023: How to Buy Large Multifamily Properties Qucikly with Michael Blank
On this week’s episode of the InvestFourMore Real Estate Podcast we talk to Michael Blank. Michael is a very successful real estate investor who owns multifamily apartments and restaurants! Michael gives us some great advice on how to invest in multifamily, how to find private money and even how to run a pizza joint. Michael also has a very successful website and coaching program for real estate investors.
How did Michael get started investing after being bought out?
Michael Blank started out in the software industry and did very well. In fact, he was part owner of a company that was bought out, which gave Michael start-up money to invest in real estate. Michael started in the restaurant industry by purchasing into a franchise. He admits he knew nothing about pizza making or running a restaurant, but hired someone who knew what they were doing. The restaurant industry had nothing to do with real estate, but it taught Michael many lessons about passive income and running a business.
Why did Michael start flipping houses?
The pizza industry was up and down. Michael knew he had to diversify or find something else to occupy his time. After reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad he knew he wanted to be involved in real estate. He found opportunity after the housing crisis and was able to flip 30 properties in about three years. He admits flipping was fun, but challenging. He also admits his success had a lot to do with market conditions at that time and after the housing market recovered it was much tougher to make money. After the market was not conducive to flipping, Michael switched his focus to multifamily properties.
Why does Michael like multifamily housing?
Flipping houses produced some great income, but it did not provide ongoing income. Michael became interested in multifamily housing and rental properties, because of the income they produce every month. Michael loves multifamily houses because you can own many units under the same roof. Once you understand how to find and buy multifamily properties, the larger the project the better. Just because a project is larger, it does not mean it takes a lot more time to manage than a smaller project. When Michael buys multifamily properties he does not mange the tenants, but lets a property manager handle that aspect. He focuses on managing the property, raising rents and deciding what renovations should be done to increase the value.
How can Michael afford to buy large multifamily complexes through syndication?
Buying 100 plus unit properties is not easy to do and it is not cheap either. Michael uses private money to buy many of the properties he controls. He will use a syndication, which means he manages the properties and has control over how they are run, but other people have ownership in the properties. Michael is able to pool together money from multiple investors who are sometimes guaranteed a certain return and sometimes their return is based on the performance of the asset.
How does Michael find private money investors?
If you know where to look, there are many people willing to invest in real estate, but they don’t want to do all the leg work. Michael has made many connections over the years in the real estate industry, restaurant industry, through his blog and through networking. He explains how he has been able to convince his connections to invest private money with him in this episode.
Should you start with single family homes or small multifamily properties?
Many investors say beginners should start out with single family homes, then move up to small multifamily homes and then graduate to larger multifamily projects. Michael things if you want to eventually buy large multifamily complexes, then start with large multifamily complexes! He does not think starting with single family or smaller multifamily projects is a necessary step to reaching the large projects. In fact when he started investing in multifamily, the owners and agents involved did not care that he had single family investing experience. They saw someone who had never bought multifamily before and assumed he had no idea what he was doing.
Contacting Michael Blank
If you would like to talk to Michael about investing in multifamily properties, check out his website: TheMichaelBlank.com. Michael has many free resources and great information for investors.