My first deal in real estate was a near disaster. I had purchased a single-family home because I had bought into the misinformation about how to make an investment by starting out small.

I don’t blame anyone. It was my own fault. I didn’t do my homework.

I knew the real estate wasn’t the problem. The way I was approaching the real estate was the problem. I had gone small and bought based on what I could afford. I was dependent upon one tenant and it cost me. I bought a small deal because I was scared to go bigger and it cost me. I had an immediate victory and quit learning and it cost me. I went in half-cocked in a hurry to brag about being a real estate owner and it cost me. And this is what most of us do on our first deals.

You see, I had bought what I could afford, based on the loan I could get and the money I had to put down. That limited me to only what I could afford and not necessarily the best investment.

I went back to the drawing board and spent the next three years learning everything I could about investing in real estate.

I was committed to finding a GREAT deal, and knew I would need the cash, the courage, and the knowledge to pull the trigger. At the age of 31, I knew owning real estate was my financial freedom vehicle. I avoided investing in Keough’s, IRA’s, mutual funds, and individual stocks and bonds.

After looking at hundreds of properties and investing thousands of hours of studying, my first real deal was 48-units.

I knew the second I saw it I would buy it. I put the deal under contract the same day and was closed in under sixty days. My first real deal in the bag. I owned it for 4 years, and while I did, it paid for itself every month and provided me with positive cash flow and no headaches. I never took one phone call from one tenant about one problem, because I put a good manager in place. Four years later, I sold the property for an almost $4 million profit.

The belief that I would create wealth with real estate was validated with this first deal, and I knew one day I would get super rich with this vehicle. Since that first score, I have been buying apartments, repeating and perfecting how I buy deals, and studying more markets, financing, management, and all along the way, improving my connections within the real estate market in order to get better access to great deals.

Now, thirty-years later, I have almost a billion in assets and 5,000 units. It’s been one of my best accomplishments and one that I will keep expanding on.

It’s has taken a tremendous amount of learning the tactics, statistics, identifying trends, studying methodologies and strategies, and investigating real estate to get here.

I’m sharing all of my knowledge about real estate because the deck is stacked against you and me. The huge corporations and investment institutions get the good deals and we get the left overs.  Over years, I’ve carved a space in this real estate world by being tenacious, smart and a closer.

You can join me in my investments at CardoneCapital.com or learn more about how to do it on your own or with your own partners by studying my material and content, attending 10x Growth Conference and signing up for one of my courses or programs.  Any way you do it, you need to know more about investing in real estate and you need help.  And I’m happy to give it.