yourself like I have so, even if some numb-skull files a frivolous lawsuit against you and actually wins, they'll be able to collect exactly nothing.
3) Start a "maximum leverage" business because owning a "regular business" totally sucks. This includes the kind where you have employees and a specific type of customer. This is part of the reason why I've gone into semi-retirement since about the summer of last year. (Yes, I've been in semi-retirement. Bet you've hardly noticed, huh?)
This brings me to something I think you should look into and something I'm doing with my business as we speak. Over the past couple of years as a boatload of changes have been occurring with the Internet, I've been pushing my business onto what I call my offline-to-online hybrid business model. This has allowed me to cut my staff and my overhead by about a quarter of what it used to be. Yes, you read that correctly. I cut everything down to a quarter which allows me to pocket more in profits while alleviating much of the headache and legal responsibility I was dealing with before.
You have a distinctadvantage that I don't have. If you're starting a business from scratch with tools that I wish had existed when I was beginning to grow my business online, you have the advantage of what I call "maximum leverage" in your business-to-be: maximum profits, minimum liability, and little (or no) stress.
Why can't I just create "maximum leverage" where I'm at now?
It doesn't work that way. Once you're "in the game" and you have a full-blown operation going, it's hard to "go back" and "reboot" from scratch, if you know what I mean.
But...I am utilizing the strategies from where I stand now. It's just never going to be as fiscally efficient as what you'll be able to do with a business since you'll be starting from "ground zero" or from scratch. And that's freaking awesome!
The cool thing I can offer you is this: the exact strategy you need to have a fully thriving and highly profitable Internet business that you can start (and ideally keep) as a home-based business.
As for Mr. NYC, I can only wish him the best of luck in his mental world of delusion and circus fun. I hope he learns for the next time that when you are given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it doesn't pay to screw it up in the worst possible way. It's like winning the lottery and then suing the lottery commission because you lost the winning ticket. Who doesthat?? (And for those of you listening carefully, when you are offered an opportunity of this magnitude, don't piss it away. Okay?)
By the way, as of right now, my investor partner and one of my Detroit students is clear to close on our first deal on Friday, January 9th. We have a total of 5 more deals under contract to date. Three more are set to go under contract within the next week or so. And this opportunity is going to make a handful of students multi-millionaires.
Yes, Mr. NYC, that's what you're missing out on, thanks to yourself and your despicable actions.
P.S. Remember, 2015 is set to be a kick-ass year. I already feel it in my bones. My overall strategy I teach my students is Aggressive to Passive Income. My Internet Cash Flow Strategies is about as Aggressive as you can get as quickly as possible with the most minimal start-up cash. Check it out now: http://www.monicamain.com/internet_cash_flow_blitz
I don't know about you but I like writing down my New Year's Resolutions every year. Typically I'll write them out by hand (I know, who does that anymore?) and place them in a "secret place" that's nothing more than a mini treasure chest located on my tall dresser in my bedroom.
Over the past couple of years I've been experimenting and I've noticed something that I think will blow your mind about why certain New Year's Resolutions come true while (most) others don't.
I've been doing the "secret treasure chest" thing for the past several years. What I do is write a page worth of New Year's Resolutions -- that with 100% conviction, I want to see come to fruition -- and place them in the chest, not to be peeked at for the entire year.
Weird, I know.
This totally goes against the old "motivational guru" strategy of tacking your goals and desires on your bathroom mirror to view and read multiple times a day.
Why do I refuse to look at the list for the entire year?
When you look at a goal several times a day, it's very easy to feel depressed about not having the goal yet or not making any progress toward the goal. This makes you feel miserable about that desire and drives it away from you faster than pulling it toward you. Eventually you become frustrated with the goal, tell yourself that it's not worth it, then that dream dries up and blows away in your mind as you continue marching to the beat of someone else's plans for your life...even convincing yourself that "it's not so bad." (I'm referring directly to any goals having to do with financial freedom.)
However, when you make your list of very clear and concise goals and dreams then put them away, you are basically ordering your subconscious mind to "make it happen" while not putting any pressure on it for making it happen now or in a certain way or by a certain date. It'll happen when it happens, ideally by the close of the new year, of course.
I don't have a 100% success rate doing this. No. (Sorry. I wish I could report that I did.) But my success rate is a consistent 70%.
How is it always 70%?
Because I never write more than 10 goals. Ten is the maximum. And I accomplish 7 out of 10 every year, year in and year out.
If you ask me, getting 7 out of 10 things you ask for each year is pretty freaking good. Don't you think?
Okay, so let's analyze the rules of success for New Year's Resolutions:
1) You must write down a list of your goals and dreams in your own handwriting (instead of typing then printing them out) and they must all fit on one piece of paper (single or double sided).
2) Your goals must be clear. "I want to be rich," isn't a goal. It's a pipe dream. It's unclear and non-specific. Being rich could mean having $500 and living in Guatemala while everyone else there has nothing. So, a realistic goal could be, "I'll reach a $10,000 a month bottom-line passive income cash flow with multifamily real estate by the end of 2015." That's specific. Also, avoid goals that don't really have measurable parameters like, "I'd like to be a loving mother and wife." What the hell does that mean? If that's your goal, add some clarity to it to define what being a "loving mother and wife" actually means.
3) Your goals have to be realistic. An unrealistic goal: "I'll win an Oscar for Best Picture in 2016 based on a movie I write, produce, film, and release in 2015." Not gonna happen. It's impossible. Another unrealistic goal: "I'll buy 1,000+ apartment building units with no cash and no credit in 2015." While acquiring 1,000 units isn't unreasonable, it usually takes about 3 years to pull this off. Start small and overshoot instead of going too high then psyching yourself out (thus doing nothing for the goal because it's too impossible to undertake). A realistic goal: "I'll acquire 100 multifamily units by the close of 2015." Another realistic goal: "I want to lose 20 lbs. and tone up to a bikini body by the summer 2015." This is totally realistic unless you weigh 700 lbs...then it may need a bit of tweaking to work out better for you.
4) Do not exceed 10 goals. You don't want 15 or 20...or more. It just confuses your mind and overwhelms yourself into inaction. If you can whittle it down to 5 very clear and concise goals, even better.
5) Fold your paper and stick it in a "secret place" where you won't look at it and nobody else will find it. You are forbidden to look at the piece of paper until the last day of this year. (That would be December 31, 2015.)
Now, once you put that piece of paper away, it's time to start what I call the "immersion" process right away. Immersion means picking one or two of those goals and start getting involved in making them happen. Talking about it will get you exactly nowhere. But doing something about it -- even if you're not sure it's the right path to take to get there -- will bring you to the goal.
You see, the universe loves action. So, even if you start working on something that may actually be the wrong path, the universe will "right" your path almost immediately after you start moving in some direction.
Case in point: I had set something (which I can't tell you yet) forth in motion last July. It was "forgotten" as far as I was concerned. In this past October, I started my MFA program for Creative Writing at UCR. I wasn't (and I'm still not) sure what (if anything) I will be doing with creative writing as far as a "career" goes but I wanted to "immerse" myself in (a) the world of writing with others who are passionate about it, and (b) start moving into some direction because I got tired of sitting on the fence about it (for the past 20+ years, mind you; anyone sitting on the fence for that long can get crotch rot or something much worse).
A month ago, I went out to my first 10-day residency in Palm Springs for this graduate degree. I wasn't there for not 24 hours before someone (and I won't tell you who...yet) contacted me about this one "thing" (which I'll tell you about soon) I did in this past July. Yes, it has to do with writing. No, it has nothing to do with creative writing, which is why I was at the residency last month.
What does this have to do with anything?
When you start "immersing" yourself or taking serious action into the direction of some goal that you have passion for (yet may not be sure about how you'll pull off or if it's the right direction), your path will not only become immediately illuminated for you but you'll have people falling into your lap to help you on this new "righted" pathway.
Yet none of this happens with inaction and indecision.
So, when you write down your very clear, concise and believably-attainable goals and desires, don't worry if they're not the right fit or if you're not sure you're making the right decision (or worry on how you'll pull it off). Pitch your coin into the wishing well and then take whatever steps you believe will help right now. Let the universe do all the "heavy lifting" for you including offering guidance into a new (or better) direction when the time comes.
Again, nothing will happen unless you prove to the energy gods that be that you are serious enough about making your goals happen by moving into some sort of direction of execution of your written "contract" you made with yourself (i.e. your New Year's Resolutions in your secret location).
Finally, it's here. It's 2015 and things are about to become super awesome!
I'm excited for this upcoming year since I know the economy is about to take off full force and you stand to benefit with a huge financial windfall if you know how to navigate the economic waters.
Secrets for Lining Yourself for Wealth in 2015
One thing I've always admired about myself is my ability to be able to make money. Some of my other areas of my life suffer -- mostly those areas having to do with relationships and family -- but I have some comfort in knowing that I can at least take care of myself...and very well at that.
Many of my students ask me about trends and the best ways of making money. My basic paradigm of Aggressive to Passive Income still is my most solid tried-and-true strategy for the fastest way to financial freedom. But how does this work in reality and what's the easiest, most efficient way of going out this strategy?
First, you find an Aggressive Income business that interests you the most. Over the years I've presented many different Aggressive Income options for my students to choose from. Since each person has a different personality, it's your job to choose which type of Aggressive Income business is most suitable for you. (There's nothing worse than a student asking ME to choose which Aggressive Income business is best for them.)
So, what types of Aggressive Income business options should you consider? I've offered training on New Wealth Ninja (Internet and other Aggressive Income options), Distribution Profits, Kindle Cash Flow, Direct Mail Millions, Aggressive Real Estate (Flipping/Wholesaling), and now my latest (and last) of my Aggressive Income Strategies: Internet Cash Flow.
Secret Strategies for Passive Income
The obvious reason for raising cash via Aggressive Income Strategies is to funnel this cash into Passive Income Assets. It's also for the purposes of quitting your job, especially if you can barely tolerate fighting freeway traffic or clocking in one more day.
But...you can start acquiring Passive Income Assets before you have the cash to shovel into these property deals.
Here are some tips in doing this:
1) Get your personal credit squared away. You need a mid-FICO of 680 or above to become what's called "A paper" to lenders (or to qualify for the best interest rates.
2) Start building business credit once you get your personal credit up to par.
3) Find a specific city/state in the country (and only ONE single area) where you will building your Passive Income Empire. Yes, this area CAN be 3,000 miles away from where you live and does not have to be local to you.
4) Raise enough money to be able to cover 1% to 2% of $1,000,000. (And in case you cannot operate a calculator, this is $10,000 to $20,000.) This will allow you to participate in the 100% LTV Bond Funding Program.
5) Start investing in residential-commercial (apartment building) assets.
Yes, it's really as easy as that.
The hardest part about doing any of this is getting your ass out there and just doing it. It's building confidence and the only way to do that is to start working the steps and seeing success. They confidence will begin to build slowly but surely.
So...let's both make 2015 our year of super success and prosperity but hitting the ground running and starting now. Right at this moment!
I received a somewhat surprising email from my Texas investor partner this past weekend that sort of surprised me, especially since he's from Houston.
He said this, "Tell your students that I'm not taking deals for partnership in Houston right now. There has been some new information having to do with the oil industry that has been disturbing which will cause major shrinkage in that industry. This will greatly affect the Houston apartment building and housing market."
Hmmmmmm...
He should know. He knows the market better than anyone I know. And if he's saying that Houston is not a good idea right now then maybe Houston isn't a good idea right now.
Something about the Houston market has always bothered me since the beginning of our recession/depression (back in 2005...remember that year?): Houston was the only real estate market that never fell apart. As far as I can tell, it didn't feel any recessive pinch like the rest of the markets have. It's like a ball bouncing up and never coming down. It defied all economic laws like no other area of the country I've ever seen.
Of course, I'm only 40 so there's probably a lot of economic things I haven't seen or known in my lifetime. So, I just chalked it off as a circus freak show like a two-headed serpent or the bearded lady and never gave it a second thought.
Then when I received this email I started thinking...Is it really possible that while every city in America -- including those that have seen the most economic devastation like Detroit, Cleveland, and Memphis -- is starting to boom, that a place as financially solid as Houston has always been could now come crumbling down?
Yes, this could very well be the case. In fact, if economic laws never fail, Houston inevitably will have to undergo it's own economic recession even if every other city in the United States is booming at the same time.
Coincidentally, I was just reading in Bloomberg Business Week last week about how Houston is going to start feeling the pinch due to oil prices falling and oil companies (who have headquarters in Houston) cutting back. Insofar, they have actually been cutting back for quite awhile now including laying people off.
And that's never good for the housing market whether you have apartment rentals or you're trying to sell a single-family home.
Between the fall in gas/oil prices and, ultimately, our mass consciousness going into the more "green" direction of utilizing solar and battery power for cars, it is becoming more and more clear that these oil giants won't stay financially relevant forever. It's only a matter of time that every dinosaur eventually dies to make way for new cutting-edge and more efficient ways of doing things.
Unless Houston becomes the center of another type of industry, I'm afraid we're looking at a Detroit replay over time. It may not become so devastatingly bad but if you work the equation the way it is, I don't see how else Houston could fare in the battle of trying to stuff an obsolete resource down people's throats; this would be just as effective as, say, trying to sell people buggy whips in today's day and age. It would only work if you're selling the whip to city of dominatrix's and I'm not sure there's enough of them around to support an entire market, especially that of the size of Houston. (Hey, maybe the oil could double as "lube" for the dominatrix's activities.)
So, it seems that Houston didn't avert the depression after all. Unfortunately for the Houston market, while the rest of us in America are enjoying an economy that's better than what the Roaring 20s kicked out almost a century ago, Houston will be eating beans out of a can under a bridge and crying over its own financial calamity. But as far as I see it, when we all have to pay the piper, we ALL have to pay the piper. Nobody gets a fr*ee ride.
Are you surprised at this Houston economic verdict for 2015? I am. Sort of. Then, on the other hand, I'm not due to it always seeming "unfair" that they never felt the squeeze when every last one of us did. Now it's their turn.
The unfortunate thing for this dose of bad news for Houston is that it won't be an easy case of the financial squeezes and it won't be a short-term recession either. This one if for the long haul so...if you own property in Houston, be prepared. If you're thinking about buying property in Houston, think again.
How do you know if I'm right or not?
Well, first of all, I'll be the first to admit that I'm not always right but I'm right about 99.999% of the time, and those are pretty good odds. Second, although I suspected that the Houston market would eventually have to come to terms with the recession the rest of us have been schlepping through for the past 9 years, I actually stopped thinking (and ultimately caring) about Houston back in 2010 when I myself stopped investing there.
Let me remind you that the bulk of this "warning" about the upcoming Houston economic pinch isn't coming from me but rather someone who is highly familiar with the market. This man is much older than I am and much wiser in the world of real estate investing. When he tells me to stayaway from his home town (which, I may add, he's completely in love with) because of an impending financial crunch then trust me when I say I'll be fullyheeding to his warning.
There are too many other cities you can still make money in and completely circumvent Houston while staying in Texas (if that's where you want to invest). There's Dallas/Fort Worth which is an extremely profitable set of cities. There is Waco which is also a solid cash flowing city for multifamily real estate. There's also San Antonio, Lubbock, Amarillo and Corpus Christi to name a few. (Stay away from border cities like El Paso and Laredo because of issues with drug trafficking. Also, Austin has low CAP rates and tends to be overpriced for what it is.)
