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
