In today’s dynamic and unpredictable real estate market, savvy investors are turning away from traditional funding methods. High interest rates, tighter lending criteria, and fierce competition mean that relying solely on banks or conventional loans can leave promising deals out of reach. For those ready to think differently, creative financing offers a pathway not just to survive, but to thrive. This was the key theme explored in a recent episode of the Raising Private Money podcast, where Jay Conner sat down with veteran investor Mark Monroe, a man who’s structured more than $500 million in deals over a storied 30-year career.
An Unconventional Beginning
Mark Monroe’s story is one for the ages, beginning with a no-money-down mobile home deal he did at nineteen. As he recounts, he took lessons from a simple “We buy houses” sign campaign in his tiny Vermont hometown—a campaign that featured more hard knocks than immediate wins. But out of that rough start—complete with makeshift signs, municipal warnings, and creative negotiation—came a realization: the greatest opportunities in real estate aren’t in the properties themselves, but in how you structure the deals around them. His early experience with seller financing was a launching pad into a career built on turning challenges into opportunities.
The Power of Seller Financing
Why does seller financing stand out as such a potent tool? For Monroe, the answer is flexibility. Traditional banks are bound by rigid guidelines—if a borrower doesn’t fit the box, the deal is dead. Creative financing, and especially seller financing, allows investors and sellers to negotiate terms tailored to their unique circumstances. This becomes vital when dealing with self-employed buyers with complex finances, sellers with specific needs, or properties overlooked by standard lenders. It’s not just about avoiding red tape, but about crafting true win-win solutions.
And it doesn’t stop at getting into deals. Monroe highlights the often-overlooked world of secondary markets, where savvy investors can sell off mortgage notes to private individuals—think doctors or other professionals seeking solid, passive returns for retirement funds. This layering of strategies exemplifies the broader opportunities offered when you step outside the box.
The Art of Listening and Building Rapport
For many investors, the hurdle isn’t understanding creative concepts—it’s believing sellers would ever agree to them. Monroe dispels this myth by emphasizing the importance of rapport. “Think of it like a first date,” he advises. It’s all about trust. The willingness of a seller to finance a deal hinges not on scripts or tactics, but on a genuine connection and a sincere desire to solve the seller’s unique problem. Sometimes, that means inventing a way to cover a seller’s camper payments, as Monroe did in one particularly creative transaction. The lesson: listen deeply, understand motivations, and build solutions around people, not just properties.
Shifting Mindsets on Capital
One of the big stumbling blocks new investors face is the belief that you must have capital or excellent credit to play in the real estate big leagues. Monroe crushes that limiting belief, sharing how knowledge, creativity, and relationship-building matter far more. Many successful investors start with little more than a willingness to fail forward, learn, and hustle. Your “credit” is your character and your ability to keep your word—especially when raising and managing Private Money.
Jay Conner echoes this, stressing that Private Money is not about pitching deals, but about presenting opportunities for partners to earn attractive returns. It’s relationship-driven, people-centric, and built on mutual trust.
The Foundation: Mindset and Resilience
Underlying all great investor stories is a powerful mindset. Mark Monroe’s journey, which includes beating cancer, is a testament to resilience and a refusal to let setbacks define your destiny. The real secret isn’t in any one creative financing trick, but in the willingness to adapt, to push past failures, and to keep surrounding yourself with positive, growth-oriented people.
Final Thoughts
In a world where many are on the sidelines, paralyzed by fear of what they don’t have, the true winners focus on what they can create with the knowledge and connections they build. Whether you’re a newcomer or a seasoned investor, the message from the Raising Private Money podcast is clear: creative financing isn’t just a strategy—it’s the future of real estate investing.
If you want to break through your own barriers, start by learning to see opportunity where others see obstacles. Listen to the needs, master the art of structuring deals, and above all, adopt the resilient mindset modeled by Mark Monroe. With these tools, wealth in real estate moves from being a distant dream to an everyday reality.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode
- What key lessons did Mark Monroe learn from his very first real estate deal, and how did those lessons influence his later investing strategies?
- Why does Mark Monroe believe seller financing is such a powerful tool for real estate investors, especially in today’s lending environment?
- What misconceptions do many real estate investors have about convincing property sellers to carry financing, and how can investors overcome these misunderstandings?
- How does building genuine relationships and trust with sellers contribute to successfully structuring creative financing deals?
- In what ways can creative deal structures, such as subject-to and lease options, allow investors to close deals that others might walk away from?
- What mindset shift does Mark suggest is necessary when raising Private Money, and how does presenting it as an opportunity change the dynamic with potential lenders?
- How important is it to take care of Private Money lenders, even if a deal goes sideways, and what impact can this have on an investor’s reputation?
- Why do so many investors falsely believe they need significant capital or perfect credit to get started in real estate, and how did Mark’s personal story challenge that belief?
- What role do resilience and maintaining a positive mindset play in building a successful real estate business, according to Mark Monroe’s experiences as a cancer survivor?
- Reflecting on the conversation, what practical steps can a new investor take to start thinking more creatively about structuring deals instead of just focusing on how to fund them?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
- Mark Monroe’s First Deal Was in High School with Creative Financing
Mark Monroe started his real estate journey at just 19 years old with no money, armed only with a Carlton Sheets course and homemade signs. He bought his first property—a mobile home—using creative financing and sold it with owner financing, all before truly understanding what he was doing. - Solving Seller’s Problem Unlocks Unique Deal Structures
A memorable example shared was when a seller wanted $30,000 down to buy a camper. Instead of offering the full amount, the deal was structured so the seller took out a loan, and the buyer (Mark) made the camper payments directly, allowing a win-win scenario and a very low cash outlay. - Building Relationships Is the Secret Ingredient to Raising Private Money
The episode emphasized that attracting Private Money isn’t about begging for funds, but about providing opportunities and building real relationships. Many investors make the mistake of thinking they’re asking for a favor, but in fact, they are giving lenders a chance to grow their wealth—sometimes leading to more offers for funds than deals available.
Timestamps:
00:00 Creative real estate strategies with Mark
05:39 First real estate deal experience
08:18 Real estate financing strategies
10:21 Building trust with sellers
15:57 Dad’s wisdom and negotiation advice
17:01 Raising private investment funds
22:21 Taking care of investors first
23:39 Prioritizing client relationships
29:16 Planting Positive Seeds in Life
30:44 Connect with Mark Monroe
32:21 Sharing the podcast for investors
33:54 Free guide for real estate investing
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Jay Conner is a proven real estate investment leader. Without using his own money or credit, Jay maximizes creative methods to buy and sell properties with profits averaging $67,000 per deal.
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The Power of Creative Deal Structures in Real Estate: Mark Monroe’s Insights
Jay Conner [00:00:02]:
What if you could create wealth in real estate without depending on banks, without waiting for perfect market conditions, and without letting interest rates determine whether your deals succeed or fail? What if the biggest opportunity in real estate isn’t just finding the right property, but knowing how to structure the right deal? Because the investors who win at the highest level understand something most people miss, and that is the deal is only as powerful as the strategy behind it. Welcome to Raising Private Money. I’m Jay Conner, the Private Money Authority, and today I’m bringing you a conversation with someone who has spent over 30 years mastering creative real estate strategies, seller financing, and building wealth through smart deal structures. His name is Mark Monroe. Now, Mark has been involved in over $500 million in real estate and business transactions. He’s a real estate developer, private equity investor, best-selling author of Creative Real Estate Investing, host of the Real Estate Power Play podcast, and a trusted mentor to investors all across the country. But here’s what I really want you to pay attention to. Mark doesn’t just know how to buy real estate.
Jay Conner [00:01:18]:
He knows how to create opportunities. He’s personally raised over $2 million in Private Money, understands how to build relationships, structure deals, and create win-win solutions for investors and Private Money lenders. And beyond the numbers and the transactions, Mark brings a perspective that most people never develop. As a cancer survivor, he understands what it means to fight, to adapt, and to keep moving forward when the odds are against you. So if you’re a real estate investor looking for new ways to fund deals, create more opportunities, and think differently about wealth creation, this episode is going to open your eyes, and you’re going to love it. Get ready because you’re about to learn from one of the best in the business. In just a moment, you’re going to meet Mark Monroe right after this.
Narrator [00:02:14]:
If you’re a real estate investor and are wondering how to raise and leverage Private Money to make more profit on every deal, then you’re in the right place. On raising Private Money, we’ll speak with new and seasoned investors to dissect their deals and extract the best tips and strategies to help you get the money. Because the money comes first. Now, here’s your host, Jay Conner. Foreign.
Jay Conner [00:02:42]:
Welcome to the show, Mark. Glad to have you on.
Mark Monroe [00:02:47]:
I’m excited. Looking forward to it. I had you over on our podcast,t and everybody liked it, was very well watched. We had quite a few people watch out having you on, so you brought a lot of value. So hopefully I can do the same in return for your guests.
Jay Conner [00:03:00]:
Oh, there’s no doubt about it. Well, Mark, you’ve been involved in millions, over $500 million in real estate and business transactions over the last 30 years. Take us all the way back to the beginning, the turning point, if you will. What was the moment or the experience that changed the way you look at real estate and made you realize there was a better way to create wealth than simply buying properties the traditional way?
Mark Monroe [00:03:31]:
Sure. So, you know, I thank you so much for having me on. I appreciate it. So we’ve been in this game for quite some time, both of us. So. So I was 19 years old, living in a small town in Vermont, and I did the old Carlton Sheets course, if you will, back in the day, and, you know, went through that. Had no clue what I was doing. I took cardboard boxes, cut them up, and I got a wet, waterproof magic marker.
Mark Monroe [00:03:58]:
We buy houses. I went around the town, put them all up on telephone poles, and didn’t realize it. I got in trouble with the municipality. A couple of towns, like, you gotta go take them. I’m like, well, I didn’t know. I’m sorry about that. So I went around and started taking them down. This guy called me up; he goes, hey, I got this mobile home for sale.
Mark Monroe [00:04:17]:
It’s worth 18. It’s worth 21, 000. I want 18 for it. And I’m like, I’m not interested in a mobile home. So then he calls me back a week later. He goes, give me $15,000. It’s worth 21,000. I’m like, I’m not interested.
Mark Monroe [00:04:30]:
Another week goes by. He goes, give me 12,000. It’s worth 21. I’m like, well, do you own the land? He goes, no, it’s in a mobile home park. I said, sorry, I’m not interested. A month goes by. He calls me back again. He goes, give me $6,000.
Mark Monroe [00:04:43]:
It’s worth 21,000. So I go to. I go, why are you selling? He goes, I have a lot rent due. I don’t have it. I don’t live in there. I said, well, you know, I told you I do the boomerang. I told you I’m not interested. But this is what I’ll do to help you.
Mark Monroe [00:04:57]:
I’ll give you 3,000. Give me 4,000. I’m like, no, I’m not interested. I’ll take three. You know, all right, I’ll take the 3,000. I said, okay. I have to go by the office supply store to get a contract because we didn’t have it, and I want to do an inspection. So I hung up the phone, called the newspaper, and placed an ad in the newspaper. Mobile home for sale for $25,000.
Mark Monroe [00:05:17]:
Owner financing with $3,000 down. First lady called me up. Sher and her husband went out, looked at it, they liked it, they gave me $3,000. I took that, gave it to the seller, end up creating a mortgage note for it. It was like 300-something dollars a month over seven years. I got an 8% interest rate. I know it was my car payment and insurance payment. At 19 years old, for 7 years,s I had no clue what I was doing.
Mark Monroe [00:05:39]:
So that was my real first deal. Learning how to get into a deal with no money down. Because I grew up in property in Vermont and no money, you know, at that time, you know, I didn’t learn about credit cards, and I had 28 credit cards all maxed out. Now,w at that time, at least they weren’t high limits or like 300 to $500. But that’s a lot of money to a 19-year-old. So that was my first. Aha. And then I got stuck into the corporate world for about five years, and then I jumped back into it at the age of 24, 25.
Mark Monroe [00:06:06]:
And I went full time at that time. So that was pretty much my journey.
Jay Conner [00:06:11]:
Wow, what an amazing early journey story from that story, your mobile home story, your first deal. What, what lessons? And I’m already thinking of multiple. What lessons did you learn from that first deal you did?
Mark Monroe [00:06:28]:
I mean everything. It was my first one. Every step of the way was a lesson. Not putting them up in telephone polls, you know, not using, if you do, putting signs up, not using a regular phone number. Understanding, like the paperwork, I’m sure was kind of screwed up because we didn’t use an attorney. I just created a promissory note, like a bill of sale, because it was considered a motor vehicle. So I did do a note; I did record the note on like a us, but I was just. So many different lessons, as you said.
Mark Monroe [00:06:56]:
I mean, I can go on and on and on, but you know, learning what to look for. I had no clue what to look for in a property at that time. I was just kind of winging it, if you will. So I kind of got lucky, to be frank, to go through the whole process without a proper mentor walking me through it. Just kind of going off of, you know, Carlton Sheets was what, cassettes or something like that back then. Nobody looking.
Jay Conner [00:07:19]:
Right, right. That’s an amazing story. You have spent decades, literally decades, mastering seller financing strategies. And there’s the first deal you did: seller financing to your buyer. Why do you believe seller financing is one of the most powerful tools available to real estate investors today? Especially in a market where many investors are struggling with, you know, higher interest rates and, you know, they don’t know about Private Money loans, and I do, and tighter lending requirements.
Mark Monroe [00:07:54]:
Yeah, I mean, it’s, it’s. You’re not jumping through all the red tape with the banks and lenders. They have guidelines that they have to follow if they’re holding the paper or if they’re securitizing and selling that paper off into the secondary market. It just gives a lot more flexibility. You can negotiate with a seller, you know, just like the lenders can’t negotiate. This is cut and dry. These are the guidelines you meet it. If not, then it’s, then you can’t move forward.
Mark Monroe [00:08:18]:
But I mean, you know, a lot of times us being self-employed, we don’t show a lot of income on our returns. People may have credit challenges. Also, you may not be showing a lot of assets, if you will, because if you’re in the business for quite some time, you want to start protecting some of those. It’s just so many. And then they can get into properties with no money down. If you know how to understand the seller and how to motivate and then also sell it. Like us as an investor, we sell those and a lot of times we like to sell those off into the secondary market because we’re getting that Private Money buying our mortgage notes because there’s another whole, you know, we’re talking at the front end of originating notes, but there’s another whole animal on the back end in the seller financing, buying and selling notes and working with private investors. So you can work with private investors on the front end, you know, using their capital as a partner buying, or you create the note and then know you’re selling the note off to a private investor like physicians and doctors.
Mark Monroe [00:09:18]:
There’s so much capital out there that people have in a retirement fund that you can learn, if you learn how to do all that you can do on the front end and the back end. And as you know, there are so many different ways, and you’re the master at it. You know, we all want to raise private capital. So you always want to look for, you know, as you’re originating deals and trying to find deals, you’re always wanting a good CRM for your sellers. And then you also want another tag, if you will, in your CRM for your passive investors that you work with to help you out.t Mark, you talked
Jay Conner [00:09:50]:
with many, many, many real estate investors over the years. Given those conversations and your observations of other real estate investors, what do you think is their biggest misconception or misconceptions that investors have about getting or convincing or having sellers of properties to finance the properties for the real estate investor? What’s their, what’s their hold up there?
Mark Monroe [00:10:21]:
I mean, really what it comes down to is when you’re working with a seller, I always tell people, think of it the first time you went on that date with your significant other, okay? The reason why most of these sellers are going to do business is that they like you, they trust you, and you’re going to do what you’re saying. So I always go into it 80% of my phone calls, just getting to know the seller. Just the same way I want them to get to know me as who I am, and I want to get to know them to know who they are, because I want to make sure they’re not a crazy seller as well. But I love seller financing because sometimes, especially if you’re starting and you don’t know where to go to raise capital, use the seller’s equity as the capital partner in the deal. It’s really the same thing. Instead of going out there trying to raise capital from ABC, which is great, like your local dry cleaners or restaurants you go to, you already have the seller. And if the seller has equity in that property or a note or whatever on the property, if you learn how to leverage it and how to understand how to underwrite it and make sure that the deal works correctly in the numbers, then it really comes down to listening to the seller: why they’re selling, what they’re planning on doing with the capital. If you understand those things and how to solve the seller’s problems, that’s how you can get into these monies with very little to no money down.
Mark Monroe [00:11:34]:
That can go on in different stories on and on. I had one seller in the Georgia area that wanted $30,000 to put down. He wanted us to put $30,000 down. I found out that he needed $25,000 to buy a camper. He was going to go camping, and then he wanted some spending money. Listening to him build a rapport. Ask, like I always tell people, think about the last time you went camping. Who, who, where did you go?o Waking up in the morning with that sunrise coming up, like, cool, having coffee or tea or whatever, with that sunrise coming up and doing your hiking or biking or kayaking, whatever it is you do. Create that visual of them, what the life is like.
Mark Monroe [00:12:14]:
So once that property is gone,o they want to do that. And then I came back to him, and I found out really what he needed. He needed $25,000 for a camper, and everybody else was offering him low down payments, and he had over 12 to 15 offers. And then he banked; he had good credit. He banked with the credit union. I said, hey, go ahead and take a loan out from the credit union, buy your camper. And what I’ll do is on the 20th of every month will automatically make the payments on your behalf for the camper. So we’re cash flowing $475 a month on top of making this seller’s camper payment monthly.
Mark Monroe [00:12:46]:
We solved this problem, and then we got, we put $3,500 down in that deal. So that’s just one example of many.
Jay Conner [00:12:52]:
Now, that is creative by you simply meeting the seller where they were, where they were mentally, what they actually wanted to accomplish. And that’s fantastic. You got them to go borrow the money, but you make the payments for them. That’s a cousin to, that’s a cousin to subject to taking over the camper debt.
Mark Monroe [00:13:13]:
Exactly. And then, to be frank, we got into it for 3,500 plus some closing costs, and we sold out on a lease option,n and our tenant buyer put $18,000 down. So we put moneyin oura pocket up front. Cash flow: 475. Now I do recommend: don’t spend that money. You want to hold that money in reserves. If that tenant stops paying, you want to have some capital to make sure that you step up and make that payment because you promise that you’re going to make that payment for that camper to that seller. So you need to make sure that you follow through. So I always make sure you hold some money in reserves.
Jay Conner [00:13:43]:
Yeah, that’s very, very smart advice. A lot of real estate investors, they think the only way to buy real estate is to bring all the cash or to get a traditional loan. They’re not familiar with these creative strategies. So now we’ve got the high-value teaching moment that you can share, Mark. And that is how do you train real estate investors to look at a property differently and create,e as you just share theswin-winin structures that allow deals to happen when other real estate investors walk away.
Mark Monroe [00:14:17]:
It’s listening. The bottom line is to listen and find out their motivation, why they’re selling. Because within seller financing, there’s a lot of different creative seller financing strategies. You have what’s called the subject to keep an existing mortgage in place. You have what’s called a lease option, where you can do a lease agreement and sublet it to the tenant buyer. You do an agreement for deed, a land contract. So really comes down to listening to the seller. And the way I look at it is each strategy, and you have to master each strategy and understand it.
Mark Monroe [00:14:45]:
But once you’ve gone through a few of them, it’s pretty simple. But you want to listen to the seller. For example, if I’m talking to a realtor and the seller’s not in financial distress, there’s no way I’m going to pitch a subject to. Okay. Subject to, just so you guys are aware,e is like if you have a mortgage on a property, you can’t sell your home. You’re transferring the deed to me, and I’m making the payment just like I was doing on that camper. But if you understand what they’re trying to do in a financially distress and they trust you, then I’ll go ahead and pitch. I’ll pitch like an agreement for deed or land contract.
Mark Monroe [00:15:16]:
That’s kind of what I did with that camper situation, or just a lease option. It really comes down to why they’re selling and listening to them and how to solve the problem. I keep repeating that over and over, but that’s really where it comes down to. It’s all about relationship and just doing what you’re saying, what you’re going to do, and making sure that you’re yourself and treat the sellers like you don’t think it’s a game and you’re trying to. You want to make it a win for everybody. It’s got to be a win for the seller; it’s got to be a win for the buyer. It’s got to be one for you. So when you talk to people, and you’re going down that path, treat it as.
Mark Monroe [00:15:48]:
How would you want somebody treating your mother? You know, would you want them to do the right thing by your mother? So just treat the sellers that way when you’re going through the process, a nd you shouldn’t have any problems.
Jay Conner [00:15:57]:
That reminds me of what my dad used to say. A lot of what my dad would say. Speaking of the mobile home story, my dad at one time his company was the largest retailer of mobile homes in the nation. Can you believe Wallace? Yeah, he just passed away a couple of months ago. 92 and a half years old. But he used to say a lot of things that were very, very wise. But he’d say when you’re in a negotiation, you gotta leave A little meat on the bone for Everybody. And about 10 years ago, about 10 years ago, he gave me a 14-karat gold doggy bone that’s on my keychain to remind me to leave a little bit of meat on the bone for everybody.
Jay Conner [00:16:39]:
Private Money. Maru, like myself, you’ve raised millions of dollars in Private Money to supplement funding your deals. What did you learn about attracting Private Money? And there’s more than one lesson that most real estate investors completely misunderstand when it comes to raising Private Money.
Mark Monroe [00:17:01]:
I would say that a lot of people go into it thinking like, you know, they’re like, oh, you know, you’re going to your parent for the first time and you know, you turn 16, dad, can I take the car for a ride? You know, they’re kind of going down that path, and your dad’s like, the thing about it is when you’re raising Private Money, you’re making a win for the investor. So you’re allowing them to make money alternatively through different avenues. And that’s probably the biggest thing that a lot of investors think, like, oh, I need money for my deal and I got to go out there. Don’t think of it like that. You’re creating an opportunity because you want them. Once you’re doing well in your deal, they’re making money and they. And then people come to you like, oh, yeah, if you have any more deals, let me know because I want to be a part of that opportunity. So think of it that way.
Mark Monroe [00:17:49]:
You’re creating wealth for your private capital investors on that side of it. And a lot of times people don’t think of it that way. And that’s probably the mindset you need to change that mindset. Because I was like that in the beginning. You know, that’s why I learned how to do seller financing, because I was afraid I didn’t have the contacts to go out there in my 20s and didn’t have that track record to be able to show, like,e people felt comfortable. You had to go to your local friends and your family. And it’s a weird situation in the beginning, still learning. So think of it. You’re creating opportunity.
Mark Monroe [00:18:20]:
There are so many places to raise private capital. I mean, I could tell you one of my, one of my goals where I love going to raise capital, but there’s so many different ways of doing that.
Jay Conner [00:18:29]:
Sure. Well, you know, one of the biggest, most common mistakes I see real estate investors make is they have, they have taken really, really bad advice and tried to raise money. And the bad advice they’ve taken is they heard the guru stand up on stage and say, oh, just get the deal under contract. The money will show up. That’s the most stupid thing I ever heard in my life. I mean, you get a deal under contract; is a drone gonna, you know, fly over your front porch and drop you a bag of money? Or they’ll say Money has money; finds good deals. They’ll say that, well, has money got legs? Is it running around? No, it makes so much more sense to me,e and I love how you said it.
Jay Conner [00:19:13]:
You’re presenting an opportunity. So I have an opportunity with my private lending program. The deal doesn’t matter;r what matters is the opportunity. I’m paying the same interest rate,e which by the way is 8%. No points. Ever since February of 2009. My private lenders love it. And so we separate conversations: initial conversations of the opportunity and how it works,s and then having a deal for them to fund.
Jay Conner [00:19:42]:
I never talk about a deal; I never pitch a deal. We talk about the opportunity. They love it. They, you know, let us know how much money they got to invest and want to start with or they’ve got retirement funds, will introduce them to the self directed IRA company they can move their money over to and then I’ll call them back up in two or three weeks with what I call the good news phone call and give them the good news that I can now put their money to work and tell them the after repaired value of the property and the funding required that matches up to what they got. And when closing,d I’m going to have the real estate attorney email them the wiring instructions, and boom, that’s it. I never ask if they want to fund the deal. Of course they want to fund the deal. They’ve been waiting for the good news phone call, right?
Mark Monroe [00:20:26]:
Exactly. No, you hit the nail on the head. It’s just that they want that opportunity. Especially if you start having them follow you and they see you doing deals. I mean you’re people are getting in line, and like, I, I have- I don’t have enough deals for the capital people that are behind me at the moment right now. And it will happen. They start seeing more and more, and once you get it going and people see it, it’s just. But you, you definitely, you want to.
Mark Monroe [00:20:51]:
I definitely recommend jumping into Jade because you do need some guidance on how to properly follow the steps and how to have those conversations. Like you, like. I never pitch a deal up front. I build relationships just like I mentioned before with the seller. Just get to know each other, and it’s all about relationships because you also with us, you don’t want to take capital from somebody that’s gonna be a pain in the ass. You know, we’re, where’s going on with my deal? What’s this and where’s that? How’s my capital doing? You know, then they start thinking it’s their deal and it’s nas. So you interview them at the same time they’re interviewing you. So keep that in mind.
Mark Monroe [00:21:25]:
And a lot of times people may jump and grab money at a deal that could be more of a headache than it’s worth in the long run.
Jay Conner [00:21:31]:
For sure. When someone, an individual, and just to make sure everybody knows it’s listening to this episode. When we’re talking Private Money, we’re not talking hard money, we’re not talking institutional money, we’re talking about borrowing money, doing business with another human being with no middle person involved. So when someone has money to invest, liquid capital, retirement funds, whatever. As you know, Mark, they’re not just investing in a deal; quite frankly, they’re really not investing in the deal. They’re investing in you, the borrower. They’re investing in you, who is behind the deal. So question for you, Mark.
Jay Conner [00:22:09]:
What would you say are the key things you believe real estate investors must do to build trust and create long-term Private Money relationships?
Mark Monroe [00:22:21]:
Make sure you take your invest take care of your investors. That’s like the number one thing. You will have deals sometimes that will end up going sideways or expenses that come up. I’ve done deals before where I end up losing money because I wanted to take care of my investors. Because once you go bad on an investor loan, you will, it’s going to hurt your reputation, and they’ll come back as long as you take care of them and you do what you’re saying in the performer or whatever structure that you’re doing. If you’re doing a note through, you know, typically what we want them to do is they, they invest in their retirement fund because all that capital gains and then all the profits stay back in that retirement fund. I have, I’m doing some affordability land development projects right now. And every single investor and everything that we’re doing in there, even myself, I’m doing it inside my solar 401k.
Mark Monroe [00:23:08]:
I have my investors’ loans going through the IRAs,s so they’re staying inside the retirement fund. So it helps with the tax benefit, so that we’re also not getting hit with the capital gainson then asset. But they’re typically set up as a lender. And I forgot what we were talking about here. What was your question?
Jay Conner [00:23:26]:
Well, what is it that they need to do to build trust and create the long-term Private Money relationships? And as you said, you take care of your private lenders regardless of what’s happening on your PNL or your balance sheet.
Mark Monroe [00:23:39]:
100% take care of them. They’re the number one. They’re the, they’re the top of the food chain. So you want to make sure that they’re fed before you, as it goes down through. And if your profits it goes both ways, you may lose; your profits might be tighter, but there are going to be times where your profits are going to be a lot stronger because you end up coming out ahead. So you always want to make sure- just make sure you underwrite your deal, and you’re always giving yourself some Leeway, you know, some breathing room in there in your numbers whenever you’re underwriting to make sure and just always do what you’re saying, and if something happens, go to them and have the conversation ahead of time rather than after the fact. Because your, your name and your credibility mean everything in this industry.
Jay Conner [00:24:21]:
Absolutely. You’ve got a best-selling book; it’s called Creative Real Estate Investing. And for those of you that see a video, he might show you a picture of his book. In your experience, in your experience, and you probably cover this in the book. Why do some real estate investors struggle to think creatively when it comes to solving problems, finding deals, creating wealth,
Mark Monroe [00:24:51]:
that they need capital. That’s probably the one big thing: capital and credit. And you don’t, you don’t need any of that. I mean, there are so many ways of understanding and educating yourself and going out there and getting into real estate, and you don’t need capital. Most of us, like I didn’t have capital. I actually, you know, I grew up in poverty in Vermont, as I mentioned. I remember when I was 7 or 8 years old, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, my dad left. When I was young, all we ate was crafted macaroni and cheese out of a box for three months straight.
Mark Monroe [00:25:23]:
And I started working to help put food on the table. And I, you know, learned about credit cards. I’m like, oh, this is cool. And I got myself; I thought credit cards were great. And I didn’t understand finance at a young age. So it took me a little bit, and I had dings in my credit like at 19, 20 years old. And you don’t need capital; you just need knowledge and surround yourself with like-minded individuals in the mindset you have to the key. I can’t tell you the mindset like people mindset is number one. You have to have the mindset.
Mark Monroe [00:25:54]:
And if you’re around toxic people, cut those toxic people out of your life and start surrounding yourself with people that are going to rise. You like, I like. Nowadays I like going into the room where I’m the dumbest person in the room because I want to learn from them. And just that’s the number one thing. If you’re around toxic people, you’re never going to grow. You have to get away from those people. And then the other thing, if you’re not failing, you’re not learning. Everybody will fail.
Mark Monroe [00:26:21]:
Don’t quit. That’s a learning experience. Look at Elon Musk, how many times he failed with SpaceX. I can’t tell you how many times. I see people come in, they fail once, and they’re done. Failure is you’re going to learn from it. So just remember that you will fail. Just treat it as a learning experience and move on.
Jay Conner [00:26:37]:
My wife Carol, Joy, and I, we were so blessed to meet, have a conversation with, and hear him speak. John Maxwell last year. I think he’s written 70 or 80 books, but one of my favorite books that he has written is called Failing Forward, and it’s a great book. And during the Q and A session, a member in the audience, after John Maxwell’s presentation or after his talk, he opened it up for Q A. And a lady asked the question; she says, Mr. Maxwell, what would you say? What is one attribute that you’ve got that puts you ahead of the crowd as to why you’ve been so successful? He says, well, it’s real simple. He says, I just fail more than anybody else does. Well, she didn’t understand the question.
Jay Conner [00:27:27]:
He says, you know, one person might try 10 things and fail seven times and have a success with three. He says, well, I’m not going to try 10 things. He says, I’m going to try a hundred things. If I’ve got the same percentage, I still have got 30 wins out of a hundred tries. And of course, you know, I’m sure you’ve heard the statistics on, you know, the professional athletes and how many times they miss shots and all that kind of stuff. It’s the same thing. Speaking of mindset, you’ve built businesses, you’ve completed hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions. You’re a cancer survivor.
Jay Conner [00:28:06]:
Looking back, what has resilience taught you about success both in business and life?
Mark Monroe [00:28:17]:
Life is short. Got to enjoy it and just be around positive people. I mean, and just again, it goes back to being positive. Like, that was one of the big things where I recovered from cancer pretty quickly because I kept my mindset; I knew, manifest it. So you always want to manifest and always move forward. And it’s the mind. The mind is going to really get you where you want to achieve. I mean, think about it.
Mark Monroe [00:28:41]:
That’s something that we all have, you know, we all have a mind. And how many times has anybody here worked for a company, and you’re working,g and you have that one toxic employee that complains, and it starts spreading around the company. But when a company is doing really well, or a sports team, take like, like the Cowboys back in the day, the Yankees or even New England Patriots, when everybody comes together positively, and they have a good mindset, that’s how everybody flourishes. I. I’m sure you probably heard of Earl Nightingale.
Jay Conner [00:29:14]:
Oh, yeah. Wrote the book.
Mark Monroe [00:29:16]:
And he talked about a couple of things in his book. In his book. And it’s a great book. This guy goes back, I think, in the 50s, I think it was, when you listen to it, it was on a record player, you know, and he said something: he goes, you can go outside and plant in the ground seeds. Are those seeds going to grow up as poison ivy and toxic, or is it going to grow up and become a beautiful flower or a rose and look gorgeous? So whatever you plant into your mind, into the ground, it’s the same thing. That’s what’s going to grow. So no matter where you’re at in life and health, relationships, any type of obstacles that come up, because it does come up, we all go through it. We all have issues.
Mark Monroe [00:29:57]:
We all have something that happened dramatically in our lives is how you handle it and how you get through it. And it’s with your mind. And if you can control your mind to get through it, everything else falls into place. You start surrounding yourself and spending time getting things done quickly. That’s one of the other things. So anyway, this stuff is great, a nd it’s good. If you’re listening to this right now, that means you’re taking a step in the direction. So now just keep moving forward and keep moving forward, and you’ll do really well in the business.
Mark Monroe [00:30:25]:
Just keep focusing. And if you ever get sidetracked, come back and listen to some type of podcast video, something that’s going to pull you back in and get you motivated.
Jay Conner [00:30:34]:
Mark, I know we’ve got a lot of listeners here to this episode that are wanting to continue the conversation and learn more from you. What’s the best way for people to reach out to you and get connected?
Mark Monroe [00:30:46]:
They can just Google me, Mark Monroe Real Estate. I’ll pop up everywhere, but my website is mark-minus-sign monroe.com m a r k -sign monroe m o n r o e.com, or just Google Mark Monroe Real Estate.
Jay Conner [00:31:05]:
That’s awesome. Mark, I want to thank you for being on Raising Private Money. For sharing your decades of experience, your wisdom, the strategies that have helped you complete just hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions, raising millions in Private Money, creating opportunities. Man, you have been so valuable to the listeners. Thank you so much, Jay.
Mark Monroe [00:31:28]:
Thank you so much for having me on. Have a great one, guys. Be well.
Jay Conner [00:31:32]:
You got it. And for those of you listening right now, I hope you realize what you just heard. This wasn’t just another conversation about real estate. This was a master class in thinking differently, having the right mindset. Because the real estate investors who win at the highest level aren’t the ones who have the most money, the most resources, all or the most connections when they start. That’s exactly what Mark shared. They’re the ones who learn how to see opportunities that others overlook. Whether it’s seller financing, creative deal structures, or building relationships with Private Money lenders, the biggest breakthroughs happen when you stop asking How can I afford this deal? And start asking how I can structure this deal? Think about Mark’s first mobile home story.
Jay Conner [00:32:21]:
Now here’s my challenge for you. If you know another real estate investor, and I believe you do, who needs to think differently about funding deals, creating opportunities, and building wealth in today’s market, do them a favor. Share this episode with them right now. Send them a link, text it to a friend, post it inside your real estate investing group, put it on your social media, and tag me. Because there is someone in your circle right now who is sitting on the sidelines. Not because they don’t have the desire, but because they don’t know the strategies that you heard about today. And that one share, that one share from you could be the thing that changes the trajectory of your connection, your friend’s real estate investing business. Also, make sure you subscribe to Raising Private Money so you never miss an episode where we bring you the best investors, entrepreneurs, rs and experts who are revealing the strategies behind raising money, funding deals, creating Financial Freedom through real estate. Remember, deals are everywhere.
Jay Conner [00:33:32]:
Opportunities are everywhere. But the real estate investors who know how to create relationships, structure solutions, ns and access to capital. Those are the investors who win. I’m Jay Conner, the Private Money authority. Thanks for listening to Raising Private Money, and I’ll see you right here on the next episode.
Narrator [00:33:54]:
Are you feeling inspired by the knowledge you gained in this episode? Then head over to www.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide– that’s www.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide,-and download your free guide that shows shares 7 reasons why Private Money will skyrocket your real estate investing business right now. Again, that’s www.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide to get your free guide. We’ll see you next time on Raising Private Money with Jay Conner.