Oct. 14, 2019

MB 183: Pursue a Meaningful Life Through Multifamily Investing – With Drew Whitson

MB 183: Pursue a Meaningful Life Through Multifamily Investing – With Drew Whitson

Most of us would really like to live a life of purpose. Problem is, working a traditional W-2 job can take all the good out of you. We come home exhausted and have little bandwidth left for our families, so the idea of serving others seems totally out...

Most of us would really like to live a life of purpose. Problem is, working a traditional W-2 job can take all the good out of you. We come home exhausted and have little bandwidth left for our families, so the idea of serving others seems totally out of reach. But what kind of impact could you make if your living expenses were covered? What if you had the time freedom to pursue a meaningful life? What if multifamily real estate investing could get you there in three years?

Drew Whitson is a full-time real estate investor with a portfolio of 1,000-plus units in five states. He also happens to run The Michael Blank Investor Incubator, serving as a mentor and coach to help aspiring multifamily investors do their first apartment building deal. Drew spent 16 years working in corporate finance before leaving his W-2 job at a boutique investment banking firm in early 2018 to focus exclusively on his real estate career.

On this episode, Drew joins me to explain how achieving financial freedom has given him the opportunity to pursue a meaningful life.  He describes how getting laid off twice in a single year inspired him to control his own destiny by way of multifamily syndication. Drew walks us through his first few apartment building deals and discusses why buying a 32-unit property was so much easier than a fourplex! Listen in for Drew’s insight around raising money BEFORE you have a deal under contract, getting brokers to take you seriously as a newbie, and joint venturing with partners who share your vision for the future.

Key Takeaways

How financial freedom changed Drew’s life

  • Opportunity to pursue meaningful things
  • Impact world through service to others

The capacity to live a meaningful life AND work full-time

  • Must be extraordinarily intentional
  • Options open up once expenses covered

What inspired Drew to build an identity beyond his W-2

  • Laid off twice in single year
  • Sense of determination to control own destiny

Drew’s real estate experience prior to quitting his job

  • Bought multiple SFH when market down
  • Built portfolio of 400 multifamily units

What drew Drew to multifamily investing

  • Only asset can buy with other people’s money
  • Appreciation, resilience, tax benefits and scale

Drew’s first multifamily real estate deals

  • Bought fourplex with partner through Wells Fargo
  • 32-unit with small commercial lender much easier

Drew’s experience of raising money for the first time

  • Terrified of losing friends/family money
  • Learned that money follows good deals

How to raise money WITHOUT a deal under contract

  • Put together sample deal package
  • Soft commitments from potential investors

How to get brokers and investors to take you seriously

  • Build great team to help execute
  • Be specific about what you want
  • Use right language
  • No substitute for action

How long it takes Drew’s students to get competent

  • 30 days to get comfortable with language
  • 90 days for market analysis, team and tools

The power of joint venturing in multifamily

  • Engaged community keeps you motivated
  • Play to strengths + scale portfolio together

Drew’s advice for aspiring multifamily syndicators

  • Find likeminded people at Meetup groups
  • Get educated through books and podcasts
  • Commit to vision and take ACTION

Connect with Drew Whitson

The Michael Blank Investor Incubator

Resources

Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University

Drew Kniffin

Nighthawk Equity

David Kamara on ABI EP182

Meetup.com

Deal Maker Live

The Miracle Equation: The Two Decisions That Move Your Biggest Goals from Possible, to Probable, to Inevitable by Hal Elrod

Podcast Show Notes

Review the Podcast on iTunes

Michael’s Website

Michael on Facebook

Michael on Instagram

Michael on YouTube

Apartment Investor Network Facebook Group

Financial Freedom with Real Estate Investing: The Blueprint to Quitting Your Job with Real Estate—Even Without Experience or Cash by Michael Blank