From Used Car Salesman to Multi-Millionaire Real Estate Investor with Corey Peterson

Speaker 1

00:00

Hey everyone. Before I jump into the recap of today's awesome episode, I wanted to quickly share some feedback. We just got about our podcast. This person reached out through our website. Labrador lending.com they said that they listen to from adversity to abundance, as well as the Rich Dad podcast, the Peter Schiff and Trends Journal podcasts. So apparently we're in good company but this person also said I am retiring in less than For years, they're looking to find a way to generate additional income, but they said, in any case I really enjoy your podcast, it keeps my spirits up during these last two years of craziness to hear how others have overcome adversity. So that's very inspiring for us for me as the host. And, so I just want to thank Jan for sending in that feedback. And we love hearing farm from The Listener out there. So feel free to reach out. I am super thankful that we're able to impact, even a handful of people in a Positive way, but we love your input and happy to take input on the show. In today's episode, I got the chance to chat with Corey Peterson of kahuna. Investments Korey, runs a multi-family investing firm as well as now, a property management company. He's been on Fox, CBS, ABC and NBC affiliates, and he's got, he's working on a third book. He's got a couple of books out already. So he's an author. ER, and it's truly a rags-to-riches story that is very relatable and you know, it's a moving one for sure. So we talked about kind of couple of different points in Corey's life where he had some mental switches that happened and you know, one where he was a grew up poor and was then exposed to wealth and realized you know what's possible. And so then that was Huge mental change for him, and then he started down the path of creating wealth through real estate. We also focus a good bit on. He tells the story of a real low point, which unfortunately, a lot of people can relate to with regard to being a being, a workaholic and not being the best. Father, he wasn't around. You will hear that. You will hear the story. I can't do it, any justice. But what I love about it is he did make that switch, and he recognized where he was screwing up. And he is very intentional. Now about his calendar and his time and planning vacations with his family. And he shows you that it's very possible to create abundance both in the financial aspect of things and the family in your family life and so those don't have to be mutually exclusive. And so now he's got boundaries, some might call it balance, but he's got he Ties things in his life. And I mean, he is very successful, you know, on the financial side of things, but you can tell that it's all about relationships, that's another key takeaway from. This one is even within his business. He's all about relationships and people. So he I, this is a great episode and you're going to take a lot of positive impact from this one. Thanks everyone investors. Have you ever felt frustrated by your loan? Officer experience challenging communication or the headache of tracking taxes and insurance meet by Phi a Loan Servicing Company, founded by investors for investors with an expert team and best-in-class vendors by Phi will partner with you to service your loan from start to exit, visit by Phi, L s.com to see how you can get started today. That's bi fil s.com.

Speaker 2

04:00

 Welcome to the form adversity to abundance podcast. Are you an entrepreneur or aspiring entrepreneur? Then this show is for you. Each week, we bring you in Paxil stories of real people who have overcome painful human adversity, to create a life of abundance. You are not alone in your struggle, join us and you will experience the power of true stories and Gain. To go lalage from Founders who have turd poverty into prosperity and weakness into wealth. This podcast will encourage you through your health relationship and financial challenges, so you can become the hero in your quest for freedom. Take ownership of the life, you are destined to live turn your adversity into abundance.

Speaker 1

04:54

 Welcome everybody, to another episode of the form adversity, to abundance podcast. I am your host Jamie Bateman. And today, I am thrilled to have with us Cory Peterson of kahuna, Investments, Cory. How are you doing today, man? I am doing well, thank you, Jamie for having me on a really appreciate it. Absolutely, we really appreciate you taking the time. I know you, we're going to talk about time here it. I think on this one, but time is obviously a very valuable resource for all of us. So we appreciate you, taking your time to impart. Some wisdom on us. Tell us, you know who you are today and what you're up to with your business. And you know why we should listen to you. Well, I don't know why she lives to me, but I think I know a couple things about failing adversity and really getting kicked in the nuts and but able to survive and persevere, I think the entrepreneur Creed is like the sooner you learn how to fail. And Phil faster, they actually faster, you will succeed. So, today I am a multi-family, operator. I think I want to like 230 million dollars, where the commercial real estate across the United States. We're vertically integrated me, we have our own management company, we self-manager our assets, we have got about, I don't know, 40 employees on that side of the ball and but I love real estate. I love what it does. And But, it wasn't always perfect, right? So, but truly, I am living my best life. I enjoy. What I do. I speak. I teach a coach and run a mastermind. So, we kind of do a little bit of all. But, mainly my proudest thing that I am is has nothing to do with real estate and it's more about my proudest achievement is I feel like I have been a full-time dad. That's awesome. And a good husband to my wife. Most I know, hey, I have got kids and a wife and it's, it can be, and I am an entrepreneur. I am a real estate investor. And you know, I know a lot of our listeners can relate to what you're saying, so it can be challenging to do all the above at least. Well. So I think we're going to dive into that in a little bit here. So what just before we jump into your backstory, what does kind of? What is a typical week look like for you? I start my day at 9, so I usually wake up at five. Right. So we have a five. Go to the gym at six. I get off at four ish right? I work Monday through Thursday. I take Friday's off icalendar all my vacations icalendar, any of my kids events, you know. Basically I we take three to four really good vacations a year sometimes little bit more if we want to, but we just live I just live by calendar. Right, I have learned that's the most successful tool. I love working. Unfortunately, I love what I do. I love coming into work, I love my team, I love playing the game and I will probably do it till I die, but surely at this point. I am really in the c-suite. I am the CEO of my company and my primary job is I control people culture and A okay. What kind of need to know my numbers for my business? Sure. But, but I find that. My favorite thing to do is the culture piece, right? If I create award-winning culture within my company, I retained some of the best and top and brightest Talent. They want to stay for long periods of time. And they do amazing work. That's usually not just one plus one. It's usually one plus 5 or 1 plus 10 rights 10 X Factor. Sure that's awesome. Yeah, that's love to talk more about, you know, how you're able to how you were able to set up this, you know, life that you're living. And we're going to get into that. So let us jump into your backstory. I know before we hit record you shared a little bit with me as far as some of the pain that you have been through and you know maybe some of the mistakes you have made Let us jump into to your backstory and some adversity you have gone through. Well, I would like to say it's really almost, it's been almost 22 years ago. That's when my life changed forever. Walk in the road appeared. But I was with my girlfriend. Now, my wife of 20 years, and my mom was married to a man called Bruce. I like to call him Bruce Wayne, he wasn't Batman, but Jamie he was loaded, he had lots of money. Okay, so we got this offer my mom's like, hey, hon, son. Do you want to go to Hawaii? And I was like, well, yeah. I am broke because that was a used car salesman, and I was, he had this girlfriend and it sounds like, are you paying mom? And she said, yeah, I will pay. Well, we get to Hawaii, and, and I really never really met Bruce. I knew she was married to him, but Bruce had a house right on the beach, and I am telling you it was, it was in Kawaii, the Garden Island. I am not sure if, you know, the islands been Kawaii, in my opinion, is most beautiful and it was on a Cove and so if you're not a morning person you will be when you get to Hawaii, right? Shelly. And I walked this Cove And we watch the sun come up and it was like the scales of Life fell off my eyes. Like, I would always want to be successful but here I was a used car salesman, just not doing what I planned in life and but I wanted it really bad. I remember looking over at Bruce's house, and I was like, dude, this guy is different because it was the first time you meet ISO, real wealth, like Bruce unequivocally, had time. And Money, like his phone wasn't ringing. He didn't have any cares. I was like, dude, I have never seen it like this. So I was like, what do you do? And then he said, the magic words said he was in real estate. They own apartments, right? Yeah. Now, I wish the story got better, but it doesn't Bruce was a grumpy old, man. My mom was really pretty. So don't judge my mom. She did get to know I, but I left that, I would think that Bruce was the Big Kahuna, why? Sure had a lifestyle. So I read that Rich Dad, Poor Dad book and I will send. I was like, dude, that's what it is. I want to do real estate, so I fell in love with real estate at that moment. That's when I really got the download from the Mother Ship, like this was my life, this is what I am supposed to do. So when you turn that quit, so at that point that I am you know, I go crazy, I am starting to read all the books I can't on real estate. I am just a book nerd. Finally, get to the point where I am ready to start my company. Company. I am like, what do I name it? And all I could think about is I wanted to be the Big Kahuna. So I named my company called Kahuna Investments, right? And so the but that's when the real work started happening. And at that point, I was a whole seller. I was going to these Ria events, Real Estate Investors associations and I would sit by smart people, the guys had money and I would figure out what they're doing and you know where they buy, what is their average rehab? And I would go and I would find you is like that and So them and that was working pretty well as I go. Wow, I am now I am in real estate. And there happened, I really went about full-time by 2009 and that's kind of Great Recession happened. So it was a great time to be in real estate. I am finding these deals. And so then the next magic piece was someone gave me their actual money, right? A raise my first piece of private money and I equate that moment till I go into a telephone booth. As Clark Kent and I spun around that thing and I was like, Superman, right? So this guy gave me 85,000 dollars to do a Fix and Flip. And once I got that, I was like, man, this is awesome because that, you know, it takes money to make money, sure. But it doesn't always take your money. That's what I learned, right? It can be 0 the other people's money. So once I understood that, I am really not that smart Genie. But I am a fantastic copier. Like I can copy like, nobody has. Yeah. So I looked around and said there's got to be some other people that's raising money that you know and what do they use? What's their tools? What are they saying? What are they not saying? And I became, I found a mentor. And next thing I know I go, I am raised. I within a year. I have about a three million dollars that I am working. Now, this is going to lead to my the next, the real setup. So here I am being the Jack of all trades and to the world's eyes, right? I am now two years in like really I started my company 2005 at 2009, when I went full time by 2010 I am jamming bro. Like I am doing seven or eight deals fix and flips a month. I will make it twenty to thirty thousand dollars of flip. My life looks. I am looking pretty sick. Actual a feeling successful. Right. Sure. But there're some things that are not so good going on. And these are the things that hopefully your audience will think about. Because at that moment time were into the world's view. I was great. But dude, this phone was tied to my ear. I cannot Escape it. I was a slave to it. And I was a slave to working at All times of the day at all times of the night Mondays through Sunday, right? Like I was just a workaholic, got it to make this Almighty dollar. So now, let me just jump into you. Now, what? We will just figure out how old you are now. So in 2010, approximately how old were you at this, at 30? Yeah, 30. Okay. Well yeah, rub 30 got it. So you'd been a used car salesman then in your I guess. Mid-30s right. You switch. You were kind of gravitating and slowly moving into real estate menu full time. You guys know In 2009. So 2930 you go full time into real estate. And then you start off wholesaling and flipping ran out of your own cash in order to scale which is you know, common issue, right? You need access to Capital start, start seeing the light bulb moments are happening where you're seeing, you can use other people's money to scale your business. And but your workaholic, and so you from the outside, you look super Cecil super busy. This guy's crushing it. This guy's a genius. I want this life of, you know, I want to be Cory Peterson. Maybe somebody it was thinking on the outside, but tell us about what was going on. And in, in the family and has been cited. The home life was wrecked, right? My wife's like gosh, damn, can you not just get off the phone for a minute? Look at me. What about me? What about your kids, right? And this was like a two-year period. Where you know you gotta understand when you I grew up poor, right? And I desperately wanted to get out of poor share and that was my driving force. And I thought that, you know, I was saying things like, well, I am doing it for my kids. Sure I am doing it for my family. Yeah, that's a lie, right? I was doing it for me. All right, but there was an expensive price to pay for Doing it the way that I was doing it because there was no balance. I didn't create any thinks that gave me time, Freedom, or really, any freedom, it was just work. Work. Go, go, go, right. My only thought was this will not last, right? I have I am I don't care, this will take care of us, but As I started to realize, like so but then something changed. So here's what happened. I am I was still active in my kid's life, but like, let us just say, you know, it's not wasn't perfect dad, right? And, you know, this is at a pivotal time in your kid's, life were like, you know, around seven and eight, they're really wanting and needing you, right? Sure. Yeah. And you want to be their coaches and, you know that was my dad was my coach, right? So, You know, but there was a time when my son was playing soccer, and he was like, hey Dad, you go be at my game on Saturday and I look at it again. No problem said I will be there, right? And I was like, his game was like, 3:00, but in my mind, I was like, dude, Setter. I got to go. Look at these three properties because I didn't look at these, rehabs in touch base, see, where they're at. So, I was like, in my mind, I am like, okay, I will just wake up early in the morning. I will go all of these three properties and I will get back in time for the game. Gator. Jamie, you know, you go to the first property and there're problems like oh gosh, you got to run a Lowe's, they get stuff. I am like looking at my clock. Oh gosh. You know, I don't feel like a little getting tight go to the second part. Now, I am getting like, by the third property, I am like, oh my God. I am not gonna miss, I get there, I show up to the game at the end of the game. And dude, my son comes off the field. Crying. And I am just telling you, dude, if you ever been broke as a, as a parent when your this one's tough to tell, but like when you go in s***. Yeah. Mike. He's like Dad, you promised, and he's just starts. And I remember taking his head, put it in my chest, and he's like that horrible. Try as a kid. Kid. And I am just like, and I am just taking them in, and he's just saw me because it meant so much and I wasn't there, right? And I am just telling you Jamie that moment broke me. So true. I knew I was like, what in the hell am I doing sure right? Like, what is because yeah, it was horrible, right? Yeah now and then I am just I will just say I appreciate you being vulnerable and You know, I mentioned before we hit recorded, you know, is unfortunately a lot of entrepreneurs and a lot of fathers can relate to this story. Maybe not exactly how it played out in your case. And maybe there were times, they should have actually felt what you felt. But the point is that it's very easy, you know, I own a small business, few small businesses and it's very easy to just, I love it. Like you said, I love building team. I love, you know, generating income. I love real estate investing. Doesn't mean I don't love my family but it's very easy to get sucked into working all the time. And, and you do tell yourself, you're doing it for them and maybe you know, there's some truth to that as well. I mean, but so, what did you do? I mean, it sounds like this really, this really broke you. Oh, yeah. So you know, it's funny. So kids are resilient. It's crazy. Sure, even though I am breaking his heart, he's like goes home with me. What's going my truck, right? So the whole way ride home is like he's on his search for, and I am just, I am dying inside, man. I am like, oh my God, my little boy and breaking is just it hurt, him bad. And, so I get home, drop him off and my wife looks at me. She's like, you got to fix this, you gotta solve it, like this is bull crap right there. See what you have been doing, right? And, so I get my truck and I just start, I drive by myself man, and I am telling you what I am In that truck by myself, I am cussing myself out so bad. What the f you stupid as so? Be like, why would you do this? Why would you think you need to go look at these properties? Why can't you just go to the damn game, right? And I mean, just beating myself up and finally, I Surrender my heart to God, and I was, I asked, I asked God to forgive me, right? And I found Solitude and I find, so I got into a place of quiet, right? And then that's what happened, it changed my life because I drove by the street that I go on was this apartment complex and I have driven by it a million times my friend. And I used to say, I wish I could own an apartment complex and I drive by this apartment complex and I look at it empty, just broken empty. And I go, how can I own an apartment complex? I framed. It differently framed a different, I sure. Yeah, my brain starts working. I flash back to Bruce. Yeah, 2004 cash flow time and money. He said Apartments, he didn't say fix them. Flip, right, right. Absolutely. And I was like, oh my God, that's it. That's what I am supposed to be doing. I flipped around, I did an u-turn and went to Barnes & Nobles. But every book I could on multifamily and vesting ice, I found a mentor and now I am living my cash flow life, right? Awesome. Yeah, you know I did go and I did some specific things to really my takeaways from that was I started to Time Blog right? And I can remember who I learned this from but like you know the first thing. Oh, we did. I mean my wife was like, listen, we don't want to be that person. Yeah, so let us figure it out, right? So the first thing we did is we booked our family vacations. Yeah. All right, you know, honey, when this the kids do Sports, now I actually said, I want to be their coach, so I gave them. I was like, I want to start coaching. I want to I am gonna get involved. Like I was like, I am not going to be the dad that did not check. Can do it, if I will just make time for it. Right. Right. You make it a priority I mean yeah, exactly. Other things are going to take a back seat. So it's my daughter's plans diagonally. So I coach my son's football coach my daughter's soccer and looking back, probably the best. Four to five six-year, span of my life that I am the. Most proud of was being on that soccer filter that football field when the sun's going down. And we have amazing sunsets in Arizona and be there watching these young kids and seeing your kid, and knowing that, you're the dad, that's there. Yeah, one of the best feelings ever. So, that's, I get to say that I wasn't even though I had a little spot where I screwed up royally sure I fixed it and I became a fool I am dead like jelly, the dad that I wanted to be like it's right. Sure. Now I don't trade in money by the, by the way. No kid every worry about how much money dad makes the only currency they trade in is time. That's a great Point. That's a great Point. I have not heard it put that way, you know. So yeah, and for the listener out there who may be dabbling in real estate or, you know, under learning about different asset classes and things. I know a lot of newer, Real Estate Investors in air quotes get into wholesaling and fix and flips because they think they're in you alluded to it earlier. You said you were in real estate, right? Yeah. You were in real estate but you basically had a you just had a job. I mean, it's fix and flips. You're not eater. Yeah, exactly. He right? It's transactional and that it's a lot of work. I don't personally think it's the worst way wholesaling or fix and flipping. I think it can be a great way to generate income. It's a great way. It's what you do with that income that I have learned now is what I teach is that it's taking that money and create a passive and passive income is the true way to have freedom and I literally and so that's my Mantra is like, do whatever you're doing in your ear. Like I have a lot of business owners that they have very successful businesses. They run, you know, age. Feces, what you name it, and then they take their money that they make from their business. And they invest it in a passive type of, either with me or they do their own Investments as well. She's create their getaway car. Yeah, right. Absolutely. I am in a mastermind group, it's called the passive income Mastermind and you can debate all day long about, you know, we love to put things in to make them black and white. It's either passive or it's not. Well, it's really kind of lot of Grays. Between in my, in my opinion, but I completely agree with you. Generate income based from your business or your, or your W-2. If that's you know if you can and then put that into passive income, a passive income generating assets, I love it. So you talk us through kind of I know from the point where you saw the apartment building and realized how you change your perspective you framed it differently said, how can I own that talk is from That point up through today. I know that's a ton of growth in a lot of, you know, ups and downs and everything, but walk us through that from an entrepreneurial perspective from the entrepreneurial side of his they, okay. So that was my new task. Okay. So I knew that Fix and Flip wasn't the model for me. Right. And so then I so again what I have learned is I am not that smart, but I am actually excellent copier. So I had to find a mentor for me. So I found a guy named David Lindell. I read one of his books. I resonate with him, so I found him out, he's out of Massachusetts has throughout their game, some money became a friend, and he taught me everything that I know, right? And, so I and then, you know, then he's got to do the work. So then I am like, terrible, I gotta find a deal. So, you know, underwrote a lot of deals and a lot of them don't work, but then one did, and that one that did. I was able to take the money that I always already raising for the single family side and transition it and say, Hey, listen. And we're just going to move into this Arena. Sure, and so we raise, we bought our first deal for 3.2 million dollars, and we raised well 1.4 million dollars of private money. Okay? Right. Yeah. So that was my first deal and even that one went sideways. Jamie. Right. Okay. A little bit, right? So I made a couple key mistakes. So I didn't actually find the delay had partners that people that I knew, I kind of do we will call? I kind of knew they had a deal. And they didn't have all the money that they needed to do the deal. And I knew that I had money, even though it wasn't my money, I knew I could command it. Sure, right. Okay. So we struck a deal where it was supposed to be, you know, 75/25 split. I was going to own the 75. I was going to bring in my capital and then, so we bought this deal for 3.2 million, right? So but in when we close somehow they change the operating agreement and I didn't catch it, nor my attorney. Where I did have a 75 25% of the ownership of the income, but on the Voting Rights, it was 33, 33. Wow, there're three guys, right? Me and two other guys. Yeah, all of a sudden, I didn't have control and the other two guys were known. Each other very well. It sounds like right. Oh absolutely, yeah. Now so that was I am like okay I just took all these people's money. I told them I had control now, I don't have controlled. So what do you do? Well, I am not proud of this moment. I may have picked up the phone call and I did a, you know, you know, I am coming and hell's coming with me kind of cold. I am gonna be on your front doorstep tomorrow, and we're going to figure it out, right Carol. Chapman drove over in his Jeep and now, I am just kidding. So, we were gonna go ABS. I basically said listen to this one. Guy's like your pure POS, what she did was wrong, you know, you deceived it, right? Sure. And, but I am coming. And I am we're going to come to agreement on price, and I am buying your shares. Okay? Right. Gotcha, sham. I didn't have any Your money at this time. So but what I did have is I was resourceful and I knew I had investors that would give me money right? So it's more than what I expected but so at the end of the day it was 200k. Boom by that guy out. Right? So I paid him. 200k had a call guys? Like why are we 200k? Made the move, got the shares. I do you know I am back in control. Then my next problem happens. They had got us in a loan. That was cold. That's its called a lockbox is a fool lockbox. Meaning all the money goes into the bank that's account, that's controlled by the bank and the bank only will release the funds for expenses. Got it. Well, I would already promised my investors. I am paying them along the way. Sure. Oh, we don't have money to pay investors. Yeah. What do I do? Call another guy. Hey, listen. I need, I need another couple hundred thousand dollars for this steel, right? I will put it in, you know, my own bank counting and parlayed that money and it was pain from that. Now, so each of the steps, the way, I am like, I am learning like know they operating agreement. I know that business partner. Those little words matter. Write all those things, really truly matter. And then but the one thing that I did, right, Jamie is I really under wrote the heck out of that Guild? I understood what they deal needed and I understood what it could do. And so we end up keeping it for five years. And we sold it for eight point eight million bucks. So we bought it for 3.2 and sold it for eight point, eight million bucks, right? Wow, how about how much did you put in put into it? Do you guys your 30 my money, right? Just one point four million of someone else's, right? So I end up making two million dollars profit. Wow, that's awesome. Now, it's just first as far as how are you, you know, I have some guesses but tell the listener out there how you were able to just pick up the phone and, you know, receive 200k, for example. How did you have those connections or have you planted the seed when I was doing my Fix and Flip business, right? Those are a lot of my investors that I had worked with that. Give me money time and you know that I give it back to them to give me money. So I built a little bit of a relationship with them right now. That is my skill set. So, the one thing the difference between what I do now and I think what the difference of the separator, for the people that are in multifamily is the one skill set. My master was had to raise Capital, so I instead of learning how to find a deal or how to be a great operator, which I have we were both like we're her have her own management company as well, but the skill set that I hold high above all others and it pays me the most money was learning how to raise capital. And I didn't say this earlier, but like I was a used car salesman but I had a good friend that said hey man, you need to become a financial And I was like, well don't you need to have a degree to do that? He goes. No, you just got to kind of like be an entrepreneur. I was like, oh well, I started this real estate company business. Maybe I that was early like 2004, right? So I was like, maybe I can use that. So I did trade up from the car salesman Cheryl financial advisor. It's so slimy either way. Yeah, well, but I think it is but that company taught me all about money. Yeah. Right. Absolutely. Lately. And I think that and I have mentioned this on once or twice previously, another episodes, but I think that's a key piece for the listener out there. As far as you may not love the position that you're in right now. I am not saying don't think about starting a business or don't think about switching careers, but do the best you can in the position you're in and learn what you can from that role put and you never know where it's where you go to be able to apply it later because that's what happened to you, right? I am doing this right now in my management company. We just started, this news become be like two weeks ago, so nice, but something I learned almost 18 years ago when I was a restaurant manager, right? Are they had when I was managing a restaurant, they had what's called? When I first came on, I was the MIT a manager in training and every location paid a little bit of money to the collective to the home office for the MIT program. Okay. And that Allowed them to have a training Hub or training dollars to keep people in the system. Because as they try to grow and operate or people come and go, you want to have people that are already knows your system knows. The process knows that already bleeding your brand, right? Sure. And so, I am doing that with my management company. So, we have an MIT program where we are now, teaching these property managers. We have them go sit with the maintenance, then we have to go with the You know, Community Ambassador, then to the leasing to the vendor of the property manager, we get them all certified. These are young college kids who have college properties, and their Deployable. So they're like when I get a new location, they're ready. And then they're bleeding Kahuna. They already know our Warrior cry. It's awesome. So I get a bench, much better product. So that's a great example of, I didn't like being a property manager, right? Right. But I learned some valuable lessons, right? And As you said already a couple times, you're very good copier, right? You didn't actually come up with this idea that you're implementing now. You know, I am not taking anything away from you, but I love it. It's like, why, why reinvent the wheel? If you have seen it, if you have seen success before, which is really, really gets the kind of the, the point of this podcast is we're trying to learn from you. You have been through some hard times and you have been, you have reached abundance, and we're not saying you don't have any more challenges. Your life or anything like that, but why can't The Listener learned from you? Corey Peterson as to learn from what you learned about that, you know, that MIT programmer, you know, and some keys to success. They're so, you know, I guess what is your you already touched on it? But what is your business look like today? And maybe one or two kind of broad brush Lessons Learned as far as scaling a business. What could you how could you help the listener? There I would tell you. Hiring people as the CEO. Or even if you're not the, she liked you. But, you know, a lot of times we put on a lot of hats, but as you start to hire people, do not pass that off on anybody else, right? I believe now, and I have a hiring process again the called the four C's, right? There's your, if you're watching the video right now, you know, see my horse. He's hiring process. But I stole that from another book called A CEO does three things by Trey Taylor, right? I really when I tell you like, I am not smart by excellent copier, and so he has this thing where it's culture capabilities, compensation, and commitment and it's just a hiring process and I follow it religiously and like Krieger, come you have culture in your company whether you know it or not. And so it's either you're going to take Charge of that culture and bring life into it or it will do its own thing. And so for me, the biggest component in any business is your people. So you don't like, take that lightly, embrace it, but breathe life into it and when you do that, magic always seems to happen. At least, it has, for me, that's fantastic advice. So you still are heavily involved. Personally, in all the hiring and inside your companies will always be heavily. Like, I will always do it. It's my favorite part. It really is because I get to tell about might, like the story that I just told I tell that on every first higher, like we have nice, the culture piece, is telling you, learn to. So, here's a great thing. So any great company has a story, they're sort of foundation story, develop yours, right? So I can put mine in very articulate ways of night, L it like Bruce Wayne, right? I will make some fun. He's out of it, right? But it's such a compelling story that it was like, people gravitate towards that. Sure. You put some words and meanings behind your culture, and what it really means. So, for us, but we have we call it the, like, in the Bible they have the Beatitudes will be ours. The kind attitudes which is Hawaiian word, right? And like the kind, you know give them spread Aloha. Right? Be Ohana, The Rock said in Lilo Stitch your family, no one gets left behind and there are favored ones. Make him Mo Betta nice. Nice. I love it. It's awesome. It's really easy for people to kind of look at these companies, especially the bigger companies, you know, apple or whatever Microsoft. And think that's not a, that's not, you know there no people. There doesn't have a story, it doesn't have a personality doesn't have any problems, you know, your challenges, it's just like an innate thing, you know, but that's not true for the big businesses and it's certainly not true for the small businesses and so yeah, I love it. It's There's such a human element to all of this which again gets to kind of the root of this show is just talking about the real challenges in the human element of overcoming adversity and getting to abundance. So I have got a few kinds of Rapid Fire questions here, and we will talk, we will talk a little bit more about your business today. What's one thing that people misunderstand about you? People that don't know me. They think that because I run a company that I am all about money and it's the farthest thing from my life rights, people that really know me understand this but sometimes people look out because you have to our companies are our business is supposed to make money, that's how we keep score. Sure and they think sometimes that's just a misconception. Now my business entrepreneur people understand this, right? So but people's our world People are working W2's. Will they just don't understand us? Yeah, this is Rich greedy guy. That's all about hoarding. Money question. That's go ahead. Why is that? I give away more money than I do, right then and I help raise money for ya projects that are real passion projects, right? So question, that's this isn't on my list. But, you know, because I hear this sometimes because you were working really hard. You had a you were a workaholic and your family was suffering from it and then you put in, you know you put in boundaries and you were intentional about your calendar and blocking time for your priorities. You reprioritize. My question really is Wouldn't that be easier? It let me put it this way. Isn't it easier now for you to set those boundaries? And to be a better husband, a better father, then it was, you know, back in the day when you didn't have as much income, you didn't have as much wealth. Isn't it easier now and wasn't it? Therefore, required for you to work. 80 90 hours a week back. Then what would you say to that? No, I don't think like once I made the change, right? So like I think it's more of a mental It will change has nothing to do with where you're at financially or not financially in my opinion, right. You could start this off wherever you're at. And just say okay I need to be present, right? So like there're some things you can do like little things. So I one of the first things I do with my phone is after 6:00, it goes on, do not disturb unless you're one of my favorites you can't get ahold of me, right? It will not ring, you have to called twice in a row for to actually bring on my phone. That's the great thing about Technology is that you can utilize it that way, right? And so and then really the kind blocking once you if you will train yourself to live and die by your calendar. What I find is most people are very horrible at time management, sure, and things they could like, if you ever looked at someone going on a vacation it's amazing what they get done in a week. Everything magically happens and they get done right? Right? Because they prioritize it and then there's no waste sure we can do that in our business lives, too. Are you can actually accelerate everything you're doing in a day if you get really good and eliminate your waist or you're like, oh, let me just check Facebook, let me write right? Scroll, do a lot of dumb stuff. Yeah, you can be way more efficient. Yeah, extremely more efficient, that's a great Point. Yeah, so you can do those dead now. No matter where you're at in your business. So you think he would have Gotten to where you are today even if you'd started time, blocking and being more intentionally really show, what I had someone show me that we have been right on because I would have been living even a better lifestyle like sure. I am all about Vision. You put your vision first. Yeah, and then you build your life to work around it. Your work life and it has to fit in the cracks, right? So like if you put your family and things you were really believed are important and then you put your business on top. It has to fit in the cracks. That's great of that. If you could go back and have, if I am sorry, if you could have coffee with any historical figure, who would you choose? Oh gosh, honestly this I wouldn't even do it with any historical of I deal with my grandpa. Okay, tell tight. Tell us why? Because he was just a great man. He was just I wish I could have, he was young when he died, right? He had Parkinson's, but he was just always there. I would just love to hear his stories little bit more. Get a lot of wisdom. He worked hard with, but he was a farmer And farm life. There's something about Farm life that I think is really inspiring to, with the way he did it, right? He, you know, he didn't have a huge Farm, but he had 80 head of cattle and some chickens and some Hogs. And I don't know, I just, I felt like he was my great picture of Amanda had that lived his life with purpose. Love it. It's great. I know you have a book. You have written. At least one book. We will talk about that in a second. If you had to write another book this year, what would it be about? We probably we're actually working on it right now. Okay. But this is, this is a book about, it's more of a how-to. It's really about the passive investor. So just writing to her avatars, saying, hey, there's, there's an alternative to the stock market, right? Sure. And, you know, They will be my third book, right? But I will tell us about the first two. The first one is really was called why the rich get richer was my first one and there's really a book on apartments, but it wasn't. It was, it wasn't well written. And put it was my first book writers, like someone out there. The one I am most proud of which is my hero's journey is the book is called copy, your way to success standing on they shouldest of Giants. And you have heard me say the word copy a lot. I wrote every word of this book, right? The first one I was I would help added someone. I interviewed me, they took my words, they made into a story. This one, I wrote over two year period of time on the plane when I was flying, when I was my spare time and it goes, it's the my hero's journey, right? It has that story of me of the pain spot, right? And it really in detail fully explains my Rags to Riches. Story. I think that's very inspiring. So that's why I like it the most because it's a very inspiring book of how I turned Street smarts into. Some of these may be a multi-millionaire fantastic. I have got to get out of it. I will give it to you. I will give it to your audience. So there's a really easy way to for them to get it. If they will text the word book be okay to 480, 500 1127, the best answer that. Thompson will send a one for free. 480, 500 1127. That's the word book. Yep, text the word. Got it. Awesome. What is one thing that you are one challenge in your business right now that you're struggling with are facing? There's always a, you know, many, many challenges, what's one that comes to mind for you and your business right now? People, it's always peopled like people have most challenging the most fun, right? So I feel like how can I create a better culture? How can I hire? Okay, onboard, people faster to get right to seek it. So that's what we have been really working on is like, how do we, you know what's the recipe? Do we bring them to the home office, how do we create that environment, where we get the mold that we're looking for? Right? Sure. I think that will always be a work in progress for us. Yeah. And we get it right really good, but it's still something that's always on. My mind is, how can I do it a little bit better? How can I improve upon the product and what do I need to be doing differently? Right? What? And a lot of times it's asking feedback, right? Even the ones that say no like if you didn't hire somebody, maybe learning why they didn't want to go through your process, what was it? And then you sometimes ask that's just the way it is. But fair, there's also some good exit feedback. That you can get or when people leave you exit, feedback, really? Trying to pay attention to that and saying, oh boy, I didn't know that I was broken here. Her right? That's yeah, that's it can be humbling but able to-- to gather that information to, I mean, the only reason you're struggling. Well, one reason you're struggling with it and you're focused on it, maybe you're not struggling with it. But, you know, there's always challenges is because it's so important. Like you said earlier and if it wasn't, if hiring and people weren't the backbone of your business. I don't think you would have answered that way. No, no I because I say it. I mean it's a challenge. I think I want to do it, right. I have this like in my mind. There's Perfection, right? Yeah. And there's a level that we're running, which is good. I mean, obviously not better than average, but I feel like there's a chasm Between like, I want to be award-winning, right? How do I create my like, how do I create that? And I think I feel like we're getting closer. But I really, that's my desire. Is to have all my people like, dude, worker, who know, who are you, right? And I am not that I don't feel like I am there yet. I mean, I never get there, but I am gonna keep trying to improve if you were given ten million dollars tomorrow. Just somebody cut you a check for? No, it's not. Basement is just a gift. What we do with it, invest in real estate. I love it. Yeah, there's nothing else. I mean, I would just invest in one another deal, right? Probably give, well, I say that I would probably give a lot to charity, right? So we I am in a group called The Chandler Compadres here, in Chandler, Arizona. Cam, we raised a lot of money for youth for the boys and girls club here to our local chapter, I think last year, we raised 1.5 million dollars for Local charities, and it's very important to me. And, so I would do that by getting my church and then I take the rest of that money after I gave him. Maybe 20% of it away and go, do some more real estate. Why not right? It's awesome. Yeah, I love it. So, tell us about kind of the multifamily space, you know this year and what opportunities you have going on for the passive investor and just kind of speak to the real estate multi. Family investing space today. Yeah. So we're on a pause, right? We're not buying anything right now. Probably not buy anything till maybe third quarter. We still think the FED is going to raise rates little bit more. I don't have to buy. I am not in a spot where needed by some sleep. I am just being patient, right? I would like to see a little bit more of the market get. There's a lot of Trading still going on. There's a lot of transactions going on, but we're just not ready to participate yet. I think we're gonna wait till the third. We have got a development project that we can Greenlight whenever we want to that's on land that we already own on a, you know, just adding two more units to some of one of our existing properties will probably do that at the end of the year for sure. And hopefully, find maybe one more deal like, that, would be our mantra for 2023. That's, I think that's probably what we will do this year and really more hell-bent focus on operations. As we just took over our management company. Making sure we're really dial in our Sops for that company and just getting it like machined. So about that acquisition. So that sounds like that was an operational company that you took over, is that right? Well we just created it. So we fired our third-party management company because they suck and I really probably I would say all Property Management that are fee-based, they suck his our fee-based, we're not in alignment on how Works right? We're profit lies, and they couldn't care less. They just want their fees. Sure, and so we finally got to a size that it really makes sense to vertically integrate. The question was, did we really want to do it? And we would wrestle with that for almost a year. And finally, we just said, it's time, right? And I am so glad that we did, because I think that is the absolute, right? Choice. And I know that it is now I lay in my heart, our products, and me, Better. And really the story of even our company, is it all makes sense, right? And so now we have more people right to bring in and that's why. It's that's part was part of us right now. And he said about right College. Yeah, I have got to get these all these new people that we just took over that are at our properties. They were employees of my old management company. Aha. So now I have got to figure out. How do I get them onboard? It to my culture? Yeah, and my way as soon as possible. Yeah, it's something. That's a lot of sugar to find them out, like we just like bleeding. We got to, we got to get them integrated, we got to go break bread with them. We got a catch and sell the vision nice. So, with regard to the more the investment side back to that. Do you have you're not under any pressure for, you know, I don't know with like floating rate dead or Bridge loans or anything to, you know, you still have some of those yet. We have those are other issues. But like we have two properties that are in Bridge debt that are under what's called. Old soft lock box control because the interest rates went up high. These deals are actually profitable but, and we have what's called rate locks on them. So we're getting paid a Delta for the rate lock but the property is not counting that as income. So we have Fallen below our debt coverage ratio. So we still have two more loans to place to get rid of that. We will get that done in August because we had a prepayment penalty. If we paid off early, Not willing to pay that so patient. Our investors are really good and Savvy. They understand like we from the very beginning when we tell investors, it's a marathon. It's not a Sprint. Sure that's right. I get to set the expectations like that. And so what do you have open opportunities for investors? Now we do but you got to go through our process, so we couldn't offer them to anybody. That's In, you know it's listening but actually we're regulated by the SEC. We're under regulated by the SEC. Yeah you can go to our website Coon Investments and get through our process, but we really have there're some rules that we have got to follow. We got to get to know, you have to have what's called an accredited investor questionnaire filled out. Once we do that we can show you future deals. Got it. Understood makes a lot of sense. What have I not asked you that you'd like to talk about? Man, you have done a really good job. This has been a great little story. I would tell you this. The one thing that I believe for anyone that's listening, right? I believe the power of your mind. Is everything. Any great if you really look at study, anybody that's had a very high level of achievement in anything whether its business Sports. You name it. Something happened is something that these people do and I wouldn't consider myself one of these people to do it at a level. That's pretty high level. There's a switch that we have. I don't think we have, we don't have buttons. We have switches are different, the dials right Styles. You can turn up and turn down a switch is on or off. And for me the ones that I see, but that really go. Are they have a switch when they once they decide to make up their minds on? Nothing. It is all-consuming. That's how real estate is for me. It's the switch. I am that passionate about it today. As I was when I first started, I love the game. I love what it does. You know, Tom Brady that was asked which guy, right? And listen, it's the hardest thing for that guy. Right now to see and watch a have to turn her off, he doesn't want to turn it up and so what did he do? He's like I am going to become a bod broadcaster. Yeah, because I still want. I love it. I love the game of football that's him, right? Yeah I find people when you find your passion man, that's a switch. And when you will follow your passion but it starts with an idea and I believe, if you believe it, you can achieve it. I love it. I mean, you mentioned a couple of examples in your life instances where when you talk about switches, you know, you said when you went to Hawaii and you saw the example of Bruce Um, you know, maybe you didn't follow it, exactly right away, how you should have but it was a mental big mental. Switch like my life will change forever, what's possible? You're seeing whoa, that's possible. I can create abundance, I can create wealth. And then the second big one was you know the soccer kind of will refer to as the low point but it was sounds like you had a major mental switch there as well and I just love that you took action. And you know are you perfect know? But I mean, you put in place a little, you know, I have been very intentional about calendaring your, your life, basically, and protecting your time. No. And, and the reason you're doing that is that you have prioritized, you know, family and relationships with it, both inside. And outside of your business, my business Works to serve me, right to serve my personal decision, and that, that's all said, that's really good. Fantastic Corey Peterson. This is Very good. I have really enjoyed this episode and I know the listener will as well, where can our listeners reach out to you online? Yeah. So if they listen to podcasts who we have a podcast called multi family Legacy podcast or go to our website Kahuna Investments.com, Perfect. Perfect. Awesome. Awesome. Thank you so much Cory. Thank you so much Cory. This has been great, really appreciate your time. This has been great, really appreciate your time. Thanks brother. Thanks brother. And to The Listener out there, we also very much appreciate your time, which is your most valuable resource. And to The Listener out there, we also very much appreciate your time, which is your most valuable resource. Thanks for listening everyone. Thanks for listening everyone. Take Care. Take Care. Thank you for spending your most valuable resource with us your time. Thank you for spending your most valuable resource with us your time. If you like the show, please share it with your friends and fellow podcast listeners, one entrepreneur to time. If you like the show, please share it with your friends and fellow podcast listeners, one entrepreneur to time. We can change the world. We can change the world. See you next time. See you next time.