Success coach Trevor McGregor has guided winners, including everyone from Olympians to real estate moguls. One of his most requested subjects? The six rungs on the ladder of success. The little things compound when you invest more in your success and climb that ladder. From step 1 to step 2 is a mile – a big step! However, the farther you climb, the shorter the distance between steps. This ladder principle applies to every aspect of our life, from our real estate business to our marriage, as well as our diet and exercise.
Climbing The Ladder Of Success
What are the six rungs on the ladder of success, from bottom to top? They are showing up:
1. Poor
2. Good
3. Great
———————-
4. Excellent
5. Outstanding
6. Extraordinary
Most people can get to the third rung with a little effort, but can you climb up above that middle line, which leads to the “Excellent” rung?
When your effort is poor, you will get pain as your result. Playing good will only get you poor results, while great work means good results in your future. Excellent effort will get you great results. Outstanding effort results in Excellent Results, but only extraordinary effort will yield outstanding results for you. That extraordinary work is the only way that you can reach outstanding results when climbing to the top of the ladder of success.
Join Our Community
Do you own multi-family properties? If not, do you aspire to do so one day? Then you should definitely consider joining our online discussion group, the ATL Inner Circle Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Sign up today!
Investing in Commercial Real Estate may seem risky. If you do it right though, there are tons of hidden benefits – not to mention the huge profits! Successful real estate investor Rob Rowsell explains how multifamily investments qualify as commercial real estate, just like storefronts and other commercial retailers. Rob also explains the benefits of a Triple Net Lease, and the importance of carrying the right insurance coverage. This is a great primer for real estate investing beginners.
Is Investing In Commercial Real Estate For You?
A participant on a recent Inner Circle Community call joined in on Rob’s Q & A. He recalled the saying that all property investors end up investing in commercial real estate. Is that really true? For Rob, it is, but in more than one way.
Rob explained that real estate professionals refer to multifamily investments as “commercial residential properties”. Since multifamily is Rob’s bread and butter, you could say he is deeply entrenched in investing in commercial real estate.
He also invests in Triple Net Lease properties. These range from single tenant buildings, such as Walmart stores, to strip malls housing multiple businesses. There are variations on the Triple Net Lease model. Rob explains that when you invest in a True Triple Net Lease property, the tenant pays for taxes, insurance, and maintenance. You are free and clear to invest or spend their rent checks, without paying for any of those bills. However, Rob always takes out an additional insurance policy on each property just in case tenants’ policies lapse or get canceled.
Join Our Community
Do you own multi-family properties? If not, do you aspire to one day? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the ATL Inner Circle Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. It’s not as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Sign up today!
What you do not know about your own Retirement Plan might just shock you! Most workers invest in a traditional 401k Wealth Bucket Model. However, that just may not be right for you, the savvy investor. Think about it. What if your bucket of money runs out before your retirement years are over? When you rely solely on that bucket of money, the ensuing expenses can drain it over time. Those funds could dry up before you pass away, and then you may have to go back to work. Definitely not what anyone wants in their twilight years. Read on for further explanation and a much better way for you to save for retirement!
The Wealth Bucket Model Retirement Plan is Broken.
Just like Steven Covey’s book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People outlines, we are going to begin with the end in mind. Although small details will vary between us, we all want the same thing out of life. We want freedom! More specifically, we want the time to do all the things that will fulfill us. Hopefully, we can make that time before we are too old to actually enjoy them to the fullest.
Rob outlines the means to this system as your Wealth Operating System, also known as your CORE Fund. This fund will form the base of your financial freedom. Eventually, your CORE Fund should start to generate Horizontal Income, totaling 1.3-1.5 times the amount of your Vitality Number.
This is how Rob Rowsell encourages the members of his financial community to approach their retirement planning. However, almost every American will foolishly lean on a Wealth Bucket Model. We will explain that model next.
What Is The Wealth Bucket Model, And Why Should We Not Use It Exclusively?
What is the big picture we want to paint about the Wealth Bucket Model? Most of us American citizens will contribute regularly to a 401k retirement fund throughout their career. There is absolutely nothing wrong when you use a 401k fund as a nest egg. However, when we rely on it exclusively, then we run the risk of running out of money before we are ready. We may have to go back to work in order to pay our bills. Rob outlines more below on the biggest expenses that are holes in the wealth bucket model.
Ignorance Is The Number One Leak In The Wealth Bucket Model
When we move on from our businesses, most of us will inevitably want to try new endeavors. We often make the mistake of thinking that our new ventures will come just as naturally as our pre-retirement ones. Many a successful investor has fallen prey to this trap. If you insist on investing funds in a new business or property, then you have to do your homework! Make sure that you partner up with some trusted experts in those fields.
Taxes – How Tax Drag Drains Your Wealth Bucket Model
When you reduce your Tax Drag, it can create a huge income stream! Rob preaches this point again and again to our community, and with good reason. Does your CPA recommend ways that you can legally reduce your tax burden? Well then, do it! Then, you can invest the difference in assets in accounts which will return compound interest.
Find Out What Your Vitality Number Is
Your Vitality Number refers to the annual cost of living which you want to live within. You should always live within your values, and not within your vanity! This is the biggest number that you can possibly get wrong! You want that trip around the world that your favorite billionaire influencer took on Youtube so badly. Geat real! You are not at their level yet. Unless you wait until you absolutely are, then you will blow your Vitality Number right out of the water.
Avoid Fee Drag By Consulting With Wise Financial Advisors
The task of employing wise advisors is mission critical. However, you need to keep a close eye on what they are charging you. You should also keep evaluating it annually. At some point, the value may not be there anymore from their side. Maybe they are not working as hard as they did in the past in order to achieve the results you need. It is so important to shop around, so you can avoid suffering Fee Drag from these providers.
Inflation – The Silent Killer of Your Wealth Bucket Model Investments
You do not need a wealth expert’s advice in order to know that inflation is bad. In fact, it can be a real wealth killer! Keep this in mind as you are calculating your personal Vitality Number. Create a written or printed report of your own Personal P and L. Then, you must examine it in order to find out what that number is. When you stick to that number, then you can never go wrong.
Join Our Community
Do you own multi-family properties? If not, do you aspire to do so one day? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the ATL Inner Circle Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. It’s not as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Sign up today!
Now that you’ve learned how to stack up cash, you’ve got to learn how to invest your assets! Investing for maximum return means building assets and then repurposing them over time. Invest wisely and watch your wealth grow!
Investing For Maximum Return – Building Assets and Repurposing Them
In Act 1 of our Money Game series, Rob detailed strategies for maximizing our active income earnings. Act 2 is all about investing for maximum return. Specifically, we are buying and building assets that will return us cash.
When it comes to investments, Rob describes the assets that return compound interest as the “8th Wonder of the World”. Apologies to Andre the Giant. The concept of the “doubling clock” comes up. When you invest in assets that accrue compound interest, and hold them, they will double in value over time. The goal is to invest your surplus money and make it work for you. After all, you are not just investing in assets. You are also investing in yourself. And nobody wants to invest in themselves unless they are investing for maximum return.
When you start the Wealth Clock early in life, you have the distinct advantage of time. The more time you hold good investments that compound in interest, the more “doublings” you will enjoy. Unconventional investments with unproven parties are much more tempting when you are younger. “The greater the risk, the greater the return”. If you start investing later in life, you have a whole lot less wiggle room, and tend to stay in your comfort zone. After all, you don’t want to gamble and lose it all.
Want To Learn More? Join Our Community!
Do you own multi-family properties? If not, do you aspire to one day? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the ATL Inner Circle Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. It’s not as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Sign up today!
In this 4-part mini-series “Winning the Money Game”, Rob Rowsell details the start of the journey: earning active income, so you can then start investing said income. It’s all about you! Learn how to maximize your personal earnings, reduce your taxes (legally!), and control your personal expenses, and you’re on your way to winning the money game.
Earning Active Income – The First Step to Winning the Money Game
Rob kicks off the Money Game discussion by laying out three components to earning active income. These include maximizing your personal earnings, reducing taxes, and controlling personal expenses. When you all all of these factors up, they equal a surplus of cash to invest.
Maximize Personal Earnings
On your way to winning the money game, it’s no secret that you need to start small. Remember what your grandparents told you when you got our first job? It’s not what you make, it’s what you save! Well, it can often seem impossible to save and invest when you’re not making much. This is a tough economy, but there are many strategies to maximize your personal earnings in order to invest more. Whether you own a business or earn a W2, you are earning a regular check and can find ways to save a portion of it.
Legally Reduce Your Taxes from Earning Active Income
Money saved on taxes is an income stream! There are many legal ways to reduce your taxes owed, whether through deductions, business expenses, or other expert methods. If you’re not regularly meeting with your CPA, start now. Maybe you have reached the level where your CPA is no longer helping you, and you’ve outgrown them. Investing in a CPA who specializes in high income business owners will pay back dividends when they implement these strategies. Rob has learned firsthand in the real estate sales industry how to take advantage of tax benefits most business owners don’t know about.
Control Your Own Personal Expenses
Another phrase seemingly lost to time with our elders is live within your values. Capitalism is so refined in 2023. Every screen you turn to sings a siren song to you. Buy this, it’ll make you happier. You deserve it. When you have climbed the income ladder to the point where you can actually afford those things, it’s easy to give in. Living within your values is another income stream. If your truck is still running great at 150,000 miles, it will probably still run great at 200,000 miles. Trade secret: you’re happier with a vehicle when it’s paid off! This goes for appliances and mortgages, too!
The End Goal of Earning Active Income: Surplus Cash To Invest
Act 1 of winning the money game may be the hardest. Earning active income from a W2 or business owner wages may not yield enough on it’s own. If that is the case, you must explore your tax advantages and tighten your spending belt. You won’t regret the dividends you earn years down the line if you invest the surplus cash it generates.
Join Our Community
Do you own multi-family properties? If not, do you aspire to one day? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the ATL Inner Circle Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. It’s not as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Sign up today!
How close are you to absolute financial freedom? Rob Rowsell talks about how to grow your money and live off of investment income only. Rob has transitioned from a multiple business owner to a multiple family real estate investor. Who better to take advice from? Rob has learned the hard way how to avoid unwise investments and do his due diligence to ensure his income only comes from his properties.
Tasks to Transition to Living Off of Your Investment Income
Rob starts off the clip laying out his current financial situation. He no longer holds a conventional “W-2” job. Therefore, he depends solely on his apartment holdings to generate cash. Reinvesting that cash wisely is his key to maintaining financial freedom. Do you still have a full time day job? You can still take steps to eventually fund your lifestyle solely from investment income. If you dedicate just eight hours per quarter to your investments, you are well on your way.
We talk often about the Vitality Spreadsheet. Examining this document will help you determine the income amounts you need in order to meet basic needs, then live with vitality, and, finally, achieve total financial freedom. You must take time to thoroughly vet potential property investments, while reviewing your numbers with a fine toothed comb. If that sounds like a part time job, that’s because it is! However, performing your due diligence will pay dividends for you and any potential investment partners down the line.
Join Our Community
Do you invest in real estate? Planning on transitioning to living off of that investment income? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the Addicted To Life Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. It’s not as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Enroll today!
Do you plan to invest your money in a business or property? Then you MUST fill out your due diligence checklist. This includes population demographics, surrounding businesses, competition, economic conditions, and more. Rob goes DEEP into the weeds in order to discuss all of the research factors you should consider. BEFORE you invest in any kind of business, you must watch this video!
Auto Repair Shop Investing Due Diligence
Rob began by listing off just a few potential businesses that one could invest in. Consider everything from coffee shops to apartment complexes to auto repair shops. All of them have one thing in common. Researching their demographics is key. An average investor may be interested in injecting capital into a business. In that case, they would be wise to do their homework.
Specifically, Rob then expanded on due diligence for aspiring auto repair shop owners. Perhaps you are investigating a vacant property. You wish to build a new repair shop on it. In that case, consider the size of its population. Next, take a look at how many existing automotive shops serve that community. Are you currently considering an underserved region? Or is the area already overserved? Rob calculates that one average sized auto repair shop can serve up to 1,000 households. Is your target city’s population approximately 20,000? Then it could theoretically sustain up to 13 successful shop locations in the area.
Researching Household Income
However, you are not just looking at how many people live near the businesses. You want to know what the average household income is. Aim to plant your business in the middle of a thriving community. That means its citizens average $70,000 or more in annual income. These folks are much more likely to prioritize maintaining their vehicles than other, less fortunate individuals. That may not be a fun statistic to quote, but it is true. We are all trying to make a profit. And we want to do it without fighting a constant uphill battle.
What about investing in existing auto repair franchises? That honest mistake ensures you will get a smaller cut of the pie. All the while, you will work harder in order to fit into someone else’s mold. Investing in a turn key, existing business can still benefit you. If you find this idea appealing, then seek out independently owned auto repair shops.
Due Diligence in Real Estate Investing
Moving on, we discuss the real estate industry. Rob discourages pursuing properties on apartment listing aggregate websites. Many of these sites set off a race to the bottom. When this happens, competition can get fierce. The properties listed on these sites often end up driving down prices. They do this by offering move in specials. Everyone needs a place to live. Discounts like these help a lot of lower income renters. However, you want to invest in higher end, multi-family properties. Those will not be surrounded by stiff competition. They will also give you much larger returns on your investments.
Next, let’s talk about your area’s demographics. Rob lays out an ideal situation. Let’s say the community population is 100,000 people. You will want there to be no less than one hospital nearby. What’s a tip many folks may not consider? Scout a property that is 30 minutes or less away from a major airport. Rob prefers an international one. Are you investing in rental properties in multiple large markets across the country? Then you will want them to be easily accessible to you. Let’s face it: you are busy, and you don’t need to spend your time driving all the way across town to assess an issue with your complex.
Investigating the Area’s Economy
Moreover, you must examine the economy in your chosen area. Job growth should consistently be trending upward. That figure should read a 4-5% minimum, year over year. You will also want a diverse selection of industries throughout the city. Many communities’ economies are based on only one industry. This could be, for instance, a car and truck manufacturing plant. That factory, situated in the town’s industrial zone, may employ half the town. Thousands of small businesses have sprung up around it to serve its employees. How many times have we read headlines about those plants moving overseas, and ruining the area’s entire economy? Now, the plant workers, as well as the other businesses’ employees, are all out of work. If you invest in a shop serving these people, you and your staff are next.
Rob also mentioned the huge hit that the hospitality industry took during the COVID-19 pandemic. If an entire town’s economic hopes are pinned solely on a resort, an event like that will sink it. Every town is a business, and just like with any successful business’ investment strategy, diversifying is key. Remember this when you’re doing your due diligence.
Join the ATL ALL-In Financial Community
Do you currently own multi-family properties? If not, do you wish to invest in the future? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the Addicted To Life Community! Each month, you will join your fellow investors on a live Zoom roundtable talk. Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the lucrative real estate industry. It is not nearly as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be mind numbingly hard to navigate. Having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! So sign up today!
How does a successful real estate investor calculate their blended tax rate? Let Addicted to Life’s Rob Rowsell teach you the secret formula so you won’t pay more taxes than you have to!
Rob Explains Blended Tax Rate For Real Estate Investors
Let’s do the math! Rob lays out a theoretical income amount for the group to consider. On a sample effective annual gross income of $400,000, Rob calculates a blended tax rate of 2%. That may sound small, but it in fact adds up to $8,000.
Jake Garcia asks our host for a clarification. Rob shows his work with a very simple equation. You start with your annual total gross income. Then divided it by all the taxes you paid at the end of the year. When you solve this equation, you will end up with your blended tax rate.
Finally, Rob makes sure to clarify that he does not hate paying taxes to his state and federal governments! Taxes are necessary for the United States to build roads, employ police officers, and provide equipment for the armed forces to defend our freedom.
As any business owner with many investments to look after would tell you, he just does not want to pay more than he actually owes by mistake. That means more cash on hand to invest in his family, his staff, and his eventual retirement goals.
Join Our Community
Do you own multi-family properties? If not, do you aspire to one day? Then you should consider joining our online discussion group, the Addicted To Life Community! Each month, Rob Rowsell will teach you what you must do in order to build wealth in the real estate business. It’s not as easy as it looks! Property taxes, liens, and legal fees can all be hard to navigate, so having a successful guide in your corner like Rob is a must! Enroll today!
Is Investing In Commercial Real Estate For You?
The Wealth Bucket Model Retirement Plan is Broken.
Investing For Maximum Return – Building Assets and Repurposing Them
Earning Active Income – The First Step to Winning the Money Game
Rob starts off the clip laying out his current financial situation. He no longer holds a conventional “W-2” job. Therefore, he depends solely on his apartment holdings to generate cash. Reinvesting that cash wisely is his key to maintaining financial freedom. Do you still have a full time day job? You can still take steps to eventually fund your lifestyle solely from investment income. If you dedicate just eight hours per quarter to your investments, you are 
Auto Repair Shop Investing Due Diligence
Rob Explains Blended Tax Rate For Real Estate Investors