SUCCESS STORIES

Dear REIN Team,

I just wanted to send you a quick note to let you know about my life altering week. Last Friday, June 11, 2004 I had an appointment to meet with a Realtor and submit an offer on a rental unit. I have never had the fear of making an offer, that's really no big deal at all. My greatest fear was always, "What if they accept it?"

I had seen the property in question the day before (after doing the detailed analysis) and decided that it was a good buy even at full list price. I told the Realtor that I had my offer worksheet completed and he couldn't believe that I had one. That bought me instant credibility! He believed and still does that I am the most serious investor he has ever met. Strange I'm only 31 and here I am giving information to a Realtor that's been in the game for 15 years. Thank-you for that instant credibility, the question of money to close has never come up!

The property was listed at $199,900. I prepared two offers the first being an all cash offer of 180,000. The second was full list price with a VTB of 50,000 (8% interest only, 5 years). My Realtor looked at me very strangely he had never seem someone submit two offers at the same time. I think the cover letter was the clincher. I explained to him that this is how I buy properties. Of course that wasn't true I had never bought any of my properties that way before; but from now on that's how I will do it.

The vendor counter with 194,00 cash or a VTB of 30,000 (10% interest only, 2 years). I then countered his counter by not changing anything, except that I needed 3 years. Done deal!!! Now the panic started! At the REIN meetings everyone always says, "make the offer, get the deal and somehow the money will come." Well it's true! I started networking with different REIM members with whom I have become friendly and they led me to someone who is interested in these types of properties in this area. Well guess what, he's now on board!

Now this is my life changing moment....

Prior to my meeting with the Realtor I stopped in at Chapters to pick up Les Hewitt's book The Power Of Focus so that I could read it prior to hearing him speak. Well I couldn't find it, but none the less I decided to browse the business section. I came across a book that I have seen thousands of times and always thought about reading, but never have. The book was The Art of The Deal by Donald Trump.

I picked it up and just started thumbing through it. The first and only passage that I read has changed my life. Mr. Trump was telling the story how just after Jimmy Carter lost the election in 1980 to Ronald Reagan he came to see him. Mr. Carter was trying to raise funds to build the Jimmy Carter Library. He asked Mr. Trump for a donation of $5 million. I don't remember if he got the money (that's not important) it was what Mr. Trump wrote right after that. He said that Carter was in no way qualified to be president, but he had the balls to ask for it, just as he did the money.

That was what changed my life; I had always been scared to ask people for things. When I was a child I was taught not to ask for things. But immediately after reading this the fear went away. It was truly an epiphany and not just for Real Estate, the way that I look at everything has changed. I had no problem asking for the VTB. When the Realtor sort of raised some objections to my way of buying, I had no problem asking him to "step out of the box, or get off the train." He may have been shocked by my response but he got out of the box. I guess he could see that he was standing directly in the path of a steaming locomotive and if he didn't want to go along for the ride he was going to get flattened. Good choice don't you think?

So, thank-you so much for showing me how to not be one of the Aimless Anonymous. If you know Mr. Trump, please pass along my thanks to him.

Sincerely,

- Darryl Flint

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