Building a successful real estate investing business often comes down to one key ingredient: funding. For many, the journey starts with traditional lenders—your local banks and mortgage companies. But what happens when those funding sources abruptly dry up? For Jay Conner, that moment marked a turning point, sparking a radical and highly profitable evolution in his investing strategy—one that anyone aspiring to real estate success can learn from.
From Banking Crisis to Private Money Breakthrough
As Jay Conner recounted to Philip Chan in a recent episode of the Lightspeed Investing Podcast, his real estate journey began conventionally. He and his wife, Carol Joy, started investing in single-family homes in Eastern North Carolina back in 2003, funding projects through local banks. For six years, it worked—until, abruptly, in January 2009, the bank called and shut down his line of credit.
“I learned like that over the telephone that my line of credit had been closed with no notice to me whatsoever,” Jay Conner recalled. With two houses under contract and no funding, panic could easily have taken over. Instead, Jay asked himself a crucial question: “Who do I know that could help me fix my problem?”
It was this pivot—from “how” and “what” to “who”—that led Jay Conner to private money, through a conversation with another investor, Jeff Blankenship. That conversation, and following exposure to private money at his first real estate investing conference, changed his business forever. Within 90 days, Jay Conner had raised $2,150,000 in new private funding—more money than he ever had from the banks.
The Power of Private Money: Simpler, Safer, Scalable
What is private money, and why is it such a game-changer? In Jay Conner’s words, it’s “getting funding from just ordinary people … using their investment capital or their retirement funds.” He calls it ‘lazy money’—money that’s not working hard in CDs or low-yield savings, but instead can earn much higher, safer returns through real estate-backed loans.
Jay Conner offers his private lenders 8% annual returns—vastly superior to what most are earning at the bank, and, crucially, fully secured by first or second position liens on the property. That means the lender is protected by the real estate asset itself; if Jay fails to pay, the lender can foreclose. In addition, Jay won’t borrow more than 75% of the after-repair value of the property, ensuring a robust safety cushion for his lenders.
While this approach might sound complex, Jay emphasizes its simplicity. He doesn’t raise funds for a big, pooled investment fund, avoiding the need for complex legal structures. Instead, each lender’s loan is secured by a note and a deed of trust (like a mortgage), tied to a specific property. This transparency builds trust.
The Blueprint for Replicable Success
What’s most impressive about Jay’s method is its replicability—even if your market is small. “Our total target market is only 40,000 people, and we do two to three deals a month. Average profits are $86,000,” Jay Conner shares. You don’t need to swim in a huge pond; dominate a small market, and you can thrive.
Another key takeaway: momentum with private lenders grows. Jay now has 47 private lenders on his roster—and none of them had even heard of private lending before he taught them about it. He continues to source funds simply by educating those in his network about private lending’s opportunities and safety nets, then matching deals to those who have already expressed interest. “The money comes first,” Jay Conner stresses.
Final Words: Lead With Education and Simplicity
For aspiring investors, Jay Conner suggests finding mentors and masterminds—surrounding yourself with successful people already doing what you want to do. If you want to profit in real estate without dealing with the headaches of traditional financing, private money might just be your missing link.
For more on Jay’s strategies, he offers a free copy of his book, Where to Get the Money Now, at www.JayConner.com/Book.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
The guest mentions a pivotal moment when his line of credit was unexpectedly cut off by his banker. How do you think unexpected setbacks can lead to breakthroughs in business or personal growth?
Throughout the episode, the guest emphasizes the importance of asking the right questions, specifically “who?” instead of “how?” or “what?”. How do you think this approach can change problem-solving strategies in entrepreneurship?
The concept of “private money” for real estate deals is discussed. What are the main advantages outlined compared to traditional funding through banks?
The episode covers a strategy of educating potential private lenders rather than pitching specific deals. What are the benefits and potential pitfalls of this approach?
There’s a question about risks for private lenders. How are these risks mitigated, and what security measures are put in place for lenders?
In the conversation, the phrase “I’d rather be a big fish in a small pond” comes up. How might this philosophy apply to other industries or markets outside real estate?
The importance of building relationships and leveraging social circles in raising private money is highlighted. How critical are personal networks in entrepreneurial success?
The topic of mastermind groups and mentorship is discussed. What role do these communities play in accelerating learning and growth for real estate investors?
Advice is given on “teaching the opportunity first” without overwhelming potential investors with details. How can entrepreneurs apply the idea of “keep it simple” when communicating new concepts?
The guest is motivated by helping others take control of their funding and destiny. What do you think drives someone to pay it forward after achieving their own success, and how does that shape an industry?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner was able to raise over $2 million in new private money funding within just 90 days after being cut off from his local bank—without ever asking anyone directly for money, begging, or selling.
Jay Conner dominates a surprisingly small market for real estate investing: he focuses on just two counties in North Carolina with a combined population of only 100,000 people—proving you don’t need a big city to achieve big profits.
The private lenders working with Jay Conner often never heard of private lending until he introduced them to the concept, and he currently works with 47 private lenders who are mostly regular, everyday people—not wealthy or sophisticated investors.
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.
Transform Your Business: The Power of Asset-Backed Private Money for Real Estate Growth
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
And, Philip, I asked myself a very, very important question. In fact, the answer to this question will help fix any problem that anybody’s got going on in their life. I don’t care if it’s financial, real estate, career, or relationships; it doesn’t matter. And by the way, these people are running around saying, Oh, every problem’s an opportunity. I want to throw up. I didn’t have an opportunity. I had a problem. Let’s face the facts now.
Jay Conner [00:00:27]:
The problem did become an opportunity over time. If it hadn’t been for this problem, you and I wouldn’t be here together today on your show talking about private money. So here’s the question that I asked myself after being cut off from the bank. I said to myself, I said Jay, I said, Who? You see, it’s not what or how, it’s who. I said, Who do you know, Jay? Who do I know that could help me fix my problem?
Narrator [00:00:58]:
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 Connor.
Philip Chan [00:01:26]:
Welcome to another episode of the Lightspeed Investing Podcast. I’ve got Jay Connor, a real estate investor who’s very seasoned and has been around the block, but his most interesting thing is his journey that got him involved with private money. So he’s got a lot of wisdom, and I’m excited to have him on to share his journey with us and to teach us some things about real estate. How are you doing, Jay?
Jay Conner [00:01:54]:
Philip, I’m doing fantastic, and thank you so much for inviting me to come along and talk about my favorite subject that I’m so passionate about, and that’s private money. Getting deals. Getting your real estate deals funded with private money. You know, the reason I’m so excited about it, Philip, is because this one strategy, this one technique of funding my real estate deals with private monies had more of an impact on our real estate investing business ever since we started in 2003.
Philip Chan [00:02:26]:
I love it. I love it. That’s why I’m excited to have you on and dive into it. But before we do, right, there were a. There was a specific moment in your life where certain frustrations boiled up when you were interacting with your own bankers. Right. And that’s kind of what led you to look into private money a bit further. You want to share that journey a little bit and share with the audience what happened exactly, you know, to cause you to be so motivated?
Jay Conner [00:02:53]:
Sure. Well, you know, I did, and woke up one morning and said, Heyy, I think I’ll go raise me some private money for my real estate deals. You know, when everything’s going along smoothly and you’re on the top of the mountain, sometimes you just don’t look for other solutions or, you know, ways to do business. But growth takes place down in the valley, where things are not going so well. So we started investing. My wife Carol Joy and I started investing in single-family houses all the way back in 2003 here in Eastern North Carolina. Our total target market is only 40,000 people, and we do two to three deals a month. Average profits are 86,000.
Jay Conner [00:03:34]:
I don’t share that to brag. I share that to make a point.
Philip Chan [00:03:37]:
And.
Jay Conner [00:03:37]:
And that is there’s a case to be made to, like, be a dominating force in a small market. I’d rather be a big fish in a small pond. So we started investing in single-family houses way back in 2003. And, Philip, from 2003 until January of 2009, those first six years, the only thing I knew to do to get my deals funded was go to the local bank or the mortgage company, get on my hands and knees, and say, Please fund my deal and fill out applications. And, you know, the banker would make me pull up my skirt and show all my personal assets and pull my credit score. And I had to provide financial statements. Well, that plan for funding my real estate deals worked out okay, so to speak, for those first six years. But then everything changed.
Jay Conner [00:04:31]:
And in January of 2009, and here’s what happened, Philip. I was sitting right here at my desk, and I had two houses under contract to get funded. And I thought I still had a line of credit with the local bank. And so I called up my banker. His name was Steve. I told him about these two deals that I had on a contract that needed funding. And I learned like that over the telephone that my line of credit had been closed with no notice to me whatsoever. And I said to Steve, My banker said, Steve, what in the world are you doing, telling me my line of credit is closed? I’ve been on time with my payments for six years.
Jay Conner [00:05:12]:
You funded a ton of deals. I got a great credit score. Why are you closing my line of credit? And Steve said, Jayy, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? And I said, God, no. But you just gave me a financial crisis. I don’t have a way to fund these two deals, right? And Steve says, Sorry, not loaning money out to real estate investors. So I hung the phone down on the receiver, and I sat here for a moment, and Philip, I asked ourselves a very, very important question. In fact, the answer to this question will help fix any problem that anybody’s got going on in their life. I don’t care if it’s financial, real estate, career, or relationships; it doesn’t matter.
Jay Conner [00:06:00]:
And by the way, these people running around saying, Oh, every problem’s an opportunity. I want to throw up. I didn’t have an opportunity; I had a problem. Let’s face the facts now. The problem did become an opportunity over time. If I hadn’t been for this problem, you and I wouldn’t be here together today on your show talking about private money. So here’s the question that I asked myself after being cut off from the bank. I said to myself, I said Jay, I said, Who? You see, it’s not what or how, it’s who.
Jay Conner [00:06:31]:
I said, Who do you know, Jay? Who do I know that could help me fix my problem? And interestingly enough, when I asked myself that question, you know, the powers in asking the right questions. You can’t get the right answers without the right questions. I immediately thought of Jeff Blankenship. Well, who in the world is Jeff Blankenship? Well, Jeff’s a dear friend of mine and Carol Joy’s. We know him through a capella singing groups and gospel events, and church, and all that. He was living in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the time, and he was investing in single-family houses. So I called up Jeff, and I told him what had just happened. And my conversation that I had with my banker, Jeff, said, Well, Jay, welcome to the club.
Jay Conner [00:07:17]:
I said, I’m not sure I want to be a member of that club, but what club are you talking about? He said, Well, that’s the club of being shut off from your bank and your bank shutting you down. He said, My bank shut me down and stopped loaning me money on my real estate deals last week. I said, Well, Jeff, how are you going to fund your real estate deals? He said, Well, have you ever heard of private money? I said, No. He said, Have you ever heard of self-directed IRA companies and how individuals can take their current retirement funds that they’re not happy with and transfer them over to a self-directed IRA company with no tax penalty, and then they can loan that money out to us real estate investors, and the interest we pay them is tax deferred or tax free to them. I said, Jeff, you’re talking Greek to me. I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. I said, What’s private money? He said, Well, there’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron LeGrand. I said, Who’s Ron LeGrand? He said, Well, I don’t know much about him, but, you know, he says he can teach us about private money.
Jay Conner [00:08:19]:
I said, Well, what is it? Jeff said, Jay, I don’t know. But Ron says we can get a lot of it really, really fast. So I went to my very first real estate investing conference six years after being in this business. Don’t make that mistake if you’re listening to this show. And I went to learn about private money. Oh, boy, did I learn about private money. I came back home to my hometown here, and I was able to raise $2,150,000 in new funding, new private money funding that I didn’t have before being cut off from the bank. So I actually had more funding available than before, you know, when the bank cut me off.
Jay Conner [00:08:59]:
And you know what’s interesting, Philip? I’ve yet to ask anybody for money. No chasing, no begging, no selling, no persuading. Because this world of private money is getting funding from just ordinary people. I call this lazy money. This is not looking for rich people or sophisticated accredited investors. This is getting money funding from just regular, ordinary people using their investment capital or their retirement funds. So I’ve got 47 private lenders right now funding our deals. And you know what’s interesting? Not one of those private lenders ever heard of private money or private lending until I put on my hat, right? My teacher had said Private money teacher.
Jay Conner [00:09:45]:
So I just went about in my own social circle, my connections, people I go to church with, and I started talking with them and exposing them to this world of opportunity of private money that they had never heard about. And in less than 90 days, over $2 million was pledged, wanting to invest in my deals in a way that they had never heard about. And since that time, Philip, I’ve never missed out on a deal for not having the funding.
Philip Chan [00:10:16]:
I love it. I love it. Now, let’s get some clarity here, right? You said the real estate investing that you mainly do is single-family residential homes, right? So do you. Do you know what? What is the modality at which you invest? Are you putting money down so that you can rehab and fix them? Right. And enhance the value of the home? What is the strategy here? And that makes it so robust. Because obviously, for people to trust you with their private money, you have to have a pretty good offer, right? That shows them. Here is the path to getting your money back and some more.
Jay Conner [00:10:52]:
That’s right. Well, and that’s a great question, and it’s a multifaceted answer. So first of all, I’m paying them 8%. I’ve been paying my private lenders 8% ever since February of 2009. So all these people, they’re used to just getting, you know, 1%, 2%, 3% or whatever in the local bank in a certificate or deposit. 8% is a whole lot more money. So right off the bat, they’re interested because of the interest rate that’s being offered.
Philip Chan [00:11:21]:
And this is, this is on an annual basis, the 8% APR.
Jay Conner [00:11:25]:
APR, yes, annual percentage rate. Yeah. But then secondly, you see is how we secure and protect the private lender is very important. So we’re not borrowing unsecured funds. This is all asset-backed debt. So this is. So I’m not raising money for a fund right to where I’d have to have an SEC attorney and a private placement memorandum. This is all called asset-backed debt, which means every private lender has their own promissory note, a nd that promissory note is collateralized or secured by a deed of trust.
Jay Conner [00:12:00]:
Here in North Carolina, most people call it a mortgage. So that protects them in case I don’t pay them. If I don’t pay them, they get the property. Now, another thing that they get all excited about is that it’s a very secure and safe investment because I’m not going to borrow more than 75% of the after-repair value. Now I didn’t say 75% of the purchase price. They fund the entire purchase, and the private lender funds the entire rehab, the renovation up front. That’s why I bring home a big check every time I buy without having to take any of my own money to the closing table. So then we renovate the property,y and then we cash it out.
Jay Conner [00:12:47]:
We sell it right now. We can sell it in more than one way. We can put it in the multiple listing service. We do high-end renovations that look like beautiful homes, and they sell quickly on the multiple listing service. Or if I’m just doing a light rehab and it doesn’t need that much to it, I can also sell it creatively to an owner-to-owner buyer or a lease-purchase buyer, which means they can’t go to the local bank and get a mortgage. And the reason that works today is because 8% APR is less than what the commercial rates are at the local bank. Right now in today’s market, the average commercial rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage on a commercial piece of property, say if you’re going to landlord, it’s is 8.3%. So 8% is even less than that.
Jay Conner [00:13:39]:
I can get a positive cash flow, rent out the home, help the buyer get ready for a mortgage, and then they get a mortgage and cash me and the private lender out. So we have multiple exit strategies.
Philip Chan [00:13:52]:
Gotcha. I love it. I love it. Now, in terms of your typical time frame at which you are holding onto these properties, right, because it sounds like you, you do the rehab route, but it depends on how much renovation we’re talking about. So I’m kind of curious, once you get into a property, right, what is that timeframe before you turn it around?
Jay Conner [00:14:14]:
Sure. So if I’m putting it in the multiple listing service to sell it, and I’ve done an absolutely beautiful transformation of that home from start to cash out is going to average nine months. And here’s why it even takes that long. Here’s why it even takes that long because I’ve got so many projects going simultaneously. I might have a house sit there for 90 days after I purchase it, before one of my contractors even gets there to do the renovation. And then a 50 or $60,000 renovation might take 90 days. So now we’re six months into it, and then we stage it, we get professional photography and drone footage, and all that. So maybe another 30 days, ggoby, then we list it with a realtor, and if it gets under contract quickly, then it might take another 45 days to cash out.
Jay Conner [00:15:03]:
So from start to finish, nine months on a full rehab, on selling to a lease purchase or rent to own buyer, then that’s going to average somewhere around 18 months because it’s going to take us anywhere from six months to 12 months to repair their credit to where they could get ready for the mortgage.
Philip Chan [00:15:24]:
Gotcha. Understood. Now, when you get this private money, private lenders come in to help you secure the deal on these homes. How, how do you categorize them so that when you take that capital, right? Are you allocating all of that capital onto one property, or is it similar to a fund structure where you’re like, I got two investors going in on this one house? Right. So that you make sure that the finances don’t get mingled?
Jay Conner [00:15:55]:
Yeah, that’s a great question. So I can have more than one private lender secured by the same Property. But let’s say I’ve got for easy to figure out the math. Let’s say I got a $200,000 after-repair value house. I’m not going to borrow more than 150,000. Right. That’s the after-repaired value. Let’s say I buy it for $100,000 because it’s distressed.
Jay Conner [00:16:20]:
Right. So I might get one private lender to fund $100,000 for the purchase. I might get another private lender to fund $50,000 for the renovation. So now we have what’s called total loan-to-value. We got 100,000 from one private lender, 50,000 in second position from another private lender. They each have their own promissory note. They each have their own mortgage secured by that same property.
Philip Chan [00:16:47]:
Gotcha. It’s just, it’s pro. It would probably be commensurate with that ratio. Right. One would have, you know, double the other person because they put up double the DM money.
Jay Conner [00:16:58]:
I’m not quite sure I followed double.
Philip Chan [00:17:00]:
Well, the guy, the guy, the guy in the first position, he put up 100k. Right. The guy in the second position, he. He covered 50k for the renovations. So the guy in the first position put up double what the second guy did. So does that mean that he would get double? Right. In terms of the ROI? That’s my question.
Jay Conner [00:17:17]:
Okay, well, the one in first position is going to get 8%. The one in second position is going to get 10% APR because it’s a little bit higher risk in the second position than in the first position. Right. So if both of them were getting 8%, then yes, the one in first position would make twice the amount of money.
Philip Chan [00:17:38]:
Gotcha. And is this way of operating mainly in North Carolina? North Carolina, right, you said.
Jay Conner [00:17:46]:
Yeah, I’m in North Carolina.
Philip Chan [00:17:48]:
So you mentioned at the very beginning. Right. To be a big fish in a small pond, so you can dominate the market. Are you mainly, you know, since 2003, dominating the North Carolina market?
Jay Conner [00:18:02]:
No, no, no. I’m dominating two counties, which have only 100,000 people. Right. So I’m dominating only a populated area of 100,000 people. And that’s why we’re able to do two to three deals a month consistently that are very, very high profit deals.
Philip Chan [00:18:24]:
Oh, okay, great. So tell me about your vision. Right. Because you’re still doing this, but it seems to me like you’ve got a lot of masterminds going on. So, in terms of your continued endeavors within real estate. Right. How. What are your next projects?
Jay Conner [00:18:44]:
Well, my vision is to impact and help as many other real estate investors as possible be in control of their own destiny by being in control of their own funding and not succumbing to the rules of institutional money. And here’s what I mean by that. Most people walking around, 99.9% or more people walking around, have this belief that whoever’s loaning the money is the underwriter, that whoever loans the money sets the terms, that whoever loans the money makes the rules. And I have, me and all the thousands of people that I’ve been, that I’ve trained this to across the nation, we’ve turned the tables on that stinking thinking. So instead of applying for a mortgage, we’re offering an opportunity, right? We don’t pitch deals, we don’t try to sell deals. What we do is we leave with a servant’s heart, and we expose this opportunity to people in our own networks. How can they make money, with high rates of return, safely and securely, in a way they have never heard about? And then once they’re all excited about it, then we come back to them with a deal and deals for them to fund.
Jay Conner [00:19:59]:
We don’t have to pitch the deals because we don’t bring any deals that don’t fit the criteria of what we already taught them, as far as what they’re going to be funding. So there’s no pitching of deals. All we’re doing is delivering on our promise of putting their investment capital, and/or their retirement funds, to work in a better way than what they were getting.
Philip Chan [00:20:23]:
Okay, I, I, I think I’m starting to get a better understanding of how you position yourself differently because you’re not really, you’re not really pitching the individual on anything related to the deal at all. You’re just saying, hey, if you’re willing to put up X amount, I can get you 8% or better on an annual basis.
Jay Conner [00:20:45]:
We just give them the opportunity first. It’s like here’s the private lending opportunity that you could be a private lender for higher rates of return, safely and securely, than what you are currently getting. Here’s the interest rate we pay, here is the length of the note, here’s the frequency of payments, a nd you get to choose that because every private lender’s got different cash flow objectives. Here’s the maximum amount that we’re going to borrow; here’s how we’re going to protect you. Here’s how you can get your money back early in case you have an emergency. We give them a 90-day call option. They want to get their money back early. And so, first is just the offering of the opportunity.
Jay Conner [00:21:22]:
You see, one mistake that new capital makers raise when they’re looking to raise private money is one mistake they make is talking about the opportunity and then pitching a deal and talking about a deal in the same initial conversation. Here’s a writer downer. Desperation has a smell to it. The worst time in the world to be raising money for your deals is when you need it for a deal. But no, the money comes first. You get the money lined up first, then you come back right away and fulfill your obligation of putting their money to work for them. We call it the good news phone call. And maybe in the next episode that I’m here on there with you, I can give you the script in your audience for the good news phone call.
Jay Conner [00:22:06]:
We get our deals funded 100% of the time with this one little script. But the reason it works is because of how we have structured and how we’ve set up this relationship, we’ve taught the private lender. They didn’t even know anything about private money until we told them about it. And so now, they’re ready to go. They’re waiting for a deal to fund, then we deliver the deal for them to fund, and everybody’s happy.
Philip Chan [00:22:33]:
So, in this way of private lending, do they know much about the money and where it’s going? Like, do they know that it’s going to real estate investments? Oh, sure, yeah, they know, but they don’t really know. But it’s not like a broker-dealer. Like, they don’t know all the nuances of that real estate deal. Right. They’re, you’re just mainly presenting to them what they get as an roi, how they can call their money back, like how they’re, their, their private money, it can be secured, and that’s I think, the pivot. Is that correct? Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:23:07]:
So on the first deal they fund, they’re going to know what the after-repaired value is. They’re going to know, obviously, what the funding is required for the deal. They’re going to know the closing date, they’re going to, where to send the money. Right. But they don’t get into what I buy it for? They don’t get into how much the rehab is.
Philip Chan [00:23:28]:
Yeah, no, I, yeah, it’s not, they don’t, they don’t really dive into the real estate nuances of it. There are more of you. This is more like, hey, you know, if you lend me this money, I’m going to give it back to you. And some more. Here’s how it works. And this is my track record.
Jay Conner [00:23:47]:
Yeah, it’s, it’s simple.
Philip Chan [00:23:49]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:23:49]:
And look at the second one and the third one and the fourth one, and the fifth one. All they want to know is how much money you need and when you need it.
Philip Chan [00:23:56]:
Right, right. Because in a way, this is a blueprint that’s applicable to assets in general, as long as you know what you’re doing to those assets to get a hefty roi. Is that correct? Like, it doesn’t even have to be real estate. The concept is, if I’m correct. Right. You’re presenting to them an opportunity within private lending, private money. You’re educating them on how they can get an roi. And the asset at which you’re investing is actually secondary to the conversation because it doesn’t.
Philip Chan [00:24:28]:
Like in my case, it wouldn’t be real estate; it would be the markets. Right. And it would be, hey, we know what we’re doing within the markets, and we can, you know, if you’re willing to take this on. Right. This is how you can get your money back. And that’s the focus.
Jay Conner [00:24:42]:
Yes.
Philip Chan [00:24:43]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:24:44]:
So I’m glad you brought that up, Philip, because of another mistake. New capital makers raise, they talk too much. Right. Like a confused mind takes no action whatsoever. So the key is to keep it simple, simple, simple, that anybody can understand.
Philip Chan [00:25:04]:
That’s why when a salesperson talks to me, I’m confused all the time.
Jay Conner [00:25:09]:
Right?
Philip Chan [00:25:11]:
That’s right. That’s right. But look, Jay, this has been very educational. Thank you so much for introducing me to the concept of private money in this short 20 minutes. I’ve certainly learned a lot and I’m looking forward to learn some more at our next get together. Now, for the audience listening, right. Number one, you have had some immersion within not just real estate, right? But entrepreneurship.
Philip Chan [00:25:39]:
What is your best advice? Right. If you were talking to your 18-year-old self, or maybe some pitfalls to avoid. Right. To conclude the episode for the audience.
Jay Conner [00:25:51]:
Surround yourself with like-minded people who have already been successful doing what you want to do. Don’t make the mistake. I did when I started with this. In my first six years, I was out here on an island by myself, just relying on my previous experience and success in a totally different industry. So what would I tell my 18-year-old self? Or, actually, in the case of 2003, what I would tell my 30 or my 43-year-old self at the time is go get in a mastermind, go get a mentor, go get around people that are already successful. I don’t care what it is that you want to do.
Philip Chan [00:26:33]:
Yep, I love it. I love it. That’s why I love studying success principles. Because regardless of the industry, it’s applicable. Right, right. As long as you know, when you study them enough, recurring themes keep happening. Thank you so much for your time, Jay, for the audience listening in. If they want to get in touch with you directly, what is the best way?
Jay Conner [00:26:55]:
The best way to get in contact with me directly is to let me give your audience a gift. And so the gift is my recent best-selling book, which is called Where to Get the Money Now for Your Real Estate Deals. How and where to get money for your real estate deals without relying on traditional lenders. And the book is 20 bucks at Amazon. But don’t go to Amazon and spend 20 bucks. Let me give you the book for free. I’ll autograph it for you. I’ll ship it to you via three-day express and just cover shipping.
Thank you so much, Jay, for the generous gift. I really appreciate your time today, and I look forward to seeing you again.
Jay Conner [00:27:49]:
God bless you, Philip. Thank you.
Philip Chan [00:27:51]:
Thank you. You take care now.
Narrator [00:27:54]:
Are you feeling inspired by the knowledge you gained in this episode? Then head over to www.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide, that’swww.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide, and download your free guide that shares seven 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.
In the realm of real estate investing, many newcomers and seasoned pros alike hit the same intimidating wall: funding. Banks get selective, credit lines dry up, and the promises at seminars never seem to pan out. But what if the solution was not in begging banks or risking your own savings, but in tapping into private money?
That’s precisely what Jay Conner, known as the Private Money Authority, shared on Sir Lancelot’s Real Estate Roundtable hosted by Lancelot Lenard. As someone who’s flipped over 500 homes and averaged $60,000 profit per deal using private funding, Jay’s story is both inspiring and practical.
The Turning Point: From Banks to Private Money
Jay didn’t start his career with a silver spoon or endless private lenders. In fact, for six years, he did what nearly every investor does—go to banks, jump through their hoops, and hope for approval. Then, in 2009, the rug was pulled out from under him. “Jay Conner” recalled calling his banker, Steve, only to learn his line of credit was shut down overnight due to the global financial crisis. Suddenly, he was left with deals on the line and no funding.
It was in this moment that he asked himself a critical question: “Who do you know that can help fix your problem?” That led Jay to a friend who introduced him to the world of private money and self-directed IRAs, and—importantly—how ordinary people could use their savings to fund real estate deals.
Teaching, Not Selling: The Secret to Raising Private Money
Most would assume raising private capital is about pitching deals and selling your vision. Jay’s method is the opposite. He puts on his teacher hat, educates people in his network about what private lending is, how it works, and how it keeps their money safe.
“No chasing, no begging, no selling. Just offering an opportunity versus asking for money,” Jay said. In less than 90 days, he raised over $2 million simply by educating and building trust. His approach is built on demystifying private lending and showing how ordinary people—often those sitting in your church pew or neighbors—can earn high returns safely and securely.
Confidence Is Key: Overcoming the Fear Factor
For new investors, fear of rejection or not being “ready” is real. Jay stresses the importance of mindset: “Your net worth will never exceed your self-worth.” The first step is learning exactly what you’re offering, understanding how to protect your lenders, and being prepared to answer their concerns about safety and returns. If you haven’t done a deal yet, Jay recommends partnering with an experienced investor and learning on the job.
A Real-Life Example: Fast Deals, Big Profits
Private money isn’t just theoretical. Jay shared a vivid example: an oceanfront condo deal that stacked three layers of motivation (absentee owner, inherited property, and foreclosure threat). He was able to close in just seven days for $480,000 cash, invest $12,000 in repairs, and sell it for $618,000—netting $160,000 profit in six weeks. Without private money, this opportunity would have slipped away.
Building a Scalable, Automatic Machine
Systems and technology are crucial. Jay’s operation relies on a CRM, automation, and a dedicated team. Leads come in daily through multiple funnels, and his acquisitionist and other staff handle the process seamlessly. This “automatic transaction machine” means Jay spends his time making decisions, not getting bogged down in the details.
Why Private Money Is the Biggest Opportunity Right Now
According to Jay, the real opportunity isn’t just for investors but also for lenders. With $31 trillion in liquid cash sitting on the sidelines today, people are seeking better returns and security. Private lending—backed by real estate and structured with strong protections—answers both needs.
Final Takeaway
The story shared by Jay Conner on Sir Lancelot’s Real Estate Roundtable is a blueprint for how anyone can break free from traditional funding roadblocks in real estate. Teach, don’t sell. Build systems. Leverage relationships. Most importantly, realize that private money is not just the fuel for your deals but can be the gateway to financial freedom—for both you and your lenders.
If you want to dive deeper into Jay’s strategies, grab his free book, “Where to Get the Money Now,” and start learning how you can transform your real estate investing journey through the power of private money.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
When traditional bank funding suddenly became unavailable in 2009, how did this experience change the guests’ approach to real estate investing, and what key lessons can be learned from this turning point?
The idea of private money is initially described as mysterious or intimidating. What practical actions were taken to make private lending understandable for potential lenders, and why is an educational approach more effective than pitching deals?
Overcoming the fear of raising private money is a common struggle. What strategies are recommended for building confidence and the right mindset, especially for new investors?
The guest expanded from flipping a few properties to over 500. What specific systems and team structures made it possible to scale without burning out?
The episode describes an “automatic transaction machine.” What does this system involve, and how does it automate the process from generating leads to closing deals?
Can you summarize a deal from the episode that would not have been possible without private money? What factors made private capital crucial in that scenario?
Instead of “asking for money,” the strategy is to “offer an opportunity.” What is the actual script used for the “good news phone call,” and why does this approach resonate with potential lenders?
How are deals structured to protect private lenders, and what safeguards are in place to ensure their security?
The value of mentorship is discussed as a shortcut to success. What examples are shared of students achieving transformative results through coaching, and why is having a mentor important in real estate investing?
With rising interest rates and stricter bank requirements, how does the current market create opportunities for private money investors, and what advice is offered for newcomers who want to start leveraging private capital?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner raised $2,150,000 in private money within 90 days after attending his first real estate investing conference about private money in 2009, without ever asking, begging, or selling—he simply taught people about the opportunity.
Jay Conner averages bringing home a big check every time he buys a house—sometimes borrowing more than the purchase price so that he gets paid at closing, a strategy that only works when purchasing distressed properties at a discount.
Jay Conner has never pitched a deal to a private lender; instead, he uses what he calls the “good news phone call,” where he simply informs his lenders when he has a property ready for funding, and they eagerly wire their money without being asked!
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.
Creating Win-Win Opportunities: Mentorship, Systems, and Private Money to Grow Your Portfolio
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
The longer you own a property, the more money you make with this condition, depending on what the underlying debt is, right?
Narrator [00:00:13]:
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 to raise 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. Money because the money comes first. Now here’s your host, Jay Connor.
Lancelot Lenard [00:00:48]:
Welcome to Sir Lancelot’s Real Estate Roundtable, your guide to mastering the realm of real estate in Central East Florida. I am Sir Lancelot Lenard, ready to uncover the secrets of seller strategies, home staging, mortgage mastery, and more. From Daytona Beach to Cocoa Beach, Lake County to St. Augustine, join me as we navigate the intricacies of real estate. As the leader of the Sir Lanslo Group at Florida Homes Realty and Mortgage, I’m here to arm you with knowledge and innovation. Whether you’re a seasoned homeowner or a first-time buyer unveiling the kingdom of real estate one roundtable at a time, most real estate investors hit a wall when it comes to funding, banks say no, credit lines dry up, and opportunities chip away. But what if I told you there was a way to unlock millions in capital without begging banks or risking your own savings to Today on the Real Estate Roundtable, I’m sitting down with a man who cracked the code. He’s a nationally renowned investor, educator, and host of the Private Money show.
Lancelot Lenard [00:02:03]:
He’s flipped over 400 homes,,s averaging $60,000 profits per deal and built a system that turns private money into what he calls an automatic transaction machine. I’m talking about none other than J. Connor, the Private money authority himself. If you’ve ever wondered where to find the money for your deal, this is the episode you cannot afford to miss. Jay is also giving away something really special today for everyone listening. Go grab Jay’s free guide@jconnner.com moneyguide and pick up his book where to get the money now@jconnner.com book. It’s free, just cover the shipping. Jay, tell me a little bit about this book.
Jay Conner [00:02:53]:
Lancelot, I’m so excited you invited me to come along and talk about what I’m so excited and passionate about, private money. And why in the world am I so excited about private money? I’ll tell you why. Private money has had more of an impact on our real estate investing business than any other strategy that we have employed since 2003. I started raising private money in 2009 for my real estate deals. And you know what? I haven’t missed out on a deal since 2009 due to not having the money. And so that’s why I’m so excited about it. So this book is titled Where to Get the Money Now. It’s a national bestseller.
Jay Conner [00:03:36]:
The subtitle is how and where to get money for your real estate deals without relying on traditional or hard money lenders. And this is not an ebook. It’s a real book. Did you know the United States Postal Service is still in business? So I will express mail the autograph, express mail this book to you. Where to get the money now. It’s so easy to read. I promise you, by the end of reading this book, you’ll know where to get money. You’ll be in control.
Jay Conner [00:04:06]:
You make the rules. You are your own underwriter. You’ll always bring home a big check when you buy a property without taking any of your own money to the closing table. So, yeah, go to www.JayConner.com/Book. I’ll rush it right out to you, Lancelot. I can’t wait to dive in and talk about this topic. Private money among so many people is like this mysterious, magical, ethereal money over here somewhere. And in our conversation between Acts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, we will unpack how easy-peasy lemon-squeezy this world is to get all the money for your deals.
Lancelot Lenard [00:04:54]:
So let’s go back to the beginning. Jay, we talked a lot about your book right now, which is awesome, guys. Pick up a copy. He’s basically giving it away for free. What was the turning point when you realized banks were holding you back?
Jay Conner [00:05:07]:
All my lands. The turning point. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was sitting right here at this desk because what happened was that from the start, I started investing in single-family houses here in eastern North Carolina in 2003. And from 2003 until January of 2009, the only thing Lancelot II knew to do was go to the local bank or the mortgage company, get on my hands and kneesand say, Please fund my deal. And the banker would make me pull my skirt up and show off my personal assets. And I had to do the financial statement, nd they pulled my credit score and appraisal, and all that stuff. That worked out okay.
Jay Conner [00:05:50]:
I did a ton of deals between 2003 here in eastern North Carolina and January of 2009 using traditional funding and banking, but what’s your question? What was the pivotal or turning point when I realized banks were holding me back? I’ll tell you what the turning point was. I called up my banker. His name was Steve. In January of 2009, I had two houses under contract to purchase. Steve had funded a ton of deals for me in those first six years. And while I’m on the telephone with Steve, I learned that my line of credit has been shut down with no notice to me. I said, Steve, what in the world are you talking about? My line of credit is shut down.
Jay Conner [00:06:32]:
I’ve always made my payments on time. I got a great credit score. I. I got a great cr. I got a great record. Why are you telling me you’ve shut down my line of credit? Steve says, Jay, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? I said no, but you just gave me a financial crisis by shutting me down with no notice. And he says, Sorry, we’re not loaning money out to real estate investors. So I put the phone down on the receiver,,r and I sat here for a moment, and I thought, and I want to share a question with you, Lancelot, and your audience that’s tuning in here to the show.
Jay Conner [00:07:13]:
I want to share with you all a question that I asked myself right after I’d been notified. Line of credit shut down. And I asked myself this question, and you know the powers in question, a nd you can’t get the right answers unless you have the right questions. And so I asked myself, I saidJay, who? It’s not how, it’s who. I said, Who do you know that can help fix your problem? That’s the question for myself, by the way. These people running around saying, Oh, every problem’s an opportunity. I want to throw up. I didn’t have an opportunity.
Jay Conner [00:07:49]:
I had a problem.
Lancelot Lenard [00:07:50]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:07:51]:
Now, the problem did become an opportunity, because you and I wouldn’t be visiting here today without that problem. But in the heat of the moment, it’s not a, for goodness sake, blankety blank opportunity. It’s a problem. Let’s face the fact. So I asked myself, who do I know that can help me fix my problem? You know what’s magical? Immediately, when I asked myself that question, I thought of Jeff Blankenship. Now, Jeff Blankenship lived in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the time. A very dear, close friend. We know each other through church and gospel a acapella singing events and all that kind of stuff.
Jay Conner [00:08:30]:
And so he was investing in single-family houses. So I called up Jeff, and I told him what happened, being cut off from the bank. He says, Jay, welcome to the club. I said, I’m not sure I want to be a member of that club, but what club are you talking about? He said, tThat’sthethe lub of having the bank shut you down. He said, My bank shut me down last week. I so, Jeff, how are you going to fund your real estate deals? He said, Have you ever heard of private money? I said, nNo He said, have you ever heard of self directed IRAs and how individuals, ordinary people, can take their current retirement funds that they’re not happy with and loan that and move it over to a self directed IRA company and then loan it out to us real estate investors and then the interest that we pay them is either tax deferred or tax free for them. I said, Jeff, you are talking Greek.
Jay Conner [00:09:18]:
You’re talking another language. I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. I said, What’s private money? He said, I’m not sure. He said, But there’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron LeGrand. I said, Who’s on LeGrand? He said, I don’t know. He says, but there’s this guy, Ron Legrand, who can teach us about private money. I said, What is it? He said, Jay, I don’t know. But Ron says we can get a lot of it really fast.
Jay Conner [00:09:44]:
I said, OkaySo I went to my very first real estate investing conference with Rhonda Grand in February of 2009 to learn about private money. And boy, did I learn about private money. I came back from that conference landslide. I raised $2,150,000 in new funding from people who had never even heard about private money or private lending, or self-directed IRAs. And I didn’t ask, I didn’t beg, I didn’t chase, I didn’t sell, I didn’t persuade. I raised all this new funding, and how in the world did I do it? I put on my teacher hat, which is called the private money teacher hat. And I just went about initially teaching people in my own network what private money is, what’s private lending, what in the world is self-directed IRAs.
Jay Conner [00:10:41]:
And in less than 90 days, by just teaching, leading with a servant’s heart, no chasing, no begging, no selling, just offering an opportunity versus asking for money or applying for a mortgage, I was able to attract that money. And I never pitched a deal. I’ve yet to pitch a deal today. I’ll share with you here in this episode whenever you think it’s best. The exact Script as to what I say to my private lenders over the phone. And I always get my deals funded without asking for money. And so anyway, I attracted that money and never missed out on a deal for not having the funding. The traditional way to borrow money, and that’s what I did in my first six years.
Jay Conner [00:11:26]:
The traditional way to borrow money for your real estate deals is to go to the lender. And in your mind, you think they make the rules? They do traditionally. We think whoever’s got the money makes the rules. They set the interest rate, they set the term, they set the length of the note, they set the maximum loan-to-value, they charge points, that whole thing. And you just have to bow down to whatever they’re saying. That’s all we know. Until you come into my world. We turn this thing upside down and turn it upside down in the banks, and guess what? In this world, you never ask for money, you never apply for a mortgage, you never have to give your credit score, and there’s never an appraisal on the properties because we’re not asking for a mortgage.
Jay Conner [00:12:16]:
We’re offering an opportunity, and we’re leading with teaching to people who have never heard of this world. I have 47private lenders right now funding my deals. Not one of them had ever heard of private money, private lending, self directed IRAs until I taught them about it. And some of them are accredited investors. But you know what,t Lancelot? They don’t even know they’re accredited investors because they don’t even know what an accredited investor is.
Lancelot Lenard [00:12:43]:
Talk about that for sure.
Jay Conner [00:12:45]:
Anyway, that’s how we got started in all this.
Lancelot Lenard [00:12:48]:
So there’s always a, from my standpoint, and a lot of investors are afraid to ask for money. How did you overcome that fear? I know you’re not asking for money; you’re basically teaching them stuff. But how did you overcome to get them together in a room? I heard you go to church, so that’s probably one of the avenues. But is there any other avenue that you have gathered the folks together and given them, or is it on one teaching? How do you do this? Tell me a little bit about that.
Jay Conner [00:13:13]:
When you’re talking with someone who could be a potential private lender, you can’t be getting ready. You gotta be ready. Your net worth will never exceed your worth. Your net worth will never exceed your level of confidence. So, how do you become confident? You become confident knowing what in the world you’re talking about. How do you learn what you’re talking about if you never raise private money? Reading my book is a good place to start to learn what you’re talking about. Because first of all, Lancelot, one of the most common questions I get from people that haven’t raised private capital before is, I say, Jay, how do I start, like how do I start raising private money? I’m fearful, I’m fearful of asking, I’m fearful of rejection, all that kind of stuff. The first place you start is owning the real estate between your ears.
Jay Conner [00:14:14]:
What I’m talking about is mindset. You’ve got to own your mind before you start talking about private money. So how do you do that? What you want to learn is what in the world is it you’re going to teach, right? What are you going to share with people initially that have never heard about this world? So you want to learn now? My world of private money is single-family houses, right? There are all kinds of ways to use private money. You can use private money for single-family houses. I’ve flipped over 500 houses now in a small area over all these years. And I don’t say that to brag. I’m just saying there’s a case to be made to own and dominate a small market instead of trying to be a competitor in a big market. So what is it that you’re going to teach and share? One big secret, as I just said, my 47 private lenders that are funding my deals, they have never heard of this.
Jay Conner [00:15:14]:
They never heard of private money. They never heard of self-directed IRAs. They’re not sophisticated investors like at my private money live events, the private money conference.com, at those live events. Lancelot. I have private lenders come to the event for my attendees to meet. They’re ordinary people. Just. I got teachers, I got retired teachers, I got retired law enforcement officers.
Jay Conner [00:15:40]:
I’ve got engineers in the civil service. I’ve got ordinary people, ordinary walks of life. And so, owning the real estate between your ears, people are fearful of asking, people are fearful of rejection. You know what I say to them? I said, Let’s ask you a question. How can you be rejected if you never ask anybody for anything? You can’t be rejected, right? You’re sharing a world with people who they never heard about you. Okay? Now, as I said, you can use private money for all kinds of things, all kinds of asset classes. You can use private money for multifamily, as you’ve been involved in land, you’ve been involved in multifamily deals, and so it’s all. You can use private money for self-storage, you can use private money for land, you can use private money for any kind of commercial.
Jay Conner [00:16:37]:
I’ve got a friend who’s in an $800,000 office building, all funded with private money. The difference is that it’s all the same money. It’s just a matter of how you structure the deals. In my world of single-family houses, everything that I do is what’s called asset-backed debt. Asset-backed debt, which means I don’t, I’m not raising money for a fund as you would in syndication, right? Everything I do is what’s called asset-backed debt. That’s the fancy term. Everything I do in slang is what we call one-offs.
Jay Conner [00:17:13]:
So you got a single-family house, you got a private lender, maybe a couple of private lenders that are funding that property, and they get their own promissory note, they get their own deed of trust or mortgage, securing their promissory note as a result. The SEC does not regulate this part of private money. The SEC, Security Exchange Commission, which a lot of new capital raisers are fearful of because they’re afraid they’re going to break the rules and all that kind of stuff. Guess what? There are no rules to break when you’re doing single-family houses unless you’re borrowing unsecured funds, which is a big no. Unless you are actually raising money for a fund. Now, if you’re raising money for a fund, the SEC has its regulations, of course. But with single-family houses where the private lenders have their own promissory note and a deed of trust or mortgages collateralizing that note, that’s asset-backed debt. But anyway, I got so excited, Lancelot, I forgot the last thing you asked me.
Lancelot Lenard [00:18:18]:
That’s funny. So last thing I was like, how do you overcome the fear?
Jay Conner [00:18:21]:
Oh yeah, how do you overcome the fear? Mindset. Mindset. So one way you can overcome fear is just screw it up really bad and learn lessons from screwing it up. Like, how do you really get good at something? Is doing it right, practicing it. But you want to have the foundation, right? You want to have the foundation of what to teach people, as to how this opportunity works, how they’re protected, and how they can get their money back in case of an emergency. And so you see, you are seen as the expert. Now, one thing that causes fear and lack of confidence is if somebody’s looking to raise private money for their deals and they’ve never done a real estate deal, right? That’s who’s going to loan me money. And I’ve never done a real Estate deal.
Jay Conner [00:19:14]:
You know what, that’s a pretty doggone really good question. Who is going to loan you money? And you’ve never done a deal. I say join forces with somebody that’s done a bunch of deals, right? That knows how to structure a deal and learn on the job while you’re earning. Right. And a joint venture with somebody. Get a coach, get a mentor, work with somebody who’s doing it. But the other answer to that question of who’s going to loan me money? And I’m fearful about that. Here’s one of the answers.
Jay Conner [00:19:45]:
If you don’t pay your private lender, the property does. Let me repeat that. If you don’t pay your private lender, the property does. Well, that’s why the private lender is protected. We don’t borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value of a single-family house. Nice big equity cushion that’s protecting the private lender. Notice I did not say a maximum of 75% of the purchase price. Big difference.
Jay Conner [00:20:17]:
I always, here’s a writer downer. I always bring home a big check when I buy a property without taking any of my own money. To the closing table. Here’s the question. Who wants to get paid to buy houses?
Lancelot Lenard [00:20:31]:
Everybody.
Jay Conner [00:20:34]:
Without taking any of your own money, their clothes. Hey, look, I always bring home a big check when I buy a single-family house because I’m borrowing more than I need to purchase the property. But that only works, of course, when you’re buying a property that’s distressed and it needs renovation, it needs rehab. And so that’s why you’re buying it at a discounted price. But yeah, this whole world of private money puts you in control. How do you get the confidence? How do you overcome the fear? Know what it is that you are offering and teaching know how to protect your private lender. When you do business this way, they are not going to lose any money. Because listen, I’ve done over, I’ve done over 500 flips of singles.
Jay Conner [00:21:20]:
I started before HGTV was even conceived or sexy.
Lancelot Lenard [00:21:25]:
So out of those 500 properties, I have a question about this. What systems allowed you to scale without burning out on those five? Because that’s a lot of properties. I was thinking, and I’m like, oh, I’m going to get into flipping maybe a little bit nnowow I have a contractor’s license, etc. Etc. I was like, maybe I could do one a month or one a quarter or something like that. That wouldn’t be too stressful. But 500, that’s a lot. That’s like in 500, let’s say even in 20 times, that’s what 200 or was like 25 a year or something like that.
Lancelot Lenard [00:21:57]:
That’s a lot of properties to flip.
Jay Conner [00:22:00]:
Yeah, that’s what we average. So let’s go back to day one. First year, three houses. First year, first year, three houses. Second year, five houses. So obviously, I didn’t start out scaling that. So how did it scale? I’ll tell you how it scaled. Software, as in technology CRM.
Jay Conner [00:22:26]:
Having everything in one place to communicate with the team. And that’s the second piece of the scale team. The only thing I do today is make decisions. I decide what marketing levers I want to pull and test to have motivated sellers reach out to us. I want to sell my house. I have, hey look, Lancelot, I ain’t bought a house out of the multiple listing service since 2019 because there haven’t been any deals. They been any deals in the multiple listing service? Right. When I get a house rehabbed, ready to sell, I put it in the multiple listing service.
Jay Conner [00:23:07]:
I got multiple offers the same weekend, and boom, I’m under contract. Because in our area, even today,y there’s a very small there’s lack of inventory. Lack of inventory. Now that’s not the case. That’s not the case everywhere. Right. Like down in Florida, it’s pulled out, pulled back a lot back there. But as I said, how do you scale this software, and people go ahead.
Lancelot Lenard [00:23:30]:
Is this what you call the automatic transaction machine?
Jay Conner [00:23:34]:
Yes, yes.
Lancelot Lenard [00:23:36]:
For example, what does that mean for an investor? Tell me about it.
Jay Conner [00:23:39]:
The automatic transaction machine is that you’ve got the team in place, you’ve got an oiled machine, a grease machine, and most importantly, you have a system.
Lancelot Lenard [00:23:50]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:23:51]:
What’s my system? Let’s unpack, and I’ll try to do that 30,000-foot view. Right. But my system, first of all, I have to have the right time. So, my acquisitionist, I have not talked to a seller of a single-family house, and I don’t know how many years personally myself. I’ve had the same acquisitionist, her name is Kim, for 20 years. 20 years. So she talks to all the off-market sellers of single-family houses. Right. So she works out of her home, and she and I never talk.
Jay Conner [00:24:27]:
Literally,y we never talk? All of our communication is in the software. When I started, Lancelot, I was the most disorganized mess you have ever seen. Hey, look, I ran this business off of post-it notes everywhere I had posts, they were on the wall, they’re on my lamp, on my lamp here, on my desk, they’re on my oand receiver of my phone, they’re on the floor. Post-it notes and yellow pads everywhere. Thank goodness I discovered a wonderful CRM that I actually it is a prepare proprietary software for real estate investors that just and my mastermind members use. And so all communication is there as like from a lead comes in. So, where do all these leads come from? We’re digressing.
Jay Conner [00:25:17]:
We’re not talking about private money.
Lancelot Lenard [00:25:18]:
But anyway, it’s fine because it all ends up in private money at the end. Because how do you buy the deals that we’re talking about right now? We have a lead-up. I told you this is a story-style interview. Okay? So we gotta build it up to the point where you can like, yeah, that’s how you, where’s this how you use that money?
Jay Conner [00:25:34]:
You can’t use the money unless you have leads.
Lancelot Lenard [00:25:36]:
Exactly. I could talk all day about how much, how easy it is to raise private money. But let’s find out how we can actually use that private money.
Jay Conner [00:25:45]:
By the way, Lancelot, speaking of leads, before I get into the system, speaking of leads, so I’m on a guess that you have heard the following quote from the guru on stage talking to real estate investors, new real estate investors, and they say something to this effect, oh, just get the deal on the contract, the money will show up.
Lancelot Lenard [00:26:12]:
Yeah, I love that.
Jay Conner [00:26:14]:
Or just hearing that, I want to be like the Kool-Aid guy who runs into the brick wall on TV. Or they’ll say, they’ll say, oh, money finds deals. Now, let me just ask a question. Does money have legs? That’s like running around looking for deals. Or you get a deal under contract and boom. That drone just flew to your front door porch step and boom, dropped a box of money on your front door step because money heard that you got a deal under contract. That’s the most stupid thing, that seminar crap. Excuse my French.
Jay Conner [00:26:52]:
That is seminar junk right there. Look, money ain’t going to show up looking for you, right? You get a deal under contract. So that’s why I practice and teach that money comes first. Now look, if you’re a wholesaler, if you’re a wholesaler and you get a deal on the contract, of course, money’s going to chase that contract because you already got your buyer’s list built. But what did you do? You got the money lined up first. If you’re a wholesaler and you got good training they what’s the first thing they teach you to do? Go get your buyer’s list. What’s that? It’s the money. It’s the money.
Jay Conner [00:27:31]:
Get the money lined up first. So whether you’re wholesaling, you’re getting your buyer’s list lined up, if you’re rehabbing and staying in deals, you’re getting your private money lined up first. There’s always going to be deals back to the lead generations and the automation. So I have right now, I think eight. I think it’s eight. Seven or eight. At least seven or eight. I have seven or eight different marketing funnels that are on automatic every day, shooting, bringing in motivated seller leads into our software.
Jay Conner [00:28:10]:
Where are they coming from? So we got, I have all these different vendors, Google paid ads. Now I’m not doing pay-per-click as if you’re managing your own Google account, right? But the vendor is doing Google pay-per-click, and then they’re charging you per lead that’s coming in. Whether it’s this vendor or that vendor, somebody is motivated to sell their house. They go to Google online and they type in sell my house fast. How to sell my house fast. How to sell my distressed house. How to sell my house with no repairs. There are 75 different key phrases.
Jay Conner [00:28:46]:
So they do. Odds are. See, I love competing with myself, right? I got a good friend here at Moorhead City, North Carolina. His name’s Clark, his wife is Liza. They own five different restaurants and every one of them is are different kind of restaurant, right? And so they compete with themselves, but they dominate the market, right? So I like to compete with myself and dominate the market. So I got all these different lead sources. Now, when the lead comes in, here’s the see automation automation la Ron Legrand taught me: the less I do, the more I make get out of the way for goodness. So lead comes in, nd by a Zapier software attachment, that lead automatically goes into our CR, and it tracks where the lead came from.
Jay Conner [00:29:33]:
Look, if you can’t track and measure where you’re spending your marketing money, you cannot improve it. You cannot prune. You can’t get rid of what’s not working. You can’t keep what is working because you don’t know, right? But through the tracking, we know where every lead is coming from. Now, cost per lead is important, but the most important thing is cost per conversion. Cost per conversion. So, how much money did you spend with vendor A to buy a house, not how much was there? You can have another vendor that’s got a cheaper cost per lead, but they don’t convert, right? So cost per conversion.
Jay Conner [00:30:14]:
So we got all the leads coming in now. How does the system work automatically? How the system works is okay. Here comes the lead. It’s in the CRM. My acquisitionist and my lead manager. Hello. E I, E I, E I O. Lead manager.
Jay Conner [00:30:31]:
She’s been with me for six years. Her job is to make sure no leads fall through the cracks. So my acquisition is. Kim is a human being. Human beings are not perfect. Human beings get distracted. So my lead manager, her name’s Trixie, her job is to make sure that none of these leads are falling through the cracks and that Kim is on top of them. Stink on a stick.
Jay Conner [00:30:59]:
So nothing gets missed, right? So here comes the lead. Kim sees it. And now, when that lead comes in, more automation. We have an AI assistant named Bailey. What does Bailey do?o As soon as that lead comes in within two minutes, Bailey is now automatically texting that lead and setting the phone appointment for Kim, the acquisitionist, to call them. Bailey gets three out of four leads. A phone appointment for Kim. So there’s the phone appointment.
Jay Conner [00:31:31]:
Kim calls him up. Kim gets the information from the seller, and now she puts that information in the CRM, and now boom, she puts it i,n and now I’m notified. I got a lead to review after I finish this show with youLancelotot. I got 13 brand new seller leads to review that just came in since yesterday afternoon. And I’m gonna review them leads and I’m gonna decide which ones we wanna get a value from our realtor on and which ones maybe we wanna go look at. So I’ll look at them, and then I go into the CRM and in my quiet time, and I decide which ones to get the realtor’s opinion. So I say get an opinion. Guess what? That software automatically emails the realtor in that area to get their opinion.
Jay Conner [00:32:19]:
In less than 24 hours, the realtor’s opinion comes back and goes into the software. Now we’ve got all the information we need to decide whether we’re going to go look at the property or not. So we look at those numbers, and now we decide to go look at the property. So now I say, look at the property. And now Kim sets the appointment for the realtor and my project manager to go look at the property and estimate repairs. Those repairs come back to Kim. Kim puts them in the software. I look at it now, I got all the numbers I need, and now I make the offer.
Jay Conner [00:32:49]:
Now that goes over to Kim. She makes the offer, negotiates the deal, we go into contract, hopefully, and then we close. All that’s done, through software and the team.
Lancelot Lenard [00:33:01]:
That is awesome. What a fluent system you’ve got going on over there. So.
Jay Conner [00:33:07]:
Well, without the system, I’d be running around with my hair on fire, and I don’t have enough hair left to get on fire.
Lancelot Lenard [00:33:14]:
That’s kind of re, too. So I don’t know. It looks like it’s on fire all the time. Can you share a deal that simply wouldn’t have been possible without private money?
Jay Conner [00:33:25]:
Which one of 500?
Lancelot Lenard [00:33:28]:
Let’s say all of them.
Jay Conner [00:33:29]:
So, is there any specific one that was like so tight? So recently we had a. Had a lead come in. His name is Brian, and Brian does not live in North Carolina. He lives in South Carolina, and he inherited an oceanfront condominium here at Atlantic Beach, N.C., and totally furnished, needed hardly renovations whatsoever. And so the lead came in by a good one of our Google vendors, came in by one of our Google vendors, automatically came into the software, and here are the numbers. Oh, what was the layer? Three layers of motivation.
Jay Conner [00:34:14]:
Three layers of motivation. That’s what you call stacked motivation. Absentee, out-of-state owner inherited and is going to the courthouse sales steps because it’s in foreclosure. So lots of motivation is going on here. I bought the property using private money, and I closed in seven days. I had to close in seven days. I don’t want that property going to the courthouse steps. The foreclosure sale competes with all the other real estate investors.
Jay Conner [00:34:51]:
I bought it for $480,000 cash. Pride. We’re using private money. If I hadn’t had the private money available. Boom. There you go. Close it in seven days. Now the rehab, very out of the ordinary.
Jay Conner [00:35:07]:
$12,000. Nothing. $12,000. The only thing it needed was paint. They needed paint, a little bit of sheetrock repair. That was it. And beautiful furniture, totally furnished. You pull back the curtain, you’re looking out the sliding glass door, and there are windows in every room.
Jay Conner [00:35:29]:
The bedrooms look out over the ocean. You feel like you’re in a crew on a cruise ship in this condo. Anyway, I sold it for $618,000, and I was in and out in six weeks. And that would not run the numbers. 618 less 12, less 480, less 30,000 in realtor fees. That deal, I think I netted over $160,000 net net in six weeks. I wouldn’t have happened without private money. And being able to close fast.
Jay Conner [00:36:05]:
Now, you’re not going to close fast without the private money or your own money. And you’ve got to have a relationship with a closing agent or real estate attorney that’s going to do your title search and get that done. And you’ve got to have your relationship with your realtor, if you’re not one to actually know what the after-repaired value is that you can sell it for. So again, having those team members in place allows you to close fast because time kills deals, and the older, the colder.
Lancelot Lenard [00:36:33]:
That is so true. So that’s an amazing deal. Do you ever keep any of these for like long-term holds, or are they all flip, flip, flip, flip?
Jay Conner [00:36:43]:
It depends on how I buy them.
Lancelot Lenard [00:36:45]:
Because I mean, ocean for a property for $400,000. You’re kidding me. You’re looking out at the Atlantic Ocean. That’s in my book. That would have been a keeper. Airbnb all day long, like a short-term rental. You only had to fix up like $12,000. You’re in it for 500,000.
Lancelot Lenard [00:37:00]:
It’s probably going to make you somewhere around 100,000 or north in short-term rental opportunities. So I was like, hey, yeah, I could make 160 right now, or I could make 100, 120 a year on this puppy.
Jay Conner [00:37:15]:
That’s a great,’ ss a great question. I don’t like to leave private money buried in a house.
Lancelot Lenard [00:37:22]:
Gotcha.
Jay Conner [00:37:23]:
However, to that the market has changed very recently. As recently as two weeks ago, First Citizens Bank, right down the street here on Bridges Street in Morehead City, North Carolina. By the way, I do a lot of business with First Citizens. I got a lot of money parked there and great friends there. They’ve got great service. I don’t borrow money from them, but. And here’s why. Two weeks ago, did you know that at First Citizens bank, you, if you want to, if you’re a landlord and you wanted to invest in a single-family house for the long term and you want to hold it for the long term, 8.3% plus points and origination fees, etc.
Jay Conner [00:38:08]:
And they make the rules, right? They make the rules. I’m borrowing at 8%. So with rates at 8.3%, I’m actually paying my private lenders less. Less than what the local bank is charging today. So when I said a moment ago, it depends on how I buy it. Now I will say this. The longer you own a property, the more money you make. With this condition, it depends on what the underlying debt is.
Jay Conner [00:38:42]:
Right. The longer I owned a different condo at a Place at the beach a few years ago, the more money I lost because of the underlying debt. And I could only rent it out for 13 weeks out of the year. You see that property that we were just talking about, that I bought for 480 and silver 618, you only rent it out for 13 weeks out of the year.
Lancelot Lenard [00:39:02]:
Got you.
Jay Conner [00:39:02]:
There’s no market. There’s no market middle of September through the end of April. So the only income on that property is Memorial Day through Labor Day. But anyway, back to how I buy it depends on how I sell it. So I don’t only use private money for buying properties, I buy properties on what we call terms. So I’ll buy single-family houses. One way that I love is to buy it subject to the existing note. So what in the world is that? I could give you a three-day seminar on buying subject to the existing note, but I’ll give you a three-minute seminar instead.
Jay Conner [00:39:48]:
So a buying subject to the existing note of a single-family house means that you buy the property, buy the single-family house, or it could be a duplex, quadplex, triplex, whatever. You buy it subject to the existing mortgage, which means the seller of that property agrees to transfer title and ownership to your entity and leave the mortgage in their name. You’re not assuming the note. You’re not assuming the mortgage. If you assume it, the bank has to approve you when you buy, subject to the existing note. The lender’s got nothing to do with this transaction whatsoever. This is already on the settlement statement. HUD on linenumbers 203 and 204, depending on which side of the settlement you’re on.
Jay Conner [00:40:37]:
But it’s already there. It says subject to the existing mortgage. So you may ask the question, who in their right mind would sell me a house and leave the mortgage in their name? Yeah. Who would agree to that? I’ll tell you who would agree to that. Somebody who needs debt relief right now. Debt relief, right. And so when I buy it subject to the existing note, then I’m typically going to sell it on lease, purchase, or rent-to-own. Okay, get a look.
Jay Conner [00:41:12]:
Did you know that over 85% of all mortgages right now in the US have an interest rate between 3 and 4%? Between all that refinancing that took place in the past few years. When you buy subject to the existing note on a single family house and the mortgage is between 2.75 and 4%, you just then you are borrowing free money; essentially, you’re inheriting an interest rate of 3%, three and a quarter, three and a half percent, or whatever. Now I can use private money in a second position, a junior lien, if there’s equity in the property, and use private money to l,ike, let’s sa,y, they’re behind on payments. I’ve got a whole foreclosure system where we track every foreclosure in our market, and we help these people get back on their feet, and we put money in their pockets because they’re not going to get any money at the foreclosure steps. Right. Courthouse steps. We help them get back on that. But we buy those properties subject to the existing note.
Jay Conner [00:42:16]:
They’re in arrears, or they wouldn’t be in foreclosure. So I can use private money if there’s equity in the property because we have to protect our private lender. And I’ll use private money to bring payments current that are past due, or if there’s some renovation that’s needed, I can use private money for that. So that’s a long answer to your short question. Do you ever keep any of those properties? It depends on how I bought it. Hey, my favorite property today, right now, here today, Lancelot is the farmhouse. That’s my favorite property. The farmhouse in Newport, North Carolina.
Jay Conner [00:42:52]:
We did $150,000 renovation on that property, that house last year. It’s a two-bedroom, two-bath, and it sleeps 10 people. Turned it into an Airbnb short-term rental. If I were renting it out to a straight renter, I’d bring in $2,200 a month, 20 $200 a month. And in my first 12 months, I am tracking over $100,000 in this first 12 months as a short-term rental because it’s in a high-demand area. We live here near Cherry Point Naval Air Station, Cherry Point Base, here in Havelock, North Carolina. And so contractors are right now, I got six guys, I got six guys in this, in the farmhouse, three miles out in the country. But 10 minutes from where they’re working, they’re paying me $23,360 for 90 days of rent, $23,360 for 90 days of rent, and good night.
Jay Conner [00:43:58]:
2200 times. I barely would have gotten that if I’d rented it out all year to a renter.
Lancelot Lenard [00:44:05]:
Yeah, but it makes sense that the business model is what it is because of the possibilities. Also, there are risks involved. Like, I like your area because it’s in high demand. There aren’t a lot of properties, probably that are doing Airbnb in your area. You come to my neck of the woods here in Florida d you can probably find 20, 30, 40 properties within a one or two-mile radius that are doing Airbnb. So the competition is much steeper. Your ratios change., You have an occupancy rate of 50% instead of your 80- 90%.
Lancelot Lenard [00:44:41]:
In some areas where it’s. Oh, it’s scarce or farm. Yours is like a typical too. It’s a farmhouse. Like, how many places do you have where you could rent a farmhouse? It’s something really unique. Some people just want to get away to live in a farmhouse for a week to try it out. So that’s also a cool like theme.
Jay Conner [00:44:56]:
Yeah. It sits on a 52-acre working farm. I own the farm as well. We lease it out to a young couple. They got chickens, they got eggs, they got cows, they got goats, they got pigs. And it’s just beautiful out there. Just three miles off the highway. Quiet.
Jay Conner [00:45:15]:
I got a, got a fire pit, I got cornhole, I got giant Jenga. Beautifully landscaped. Really, it’s, it’s just a beautiful little three-acre plot.
Lancelot Lenard [00:45:26]:
That’s awesome. So let’s get to your book here. Okay. I know we talked about it in the beginning, guys, but here we go again. Your book and systems, where to get the money now, how be, how to. How did that become a blueprint that separates from anything else similar? How did that become a blueprint? Tell me about that.
Jay Conner [00:45:49]:
It’s a blueprint in so many ways, Lancelot, because it dispels so many myths that real estate investors have. They’re looking for funding. They think they got a big and chase and pitch deals. Oh, here’s one way it dispels all the myths. Let me share with you, Lancelot, and your audience how I get my deals funded. The exact script as to how I get my deals funded by my private lenders without asking for money. That’s what makes it all different. The blueprint.
Jay Conner [00:46:28]:
It’s all about getting funding for your deals without ever asking for money. Right. So here’s the best way I can explain this to your audience is a little role play. So, Lancelot, let me do this setup. So what I’m getting ready to share with everybody here is the exact words I use to call up one of my private lenders to get my deal funded. And I’m not going to pitch the deal. I’m not going to ask for money, and I get my deal funded 100% of the time. I call it the good news phone call.
Jay Conner [00:47:05]:
The good news phone Call. All right, so let’s do a little setup. Here’s how the good news phone call works. So let’s do a few hypotheticals here. Hypothetically, Lancelot, first of all, let’s say you and I have known each other for a while. And let’s say that you and I go to church together. We’ve known each other for a while at church. Therefore, I like you, I know you, and I trust you.
Jay Conner [00:47:29]:
All that’s in place just from the church affiliation. And let’s also presuppose, in this example, let’s presuppose that you worked for a company in the past and you no longer work for them. And let’s say you had a 401k. Let’s say you still have a 401 (k) at the previous employer’s plan. 401k plan. And you haven’t moved that money out. And quite frankly, you’re just not really happy with how that 4401 (k)is performing. That is still with the previous employer.
Jay Conner [00:48:04]:
Let’s also presuppose that I have already put on my teacher hat and I’ve already shared with you. Let’s say we went to Starbucks or Dairy Queen. I like Dairy Queen better than Starbucks. And we got some ice cream. And I said something to you along the lines, along the. In our conversation, I said, Lancelot, by the way, let me ask you a question. Did you know there’s a way people can make unlimited money per year, tax-free? And in that conversation, you say, What are you talking about, Jay? In that conversation, I told you about self-directed IRAs. I told you about being a private lender and how private lenders make high returns safely and securely.
Jay Conner [00:48:46]:
And that I’ve got a program that may or may not be for you, but here’s what it looks like. And you heard the program taught you the opportunity, right? You love the interest rate of 8%. You love how you can get your money back in case of an emergency, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And in that conversation, you told me, and by the way, don’t miss the secret sauce, folks. Don’t miss the secret sauce in that initial conversation. I’m not talking about any deals. Here’s a writer downer. Desperation has a smell to it.
Jay Conner [00:49:21]:
Desperation doesn’t smell. Look, the worst time to be raising private money is when you need it, for goodness’s sakes, for a deal, right? So separate the conversations with a new potential private lender of the opportunity in the program, and then have a deal to fund, right? In this example, Lancelot, we’ve been to Dairy Queen, we’ve had our. We’ve had our strawberry sundae. And I had my banana split because I like banana splits. And we talked about the program. And in the conversation, I learned that you’ve got $150,000 in a 401 at the previous employer. You don’t like the volatility of that in the stock market. And now here we are talking about private money.
Jay Conner [00:50:02]:
You’re going, man, I like the sound of that. So I introduce you to the self-directed IRA company that I recommend to move your money from that 401 (k) over to the self-directed IRA company to where you can truly self-direct, and you can loan it out. And you’re going to either earn tax-deferred or tax-free interest investing in my deal, depending on the type of account you have. So you’ve moved your money over to the self-directed IRA and you’re ready to go. And I have told you I’ll put your money to work for you just as soon as possible. There’s the setup. Here’s the great news. Phone call.
Jay Conner [00:50:42]:
So I call you up, and Lancelot answers the phone. We have a little chat. We talked about how great the banana split was a couple of weeks ago. And then I say, Lancelot, I’ve got great news for you. I can now put your money to work. I’ve got a house in Newport, North Carolina, under contract with an after-repaired value of $200,000. Now the funding required for the deal is $150,000. Which matches up to what you’ve got in your self-directed IRA account.
Jay Conner [00:51:14]:
Now, closing is going to be next Friday. I’ll need you to wire your funds from your self-directed IRA account to my real estate attorney’s trust account by next Thursday. I’m going to have my real estate attorney email you the wiring instructions. That’s the end of the conversation. The most stupid thing I could say to Lancelot is Do you want to fund the deal? Of course, Lancelot wants to fund the deal. And I’ll tell you three big reasons why Lancelot is dying on the vine to wire that money to my real estate attorney’s trust account. Number one reason he trusted me,e fogoodness’s sakes to move his money to the self-directed IRA company. Waiting for me to put his money to work.
Jay Conner [00:52:02]:
Right? That’s number one. Number two reason, Lancelot, I want to fund my deal, because he knows I’m not going to bring a deal to him to fund. That does not match the criteria. The Underwriting of a deal that I already taught him. I taught Lancelot. I don’t allow my private lenders to loan me more than 75% of the after-repaired value. Do you remember the numbers I just told him in that phone call? I told him the property has an after-repaired value of $200,000. The funding required is 150,000.
Jay Conner [00:52:40]:
That is 75% of the after-repaired value. And the third reason Lancelot just can’t wait to wire that money is because he’s not making any money until I put his money to work, which I promised him I would do. As a result of this scenario. I’m ethically and morally bound to borrow his money, to invest his money, because I promised him that’s what I would do.
Lancelot Lenard [00:53:10]:
That’s amazing. So what’s the return for someone who invests their money?
Jay Conner [00:53:16]:
8%. No points, no origination fees. And you know what’s interesting, Lancelot? People will ask me, say Jay, how in the world are you still paying your private lenders 8% since 2009? Let’s say, for goodness’ sake, 2000, 2020 Covid. I can tell you what it was. 0.7%. A year and a half ago, you could have gotten five and a half percent from First Citizens Bank for a seven-month CD. They say, Jay, the rates are all over the board. Markets up, markets down, markets sideways.
Jay Conner [00:53:49]:
How in the world are you still paying everybody 8%? And why do they like that? I say there are two reasons. Number one, 8% is a whole lot more than right now. 2.75 is what it is right now. In a seven-month CD, it’s 8% more than five and a quarter percent. Five and a half years and a half ago. So it’s still more. It’s backed by real estate. And the second reason I make the rules, they don’t.
Lancelot Lenard [00:54:20]:
Is it 8% on the total amount that he funded you, osohe would get 8% on the 150, or is it 8% a year? How does that work?
Jay Conner [00:54:28]:
8% APR. So, 8% annual percentage rate. So it’s not 8% on the deal regardless of the term, it’s 8%. So if you borrow a hundred thousand dollars and you use it all year, that’s $8,000.
Lancelot Lenard [00:54:46]:
Got you. Okay, that makes sense.
Jay Conner [00:54:48]:
That’s better for sharing in the equity. There’s no sharing in the profits. This is not joint venturing. The private lender is the bank. Meaning the private lender acts in the same capacity as the bank. Private lender gets the same protection as if I had gone to the bank to borrow the money. They get the promissory note. They get the deed of trust.
Jay Conner [00:55:13]:
That’s collateralizing the note. They get named on the insurance policy as the mortgagee. They’re named in the title policy. Initial insured. They got all the same protection as a bank. So the private lender is the bank.
Lancelot Lenard [00:55:31]:
Yeah. It’s just so many protective layers that I don’t see why somebody wouldn’t do it. Especially if, hey, my money’s invested in a CD. I always tell my friends who have CDs. I’m like, are you kidding me? I’m like, are you 90 and trying, like, why do you have a CD still? It doesn’t make any sense in any kind of market shape anymore. In my opinion, you’re better off buying U.S. Treasury bonds, for God’s sakes, than locking your money in with a CD. We just talked about how they’re protected and profitable, which makes a ton of sense.
Lancelot Lenard [00:56:05]:
Next point is we’re going to talk a little bit about mentorship. Okay. You’ve taught thousands of investors. What kind of results have your students achieved in the past?
Jay Conner [00:56:14]:
I just interviewed Willie in my Mastermind membership. He came into the Mastermind this past, I guess, about a year and four months ago. He now has $2.3 million in private money that he just rotates from property to property. Crystal. Crystal is so wonderful. Came into my world, actually, and now helps me mentor and coach our Mastermind members and our platinum coaching clients. Crystal right now has over 5 million that she uses from property to property. I’m thinking of Eric and Erica out in Mississippi.
Jay Conner [00:56:55]:
Actually, Poplarville, Mississippi, I think, population 3,000 or so. And they have about three and a half million in private money. Those are some that just come to mind. Off the top of my head, however, I’ve got mentees, I’ve got coaching clients that don’t have one penny in private money. Because I can’t make you do anything right. I can inspire you. I can give you the knowledge. I can give you exactly the strategy.
Jay Conner [00:57:25]:
But to get private money, the person raising the money actually has to do the work. Now, with my Mastermind members, I actually help them raise money and, like, force them to. I do webinars with them. I do live webinars. They’ll invite people to the webinar. I’ll do the talking. We’ll raise private money. I record audios for them that they can share with their connections as to how private money works.
Jay Conner [00:57:49]:
But yes, in our coaching program and our Mastermind membership, we have so many. I’ve just lost count of the wonderful success stories. That’s why I, ‘s why I’m continuing to be in this business and coach others. Lancelot, there’s no better feeling I have than being part of a transformation. I remember Crystal when we first started working together; she promised herself she would never drive her kids through fast food. She was working over 70 hours a week as an occupational therapist, overseeing multiple clinics, making multiple six figures a year. But it was running her, and she wasn’t running yet. She found herself about nine o’clock at night one evening, going through fast food to feed her kids in the backseat.
Jay Conner [00:58:40]:
And we started working together in real estate and raising private money. And within nine months, she retired from her day job after over 20 years running clinics. And then she went to being able to homeschool her kids. And now she lives on the beach, and she walks to the ocean, and it’s wonderful. Back to Eric out there in Mississippi. He was working for the railroad, had been for years. An hour drive each way to work for the railroad. In seven months of us starting to work together, he retired from working on the railroad.
Jay Conner [00:59:12]:
And by the way, he’s in 30s, he’s in his 30s, so you can actually retire from a career in your 30s. And he and his wife are full-time real estate investors. So I have no better feeling than being a part of other people’s transformation and really creating the life that they want.
Lancelot Lenard [00:59:31]:
Is that why you believe mentorship is a shortcut to success?
Jay Conner [00:59:34]:
Oh, it is a shortcut to success. When I first started joining and becoming a member of Master other Masterminds, which right now I’m a member of three mastermind groups that I don’t run, that I’m a member. And when you are surrounded by other people of like minds, that is the shortcut to get you there so much quicker, and save you so much money. I mentioned at the beginning of your show, Lancelot, that those first six years, the only thing I knew to do was go to the local bank or a mortgage company. If I had gotten training or gotten a coach or a mentor, I would have known all that stuff within the first month. But no, I spent a lot of money. If you think coaching and education are expensive, you ought to try just doing the business with no help.
Lancelot Lenard [01:00:25]:
Yeah, I can attest to that for sure. You spend a lot of money. Trial and error.
Jay Conner [01:00:30]:
Hundreds.
Lancelot Lenard [01:00:31]:
Oh yeah.
Jay Conner [01:00:32]:
Starting because I didn’t get the right training.
Lancelot Lenard [01:00:35]:
Yeah. Even just like testing marketing, like you just sink money into it. Oh, does this work? Does that work? Does that work? I could probably attest to at least a couple of hundred thousand dollars lost in ether that never brought me anything in marketing and other investments. Shiny objects. This, that. The other thing in real estate that you’re like, everybody dangles this in front of realtors. That’s one of the things I just talked about. I.
Lancelot Lenard [01:00:58]:
It’s a cool meme going around online. I don’t know if you’ve seen it are two guys talking like, you know, how you make money in real estate? Do we sell houses? No. Do we get buyers? No. We sell leads to the agents, basically. And I’m like, you are not freaking kidding me. Because you guys are always making money no matter what. We are always buying these leads, no matter what. So that’s.
Lancelot Lenard [01:01:21]:
And then. And just for maybe a little add-on to your business model, because you’re generating a lot of leads, I’m pretty sure you already do it. But the leads that are not as shiny or as good for you to use, you. You probably refer them out to an agent or sell it to an agent for a fee, and then you make money off of that, too. Is that a way?
Jay Conner [01:01:41]:
Have you been looking over my shoulder?
Lancelot Lenard [01:01:45]:
A few books over there.
Jay Conner [01:01:46]:
Yeah, but all these books were written in the 1800s.
Lancelot Lenard [01:01:49]:
They were beautiful. By the way.
Jay Conner [01:01:53]:
The story you just shared, I have not seen that meme, but I get it. Please email me a picture, a screenshot of that.
Lancelot Lenard [01:02:00]:
If I find it again, I’ll send it to you. I don’t. I was just browsing through it. Oh my God. That hit me like the.
Jay Conner [01:02:06]:
I bet AI could find it for me. Yeah, but. But the story you just shared, you know what it reminds me of? It reminds me of the gold rush and all them people moving out to California who made the money. The people selling the pans.
Lancelot Lenard [01:02:19]:
Exactly that. People who sell the tools for them. Exactly. That’s the same thing in real estate, like even top producers. Yes, but the top producers have their own lead generation systems that, similar to what you got going on, bring in all the deals and bring in all the leads, and then they have systems and agents brushing through and combing through those deals, and then they go and close them. The smaller people who are doing 3, $4 million in sales are probably working off their sphere of influence. Then you got your five to $10 million people that are probably buying leads, five to 10 to $20 million producers, they’re probably buying the leads to get to that level above that, you gotta have a system that’s doing it for you.
Lancelot Lenard [01:03:03]:
That’s where you spend your money. Instead of sending 5, $10,000 on Zillow every month to get leads from you, figure out a system to generate your own leads. Because that’s all that Zillow does. They generate leads and then they sell them to you for a premium.
Jay Conner [01:03:18]:
That’s right.
Lancelot Lenard [01:03:19]:
No, Jay, you got the perfect system. Maybe you guys can join Jay’s mastermind and figure out how to get leads, which in itself is probably worth every penny. So tell me, for a brand new investor listening right now, what’s the first step they should take to raise private money?
Jay Conner [01:03:37]:
The first step toward raising private money again is to know what you’re talking about, to learn what it is that you are offering. To learn how private money works to build your confidence. So yeah, the first thing is to get your mindset right and to get the knowledge, and just simply order my book jconnner.com forward slash book. That’ll get you started.
Lancelot Lenard [01:04:02]:
So, how do rising interest rates and tighter bank regulations create new opportunities for private money investors?
Jay Conner [01:04:10]:
How do rising interest rates affect? You’re talking about institutional rates.
Lancelot Lenard [01:04:15]:
Yes. Not your, not private money interest rates. Interest rates for say the Fed or interest rates, let’s say, for the banks, which are correlated to the Treasuries. So the rise in those interest rates and tighter bank regulations from banks creates new opportunities for private money investors.
Jay Conner [01:04:36]:
That’s a good question, Lancelot. Let me let you take a stab at that. I’m not sure there’s a direct correlation between institutional rates rising or falling and having any difference in an opportunity for a private lender. However, there is a direct correlation. Obviously, the lower rates are in CDs, the more interested a private lender would become. For sure. Because there’s more spread between what you as a borrower would pay a private lender and what the lo and what the local bank would offer. My crystal ball, everybody’s got one, just like something else.
Jay Conner [01:05:19]:
But my crystal ball says rates will continue to come down for some period of time for several reasons. That’s a whole other conversation. And the more those rates come down, particularly rates that you can get on your money in a local bank, the more opportunity for people to be interested in becoming a private lender.
Lancelot Lenard [01:05:40]:
Also, I think for us as investors, it’s looking to be an easier avenue than submitting. Self-employed, I have four LLCs, and I have a non-profit, and I own several houses, properties, and cars and whatnot. And when I go to the bank to get a loan, you don’t want to know, like an average person with a W2 says, oh my God, the paperwork. Try to do the paperwork for P and L for five companies in mid-year, going through everything without. Because I don’t have an accountant, I do everything myself. I do all the paperwork myself. So when I’m trying to apply for a loan, that’s five businesses, five P&L statements in the middle of the year, going through all the books and everything.
Lancelot Lenard [01:06:24]:
It’s insane. And that’s just one part of it. You get tax returns for each company for the past couple of years, etc. Etc. It’s insane what they ask for. Now here we’re talking private money. Hey John, I got a deal for you. And boom.
Lancelot Lenard [01:06:42]:
Money’s wired to the attorney. You close the deal. And what was the paperwork again? I put the house under contract. Which you would have done anything.
Jay Conner [01:06:50]:
I mean, that’s such a good point. Because I shared with you and your audience the good news phone call script. Right? Yeah. After the one or the first one or two, you know what the script becomes?
Lancelot Lenard [01:07:04]:
What I just said.
Jay Conner [01:07:05]:
Exactly.
Lancelot Lenard [01:07:07]:
Here’s the deal wire to the attorney. That’s it.
Jay Conner [01:07:10]:
That’s right. And of course, that conversation comes as a result of performance, that trust and confidence. They know you’re going to take care of them. That does not happen in the first conversation, of course.
Lancelot Lenard [01:07:24]:
Oh no, no.
Jay Conner [01:07:25]:
But that’s where that, that’s where that relationship goes to. And I’ll tell you another funny thing. You go to pay off the private lender the very first time, I guarantee you, every time. What are they going to say? Can’t you just keep the money? Can’t you keep the money? I don’t want the money back. Because if you give them the money back, they’re not making any money on their money. Yeah. And then the next time I’m on your show, Lancelot, we’ll talk about substitutions of collateral and how we actually keep their money working. Okay.
Lancelot Lenard [01:07:55]:
There’s a way for that. That’s awesome.
Jay Conner [01:07:56]:
Yeah.
Lancelot Lenard [01:07:57]:
That makes them even happier. The next question is, where do you see the biggest openings in today’s market for people willing to think creatively?
Jay Conner [01:08:07]:
Now, are you talking about private lenders? Are you talking about real estate investors?
Lancelot Lenard [01:08:10]:
Real estate investors.
Jay Conner [01:08:12]:
The biggest opportunities, private money. Because of two reasons. Here’s the reason. Private money is the biggest opportunity right now. Number one in the history of the United States, there is more liquid capital sitting on the sidelines. Than ever before. And people don’t know what to do with their money to get a really nice rate of return. They don’t want to put it in the local bank because they know that’s not a good rate of return.
Jay Conner [01:08:40]:
Before COVID, there was $18 trillion in cash liquidity. Today, $31 trillion in cash. That’s looking for a home. Look at, no pun intended, looking for a home. Right. So you got all this liquidity that makes a big opportunity. And in addition to that, it’s the biggest opportunity because most real estate investors do not know how to leverage private money. Most real estate investors don’t even know what they’re missing out on.
Jay Conner [01:09:14]:
Right. Some of my best friends are hard money lenders. They use my techniques to raise money for their fund to turn around and loan out to real estate investors.
Lancelot Lenard [01:09:24]:
Make 2% on that. That’s amazing. I didn’t think about that. But that’s also a great way of making money.
Jay Conner [01:09:31]:
Yeah, sure. So the big opportunity for the lenders themselves and for real estate investors to pull the lever and leverage this strategy, and it’s a win-win for everybody. One thing that I learned very early on, Lancelot, is I thought that I thought I needed the private lenders more than they needed me. Wrong. Private lenders need you, the borrower, more than you need them because there’s more money than there are deals. There’s more money than there are deals. So you create win-win scenarios and everybody wins.
Lancelot Lenard [01:10:07]:
That’s amazing. By the way, I was just thinking about it. I thought you were going to come out with like car wash or a senior care facility because of the boomers or something. No lenders. This is the biggest opportunity is private money.
Jay Conner [01:10:20]:
That’s it.
Lancelot Lenard [01:10:20]:
It’s not the end product. It’s the thing that you can get the end product with is that’s the biggest opportunity there. And I think that you are so right in saying that. I really thought you were going to come up with a product at the end. I love that. And then, from the lender standpoint, because that was the investor standpoint, how about let’s turn around and, for the lenders, private money lenders, what’s their big opportunity ties?
Jay Conner [01:10:42]:
So,o for the private lenders, their biggest opportunity i in this market. Lancelot, that is really a good question. Because my private lenders are now actually in competition with each other, wanting to loan their money there. They, as I just said, there’s more money than there are deals. And it’s a challenge. It’s a challenge for people to become. Now I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you where the opportunity is for private lenders.
Jay Conner [01:11:16]:
I’ve got Mastermind members who have written their own book that teaches ordinary people how to become a private lender and what a private lender is. So here’s the. I’m so glad you asked this question. I’ve been a guest on over 800 podcasts, and nobody’s ever asked me that question. And so the opportunity for private lenders is if you’re listening to this show and you’re an individual and you want to get high rates of return safely and securely, you can order my book that I’ll mail to you, and you can learn how the private money system works. And now you can put on your teacher hat. And if you’ve got a friend who is a real estate investor in single-family houses, you can teach them how you can fund their deals. And now you get the 8% return instead of what you get measly in the bank.
Jay Conner [01:12:15]:
And so wouldn’t that be pretty cool? You can teach your friend who is in real estate and doesn’t know the world of private money and say, Hey, I’m a private money lender. How would you like me to fund your deals? By the way, if you do that, you don’t lend the same way you borrow. Charge them 12%, don’t charge them eight.
Lancelot Lenard [01:12:33]:
Ah, there you go. There’s the opening. That’s, ‘s hard money right there. That’s the 12%. What excites you the most about the future of real estate financing?
Jay Conner [01:12:49]:
Wow. What excites me the most. I’ll tell you what excites me the most. I’m on six podcasts a week, spreading the message. I do multiple live events a year. Spreading the message. The opportunity for private money in the future and financing in the future is for real estate investors to learn how to do this and make a difference in other people’s lives, not only yours. What do I mean by that? When Carol Joy, my wife, started borrowing private money, we didn’t know the kind of impact that we were going to make on our private lenders’ lives.
Jay Conner [01:13:31]:
We have received thank you notes, Lance, a lot from our private lenders that are elderly and retired, thanking us for changing their retirement years. There’s an opportunity in the future in private money and finance as a real estate investor. Leverage this strategy, create win-win scenarios, get all the money you would want for your real estate deals, and make an impact and a difference in your private lenders ‘ lives.
Lancelot Lenard [01:14:03]:
Jay, thank you very much. This has been absolute gold, my friend. You’ve shown us that funding doesn’t have to be a barrier. It can actually be the gateway to freedom in real estate. For everyone listening. Go grab Jay’s free guide@jconnner.com moneyguide and pick up his book. He’s going to show it to you guys one more time here. Where to get the money now@jconnner.com book.
Lancelot Lenard [01:14:30]:
It’s free. Just cover the shipping. That’s all it is. Make sure to follow Jay on YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram, Private Money Authority for even more insights. And if you found value in today’s episode, hit that subscribe button. Share this with investors, friends, and drop us a review. God’s sake, share it with your friends who have IRAs and all this stuff, so they can start somewhere to make some more money. It helps us bring more powerhouse guests like Jay right here to the Real Estate Roundtable.
Lancelot Lenard [01:15:02]:
Until next time, I’m Lancelot Lenar, reminding you your next deal is only one conversation away. Thank you, everybody, for coming. Have a great day. Thank you for joining us on Sir Lancelot’s Real Estate Roundtable, where we’ve unveiled the mysteries of real estate together. Remember, in this kingdom of possibilities, every dream home is just a discussion away. I can help your real estate dreams come true. Just call me at 786-449-7518 until our next round table. May your ventures be prosperous and your homes be filled with love and joy.
Lancelot Lenard [01:15:48]:
Farewell, fellow knights of real estate.
Narrator [01:15:57]:
Are you feeling inspired by the knowledge you gained in this episode? Then head over to www.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide, that’swww.JayConner.com/MoneyGuide, and download your free guide that shares seven 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.
If you’ve ever wondered how top coaches create programs that stand the test of time, look no further than Jay Conner. In a recent conversation with Megan Huber, Jay peeled back the curtain on his 14-year journey as a real estate investing coach. What emerged was a masterclass not just in raising private money, but in building a business designed for legacy.
From Real Estate Investor to Private Money Authority
Jay’s entrepreneurial story began long before he was a coach. After decades working in real estate—condominiums, shopping centers, and primarily single-family homes—Jay and his wife, Carol Joy, hit a major bump in 2009. Their local bank shut down his line of credit overnight. “I knew I had to find a better and quicker way and a more reliable way to fund my deals,” Jay recalls. Enter private money lending—a concept he’d never heard of until fate (or, as Jay says, “God’s way of staying anonymous”) intervened. Within 90 days, he raised a couple of million dollars from private individuals.
It was the perfect storm: the 2009 real estate crash offered up foreclosures to anyone who could pay cash. With his private lenders, Jay’s business tripled. But something else happened—he discovered a passion for teaching and empowering others, not just chasing deals.
Building a Coaching Business That Lasts
When Jay admits, “If I could choose just one thing…without being a member that’s actively involved in a mastermind group of fellow-minded people, I just can’t imagine being in this business on an island by myself,” it gives insight into his approach. Community and learning drive him forward.
His coaching business launched in 2011 after a phone call to his mentor, Ron Legrand. Jay was successful but bored; Ron advised him to teach what he was best at—raising private money. That simple advice became Jay’s focus. Today, he’s known as “The Private Money Guy.” His entire go-to-market strategy, as Megan emphasizes, is built around a single message: helping investors raise and leverage private money, no matter their level of experience.
Why Focus Is the Key to Branding—and Trust
Jay’s longevity comes down to unwavering focus. “You can’t be everything to everybody,” he says. His marketing, courses, podcast, and seminars—they all carry the same banner. The “Private Money Success System” is his flagship program, and his podcast is literally called “Raising Private Money.” This consistency builds trust and recognition over time.
Megan points out an industry-wide mistake: experts try to cram every bit of their knowledge into one program. The result? Overwhelmed and confused clients. Jay’s method ensures his audience always knows what he stands for. As Megan says, “Anytime soon a third party hears a friend or colleague say, ‘I need help with raising private money,’ I want them to say one name.” For real estate coaching, that name is Jay Conner.
Crafting a Client Journey that Builds Relationships
Jay’s funnel strategy is a lesson for any coach:
Lead Magnet: Most new clients enter Jay’s world through a free “Money Guide” ebook.
High Engagement Offers: From the ebook, prospects are invited to a seven-day “Private Money Challenge,” then presented with additional training and offers.
Membership & Events: His “Private Money Academy” builds trust through regular Zoom calls, while his live “Private Money Conference” is the centerpiece of his client journey.
High-Ticket Coaching: At live events, Jay offers coaching programs and mastermind memberships.
Surprisingly, a significant percentage of high-ticket clients started with that free guide. Jay nurtures every relationship, knowing the foundation of trust is built early and deepened through ongoing engagement.
On staying inspired, Jay credits his involvement in masterminds—communities of like-minded entrepreneurs and coaches—as the single biggest reason for his success and longevity. “The relationships…your destiny and future are predicated on the books you read and the people you meet.”
The Takeaway
For aspiring coaches, educators, and investors, Jay’s story offers powerful lessons:
Anchor your business in a clear, focused message.
Build trust through relationship-based funnels.
Never underestimate the power of a mastermind.
Want to experience Jay’s process for yourself? Opt into his funnel and discover the strategies behind raising private money and creating lasting impact.
Inspired to learn more? Visit Jay Conner’s funnel at www.JayConner.com/Book and start your journey with the Private Money authority today.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Jay Conner credits mastermind groups as both an external and internal factor in his business longevity. What do you think makes mastermind groups so valuable for coaches and entrepreneurs?
Jay emphasizes the importance of focusing on “one thing” for branding and marketing. How can having a single, clear message benefit or potentially limit a coaching business?
Megan points out that new clients need trust-building, often through lower-ticket offers, before committing to high-ticket programs. How do you build and nurture trust with your potential clients?
Jay’s lead generation strategy includes free lead magnets (like his ebook), low-ticket challenges, and membership programs before the main high-ticket offer. What do you think are the most effective ways to nurture leads through a client journey?
Both Jay and Megan talk about authenticity and “leading with who you really are” in your business. What does authenticity mean to you, and how do you show up authentically in your brand?
Changing your core marketing message too frequently can confuse your audience. Have you ever rebranded or pivoted your message, and what challenges did you face?
Jay’s approach to private money is educating rather than pitching or selling. How might this “teacher-first” mindset shift the typical dynamic in sales and client acquisition?
The episode highlights the impact of joining industry mastermind groups, not just for connections, but also for inspiration and accountability. What professional communities play that role for you, if any?
Jay says that “your destiny and future are predicated on the books you read and the people you meet.” What books or relationships have significantly shaped your entrepreneurial journey?
What aspects of Jay’s funnel and client journey stand out as especially effective or unique, and how could you apply similar strategies in your own coaching or business model?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner has been a guest on over 800 podcasts, but this appearance on Megan Huber’s show was his very first time being interviewed about how he built his coaching business, rather than just his expertise in raising private money.
The name “Private Money Success System” for Jay’s signature course was actually chosen by Megan Huber, who also helped produce and organize the course, making the creation process much more enjoyable for Jay.
Jay strategically integrates fun and engagement into his product delivery: When someone orders his book, “Where to Get the Money Now,” it arrives with three envelopes labeled “open first,” “open second,” and “open third,” each containing different offers and surprises to make the client journey interactive.
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.
The Private Money Authority: Jay Conner’s Branding, Funnel, and Mastermind Approach
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
Your destiny and future are predicated on the books you read and the people you meet. And so the Mastermind is external. That, I mean, that’s a group that I’ve joined, right?. And I’ve been in many and still. And still am. But what becomes internal, what becomes internal and gives me the juice to keep going, is the inspiration that I receive from my fellow Mastermind members. I joined my very first mastermind in 2011, right after becoming a coach, and I joined the Mastermind. It was other, other coaches.
Jay Conner [00:00:41]:
And so I have been in Mastermind communities and groups ever since I started this journey of being a real estate investing coach. And it is the. If I could choose just one thing, I mean, without it, I wouldn’t be in business. Without being a member that’s actively involved in a really good mastermind group of like-minded people, I just can’t imagine being in this business on an island by myself.
Narrator [00:01:16]:
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 to raise 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 Connor.
Megan Huber [00:01:43]:
Hey. Hey everyone. Welcome back to the show. I am delighted to have our guest today, fellow North Carolinian, my really good friend, Jay Connor. Jay, welcome to the show.
Jay Conner [00:01:55]:
Megan, thank you so much for inviting me to come along and talk about coaching and educating. Of course, in my space, I’m coaching and educating other real estate investors. But, you know, I’ve been a guest on over 800 podcasts so far. And I must say, being a guest on your show is a very, very first. Because typically, you know, I’m being interviewed about how to go about raising private money for real estate deals, and the audience is primarily real estate investors. But this is going to be really fun to talk about, you know, how it is that I grew the coaching business and all that kind of good stuff.
Megan Huber [00:02:39]:
Yeah, I’m really excited to dive into this conversation, and let me tell you why. First, Jay, you know, you and I have known each other for about two and a half years, and I grew up as an entrepreneur in the coaching and online education space. That was my very first experience of entrepreneurship. And just so that all the listeners know, Jay and I are in the same real estate investing mastermind. We are both members of a real estate investing mastermind, and people always kind of give me A weird look because everybody knows I’m not in real estate investing. And I tell them, well, a lot of the people in that mastermind have coaching and education programs, and that’s my expertise, which is why I’m there. And being in that mastermind, Jay, has opened my eyes up so much to how people who built a very successful business in another category before coaching approach building their coaching and education business from my perspective, actually in a different way than people whose first endeavor into entrepreneurship was coaching. So I’d love for you to give a little bit of background first before we dive into how you built your very successful coaching business that you’ve had for 14 years.
Megan Huber [00:03:51]:
This is not your first business. So, can you kind of give us the backstory on all the real estate investing you do, you have done for decades, and where you got your start in entrepreneurship?
Jay Conner [00:04:02]:
Sure. So in 200, my wife, Carol Joy, and I started investing in single-family houses full-time. Now, leading up to that, I’ve done condominium developments from the ground up, shopping centers from the. From the ground up. But most of my energy and focus have been in the single-family space since 2003. Well, from 2003 until 2009, January 2009, to be exact, all I knew to do to get my real estate deals funded, my single-family houses, was go to the local bank or mortgage company. I mean, I never even heard a price of hard money, to tell you the truth. And so all I knew to get my deals funded was to go to the local bank or mortgage company, get on my hands and knees, and say, Please fund my deal.
Jay Conner [00:04:54]:
And, you know, they made me pull up my skirt and show all my personal assets and pull my credit score, and look at financial statements the traditional way, traditional institutional money. And, Megan, all that worked out just fine. Okay, fine for those first six years until January 200,9, when everything changed and I had two properties under contract to buy, and I thought I still had a line of credit at the local bank. I’d been with the same bank, the same banker, for six years. And of course, for those of you who are listening to this episode, you know what was going on in 2007 and 8, and 9 in real estate. So I learned very, very quickly on a phone call with my banker that my line of credit had been closed with no notice to me. And so I knew I had to find a better and quicker way and more reliable way to fund my deals. So my definition of coincidence is God’s way of staying anonymous.
Jay Conner [00:05:56]:
In less than two weeks, I learned about this world of private money and private lending. I’d never heard about it. I’d never heard about doing business with just individuals, regular folks like you and me, who use their investment capital and or retirement funds to loan money out to real estate investors. So I studied that. I put my program together as to what I was going to offer individuals here, primarily in my local community, as to how they could be a private lender. So raised a couple of million dollars in 90 days. And so my bank did me a huge favor by cutting me off and shutting down the line of credit. And that year in 2009, if you recall what was going on, all these foreclosures were just flooding the market, and banks weren’t loaning money.
Jay Conner [00:06:49]:
So to get those foreclosures, you had to have the cash. Well, the stars lined u, and Carol Joy’s in my real estate investing business tripled that year in 2009 because we had the funding available. So, how we went about raising the money, I mean, right now I’ve got 47 private lenders that are funding our deals. By the way, if you’re listening to this episode, you don’t need 47 private lenders. Just start with one or two if you’re looking for some money for real estate. But anyway, not one of those 47 private lenders that are funding our deals today, not one of them had ever heard about private money or private lending until I put on my teacher hat.
Megan Huber [00:07:37]:
I love your teacher hat, Jay.
Jay Conner [00:07:39]:
So my teacher hat says private money teacher. And so I just took on this attitude that, you know, most people are begging and chasing and selling, trying to raise money. And I didn’t take that approach. I took a, I took a very contrarian way about doing this. Most real estate investors think they have to pitch deals. And I’ve never pitched a deal since 2009. So what I did was just go about teaching people in my own network about this world of private money and how they can get high rates of return safely and securely by using either their investment capital or their retirement funds. And you know, not one of my 47 private lenders today ever heard about private money or private lending or using retirement funds in a self-directed IRA company to invest until I exposed them to this world.
Jay Conner [00:08:41]:
So I did that, starting in 2009, using private money. And so then two years later, I was totally bored. The business was doing fantastic, still is today. And I called up Ron Legrand. Ron Legrand. He was the very first real estate investing seminar I ever went to. And so I called him up in January of 2011, 14 and a half years ago. And I simply said to Ron, I said Ron Of course, Ron.
Jay Conner [00:09:13]:
And I had already I’d been to like every seminar he’d ever put on. And I said, Ronny’s real estate investing business is going fantastic. I said, but I have a big problem. I am bored to tears. I said, you know, I got a great team. The team is running the company more or less. All I’m doing is making decisions on what houses I want to make offers on and how much to offer. I got the same acquisitionist talking to all the motivated sellers.
Jay Conner [00:09:40]:
She’s been with me for 20 years. I said, What’s next? That was my question: what’s next? He says, Well, you just need to start teaching real estate investors what you’re good at. I said. He says, What are you good at? I said, well, I’m pretty good at raising private money. He says, Well, there you go. You are now the private money authority. Ron Legrand named me. And so I started putting on my very first seminar with a day seminar in March of 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia, to a room full of real estate investors.
Jay Conner [00:10:17]:
And that’s where I actually recorded my very first private money home study course, which I called back then, Where to Get the money now. And so that’s how it started in 2011. That’s how I created my first course, which was actually putting on a one-day seminar. By the way, I must say this so I don’t forget it. If you are listening to this episode here on Megan’s podcast and you don’t know this about her, I’m going to tell you about her because Megan, she took me on as a client, I guess about a year, year and a half ago, something like that, to help produce my brand new private money course, which is called the Private Money Success System. Megan actually named my course, but I can’t tell you, Megan, how wonderful that experience was because, quite frankly, I don’t enjoy creating new courses. But you do. And you extrapolated all that information out of my noggin.
Jay Conner [00:11:21]:
And of course, I’d done quite a few video recordings for it as well. So just to say that before I forget, if you’re listening to this show and you’re looking to create a course and you don’t know where to start, or you know you need a new course, but you just don’t enjoy doing it, Megan is the person to make that happen for you, least painlessly.
Megan Huber [00:11:47]:
Yeah, it was fun, and you’re a great teacher. You’re. That was a really fun project. You were the. You were actually the first person in the mastermind that you and I are in together who hired me to do that work. You were the first. You were the first. Because I was pretty new in that group then.
Megan Huber [00:12:02]:
I think I’d only been there for a few months. So. Thank you. Thank you for getting my start in real estate. But you’re my first client who was in the real estate investing category.
Jay Conner [00:12:11]:
I didn’t know that. Okay.
Megan Huber [00:12:13]:
Yeah. You were the first. Yeah. Read your book. Everything. And I thought. And when I read your book and I knew you were such a great teacher, and you were the perfect person to be in the coaching and online education space, because my background is teaching. I have a master’s degree in teaching.
Megan Huber [00:12:27]:
But when I read your book and I went through your course, and then you refilmed it because the course was just like clips of that live event.
Jay Conner [00:12:34]:
That’s right.
Megan Huber [00:12:34]:
And, you know, it was a long time ago. We were now in, like, 2023 when we did this, or 2024. I don’t remember. I think it was 2023. And when I watched the new videos that you shot, I was like, Wow, Jay is such an incredible teacher. And I literally knew nothing about real estate investing. And I thought to myself, just watching his videos and reading the book, I felt like I could go and raise private money right now and go do my first deal just from that. And that is, to me, that is a mark of not just a great coach.
Megan Huber [00:13:07]:
But in the coaching and online education space, it is our job to simplify, to clarify, and to do whatever we need to do to make sure that our students and clients think what I thought, knowing nothing about private money, nothing about real estate investing, watching a course and feeling like I know exactly what 42 steps to go take and in what order and how to do each. And I don’t feel overwhelmed. And I think that’s the mark of a great program. So hats off to you for being an amazing teacher.
Jay Conner [00:13:42]:
Well, thank you, Megan. Well, it was. It really was a great experience putting that course together. And. And, you know, it was a really big advantage for my future students and members of my community to have you sort of run this project because you could come to it with no preconceived ideas about real estate investing and private money and what that’s all about. So that was really a big advantage in putting together a product that you could for sure say through your own experience. Okay, I can follow this, and it makes sense. So what? I mean, this is your show, but here I am asking you a question.
Megan Huber [00:14:27]:
Go for it.
Jay Conner [00:14:28]:
I mean, what did. This is a conversation, right?
Megan Huber [00:14:31]:
Yes, it is what the audience likes.
Jay Conner [00:14:34]:
What, you know, what advice would you give? I mean, I know your audience here on this podcast are coaches, educators that are already in the space, or maybe they’re interested in getting in the space. But what advice would you give to your audience about? Okay, I want to create this course, but I just really don’t know where to start. I mean, I know where I started, and that was painful. I remember sitting on the floor of my office, in the common area of our offices here in this building, where we are, and I had notes and I had paper everywhere, and I mean, I created that first outline from scratch of just based on my own experience, you know. But if I had known you way back then, I think you could have given me some advice on how to go out, go about it with a little less pain.
Megan Huber [00:15:35]:
You know, the first time we do anything, I think there’s going to be pain associated with it because we’ve never done it before. We’re second-guessing ourselves, we’re questioning ourselves, we have doubts, you know, all those fears, and things come up in our thoughts and in our minds. And I’m going to take it back to what Ron Legrand helped you do in the beginning because I think that’s really important. And I have a whole follow-up series of questions I want to ask you about that. Here’s where people, here’s where I see people going wrong. And it’s probably one of the number one areas I end up having to coach people on. And it’s that, as experts, there are a lot of problems that we could solve. There are a lot of different results we could help somebody achieve.
Megan Huber [00:16:23]:
And once somebody is a paying client, that probably does happen. Lots of their problems get revealed to us. We help them achieve multiple different results. It’s not like the only thing you’re doing in your coaching programs is helping people raise private money. You’re helping them do other things, but once they’re in the door and once they’re behind the paywall. However, your front-facing marketing. For the last 14 years, everybody has known you as the private money guy. If anybody ever asked me, Megan, who do I go to if I want to raise private money? The only name, the first name, and the only name I think of that I would refer them to is Jay Connor.
Megan Huber [00:17:07]:
Go to Jay Connor. Why? Because that is what you lead with in all of your marketing messaging, that is what you are selling out here. Your go-to-market strategy is I serve one client. I have one core message. I’m solving one core problem. I’m helping people achieve one core result. And I have one main offer that I’m leading them into. That is where most people are going wrong.
Megan Huber [00:17:36]:
And they’ll come to coaching sessions, or they’ll come to the course, or they’ll come to the group calls, and they kind of give you pushback because they’re like, yeah, but every single one of the clients I’ve ever worked with, they each came to me with a different problem, and every single one of my clients got a completely different result. And I’m like, yeah, but if you want to be known for something in the marketplace and anytime soon, a third party hears a friend or a colleague or a family member say, hey, I really need help with raising private money. I want them to. I want those people to all say one name. So what is that? And I think that is, regardless of how painful that starting process was for you, I think what you did really well in the beginning, because you had a mentor, because you had a coach, Ron LeGrand, you focused on one thing and one thing only. That’s the answer. That’s where people have the most trouble, because they’re trying to stuff every single ounce of their expertise and experience into their marketing message and into one program. And that is overwhelming to people.
Megan Huber [00:18:45]:
It confuses people. And here’s what we know about how the brain works. The brain doesn’t know which direction to go in. So if Jay’s showing up talking about private money and fixing and flipping and title companies and wholesaling and the bur shred, like all these things in your marketing message, my brain is going, what’s this guy talking about? I don’t even know what any of. I don’t even know what one of these things means. And now he’s trying to ask me to choose, like, which one do I fall under? And I’m not really sure if he helps me solve the problem I’m experiencing right now. And is he really the guy that I need to go to? And we’re confusing the heck out of people’s brains because we’re not just talking about one thing in the marketplace. So here’s my question to you.
Megan Huber [00:19:36]:
That was in what? I. I don’t know, like, early whenever you talk to Ron the grand, he’s like, you’re the private money guy.
Jay Conner [00:19:42]:
Oh, yeah. That was. That was 2000. That was actually, that was January 2011, when I called him up and asked him, What’s next?
Megan Huber [00:19:53]:
Okay, we’re now in 2025. Are you still known as the private money guy?
Jay Conner [00:19:58]:
Yes.
Megan Huber [00:20:00]:
Okay. Why, like, why have you stuck with that for so long?
Jay Conner [00:20:06]:
That’s a good question. I’ve said I’ve stayed with that one thing for the reason that you just explained. So from a branding. From a branding standpoint, I mean, I knew from previous marketing experience that you can’t be everything to everybody. And I also knew when it comes to marketing, what you want to do is. Or at least what I have done is I have done my best to be totally authentic. So. So here’s.
Jay Conner [00:20:46]:
Here’s a. Like the next two-pronged thing. So I wanted to stay with that one thing. Like, it’s very easy to give to explain the message of how I can help solve somebody’s problem, whether they are a seasoned real estate investor or they’re, you know, trying to still get their first deal. Interestingly enough, though, the majority of my clients have experienced the pain of either running out of money or being sick and tired of super high interest rates and origination fees at hard money lenders. So once they have felt that pain, I can really speak to them. Right. But when I mentioned being authentic, that’s just so important.
Jay Conner [00:21:34]:
I heard. I can’t remember who it was, but anyway, in recent years, I heard some. It might have been Tom Crowell. I’m not sure it might have been Tom who said it. But the idea is when you’re a coach and you’re an educator, you want to. The goal is you want to attract as many people to you tasare like you can, and it’s okay to repel the rest of the people. Which goes counterintuitive to the mindset of, well, I want to be everything to everybody because I’ve got so much that I can teach and so much that I can coach on. Well, you made a really, really important point, Megan.
Jay Conner [00:22:15]:
Lead with that one thing that you can solve as long as there’s a large enough audience for it. I mean, I admit I’m in a niche of a niche on the, on the, on the front, front end marketing. The niche is real estate investing, but the niche of the niche is private money for real estate investing. So I lead with that. But then once they are in your world, they learn about all these other ways that you can help them and you can serve them. But when I say being authentic, I mean, I don’t know who came up with the Phrase opposites attract. That’s the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard in my life. I want to hang around people that are like me, you know, and so how, how, how do I lead with being authentic as well? Well, I’m not ashamed of being a Christian.
Jay Conner [00:23:04]:
I’m not ashamed of talking about God. I’m not ashamed of talking about my Christian family. I’m not ashamed about telling people. Carol Joy and I met almost 41 years ago at my first Sunday in town in Texas in church. And so I’m not throwing that in people’s faces. I’m just letting people know who I am. And I want, I want to. So as a result of that, at my live events, probably 99.9% of the people that show up are faith-based because they just know that’s part of, you know, who I am.
Jay Conner [00:23:43]:
Anyway, I didn’t mean to go down that rabbit hole, but we were talking about leading with that marketing message up front. Be very, very specific, even if it’s a niche of a niche, and be who you truly are and let people see you without your filter on.
Megan Huber [00:24:02]:
Yeah, and I’m gonna add to that too, I think the fact that you have stuck with being the private money guy, and that is what you’ve led with for 14 years. I think that is significant. It’s not the only reason, obviously, but I think it’s one of the most probable top three reasons why you are still in the game of the coaching and online space at the level that you are. Right. Like you are continuing to grow. You’re still growing, you still have the course, you still have your masterminds, everything. You still have your three-day seminars. And what I see happening with a lot of coaches and educators is that they keep changing that go-to-market strategy.
Megan Huber [00:24:41]:
You’ve kept your go to market strategy the same go to market strategy for the last 14 years. And when we keep changing that again, what we’re doing is we’re confusing the audience, and we’re also creating this lack of trust with our audience, too. But you’ve spent 14 years building trust. And I have just been sitting on that topic for quite a while because there’s this idea out there, and it’s not a new idea, but it’s this idea that I’m Jake Connor, I’ve been doing this for X number of decades. You should just come work with me, you should just come hire me. You know what I do, I’ve been showing up all the time, and that’s what a lot of people think. But you are still this many years in, you’re still showing up, you’re still speaking on other people’s stages, you’re still selling your course, you’re still doing Facebook ads. Like, you’re still doing all the same marketing and sales and all the same strategies.
Megan Huber [00:25:37]:
Not maybe the same ones, they’ve changed over the years. But you never stop doing that, is my point. You’ve kept doing it because you have to to maintain, sustain, and continue to grow.
Jay Conner [00:25:48]:
Well, you just said something that leads me to share this. When a coach or educator knows what that one thing is that you want to be known for, and the message is very, very clear, that here’s what you can do. I mean, like, you know, like the name of my book here, the subtitle, I mean, the book is where to get the Money now, but the subtitle is very, a very, very clear message e how and where to get money for your real estate deals without relying on traditional or hard money lenders. When you know that very specific message and the problem that you can solve for other people, that one message should permeate everything you do, that you’re in your marketing. For example, my flagship now has other home study courses, but my flagship home study course is the Private Money Success System. The book is where to get the Money Now. All private money, for goodness’s sake. My podcast.
Jay Conner [00:26:55]:
I’m now in the eighth year of my podcast, and I remember Megan, our dear friend and fellow Mastermind member, Joe McCall. I remember Joe gave a talk probably four or five years ago, in a different Mastermind, a nd Joe said, When you start your podcast, don’t even think about starting your podcast unless you’re committed to doing it at least. Hey, Megan, I only got two more to go, but anyway, the point that I’m making is, well, what’s the name of my podcast? The name of my podcast is Raising Private Money. That’s. That’s the name of the podcast. So once, once a coach or educator knows exactly what that one thing you want to be known for, it now permeates everything, as far as your marketing goes.
Megan Huber [00:27:45]:
Okay, love it. So, I’d love for you to give the lik high-level overview of what your product lis ike, your offer suite, and what your offer suite looks like? Let’s. I’m going to see what that looks like, and then I want to dive into how you do it. What does your funnel look like? How are you getting people in? How are you consistently keeping your pipeline of leads full? So, start with what the offer suite looks like?
Jay Conner [00:28:09]:
Sure. So the offer is dependent upon how a new prospective client finds me. So how they find me is going to determine, or does determine, what the offer is. So let’s start with Facebook advertising. S,o on Facebook advertising, we have two offers on Facebook. One offer is my free money guide download here; in the business, we call it the lead magnet. So I have this ebook that’s called 7 Reasons why Private money will skyrocket your real estate business and help you build incredible wealth. There it is again, the one message.
Jay Conner [00:28:58]:
Private money. So this is a downloadable free lead magnet that brings them into my world. So on average, we get about 175 or 200 new people coming into my marketing world a week that are downloading the money guide. So immediately after the money guide, they are offered an eps, an upsell to my seven-day challenge. What’s the challenge? No surprise, it’s the private money challenge. The all in caps, the private money challenge, which is an evergreen seven-day offering. Anyway, so that offer is $17. So they came in free with the private money ebook.
Jay Conner [00:29:54]:
They’re immediately offered the seven-day challenge for $17. Now, within the challenge, there are six other offers for them to choose There are three bumps, and there are three upsells. And so now in these upsells, they’re starting to learn more about what I do. But it’s still all private money. One of the upsells is a whole video training on how to raise private money without asking for money. 45-minute training. And these upsells are anywhere from $29 to 97 or $99.
Jay Conner [00:30:36]:
If they bought the whole suite of offerings in the challenge upsales, that’s about $350. And some people buy it all. Not many, but some do. So, you got the free lead magnet from Facebook’s $70 challenge, then that is their upsell. Or offer these other trainings within the challenge. The sixth video or training of the challenge is where I offer the live event. So all roads, at least as of this recording, Megan, all roads lead to the live event. What I mean by all roads lead to the live event.
Jay Conner [00:31:16]:
This is an in-person event. I do it three times a year. What’s the name of the event? Imagine this. The private money conference is the name of the event.
Megan Huber [00:31:28]:
It’s not that hard, people. I hope you’re getting that message. It’s not that hard. You don’t have to overthink. You don’t have to be clever, you don’t have to be cute. You’ve got to say what it is because people get it. And that’s what you’re known for because that’s what you use that name for everywhere. I love it.
Jay Conner [00:31:46]:
So yeah, all roads lead to the live event. So what I mean BY that is 80% of my revenue in the coaching business comes from sales at the live event. So I’ll get, I’ll get, I’ll get to the live event here in a moment. So that’s the money guide funnel. Now, of course, whether they buy the challenge or they don’t buy the challenge, we have a series of eight emails that are dripped on everybody who gets the free money guide and downloads the lead magnet. And in these eight emails, guess what? One of those emails, they’re going to learn about my monthly membership. Well, imagine what the monthly membership is called. The monthly membership is called the Private Money Academy membership.
Jay Conner [00:32:41]:
So we offer these people in that, in the, in the, in that eight email sequence, a free 30-day trial. And so, you know, we’ve got the landing page for that, etc. And we give them a free 30-day trial. And the biggest benefit of being a member of the Private Money Academy is I go live on Zoom Zoom twice a month for the members and if they like it, which most of them do, then they can stay in for $37 a month, measly 37 bucks a month to get the content from the membership site on Private Money and all, all these new zooms and the zooms are archived, etc. Now, why do I do the membership? There’s so much to talk about, Megan. So why do I do the membership? I don’t do the membership for $37 a month. I mean, it’s not bad. I got about 300 members that are paying $37 a month, so that’s okay.
Jay Conner [00:33:44]:
But the real reason for the membership is to establish and nurture relationships with these people on camera and give them a lot of value, and of course, invite them to the Private Money Conference live event that I’m doing twice a year now. How do other people come into my world? And then we’ll get to the Private Money conference event and what takes place and the offerings there. So I speak at other real estate investing stages, other promoters. I still speak every month at Ron Legrand’s Quick Start School. So I get great exposure there. And I teach private money, that I’m the private money guy at his event. I teach other stuff at his event, but I’m known for that. And then I offer my private money success system that Megan, who Yelped me, put together recently.
Jay Conner [00:34:43]:
And it sells for $2,500 retail on my website. But I offer it on other people’s stages. Like I spoke at the Midwest RIA up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, recently. And so I sell it, I offer it for $1495, 50% off from the website price. So when those people come into my funnel as a course buyer, those, of course, are the most qualified people on my list. Now my book, book is in the funnel also the book is offered; it’s $20 on the Amazon on Amazon, but I offer it for free with $6.95 shipping. This is one of the eight emails that they get after they download the Money Guide. So the back to the course buyers, those are the most qualified people on my list, those that have invested $1495, and I have a great percentage, a good percentage of those course buyers that actually end up at the private Monday conference.
Jay Conner [00:35:54]:
So when I said all roads lead to the conference, that’s when the high ticket is. So the high ticket coaching is sold 80% of the revenue. So at the live event, we have three offerings. At the live event, we have a six-month coaching program for real estate investors. And all these coaching programs are led with the private money piece, and then we expand out from there. So we got six months for $20,000 investment. Then we have a year-long coaching program, and that investment is 30,000. Specifically,y it’s 1995 and 2995.
Jay Conner [00:36:32]:
And then the top elite offering is to come into my Mastermind community. So the Mastermind itself for the first year is 20,000. But a prerequisite to be in Mastermind ithat s you have to also be in the year long coaching program or in it or just signed up now or a graduate of that. So we have approximately 60% of the people who sign up for the year-long coaching. Hardly anybody signs up for the six months. I mean, it’s either the 30,000 or an additional 20,000 in Mastermind. So about 60% of the conversions and sales at the event actually come in at the $50,000 level as well. And my Lance, we could talk all day about what it is that makes those live events successful.
Jay Conner [00:37:25]:
I can tell you one big thing that makes these live, that makes the sales work is the financing arm. So a relationship with a company or broker or provider that can be right there on hand to provide the financing to where it’s very, very, you know, seeable and affordable by your prospects is just going to shoot your conversions, you know, out of the ceiling when you make it easy to buy. I covered, I plowed a lot of ground right there. Megan. I don’t know which part you want to drill back down on.
Megan Huber [00:38:00]:
That was really good. That was like a masterclass on the client journey. And I hope everybody was taking really good notes with that. I mean, one of my biggest takeaways is you have a lot of things in place that are trust builders, a lot of things in place to build trust with people before you’re ascending them, or inviting them into your higher ticket. And I think that is so important. I mean, you’ve been doing that for a very long time. But one of the biggest shifts that we’ve seen in the coaching space is that it’s harder for people to sell their higher-end coaching, meaning it’s becoming harder for them to go directly to their high-ticket coaching. And that’s what a lot of folks have done in the traditional coaching space is they never had anything low ticket.
Megan Huber [00:38:42]:
They weren’t doing anything to build trust with people beyond their free content on social media, maybe their podcast, but nothing else. There was nothing else for people to buy into that was a lower ticket as a trust builder. And everybody kind of had this message like, low ticket is for, you know, people that you don’t even ever want to be in your high ticket. It’s like the downsell. It’s for the people who can’t afford the bigger one. And what I hear you saying is the entire client journey is to warm people up and to build trust with them, and to build a relationship with them. It’s the same avatar that you want in your long mastermind. So the same avatar that’s buying some of these other things that you mentioned at the beginning of the funnel, is that the same person we want up here in the bigger mastermind?
Jay Conner [00:39:27]:
I’m so glad you brought that up, Megan, because I just, I just ran the numbers. So I have a live event coming up in just three weeks from now, and I’m looking at the registration list of people who have already secured their seats. And so it’s very, very important to track the origin. Where did these people originally come from? How did they get on your list? And as important as well, what link or affiliate link or whatever are they actually clicking on to register? So here’s the point. What you just said is very, very interesting about how some educators or coaches think, well, I don’t want the low ticket people, I want the high ticket people. Well, as you just said, in most cases, you’re not going to get a high-ticket person unless they have some kind of relationship with you. So here’s, here’s the takeaway. Over 30% of the people who are registered to come to my upcoming live event came in with the Free Money Guide ebook.
Megan Huber [00:40:35]:
Oh, wow.
Jay Conner [00:40:36]:
Over 30%. So they came in for free. Right. And, and, and they all like maybe took a different journey. Some of them got my book after. And by the way, with the book, everything leads to the live event. The book comes with two tickets to the Private Money conference. So the tickets are in the book, and they don’t even know that’s coming.
Jay Conner [00:41:02]:
Right. That’s like a bonus, when people, you know, take me up on the book, offer some of these people from the Money Guide, they might have come into the Private Money Academy membership. Right. So I wanted to, I wanted to endorse the point you just made. A lot of these people come in with a free lead magnet. They might, they might come in, you know, with that lower ticket. But as long as you have the opportunity to nurture that relationship, I mean, I mean, I want to get as many people as I can in the Private Money Academy membership so we can hang out on Zoom, you know, and this just came to mind. Another way that I nurture the relationships before the event that’s coming up is I’ll do special Zoom trainings for people.
Jay Conner [00:41:56]:
Say, for example, I’m doing a special Zoom training tomorrow at noon Eastern just for people in my LinkedIn connections. And that’s a whole other conversation. But I’ve created an event, the Private Money conference event, on my LinkedIn page. Well, I’ve got 130. Some people in the past three weeks have clicked yes, they want to attend. Well, Most people on LinkedIn think your event is virtual, so it isn’t. So what am I going to do? I’m doing a special Zoom training for these LinkedIn people, all about private money, tomorrow. And what am I going to do at the end of that free training? I’m going to invite them to the live event that’s coming up.
Jay Conner [00:42:38]:
So that’s what I mean by all roads leading to the live event.
Megan Huber [00:42:44]:
Yeah. This is so good. So good. Okay. This has been a masterclass on the right way to build a funnel and a client journey. So thank you for sharing all those details. Here’s where I want to kind of land the plane. If you could pinpoint, you don’t have to come up with just one, but if you could pinpoint what’s really led to your long-lasting success.
Megan Huber [00:43:15]:
Something X. I’d like to hear you share something external outside of you, and then something internal inside of you. Because longevity. When I think of Jay Connor, I also think of longevity. I think legacy. I think the name of this podcast is built to last. So what is your kind of secret to building something that lasts? External and internal? We’ll end there.
Jay Conner [00:43:39]:
Yeah, that’s an interesting question because it’s actually external. My answer is actually external and internal. The external becomes internal. What in the world am I talking about? I can tell you what has kept me going and feel like I’m always on the cutting edge of, you know, what new strategies are working and, you know, maybe what no longer works. It’s. It’s these masterminds that I’m a member of. I mean, getting around other people, such as yourself, Megan. I mean, if I hadn’t joined the mastermind that you and I are in, you and I probably would not have met.
Jay Conner [00:44:19]:
I wouldn’t have the stellar home study course on private money that I now have without us being in that. So the relationships, I forget who is credited with the quote, but the quote, I’ll paraphrase it more or less, says your destiny and future are predicated on the books you read and the people you meet. And so the Mastermind is external. That, I mean, that’s a group that I’ve joined, right? And I’ve been in many. And still. And still am. But what becomes internal, what becomes internal and gives me the juice to keep going, is the inspiration that I receive from my fellow Mastermind members. I joined my very first mastermind in 2011 right after becoming a coach and I joined the Mastermind.
Jay Conner [00:45:13]:
It was another. Other coaches. And so I have been in mastermind communities and groups ever since I started this journey of being a real estate investing coach. And it is the. If I could choose just one thing, I mean, without it, I wouldn’t be in business. Without being a member that’s actively involved in a really good mastermind group of like-minded people. I just can’t imagine being in this business on an island by myself.
Megan Huber [00:45:49]:
Yeah. Wow, that’s real. That’s really good. And you’re in multiple groups and multiple masterminds, not just one too. Yeah. That’s amazing, Jay. This has been so fun. Well, I mean, we could, we could literally like do a whole work.
Megan Huber [00:46:02]:
We could do a whole-day workshop.
Jay Conner [00:46:04]:
On this for sure.
Megan Huber [00:46:06]:
But this has been so amazing. You know, we’ve got a lot of coaches and educators as listeners, a lot of Entrepreneurs. We’ve got some real estate investors. So I’d love for you to share. You know, how can people kind of check out that funnel and see what your process is like? And if they’re interested in learning about raising private money for a real estate deal, how can they learn more from you?
Jay Conner [00:46:27]:
Sure. Well, actually, to look at and swipe and deploy any of my strategies that you want to. I would encourage you, as a listener to this podcast, to just opt into my funnel, into my marketing funnel. So, if you’re interested in raising private money, you’ll get all the goods on that as well. So let me mail you my book. So the book is where to get the money now. And so you opt in. So it’s shipping and handling. Simply go to www.JayConner.com/Book Again, I’m an er, not a o R so that’s www.JayConner.com/Book.
Jay Conner [00:47:25]:
When you get to that landing page, you’ll opt in and you’ll. So I’ll autograph and mail the book to you. We actually ship, but I lose money. It cost me about $20 to deliver this book. So I’ve got the cost of the book. But then we pry. We’ll priority mail it. I don’t rely on media mail or first-class mail.
Jay Conner [00:47:47]:
We will mail the book to the people who ordered it. And so once you order the book, you will see that series of eight emails that are spread over about a week and a half. You’ll see the other offers that come from the people who opt in. You’ll also see I got a. I got a fun game. I include tickets to the Private Money conference. I also include the free trial to the Private Money Academy membership with the book. And so there are three offers in envelopes: envelope one, envelope two, envelope three.
Jay Conner [00:48:30]:
And on envelope one, it says open this envelope first, and then envelope number two, open this envelope second, open this envelope third. So we’re having fun and getting them engaged, you know, right off the bat. So yeah, opt in Jconnor.com book and you can swipe and deploy my marketing funnel.
Megan Huber [00:48:53]:
I love it. I love it. That’s so fun. What a fun idea. I love that. Choose your own little adventure there in the book. Amazing. Jay, thank you so much for pulling back the curtain and sharing with us, you know, 14, 15 years of experience in not just the real estate investing world, but how you turned that expertise and specialized knowledge into a coaching company that is just continues to thrive in 2025.
Megan Huber [00:49:20]:
We’re kind of like living in this new world. But you are still, still inspired and thriving and moving along. So I appreciate you sharing, really, your entire client journey with us. It was a pleasure to be with you today.
Jay Conner [00:49:32]:
You got it. Megan. Thank you so much for having me on. And if anybody wants to talk shop or talk coaching or whatever, you can find me easily there@jconnner.com as well. And again, if you’re interested in private money, I mentioned it earlier in the show, but come check out my podcast. You can experience what I do there on marketing. I mean, we’ve got the beginning of the podcast or the end of the podcast offering the money guide, right? So I use the podcast as a lead funnel as well.
Jay Conner [00:50:08]:
Megan, thank you so much for having me on. This has been a blast.
Megan Huber [00:50:11]:
All right, thank you so much. Jay.
Narrator [00:50:15]:
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 shares seven reasons why private money will skyrocket your private 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.
Few journeys in real estate are as inspiring as Glenn Yaney’s. On a recent episode of “Raising Private Money” with Jay Conner, Glenn shared the inside scoop on how he went from waiting tables at Red Lobster to becoming the co-founder and COO of Vertical Equity Partners, raising over $14 million in private capital. Glenn’s story is proof that where you start doesn’t determine where you end up—and that the right mindset, strategies, and relationships can change your life.
Finding the Turning Point
Glenn didn’t come from money, connections, or a prestigious background. In the words of Jay Conner, Glenn’s leap “from serving tables at Red Lobster to raising millions in private money” is, frankly, wild. So how did Glenn make the switch from restaurant shifts to real estate investments?
It all started with immersion. Glenn began working for a REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust), spending his days off shadowing real estate operators. “I watched what they do,” Glenn shared, “and I learned that those guys who were most successful were the ones who figured out how to buy real estate without the banks.” This key insight set Glenn on the path to financial independence.
The First Steps: Liquidity and Income-Producing Assets
Initially, Glenn made the same mistake many do: pouring money into retirement accounts like his 401 (k) and IRAs, making himself illiquid. The real shift came when he realized, “I needed to become more liquid and buy income-producing assets.” Within a year of refocusing his investments, Glenn achieved financial independence—thanks to just a couple of smart deals.
His first deal came from a local real estate investor with a three-unit mobile home park. Glenn looked up to this investor, and when he made an offer on the property, the only way the deal worked was if the seller became the lender. The terms were set by the seller, and Glenn agreed; just like that, he had his first private loan. Similarly, he bought a nine-unit mobile home park from the same investor, solidifying his footing in the industry.
Mindset Shifts and Overcoming Fear
Glenn admits those initial deals were nerve-wracking. “You start to realize that you’re actually going to make a little bit of money other than your W2,” he recalls. For years, Glenn studied real estate and investing before he ever made money. The breakthrough came not from saving more, but from finding down payment money outside his own funds—by leveraging other people’s money.
Scaling Up and Building Trust
It wasn’t long before Glenn started scaling his business. “Raising $14 million hasn’t happened by accident,” Jay noted. Glenn’s process is systematic and built on relationships. After each deal, Glenn would talk about it with others, demonstrating experience and building credibility. His secret? Consistent communication.
“I generally call [my investors] once a quarter at least to check in, see how they’re doing personally. They either have a referral, more money to invest, or questions about their investment. And by the end of the conversation, you know what you need to do better in the future.” Glenn also relies on solid software and a strong brand to make things easy for investors.
Honesty, Transparency, and Consistency
So what turns a one-time lender into a repeat investor? “Consistency and being very honest,” says Glenn. Investors know that in real estate, things can go wrong. But if you keep them informed—especially during rough patches—they’re more likely to trust you with more capital in the future.
Glenn shared the story of a mobile home park that went eight feet underwater during Hurricane Helene. “We had to communicate with the lender. It’s not like you could tell them the park was fine.” Through honest updates and transparency, Glenn maintained the relationship even through zero-revenue periods.
Structure and Win-Win Deals
When structuring deals, Glenn stresses transparency. “For limited partners, you have to kind of spell out what the fees are and not be afraid of them.” Whether it’s construction management fees or promissory notes, clarity is key—and different investors require different levels of communication.
Biggest Lessons Learned
Looking back, Glenn identifies miscommunication as his biggest mistake. One experience involved refinancing and buying partners out—a plan he hadn’t communicated upfront. “If that’s the plan, you should tell them at the front end.”
Action Steps for New Investors
For those hoping to raise their first $500k, Glenn advises: talk to people looking to invest, keep your structures straightforward, and never complicate things. “If they’re confused, they’re not doing it.”
Final Takeaway
Glenn Yaney’s journey highlights that raising private money isn’t about luck—it’s about building trust, communicating clearly, and offering opportunities that make sense for everyone. If you’re thinking about getting into real estate, take Glenn’s story to heart: Start building relationships, focus on communication, and pursue deals with courage and transparency.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Glenn started his career as a server at Red Lobster. How did his humble beginnings influence his approach to raising private money and building relationships with investors?
What were some key mindset shifts Glenn experienced when moving from traditional retirement savings to investing in income-producing real estate assets?
Glenn emphasizes the importance of communication and transparency with private lenders. How can consistent, honest updates impact your relationship with investors, especially when things go wrong?
In the episode, Glenn mentions aligning himself with more experienced investors when starting. What are some practical ways new investors can build credibility by leveraging the experience of others?
Glenn and Jay discussed the value of “attracting” money versus “chasing” it. What strategies did Glenn use to position himself so that investors were interested in his deals, and how can others replicate that approach?
Why is being straightforward and keeping deal structures simple important when pitching to potential private money lenders, according to Glenn’s experience?
Glenn shared that some of his mistakes stemmed from miscommunication about refinancing and deal structure. What processes can investors put in place to ensure clarity from the outset with partners and lenders?
How does Glenn’s process for scaling—consistent communication, transparent reporting, and using technology for investor updates—build trust and encourage repeat investment?
Dealing with challenges, such as the mobile home park flooding, tested Glenn’s ability to communicate with lenders during a crisis. What can we learn from how he handled those difficult periods, and why is transparency crucial during setbacks?
For someone wanting to raise their first $500,000 in 90 days, Glenn recommends avoiding complicated pitches and focusing on investor needs. How does understanding your investors’ goals influence the success of raising private capital?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
From Server to Syndicator: Glenn Yaney started as a server at Red Lobster before diving into real estate. Today, he’s the co-founder and COO of Vertical Equity Partners, having raised over $14 million in private money and built a portfolio of 650 units.
First Deal Magic: Glenn’s very first private loan came from a real estate investor with a three-unit mobile home park. That investor became Glenn’s first lender, setting him off on his journey to financial independence—after just a couple of deals!
Hurricane Challenge: Glenn once owned a mobile home park that went eight feet underwater for three weeks during Hurricane Helene. Even as the park had zero revenue for several months, Glenn kept his lenders updated and demonstrated how crucial consistent communication is, especially in tough times.
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.
Attracting Investors Like a Magnet: Glenn Yaney’s Secrets to Raising Millions in Private Money
Jay Conner [00:00:03]:
Let me ask you something. What if you could raise $14 million of private money without begging or chasing, or convincing anyone? What if investors came to you because they trusted your process, your deal, and you?. Well, that’s exactly what today’s guest, Glenn Yaney, has done. Glenniss is the co-founder and COO of Vertical Equity Partners. He didn’t start with money, connections, or a fancy background. He actually started as a server at Red Lobster. Now fast forward, he’s raised over $14 million in private money, built a portfolio of 650 units, and mastered the art of attracting capital like a magnet. Now, in this episode, Glenn’s going to break it all down, the exact steps he used to raise private money.
Jay Conner [00:00:49]:
The words he’s used to share it with potential lenders, how he found his very first private lender, and all of that good stuff. So if you’ve ever wondered how to get people lining up to fund your deals, you’re going to want to take some notes. Welcome to Raising Private Money, the only podcast for real estate investors who want to fund their deals without relying on banks, credit, or using their own cash. I’m Jay Connor, the private money authority, and I’ll show you how to get private lenders begging to fund your next deal. Because every good deal starts with the money. You’ll get to meet Glenn Yaney, my special guest, right after this.
Narrator [00:01:29]:
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.
Jay Conner [00:01:58]:
Well, hey there, Glenn. Welcome to the show.
Glenn Yaney [00:02:00]:
Thanks so much for having me, Jay.
Jay Conner [00:02:02]:
Yes, and I loved being on your podcast not long ago as well. And so, Glenn, you know, I just love stories like yours because they prove that where you start doesn’t have to dictate where you end up. You went from serving tables at Red Lobster to raising millions in private money. I mean, that’s wild. Well, let’s start there. So you started as a server at Red Lobster. No money, no real estate background that I know of. What was the turning point where you realized you could actually do this real estate business and even start raising millions in private money?
Glenn Yaney [00:02:40]:
I mean, really ended up doing it, started working for a REIT, and just like, immerse myself in real estate, started on my days off, I would hang out with other real estate operators, and with those operators I’d watch what they do. And I learned that those, those guys that were most successful are the ones that figured out how to buy real estate without the banks, is really what happened.
Jay Conner [00:03:10]:
Well, that makes a lot of sense. Well, before you ever raised a dollar of private money, what was your first step? In other words, what did you do to get into the game when you didn’t have experience or the capital?
Glenn Yaney [00:03:25]:
I mean, really, what it comes down to is learning how to pay yourself first. I mean, there’s always money, like for any bill I ever have, I’ve always learned how to pay it. But to pay myself first was the first step. But I, you know, ow I think I went down in my opinion the wrong path when I started putting money in my 401k, maxing out my IRAs, and really making myself illiquid. And I think whenever I had the mental switch that I needed to become more liquid and income-producing assets, that’s when I became financially independent. Really, in a short period. It took me about a year of refocusing, where I put my money. And yeah, it did turn out to where I, my firstst my first private loan was from a real estate investor whohadthree-unitnit mobile home park.
Glenn Yaney [00:04:26]:
And then I bought a single-unit mobile home park from the same investor, had very little money to do, and it pretty much made me financially independent from just those two deals. And within a short period, I sold a house that I had as a rental. It really didn’t make that much money. It was just lia, a primary residence that I moved out of. I sold it, ha, about 100 grand went into my bank account. And then I left my W2 and started finding private capital to buy more real estate.
Jay Conner [00:04:58]:
I love it. Okay, so yoleapedap. You got the n business s real estate investing. But that first private money deal, that’s usually where everything starts to fall apart or change. So let’s talk about that. And you just mentioned your first private lender, but I want to dig into that a little bit more. Go back to your very first private money lender and deal. Do you recall how you found that first private, private loan, e,r and hid some of the conversation where they agreed to be your private lender?
Glenn Yaney [00:05:30]:
Yeah, so I, I don’t know, I don’t know if I had like a systematic way of finding this person, but I, I looked up to him. He had about 600 units of real estate, te would follow him on my days off. And he was, you know, getting to a point where he got very large. He ended up, he’s, he’s at about 1600 pad mobile home pads now. And I made an offer on a hithree-unitit deal, and the only way that I could buy it is if he were to be a lender. That’s really what happened, you know. And then he just came up with the terms that he thought were good for him,im and I agree, and we just moved forward with the deal.
Jay Conner [00:06:13]:
So when you were working on that first deal, he’s going to fund your deal. Did you have any kind of fear inside that you needed to overcome to put that deal together? And what kind of mindset shift changed everything for you?
Glenn Yaney [00:06:32]:
I mean, the mindset shift, it was nerve-wracking, you know, because you start to realize that you’re actually going to make a little bit of money other than your W2. And it’s. For me, I studied real estate and investing, and all this stuff for like five years before I even made any moneyItit was just likHowow do I come up with a down payment? And what I found is that the successful people were the ones who found the down payment outside of their own funds. You know, it’s like you. To buy real estate with your own money is a slower pace, I would say. And if you have a high income, you can do it, but if you don’t have one, you have to have an extremely high income to buy a lot of real estate. The key is to use other people’s money.
Glenn Yaney [00:07:25]:
Once I bought the first deal like it really took the second deal, that I, that I, it like made a switch where I was no longer motivated by my W2 job. And I decided that maybe I should put more effort into finding more of these deals is what happened.
Jay Conner [00:07:44]:
Yes, yes. Well, and you know, you mentioned the word down payment. In my world of private money for real estate, there is no down payment because I’m getting all the funding from the private lender for the purchase. If there is a renovation involved, I’m getting all that money up front. And like you and I have talked about before, when I purchase the property, I always bring home a check from the closing table at purchase instead of having to bring a down payment on my own. And that’s sort of a rule of thumb for,e o,r a double checkpoint when I’m buying a property with all cash, private mo, and there’s a renovation involved. If I can’t bring home A sizable check from that closing table. I’m paying too much for the property.
Jay Conner [00:08:33]:
That’s just a nice little double check. So you got that first deal. You mentioned the second deal. And as you start to scale your business, it’s about building a system, you know, something that is repeatable. So I want to introduce you to the process that you use now because raising $14 million in private money just has not happened by accident. So walk us through the process that you’ve used to scale and raise that amount of private money. How do you find or how did you find potential private lenders to get that much funding? How did you approach them? How do conversations go? How do you close the deal? Just that overall envelope.
Glenn Yaney [00:09:15]:
Yeah. So what I would saisrthathe, the partner who has given me the 14 million has been an investor. There are a few; there’s probably about 2 million lenders. Bhe, I would say the majority of them have been investors. We’ll figure out a structure that works best for them. And what I would say, the big, the, the biggest part that I’ve had very successful mentorful. He has about 20,000 dollars, and he told me, he sa, ys if you have a good deal, you’ll find the money. But I actually have found that that is not correct.
Jay Conner [00:09:53]:
Thank you very much.
Glenn Yaney [00:09:55]:
You find the deal, and then you’re like looking like a desperate person holding your hand out. And what I have found is that, as you and I talked about, this is you really have to find the people with the money to get confidence to make the offers on the bigger deals. So then, you know, we weren’t, we were buying, you know, where our deals were, funding around 5,000 at a time, like our first big syndication, which is a 25-unit apartment. It was, I think it was 700, 000 that we raised. And you know, the next deal was about 8,00 and then the next one was like a million. And what you’re, what we’re doing this whole time is we’re, we buy a deal and then we talk about it to other people. You know, so when you talk about it with other people, then you’re showing that you have the experience of buying, you know, buying real estate. And then, you know, you have to, what I would also add is consistent communication with my investors has been important to me.
Glenn Yaney [00:10:57]:
What I generally call them once a quarter at least to just check in, see how they’re doing personally. And then generally they either have a referral or they’ll have, you know, more money to invest, you know, or they’ll have questions about their investment. And then sometimes even in those conversations, as you question, are they upset or not upset? Then by the end of it, you kind of know where they’re at, and you know what to do better in the future. So,o like if you have that question, it’s like maybe it’s somewhere to improve. So it’s just constantly improving with communication. I like to have good software as well, to have a forward-facing brand, to have people be able to log in, pull up their K1s or 1099s, and haand, and hand something. The easier it is for the investor, the more likely they are to get more money.
Jay Conner [00:12:00]:
Sure, sure. Makes perfect sense. N, ow what advice would you give to someone that doesn’t have, you know, a track record yet in real estate investing? What are some ways that they could build credibility so quickly, you know, so potential private lenders might take them seriously?
Glenn Yaney [00:12:23]:
I mean, so what, did I align myself with people with more experience than me, a nd really what it started with was I would follow the,m and then when I started raising cap, ital I would, it was more of like introducing the capital person with the person I was following. So it turned into where it was kind of connecting them that way. And then what I continue to do is maintain those relationships, talk about the investment. Because what I can tell you is that there’s a limited amount of capital per person, of course, so you, and they can, they want to give you as much as they, they, they’re comfortable with. Of course, so, and also buying mobile home parks, ie, kind of like exciting. So,ike there’s a part of it that they want to hear about and from, my side, that they want to hear about the deal. Like they want to hear what they’re doing. They don’t want to go out there and knock on doors or post notices or talk to the contractors or get it, deal with the septic tanks that we deal with.
Glenn Yaney [00:13:33]:
But at the same time, they want to know what is happening, just because that’s why they gave you the money. I think that there’s some kind of interest in investing in real estate, and they want to know what’s happening. So I generally, you know, talk about the investment and, and, and, and not be afraid to kind of give a little bit more than what you would be afraid of telling somebody. Like, okay, well, is there something going wrong with the deal? Yeah, there’s a little bit of that happening. Ended up finding a $40,000 septic tank at this property, which we had to replace immediately. But we’re taking care of it. It’s working, you know, we’re working through it, and it’ll be resolved within a couple le months. You know, and that’s the reality ot, what was happening.
Glenn Yaney [00:14:15]:
You know, we, it’s, you know, just given details of the deal to let the investor feel a part of the journey as well.
Jay Conner [00:14:26]:
I love it. Well, you’ve raised millions and millions in private money. What are some of the secrets or strategies that you’ve used that turn a one-time private lender into repeat lenders wanting to give you more money to invest and ones they want to keep, you know, funding more deals?
Glenn Yaney [00:14:45]:
Yeah, I would say consistency and being, being very honest, like not being afraid to. What I can tell you is if somebody tells me that I’m that, that everything’s okay, and nothing ever goes wrong, it kind of puts up a meter like where I’m like, I’m not sure something is going wrong, and they’re not telling me what the problem is. I think being like communicating with them regularly, and you know, not daily, but at the same time, when you do talk to them, just say, Oh, this is what happens. And, you know, just communicating regularly, that’s been the one thing, you know, explaining the vision. Still, always having the goal of where you’re going with it has been a big one. You know, even if the deal is kind of going sideways, which has happened, it says, okay, we’ll, what did we buy this property for? You know, we bought this piece of real estate in a good location. It’s going to be good cash flow, low, and we’re going to, you know, we’re going to continuously improve it over time. We’re offering affordable housing.
Glenn Yaney [00:16:00]:
And what, what does that affordable housing do? It gives people clean, safe, functional places to live, and they, you know, you’re, you’re going back to the core reason of why you buy mobile home parks. You know, mobile home parks, yeah, they do have good cash flow, but they also have te, the portion of affordability. You know, you’re buying the land, or what we buy is pretty rough ass, etc., and we’re bringing them back to life for people to live in safely and comfortably in a clean home. You know, so that’s, that’s our main, our main objective.
Jay Conner [00:16:38]:
Sure, sure. So, regarding level home parks, have you used private money to buy mobile home parks, or most of the time is it owner financing or seller financing with a carryback?
Glenn Yaney [00:16:50]:
Yeah, I would say that if you’re not going to be doing anything unless you get to the larger mobile homes, but then it becomes very expensive, which we don’t buy those. We buy the very smallest unit counts 10 to 50 units. Private financing is the number one way to do it. You can’t do it without privacy. I think we have, we probably have about 20 million in loans, and I would say about 15 million of it is private lending. And the same story with those private lenders. The first lien lenders I have are those guys who write the bigger checks for us. They’re very familiar with real estate.
Glenn Yaney [00:17:31]:
It’s not like they, it’s not like they just started showing up and wanting to give us the money. So we talk about our deals regularly, and we have, like, we’ve had this one experience where a mobile home park, it’s. We finally got through it, but through Hurricane Helene, the mobile home park went eight feet underwater for three weeks.
Jay Conner [00:17:52]:
Oh, wow.
Glenn Yaney [00:17:53]:
And didn’t go back down. And terrible. It was, you know, we’d have like a park manager. And she said I would tell her, did you go to the park today? And she’s like, I went there yesterday and it was still the same, the same level. I was like, well then, go there today to tell me that it’s six inches lower. Like, just tell me it’s. Just tell me something’s happening differently. And.
Glenn Yaney [00:18:15]:
But, you know, that was. We had to communicate with the lender. Like, it’s not like we could tell the lender that the park was fine. You know, you’re. Well, it’s underwater right now, so we’re working through it and paying the mortgage payments, and we’re, you know, we’re back to stabilize. We had it, it was down to zero revenue for three to six months, and now we’re at 10,000 in revenue. You know, hat, that was something that had to happen. But communicating with the lender is how they continuously, like they remember the time that you had a bad experience, continue to pay them, and you communicated with them.
Glenn Yaney [00:18:56]:
I didn’t go in the dark. I didn’t like it, so I stopped answering his phone calls. I was calling him to tell him, hey, this is what’s going on. Send them an email, get some pictures of updates after we’ve, after the park, after the water receded, you know, even create good balance, you know, financials to be able to show them, you know, and I don’t know if single family home has to be that detailed, but you know, with something like this, it’s, it’s Something that it’s like you have to shine when times are not as good. You know, when you. When times are not good, you’re like, okay, well, let me show you how I’m going to handle this, because that’s the question that every investor has: as I, what’s going to happen when things are going sideways? Are you going to stand by taking care of the mon, ey or are you going to run the other direction and leave them high and dry, you know, or the opposi?e. Underwater. Eight feet underwater.
Jay Conner [00:19:47]:
Right.
Glenn Yaney [00:19:48]:
So, yeah, it was a learning experience, but you still have to communicate. The biggest thing is communication with your investors.
Jay Conner [00:19:57]:
Yeah, well, I couldn’t agree more. Particularly when it comes down to, you know, the communication, keeping them informed as to what’s going on. So you briefly mentioned it, but I’d like to dive into a little bit. How is it that you structure your deals so that they are a win for your private lenders and profitable for you as well?
Glenn Yaney [00:20:17]:
Yeah, so, I mean, for us, it could be numerous things. The way that I was able to leave my W2 job, I came from my property management background, nd because I left Red Lobster and then I went into property management for 10 years. But what I ended up doing was creating a property management company to manage it. And then there a multiple ways of doing it, but for some, there’s a fee structure. And it’s really just being honest with them,ike what the fees are. And you have to communicate that with your investors. It’s not like a secret because these are equity investors.
Glenn Yaney [00:20:56]:
Some of them are. Some are first lien investors, some are second lien. They don’t care too much about the fees. But when it comes to limited partners, you have to kind of spell out what those fees are and not be afraid of them. Because it’s like view, if you have to be transparent, and also, you know, it’s the reality. It’s like, okay, so if there’s a construction management fee, we charge about 7%. What’s the budget on the construction management and that, where does that cap off? You know, so it’s like, is it 100,000? Is it 500,000? Is that. And then that’s how much I spend on the property.
Glenn Yaney [00:21:36]:
And I plan on managing $500,000 worth of construction, which is 7% of that. So that could be a way to manage assigning the side. And when you explain it that way, they understand, like, if you’re managing $500,000 worth of construction, it’s not going to be a passive job. You have to have somebody out there to manage it. So that’s how we, how we, you know, we will make a little bit of money from, from limited partner investing. You know, they also take the downside. There could be a stop of payments if there’s, if there’s any kind of problems, you know, the reserves go below the balance of the idea of reserves where you want to be. But with those promissory note investors, those are the people that you pay no matter what.
Glenn Yaney [00:22:35]:
You don’t really have to. You might give them a little bit of information. Those are more of like an annual report that I give them for the promissory note because that’s what, that’s what they invested in. That’s what they want. They don’t want to hear about it. They don’t want to hear about toilets. They don’t, you know, the promissory note investors are, it’s a check. They’ll let you know if they don’t get paid on the 15th, you know, they’ll send you a message, hey, I didn’t get mine.
Glenn Yaney [00:23:00]:
And you forgot to hit the send button on your software. So you have, oh, my gosh. So you go back, you’re like, I’m far, I’m sorry, I missed the button. You know, I’ve had that happen one time. And, you know, they let you know, but it’s, but that there’s a different type of investor. First lien. Don’t really have to give too much information. Second lien, maybe like an annual report of what’s going on, you know, and then equity quarterly, you know.
Jay Conner [00:23:27]:
Well, Glenn, you have clearly figured this thing out, and as you mentioned.
Glenn Yaney [00:23:31]:
No, I have not.
Jay Conner [00:23:33]:
As you mentioned, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing. Right?
Glenn Yaney [00:23:38]:
Yeah. Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:23:39]:
So let’s, let’s pull out some lessons here that our listeners can actually use right now. So looking back, since you started raising private money until today, what are one or two of the biggest mistakes that you made early on when you started raising capital, or what did you learn that you could do better?
Glenn Yaney [00:24:00]:
Miscommunication. That’s the biggest thing I could tell you, that the number one thing with all investors is communication. I could tell you that there was a time when we were trying. We’re in a.. Because of the mobile homes. We weren’t; we didn’t understand that it’s very hard to refinance a mobile home park with mobile homes on the balance sheet. You’re trying to sell the mobile homes off. And we were told by a bank that it was better that we just buy the partners out to refinance because we weren’t big enough owners on the property.
Glenn Yaney [00:24:41]:
So instead of like, the owners or the equity owners were like, well, what? Why are you buying us out? We didn’t want to sell. You know, it’s like, well, the bank’s telling us that we have to do this. And it’s like, that wasn’t the plan when you. When we gave you the money, you know, so it was like. So then you go back and you. You’re trying to figure out the best way, and you’re. You’re making yourself look bad because you’re. You told them that you’re next to them, you’re working hand in hand with the limited partner, and you benefit when they benefit, but now you’re saying that you’re going to buy them out when it’s like, we never communicated that that’s what our plan was.
Glenn Yaney [00:25:16]:
If that’s the plan, you should tell them that in the front end, like, hey, my goal is to do. Money or get you to this number, and then I plan on refinancing and paying you off. That would be the answer. And you have to tell them that. If you don’t tell them that, then you’re not communicating clearly. And that’s. That was my mistake, on that is like, we didn’t. I mean, that wasn’t even our intention when we started, but we.
Glenn Yaney [00:25:38]:
We thought it was the answer, but we found that we had to sell the mobile homes to be able to get a good refinancing. This is really the short story, but sure.
Jay Conner [00:25:47]:
Well, Glenn, if someone’s listening and they want to raise their first $500,000, say, in the next 90 days, what are their first action steps that they need to take right now to start attracting that private money?
Glenn Yaney [00:26:03]:
I love you. Your book that you wrote. I don’t know what it’s called, but I’ve read it.
Jay Conner [00:26:08]:
Where to get the money now.
Glenn Yaney [00:26:10]:
Yeah, I’ve read that. And I would say that talking to people looking to invest, figuring out what they’re looking for, what they’re looking for might be different than what you’re looking for, is what I would say. And the other thing I would also add is just don’t make it complicated. You know, you’ve got to be straight. I have to. I have gone the route of complicated pitches, and when it’s complicated and people don’t understand, they don’t want to give you the money. So it’s very easy to say, you know, the good thing about debt ithat s it’s straightforward. How do you make it structured, red, and how is it safe for the investor? If you go into like a different level of misunderstanding that they don’t understand, they’re not going to give you the money, ey is really the answer.
Glenn Yaney [00:27:05]:
If they’re confused, they’re not doing it. Just don’t expect use.
Jay Conner [00:27:09]:
Mind does not take action.
Glenn Yaney [00:27:10]:
Exactly. Exactly.
Jay Conner [00:27:12]:
Well, since you mentioned my book, for those listening, you can pick up a free copy of my book, Where to Get the Money. Now. Just cover shipping and handling at www.jconner.com forward slash book. That’s J-A-Y-C-O-N-N-E-R.com forward slash book. Well, Glenn, this has been pure gold. The experiences and stories you’ve been able to share. You’ve shown that raising private money is not about luck. It’s about trust, it’s about systems, and it’s about doing the work.
Jay Conner [00:27:44]:
Glenn, thank you so much for breaking all this down. And how can people get in contact with you and continue the conversation with you?
Glenn Yaney [00:27:52]:
I have two places where my podcast is the Millionaire Journey podcast. We have lots of real estate operators on there. They’re usually a little bit higher than my level, wise. So I like to find people who are doing more than me to learn from. That’s why I get them on my podcast. And then I am also on LinkedIn, which is Glenn Yaney and LinkedIn.
Jay Conner [00:28:19]:
Nice, nice, Glenn. Thank you so much, and God bless you.
Glenn Yaney [00:28:23]:
All right, thank you.
Jay Conner [00:28:25]:
Well, folks, let’s be real. Most investors think raising private money is about asking. But what I do and what Glenn has shown us it’s not about asking. It’s about attracting, offering an opportunity instead of pitching. It’s about building trust. And Glenn said it a hundred times: communication, communicating clearly, and creating deals that make sense for everyone involved. That’s how you go from chasing money to having money chase you. Focus on getting the money lined up first.
Jay Conner [00:28:57]:
There’s always going to be deals. So if you’ve been waiting for the right time to raise private money, stop waiting. Start applying what you just heard today. Because the truth is, money is not the problem. In fact, there’s more money than there are deals. It’s belief and action that may be holding you back. Thank you for joining me here on the show, Raising Private Money with Jay Connor. I’m the private money authority, and I really appreciate likes and shares.
Jay Conner [00:29:25]:
Think of one person in your world that this episode would make a difference for, and please share it with them if you’re listening on this iTunes platform and et on. Be sure to follow me. I look forward to seeing you right here on the next episode of Raising Private Money.
Narrator [00:29:44]:
Are you feeling inspired by the knowledge you gained in this episode? Then head over to www.JayConner.com/MoneyGui,de that’s www.JayConner.com/MoneyGui,de and download your free guide that shares seven 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.
If you’re a real estate investor, entrepreneur, or simply someone looking to take your business to the next level, you’ve likely encountered one common hurdle: access to funding. The latest episode, featuring Jay Conner and Kenner French, dives deep into an innovative approach that has been helping investors scale their portfolios for years—raising private money without ever directly asking for it.
Jay Conner, recognized in the industry as “The Private Money Authority,” shared the actionable, real-life steps that have powered his own success since 2009 and transformed the investment businesses of countless others. He emphasizes that this isn’t a theory—it’s a proven strategy honed over years of real estate experience.
Private Money vs. Hard Money: Understanding the Difference
One of the biggest takeaways from the episode is Jay’s distinction between hard money and private money. As Jay notes:
“Private money has had more of an impact…in my real estate investing career ever since 2009 when I started doing it beyond anything else that I’ve done.”
Hard money lending typically involves strict terms, high interest rates (often between 12% and 14%), origination fees, appraisals, and a limited timeframe to repay the loan. By contrast, private money is all about building one-on-one relationships with individuals—often from your own network. These lenders provide funds from their investment capital or retirement accounts, allowing the real estate entrepreneur to set the terms, interest rates (often as low as 8%), and loan period (usually multiple years).
The Mindset Shift: From Borrower to Teacher
A recurring theme throughout Jay’s approach is the importance of mindset. Most people think the person with the money makes the rules, but Jay flips the script.
He urges investors to:
“Take on the mindset of having a servant’s heart and put on your teacher hat.”
Rather than begging or selling, you develop a program, become the “private money teacher,” and share opportunities with potential lenders in your network.
This isn’t about joint ventures or giving away equity. The private lender becomes, in essence, a bank, collateralized not through ownership but through promissory notes and deeds of trust.
Five Steps to Raise Private Money
Jay outlines a simple, replicable five-step process:
Make Your List: Identify the top prospects in your own network—people in your contacts, at church, or on your email list.
Opening Conversation Script: Use direct or indirect methods (which Jay expands on in his conference) that don’t involve asking for money, but instead spark curiosity and invite questions.
Stress-Free Investing Audio: Jay records a short audio to introduce people to the concept of private money, raising questions without pitching the opportunity directly.
One-on-One or Group Presentation: Teach the program, share success stories, outline terms, and explain the safety and profitability of private lending.
Verbal Pledge: Secure a verbal commitment about how much a prospective lender can offer, without pressure or paperwork at this point.
Why Private Money Works—for Both Sides
There are a wealth of reasons why investors prefer private money: no credit checks, no income verification, no personal guarantees, fast closings, and the ability to bring home fast cash and fund unlimited deals. For private lenders, their investment is safely collateralized, they earn far more than a CD or savings account, and if structured correctly, even their retirement funds can be leveraged through self-directed IRAs for tax-advantaged gains.
Ready to Learn More?
Jay Conner’s methods have changed lives, as highlighted by success stories like Crystal Baker and the Carmadelles, who went from working grueling hours to financial independence thanks to his system. Want to dig deeper? The upcoming Private Money Conference (October 8–10 in Atlantic Beach, NC) offers invaluable networking with Jay’s personal lenders, in-depth sessions, and the chance to learn all the steps in person.
Whether you’re starting or ready to scale your investments, Jay Conner’s strategy offers a fresh perspective on raising money—centered on service, education, and building lasting relationships.
Are you ready to unlock the power of private money? Don’t miss the chance to attend the Private Money Conference and connect with industry leaders who can help you transform your real estate business.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Jay Conner emphasizes raising private money “without ever asking for money.” What do you think are the key elements that make this approach effective, and how does it differ from traditional fundraising methods in real estate?
Jay talks about having a “servant’s heart” and putting on a “teacher hat” when approaching potential private lenders. Why do you think mindset and approach matter so much in real estate investing, especially in building relationships with investors?
The episode discusses a pivotal moment in 2009 when Jay’s line of credit was suddenly closed by his bank. How did this challenge redefine his business strategy, and what can listeners learn about overcoming setbacks from his story?
Private money vs. hard money: Jay lists several differences, including approval processes, interest rates, and loan terms. Which differences do you think make private money more attractive to investors, and are there any potential downsides?
Jay outlines three categories of private lenders: your own connections, expanded warm market, and existing private lenders nationwide. Which category would you feel most comfortable starting with, and why?
The episode mentions leveraging self-directed IRAs as a source of private money. What are the benefits and risks of using retirement funds for real estate investing, both for investors and lenders?
Jay claims you should always be able to “bring home a big check” when purchasing with private money, as long as you’re buying right. How feasible is this strategy in today’s market, and what safeguards should new investors put in place?
Kenner French points out that a lot of the audience are commercial property investors. How transferable do you think Jay’s strategies are to the commercial real estate space, and what adjustments might be necessary?
The episode features real success stories from Jay’s private money conference attendees. What qualities or actions do you think set these successful investors apart from those who struggle to raise funds?
Jay talks about the role of networking and building a strong team in scaling his real estate business. In your experience or observation, how important is team-building compared to capital-raising in the success of a real estate investment business?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner raised over $2,150,000 in private money in less than 90 days after being cut off from traditional bank financing in 2009. He did this by leveraging relationships and a unique approach of teaching others about private money—rather than begging or chasing investors.
Jay’s approach to private money allows real estate investors to bring home a big check when buying a property—sometimes even three big checks per deal! He teaches how to structure deals so investors get paid upfront, during, and after a real estate transaction, often without using any of their own money.
At Jay Conner’s Private Money Conference, attendees get to meet actual private lenders in person and even go on a rehab renovation bus tour to see real properties and learn directly from Jay’s dream team, including his real estate attorney, realtor, interior designer, and project manager.
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.
From Bank Rejection to Millions: The Private Money Transformation
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
What I’m going to share in this presentation is called How to raise private money without ever asking for money. And what I want to share in this presentation, Kenner, with your subscribers to your community is actual, real-life life actionable items that work. It’s working today. It’s been working for a very, very long time, nd of course, I tweak it and change it as we go along. But I’m only going to share the steps as to how to do this, as to what has actually really worked for me and really works for my community members as well.
Narrator [00:00:38]:
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 to raise 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.
Kenner French [00:01:09]:
Hey there. Kenneth French, with a vast voice, tells business secrets to entrepreneurs. We’re very, very happy you stopped by. Either you’re going to watch this or listen to this because you want to take your business to the next level. You’re probably an entrepreneur who’s either just starting or you’ve been around for quite a while, nd you want to take your business to the next level. You’re probably a real estate investor, maybe even a real estate agent, maybe a professional or some sort t professional advisor of some sort. And well, you are stopping by because you need some valuable advice from one of the top industry leaders there is. Anyway, thank you very much once again, Kenneth French, vast voice telling business secrets to entrepreneurs.
Kenner French [00:01:45]:
Really glad you stopped by, Mr. or Mrs. Real Estate Entrepreneur. Are you looking for money for real estate? Jake Conner is your man. Jay, I’m so glad we’re chatting about this because this is going to put money in real estate in real estate investors’ pockets. That’s why you’re here. Thanks for being here.
Jay Conner [00:02:02]:
Absolutely. Kenner, thank you so much for inviting me to come along and talk about the topic that I’m so excited about and I’m so passionate about, that being private money to fund real estate deals. And the reason I’m so passionate about it is because private money has had more of an impact, made more of a difference in my real estate investing career ever since 20,9 when I started doing it beyond anything else that I’ve done.
Kenner French [00:02:30]:
You know, I’ve talked to a couple of your clientssactually, this guy named Ron Legrand, who’s kind of a Famous investor. And he was talking about how good you are in the marketplace, helping people get money. And really, that’s what real estate is about, is, well, hopefully amassing as much real estate and potentially using other people’s money to amass a fortune, and who knows, maybe even provide money for future generations. I think it’s unbelievable what you’ve done. I can say without a doubt that I know enough people who know you. You’re the real deal with respect to real estate.
Jay Conner [00:03:00]:
Well, I appreciate that, Kenner. Yeah, what I’m going to share in this presentation is called How to Raise Private Money Without Ever Asking for Money. And what I want to share in this presentation, Kenner, to your subscribers to your community is actual, real-life, real-life, life actionable items. That works. It’s working today. It’s been working for a very, very long time. And of course, I tweak it and change it as we go along. But I’m only going to share the steps as to how to do this, as to what actually really worked for me and really works for my community members as well.
Kenner French [00:03:40]:
Yeah, that’s, that’s exactly what I’m going to ask of. And you know, as you know, most of our people, real estate investors, they’re entrepreneurs, really for the most part. They are, you know, trying to get their business and real estate business or whatever, you know, real estate investing business to kind of the next level. Maybe they’re, you know, they have a net worth of a million or maybe even, probably even higher, and they want to, you know, get a bigger portfolio, and they don’t want to have to ask or beg people for money. And that’s why I think you’re here. So why don’t we get right to it? I’d love to see your presentation. I’m going to ask a bunch of questions.
Kenner French [00:04:10]:
You know me, I’m an inquisitive guy, and by the way, my name is Kenneth French with Fast Solutions group dot com. We have podcasts, we have several things out there that are for added value elements for real estate investors, and this is one of them. So please go ahead, share what you have and help the audience, the viewers, the listeners, to, well, take their business to the next level.
Jay Conner [00:04:28]:
Awesome. Well, Kenner, I am not the technological greasy monkey, if you know what I mean. So, if you will let me know here in just a moment if I am sharing my entire screen. I will.
Kenner French [00:04:44]:
Looks like you’re moving forward. Looks like you are sharing your screen. No, oh, she, your whole screen. And now we see, ah, we see your presentation, how to raise private money without asking for money, by none other than Jay Conner.
Jay Conner [00:04:57]:
Thank you, Kenner. Well, I’m gonna go ahead and jump in again, Kenner, interrupt me anywhere, you know, along the way here. And just for everyone that is watching and listening to this presentation, this content, I’m going to cover a lot of content, step by step, actionable items. And I’m going to anticipate we’re going to go probably about 50 minutes or so, which will leave plenty of time for us to be done in less than an hour after Kenner, you know, asks me any clarifying questions. And Kenner, by the way, if you have that compelling comment or question, as I’m going through this presentation, feel free to interrupt me at any time. Okay, I will.
Kenner French [00:05:38]:
Thank you very much. Because I think I’m going to try to represent myself just like I would if I were an audience member and ask questions. And. And by the way, you’re not getting paid for this. I’m not getting paid for this. This is truly to add value to the listeners and viewers out there. So again, without further ado, please go ahead.
Jay Conner [00:05:53]:
All right, well, here we go. So hopefully, as you are watching and listening to this presentation, you are aware that you can write notes. So wherever you’re taking your notes, go ahead and write down the title of this presentation, How to raise private money without asking for money. And you can put my name down there as well, Jay Conner. And I’m an er not an or J a y c o n n e R. And we’ll go ahead and dive right in. But before we do, I just want to go ahead and let you know, for those of you who are listening in and watching, that this has got nothing to do with hard money. And by the way, some of my best friends on the planet are hard money lenders, and they’ve actually used my techniques that I’m going to share with you here in this presentation to raise private money from private investors to invest in their hard money fund.
Jay Conner [00:06:45]:
So in no way am I, you know, talking down about hard money lenders. But when we talk about private money, what we’re talking about is doing business with individuals just like you and e and Kennewhot is loaning money, investing in your deals. They’re loaning money on your deals either from their investment capital or their retirement funds. So I just want to give you that background right there, which you’re going to be doing business with individuals. So I’m going to show you in this presentation, first of all, how to never miss out on any deal due to a lack of money. I’m going to show you the exact steps that you need to attract unlimited funding for your real estate deals. Now, when I say the word attract, that’s a very, very important word. Because in this world of getting private money and funding for your real estate deals, this has got nothing to do with begging or chasing or selling or trying to persuade or talk anybody into loaning you money.
Jay Conner [00:07:47]:
In fact, you’re going to learn here in a moment exactly how I go about attracting private money without ever asking anybody for money. I’m going to share with you here, step by step, the five steps on how to raise private money. First of all, from your own connections. I’m also going to show you how to attract funding from three different sources. So the question is, what are the different categories of private lenders, and where do you find these private lenders to fund your deals? I’m going to share that with you in this presentation. I’m also going to show you how to locate over 12,000 new private lenders every month that are from all across the nation. Well, what am I talking about there? Well, we have this proprietary software that’s called the private lender data feed. We update it every month,,h and we actually get every private lender closing information in the nation.
Jay Conner [00:08:49]:
With the private lender’s contact information, we get the interest rate that they are being paid. And so that’s a whole other category right there of where you find private lenders. And I’m going to show you the five steps that I did that still work today, as to how I raised $2,150,000 in new private money in less than 90 days after I was cut off from the banks. Now, I’m also going to teach you the following three things. I’m going to teach you in this presentation how to buy properties without using any of your own money. In fact, it gets better than that. I’m going to show you in this presentation how to always bring home a big check when you buy a property without ever taking any of your own money to the closing table. Here’s the question.
Jay Conner [00:09:46]:
Who wants to get paid to buy properties?
Kenner French [00:09:50]:
Right here. Kenner does.
Jay Conner [00:09:52]:
Kenner wants to get paid to buy properties. So I mean, not only in this world of raising private money and using private money for your real estate deals, you never have to take any of your own money to the closing table. All of these deals are essentially no down payment deals, and you’re going to bring A big check when you buy the property, and you’re going to get multiple checks. I’m going to show you here how to get as many as three big checks on every transaction that you do when you’re using private money. And I’m going to show you how to get all of your rehab money up front if a renovation is involved. Now, I’ll say this again during the presentation, but it’s so important, I want to say it right here. Private money is not only for rehabbing and renovations. Private money you’re going to use whenever the seller, and I don’t care if the seller is an institution, a bank owned property, or if the seller is a for sale by owner off market property, you’re going to use private money when the seller requires all the cash.
Jay Conner [00:11:04]:
We’ll dig into that a little bit deeper. Now in case, in case you have to jump off early from this presentation, I don’t want you to miss out because you are in Kenner French’s world and in his community. You are going to get a big gift right here. You’re being invited to the private money conference. To the private money conference. And as you can see here on the PowerPoint, it’s October 8th, 9th, and 10th right here in eastern North Carolina. This private money conference is not another event like it on the planet. The tickets for a person and a guest are typically and normally $2,997.
Jay Conner [00:11:47]:
And because you are here with Kenner French, you get to come for a measly $97 registration fee. So I’ll talk more about the live event at the end of this presentation. But in case you have to jump off early, go ahead and take a picture right now of that QR code. In fact, take a picture of this entire PowerPoint slide. You got the URL down there at the bottom. Go.jConner.com vast v a s T and we’ll talk more about it at the end of this presentation. But I didn’t want anybody to miss out on this in case you had to jump off early.
Kenner French [00:12:26]:
And by the way, thank you. That’s a big event. I’ve heard some of your events are, you know, they’re truly adding value to the audience. So I do appreciate you doing that. And I’m gonna, I’m gonna drive something home. That’s a big benefit for you people who are out there. Again, there’s. He’s not getting paid for this.
Kenner French [00:12:39]:
I’m not getting paid for this. This is, is a truly of value. There’s a lot of value that Jay brings to the table, hence the reason he’s here. And so please do look into that. Take a picture of the screenshot, I think it’ll make of that screen. I think it’ll. It’ll truly add some value to you because I’ve heard so many good things about, you know, what Jay brings to the table. I mean, who wouldn’t want money, money for closing on a piece of real estate, whose hopefully that real estate is going to, you know, grow in value, etcetera, etcetera.
Kenner French [00:13:07]:
This is a big deal. Thank you very much, Jay, for this.
Jay Conner [00:13:10]:
Oh, well, thank you, Kenner. And yeah, I mean, at this event, I don’t know another event like I.. I’ve got private lenders, my personal private lenders, at the event for you to network with. And of course, we talk a lot at the event about how to raise private money. And. But anyway, I’ll give you more details. But then again, as Kenner just said, be sure to take a picture of that slide right there so you don’t miss out. So who in the world is Jay Conne, and how am I qualified to talk about private money other than Kenner? French told you so. Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:13:46]:
So anyway, here’s how I got involved in private money. So my wife Carol Joy and I started investing in single-family houses here in eastern North Carolina all the way back in 2003. That far back? Well, from 2003 until January of 2009, Kenner, the only thing that I knew to do to get my real estate deals funded was to go to the local bank, apply for a mortgage, or go to the. Go to a mortgage company, apply for a mortgage. And the banker always made me pull up my skirt so they could look at my personal assets and pull, you know, get my financial statement, pull my credit score, all that jazz. And so that was institutional money. And you know, they always had to pull an appraisal. It would normally take about four weeks to close and all that kind of stuff.
Jay Conner [00:14:40]:
It was traditional funding. Well, that worked out okay for the first six years from 2003 to January 2009. And then in January 2009, I was sitting right here at my desk, and I had two houses under contract to fund. So I call up my banker, which I’d done many times for six years. I called up my banker, whose name was Steve, and Steve and I had a little chat, and I told Steve about these two houses that I have under contract to close on. And I immediately learned from Steve, just like that. That my line of credit had been closed with no notice to me, mind you. And I said to Steve, I What in the world are you saying that my line of credit’s been closed? Why? We’ve had a great business relationship here for six years.
Jay Conner [00:15:38]:
Always made my payments on time. My credit score is 800. Why are you shutting down my line of credit? And Steve said, Jay, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? I said no, but you just gave me a financial crisis.
Kenner French [00:15:57]:
I don’t.
Jay Conner [00:15:58]:
I don’t have a way to fund these two deals. And Steve said, Well, Jay, we’re not loaning money out to real estate investors anymore. Sorry. So I hung up the phone, and I sat here for a moment. And Kenner, I want to share with you and your audience A very powerful question that I asked myself. In fact, the answer to this question that I’m going to share totally changed the trajectory of my real estate investing business. In fact, this. The answer to this question will help fix any problem that anybody’s got going on in their life.
Jay Conner [00:16:37]:
By the way. By the way, Kenner, these people running around saying, Oh, every problem is an opportunity. I want to throw up and be like the Kool-Aid guy who runs into the brick wall on TV. Listen, I didn’t have an opportunity. I had a problem. Let’s face the fact now, did that problem become an opportunity? Absolutely. But at that moment in time, I had a problem. Well, here’s the question that I asked myself.
Jay Conner [00:17:03]:
You know, the power is in asking the right questions. And here’s the question I asked myself. I said, Jay, who? And there it is. It’s not how, it’s who. I said, Jay, who do you know they can help fix your problem? And you know what’s funny, Kenner, immediately when I asked myself that question, I immediately thought of Jeff Blankenship. Well, who was Jeff Blankenship? A dear friend of mine. And Carol Joyce, still to this day, very, very close friend.
Jay Conner [00:17:35]:
Well, at the time, in January of 2009, Jeff was living in Greensboro, North Carolina, and he was investing in single-family houses. So I called up Jeff. I told him what had just happened, and the conversation I had with my banker, and getting cut off at the bank. And, you know, Jeff said, Well, Jay, welcome to the club. And I said, What club is that? I’m not sure I want to be a member of this club. He said, Well, that’s. This is the club of getting cut off from the bank. He says, My bank cut me off last week.
Jay Conner [00:18:07]:
I said, Well, Jeff, I said, how are you going to fund your real estate deals? He says, Well, have you ever heard of private money? I said, No. He said, Have you ever heard of self-directed IRAs and how individuals can move retirement funds that they have over to a self-directed IRA company with no tax effect, no penalty, and then the interest that we pay them on them funding our deals is either tax-free or tax-deferred to them. I said, Jeff, I don’t have a clue what in the world you’re talking about. I said, What is private money? He says, well, there’s. He said, There’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron LeGrand. And I said, Well, who’s Ron Legrand? He said, Well, I don’t know. And I said, well, what’s private money? Jeff says, Jay, I told you, I don’t know. But Ron Legrand says, we can get a lot of it really, really fast.
Kenner French [00:19:08]:
That’s crazy because I mentioned Ron Legrand speaking of you earlier. So this is really cool. Keep going. I like this.
Jay Conner [00:19:14]:
Yeah. So, Jeff and I, along with Jeff, went to my very first real estate investing conference. I’d already been in this business for six years, so I went to Ron Legrand’s event to learn about private money. Not it. Not knowing what in the world it was. Well, Kenner, I came back home here to Morehead City. I put my program together, my opportunity that I was going to offer to potential private lenders. And you know, I was blessed and able to raise $2,150,000 in less than 90 days of starting to share this private money opportunity with people in my own network.
Jay Conner [00:19:55]:
So let’s stop right here. I want to make a point. People ask me all the time about real estate investors who haven’t raised any private money or much. They’ll say, Jay, what’s the first thing that I need to do to start raising private money? And here’s the answer. Do exactly what I did. And that is owning the real estate between your ears. Now what in the world do I mean by that? Here’s what I mean by owning the real estate between your ears. Take on the mindset of having a servant’s heart and put on your teacher hat.
Jay Conner [00:20:34]:
Put on your teacher hat now. My teacher hat says private money. Teacher. Now what in the world does this mean, and where am I coming from? The first thing I did, other than getting the right mindset, was I put my program together as to my opportunity, and I was first going to share, and I did first share my private money opportunity with my own connections, people that I go to church with, people that are in my cell phone, etc. So I want to stop right here, slow down. I want everybody to understand exactly where I’m coming from, right here in what I’m saying. You see, the traditional way to borrow money, which is what I did for the first six years in this business, the traditional way to borrow money is to go to the local bank or to a mortgage lender or to a hard money lender and apply and get your credit pulled. And the traditional way to borrow money is that the lender makes the rules.
Jay Conner [00:21:43]:
That’s the traditional way. The traditional thinking is that 99.9999% of people walking around think that he or she who has the money makes the rules. Right. That’s, ‘s what we’re conditioned to think all these years. The traditional way to borrow money is that the lender is the underwriter. They put the terms together, they decide what the interest rate is, they decide the frequency of payments, and they decide the maximum loan-to-value. Well, here’s where we have to stop right here. Because what I did is I put together this way of raising private Money that is 180 degrees different, opposite direction from the traditional way of borrowing money.
Jay Conner [00:22:33]:
And here’s what I mean by that. First of all, in this way of raising private money, there are no applications. You’re already approved.
Kenner French [00:22:43]:
There’s magic in that. There’s total magic in that. Because who. I mean, obviously, if you have a chunk of money and you’re a bank or whatever, you want to make sure that your money’s well taken care of. But if you’re truly making it the way you are making it, so you’re already approved, that’s 90% of the battle.
Jay Conner [00:23:01]:
You’re already approved. You are your own underwriter, and you are going to set the interest rate, you’re going to set the maximum loan-to-value. And you know what I say, just sort of duplicate what I offer and the program that I’ve put together at the upcoming live event, the Private Money Conference, I’m going to spend an entire session, the morning of the first day, teaching you exactly what it is for you to offer and to teach to potential private lenders. So that’s the first thing that we have to get straight in our minds. No chasing, no begging, no selling, no asking. You’re leading with being a teacher and exposure to people in the first category of private lenders. That’s your own connections. So what did I do?
Jay Conner [00:23:49]:
In fact I’ll, I’ll share right here. No, I’ll hold off on that for later in the presentation at the end. I like that.
Kenner French [00:23:57]:
Very cool.
Jay Conner [00:23:58]:
I’ll share. I’ll wait till a bit later, but I’m going to share with you exactly how I got my very first five hundred thousand dollar private lender after putting my program together to share and teach. So this is the main thing to get right here. There’s no chasing, no begging. You’ve got your program put together that you’re going to teach and offer to people, and then, without asking, you know, you’re going to expose them to self-directed IRAs and how that works. So we want to make sure we’ve got this mind shift. Different right than borrowing traditional money. So who’s a private lender? It’s an individual human being, just like you or me or Kenner, that loans money to real estate investors from either their investment capital or their retirement accounts.
Jay Conner [00:24:46]:
In fact, there are other areas where they can get money to loan you money on your real estate deals that I’ll share with you here in a few minutes. So private money or private lending is simply a one-on-one transaction with no middle person involved. You see, that’s why in this world of private money, you never pay origination fees, you never pay points because there’s no middle person involved. So I’m not talking in this world of private money, I’m not talking about doing business with a joint venture partner. You know, the old business model is okay; somebody puts up the money. Then we, as the real estate investor, do the work; we, you know, do our marketing, we negotiate deals, and then at the end of that deal, you’re sharing the profits. That’s not, that is not this world, okay? The joint, the private lender, writes this down. If you’re taking notes.
Jay Conner [00:25:44]:
The private lender is the bank, okay? It’s your land trust, it’s your LLC. Whatever entity you are buying real estate from, you are the owner of the property. The private lender has no percentage ownership or whatever. So we’re going to protect the private lender the same way that a bank or a mortgage company, or a hard money lender would be protected. And I’m going to show you here a little bit later on here in the next few minutes how we actually protect our private lenders. We’re not talking hard money here, as I mentioned when we started. So what are some of the big differences between hard money and private money? Well, one or two big differences. We’ve already said you’re doing, you’re not borrowing institutional money, you’re doing business directly with another individual or individuals.
Jay Conner [00:26:39]:
You can have more than one private lender funding the same real estate deal. Secondly, I already mentioned a big difference. Hard money lender makes the rules, they set the terms, they’re the underwriter. We and this pro. In this way of doing business, you are your own underwriter. You are already approved. So here are some of the big differences as far as money goes. A hard money lender is going to charge right now anywhere from 12% to 14% depending on your experience.
Jay Conner [00:27:09]:
Private money, 8%, no points.
Kenner French [00:27:14]:
8% is that, that’s on an ongoing basis, meaning pretty much whenever we’re talking about it, it’s going to be 88%.
Jay Conner [00:27:22]:
Yes. Kenner, from January of 2009 until right now, here today, I’ve been paying my private lenders 8%. And you know, one question that I get commonly, Kenner, is people will say, Jay, how in the world are you still paying your private lenders 8% when the market rates have gone up tremendously, particularly, you know, the past five years? Well, here’s the answer. Remember who makes the rules. The market has nothing to do with how much we’re paying our private lenders. So first of all, we make the rules, we’re offering the opportunity. But secondly, what we do is we compare what we’re paying in private lender interest, 8% to what an individual can get in a certificate of deposit or savings account at the local bank. Okay, so you know, savings accounts right now are less than 1%.
Jay Conner [00:28:19]:
You can get a seven-month certificate of deposit for 3%. Well, 8% is a whole lot more money than 3%. Right. So the interest rate is very, very different. Here’s another big difference: the length of the note. In this world of private money, there’s no hurry to pay the loan back. A hard money lender, the typical length of the note is either going to be six months or nine months, maybe sometimes 12 months. Well, my notes with my private lenders are either two years or five years.
Jay Conner [00:28:54]:
Now I’m typically not going to use the money that long on a deal, but there’s no hurry to pay the money back. In this world of private money. Here’s a huge difference. I’m sorry, Kenner.
Kenner French [00:29:07]:
No, I mean, I like this, this is, this is exactly what I was looking for. I think this is, this is help from, helpful for me as a real estate person. I mean, you’re outlining so many Things that add value to me, I mean, it’s. This is exactly what I was hoping for.
Jay Conner [00:29:19]:
Absolutely. Another big difference between hard money and private money is what we call the advance. The advance. Well, what do I mean by the advance? The advance is how much money the lender, regardless of who the lender is, how much money will the lender advance to you at closing when you purchase the property? Well, hard money lenders are going to typically advance to you somewhere between 65% and 80% of the purchase price, not of the after-repaired value of the purchase price, regardless of how good the deal is. Which means on average, when you’re borrowing hard money or borrowing any kind of institutional money, on average, you’re going to have to bring a 20% down payment to the closing. Guess what? Here in the world of private money, you’re going to get 100% of your purchase price. If there’s renovation or rehab involved, you’re going to get 100% of the renovation cost upfront when you close and purchase. And you should be able to pull out additional equity if you want to.
Jay Conner [00:30:29]:
Now here’s the writer downer, and I’m going to give you the math so you can follow this in just a second. Okay, here’s the writer downer. When you’re paying all cash purchasing a single-family house, when you’re paying all cash with private money, if you cannot bring home a big check when you purchase the property, you are paying too much for the property, period. Now, let me give you an example to write down.
Kenner French [00:30:59]:
I was just about to provide an example because it sounds like it’s really, really good.
Jay Conner [00:31:03]:
Oh, in fact, it sounds like it’s too good to be true is what it sounds like. So let me give you the facts. So I hope you’re taking notes. So I want you to write this down. Let’s say that there is a single-family house. I’m going to use small numbers because it’ll be easy to follow. Okay, let’s say you got an after-repair value house of $200,000. So that’s the after-repair value.
Jay Conner [00:31:27]:
Now I’m going to buy that house when there’s like a $30,000 rehab to it. I’m going to buy that house all day long for no more than 50% of the after-repaired value. Someone bought that house for $100,000. So write down after the repaired value 200,000, Hershey’s price, 100,000, as your purchase price. Now here’s where the magic comes. You can borrow if you do it the way I do. You can borrow up to 75% of the after-repaired value. I didn’t say 75% of the purchase price.
Jay Conner [00:32:06]:
75% of the after-repaired value, where the after-repaired value is $200,000, which means you can borrow $150,000 when you purchase the property. So watch this. You’re closing on the property. You have your private money lender wire $150,000 to the real estate attorney’s trust account. You’re going to buy it for 100,000. So you got 100,000 of that 150,000 going to the seller of the property. Well, watch, that leaves a $50,000 excess cash to close. So in this example, you’re going to bring home a $50,000 check minus a little bit of closing costs when you buy that property.
Jay Conner [00:32:52]:
Now, of course, in this example, you’re going to use the majority of that $50,000 for the renovation that you’re going to do to the property. You’ll still have some money left over that you can use for carrying costs and et cetera. So that’s the magic right there of always bringing home a big check when you buy. Now, what’s another big difference between hard money and private money extension fees? Well, I’ve got a friend who’s a hard money lender. And if you don’t cash out by the time the note comes due within nine months, they will extend your note for another 90 days, but they’re going to charge another 3%, which is called 12% money annualized. Right, right, right. So there are extension fees with hard money lenders, but in the world of private money, there are never any extension fees. So I got.
Jay Conner [00:33:46]:
Hey, KENNER, I got 20 reasons why I love private money. I’ll cover more of those here in just a moment. But I just wanted to make these distinctions, the big distinctions between hard money and private money. Does that make sense, Kenner?
Kenner French [00:34:00]:
Yeah, yeah, it does. I totally see where you’re going with that.
Jay Conner [00:34:03]:
Perfect. So, a private lender is not any kind of institutional money. It’s not a bank. Right. And what does this way of using private money work for? Well, private money works for any kind of real estate, works for single-family homes, works for self-storage, works for land, andorworkssor commercial. But you’re going to structure the deals differently. Now, in my world of using private money, I’ve used private money solely for single-family homes. Right, but it works for commercial properties as well.
Jay Conner [00:34:35]:
If you’re using private money for commercial properties, what you will be doing is raising money for a fund. But in this world of private money for single-family homes, we’re not raising money. You’re not raising money for a fund. You are raising money. Write this down. You are raising money for an asset-backed debt. You’re raising money for an asset-backed debt. Which means we’re going to give our private lenders either a mortgage or a deed of trust to collateralize the promissory note.
Jay Conner [00:35:11]:
That’s why the Securities and Exchange Commission does not regulate what we do in raising private money. If you’re raising private money for a fund, then you’re going to get an SEC attorney to draw up a private placement memorandum, et cetera. So as a result, not only is the SEC not regulating asset-backed debt, but you’re not either. You’re not. You, you, you are not. You don’t have your hands tied to where you can only borrow money from accredited investors. In this world of raising private money, you can raise private money from anybody. In fact, I’ve had two minor children as private who inherited an inheritance from their grandparents.
Jay Conner [00:35:58]:
And so anybody can be a private lender.
Kenner French [00:36:01]:
So let me, let me stop you there for one moment. So a lot of the people who are watching listen to this are commercial property, commercial property investors. We have a lot of people who are in that camp. And I think that this is unique. A lot of the things you’re talking about are not unique to single-family homes, but they’re also very unique in the commercial real estate space. So it’s worth it. If you guys are out there and you’re looking for money for real estate, private money, and Jay’s sourcing of it does make sense in a lot of ways.
Jay Conner [00:36:29]:
Absolutely. If you’re looking for money for commercial properties, all this is the same money. It’s all the same money. We raise it the same way, you’ll raise it the same way again, just the deal is structured differently. So this is not raising money for a fund. When you’re talking about single-family houses. You are going to raise money for a fund in a CA commercial. So every deal stands on its own.
Jay Conner [00:36:56]:
You have a property, then you have one or multiple lenders that are secured by that property. So each private lender’s loan is secured by the individual property. Now, I promised you when I started this presentation that I was going to share with you three different categories of where you find private money. And here they are. You’ve got what we call your existing warm market. Those are your own connections. And I know you know there’s a Direct correlation between the quality of your network and the quantity of your net worth, if you will. Here are the three categories as to where you find private money.
Jay Conner [00:37:40]:
Number one, your own connections that you’ve already got. Number two, I call it your expanded warm market. Well, if you really want to scale your business, I mean, I’ve got 47 private lenders right now. You don’t need 47 private lenders to start. You just need one or two to start. But if you want to scale your business, then you’re going to need to grow your. You’re going to need to grow your network because you will sooner or later run out of your current connections. Now, at the upcoming private money conference, I will spend an entire 90-minute session teaching you how to almost overnight blow up and expand your warm market and your connections.
Jay Conner [00:38:28]:
The third category of where you find private money is existing private lenders. These are individuals who already loan money out to real estate investors. The question is, where do you find those people? Well, don’t go anywhere. Stay tuned. I’m gonna pull the curtain back for you on that in just a moment. Now, I mentioned a few minutes ago, KENNER, I got 20 reasons why I love private money and why it will help you scale your business and grow your business so quickly. I’m not gonna share all 20 reasons, but I’m going to share the big ones right now. And these are in no particular order of priority.
Jay Conner [00:39:08]:
But here are the reasons why you’re going to love private money. Number one, no credit check. Your credit score has absolutely nothing to do with how much private money you can get. Secondly, no income verification. It doesn’t matter if you’re self-employed and you’re an entrepreneur and you can’t verify one dime of income on your tax return. It doesn’t matter. Your income verification has nothing to do whatsoever with how much private money you can use. Thirdly, as we already talked about, no points, no origination fees.
Jay Conner [00:39:47]:
I’ve never paid any points, never paid any origination fees to my private lenders. Fourthly, no appraisals. Well, that should raise your eyebrows right there. No appraisals. You know, when I was borrowing money from institutions and banks and mortgage companies, there was always an appraisal. You know, Kenner, in all these years, I’ve now rehabbed and flipped over 500 houses since using private money. And you know, not one time have I had any of my private lenders. Say, Jay, I want to look at that appraisal before I fund your deal.
Jay Conner [00:40:25]:
Appraisals have nothing to do with it. I’ve already talked about multiple checks, but let me pull the curtain back here. Kenner and share. Where are all the different times you’re going to receive a check when you use private money? Well, yeah. First, check when you buy. I already talked about that. And if you can’t bring home a big check and you’re using all cash to purchase the property, you shouldn’t do the deal. I’m talking in the context of a single-family house or a duplex, triple,x, or quadplex.
Jay Conner [00:40:57]:
No, with the second check, you can get. If you’re selling that house on lease, purchase,se, or rent to own, you can collect a large non-refundable lease option, deposit 10,000, $20,000 if you’re cashing out that, I me, and if you’re selling it that way. And then of course you’ll get another check when you sell the property, cash out. And that would be the difference between what you sell it for and what you still owe your private lender. I already mentioned this, why I love private money. We make the rules. We are our own underwriters. Instead of applying for a mortgage, you are offering the opportunity. The mortgage reset, the interest rate, the length of the note, the maximum loan to value, which, of course, is not the purchase price, but to the after-repaired value.
Jay Conner [00:41:46]:
And here are some big ones right here. Now, folks, there’s no limit to the number of private lenders you can have. No limit?
Kenner French [00:41:55]:
You mean on one deal, what do you mean? Help me understand that. I might like that.
Jay Conner [00:42:00]:
Sure. Well, there’s no limit to the. Well, i either case. So there’s no limit to the number of private lenders you can have doing multiple deals. Right. But you can also have more than one or two private lenders funding the same deal. And here, but, but in the, in the context of single-family homes, I want you to write this down. There’s this thing called total loan-to-value
Jay Conner [00:42:25]:
Total loan to value. So you know, we already mentioned part of our program that we offer to our private lenders is that we’re not going to borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value. Well, that could be split between, for example, two different private lenders. You have one private lender that’s loaning $100,000. You can have another private lender in the second position or junior lane that’s loaning $50,000. Well, you want to add both of those up. 100,000 from the first lender, 50,000 from the second lender, and divide that by the after-repaired value. So you see, in that example, we’re still not going to exceed 75% total loan to value to the after-repaired value.
Jay Conner [00:43:13]:
Does that make sense, Kenner?
Kenner French [00:43:14]:
Yeah, yeah, sorry, I’m writing the notes down.
Jay Conner [00:43:16]:
But yeah, perfect. So there’s no limit. You know, when I was borrowing money from the banks and mortgage companies, there was a limit to the amount of private money that I could borrow. And here’s another big one. Your private lenders do not have to be in the same state where you are doing your real estate. I mean, I’ve got private lenders in 10 different states. You can borrow across state lines. So why is that? The reason you can borrow across state lines is that the commissioner of banks is not regulating us from doing business.
Jay Conner [00:43:52]:
We’re doing business on one, just between us and other individuals. And I mentioned this already, you are not limited to only borrowing from accredited investors. Now you know what’s funny about this, Kenner. As I mentioned, I have 47 private lenders that are loaning money to us on our real estate deals. And probably of those 47 private lenders, probably about 10 of them are accredited investors. But you know what’s funny, Kenner? They don’t even know they are accredited investors because they don’t even know what that is. Yeah, yeah. You see, because not one of my 47 private lenders ever knew or heard of private money or self-directed IRAs until I put on my teacher hat and started exposing them to this world. So why else do I love private money? You can close deals so fast.
Jay Conner [00:44:50]:
I mean, I’m making all of my offers tenor that I own single-family houses that I can close within seven days. And as a result of that, I get more offers accepted. When I was borrowing money from institutions, well, there’s no way I could close that fast. I’m also able to do an unlimited number of deals with private lenders. I mean, I never, I have never missed out on a deal for not having the funding ever since I started using private money. Here’s another big one. Here’s a, here’s another rider downer in this world of private money. No personal guarantees whatsoever.
Jay Conner [00:45:29]:
And you know, when I was borrowing money from institutions, I had to be, I had to be a guarantor in addition to the asset backing it. But here’s something that you may not have heard of if you’re, if you’re tuning in here to this presentation. Did you know that when you have to provide a financial statement to any institution, you’re only required to disclose personally guaranteed debt? Well, check this out. When you’re using private money like this, there are no personal guarantees. So, for all your private money debt, you do not have to disclose that on your financial statement because it’s not personally guaranteed debt. So the question is, you think that’ll make your financial statement look a little bit better? Absolutely. Hey Kenner, I love this next one.
Jay Conner [00:46:24]:
If you’re going to be doing like a flip on a single-family house and you’re only going to be in the deal maybe six months or nine months or something like that, well, guess what, you don’t even have to make any monthly payments to your private lender. You can just let the interest accrue and cash them out and pay their accrued interest when you cash out on that deal. Now stop and think about the cash flow on that deal you got. You go to the closing table, you purchase the property, you bring home a big check, and you make no monthly payments. Do you think that’s going to change your cash flow situation? You know, one question I get a lot of times, Kenner is a real estate investor, they’ll say, Jay, what’s the quickest way to get a lot of cash in my checking account? And I say private money because you’re always going to bring home a big check when you do the deal. No, when are you going to use private money? Well, you don’t need private money. If you’re all you’re doing is wholesaling houses, you don’t need private money, then you’re going to use private money. When the seller, and I don’t care who or what the seller is, institution or for sale by owner, you’re going to use private money when the seller requires all the cash.
Jay Conner [00:47:35]:
So, bank property, short sales, auctions, and you know, over these years, Kenner, I have reviewed thousands of property lead sheets from for sale by owner,s and what I’ve discovered is that only 13% of for sale by owners will sell to me creatively, such as subject to the existing note, seller, financing, whatever. What are the other 87% require all the ca?h. Right. So again, as I said, private money is not just for renovation projects. Private money is for when the seller requires all the cash. Now, I went over a lot of reasons why we want to do business with private lenders, but here are four big reasons why private lenders absolutely love to do business with us. First of all, their investment with us is secure and safe. We are not borrowing unsecured Money, we’re going to secure the promissory note with either a mortgage or deed of trust, collateralize that note, and their investment with us is safe because we’re not going to borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value, therefore giving them a nice big 25% equity cushion.
Jay Conner [00:48:56]:
Secondly, they’re going to earn a whole lot more money than they can in the local certificate of deposit at the local bank. Thirdly, if we’re making monthly payments, which sometimes we do, we’ve got elderly private lenders that need the monthly income to live off of. Well, we make interest-only payments, which makes them more money than principal and interest. Because if we’re making principal and interest payments, we’re paying down the principal loan amount, and they don’t have the full amount invested. It’s a win for us as the borrower because interest-only payments are smaller on cash flow. And we have in the program an opportunity, a way for the private lenders to get their principal loan back early in case they have an emergency. Now, what comes first, the deal or the money? In other words, what should you focus on now, Kenner? I’m going to take a little risk right here. I’m going to take a little risk.
Jay Conner [00:49:53]:
I’m going to ask, I’m going to ask you a question.
Kenner French [00:49:55]:
Okay?
Jay Conner [00:49:56]:
And here’s the question. Have you ever heard the guru on stage or an educator on stage say something to this effect? Oh, just get the deal under contract, and the money will show up. Have you ever heard that?
Kenner French [00:50:14]:
Of course I have. Yes, I have the answer. That is yes.
Jay Conner [00:50:16]:
Or have you ever heard them say something like, Oh, just get the deal under contract because money finds good deals, you ever hear that? Yeah, Kenner, that makes me want to throw up. That’s the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard in my life. It’s like that. Where is the money gonna show up? Is it going like rain out of clouds or whatever philosophy makes? Absolutely. I mean, who wants to be stressed out with a contract? And, you have no idea where the funny is going to come from. Here’s what I do, and here’s what I have done. Look, there’s always going to be deals. There’s always going to be deals.
Jay Conner [00:50:54]:
No,w if you’re raising money for a fund for a commercial project, then that’s a different conversation. You’re obviously lazy. You’re raising money for that particular project. That’s a large project, right? But in the world of single-family houses, you get the money lined up first, and just think about it, how many More offers are you going to make when you’ve got money burning a hole in your pocket? Now, where are you going to get the money from? You’veu got the warm market people you’ve already got an association with. I call it the cold market. Those are existing private lenders. And so I’m going to share right now the five steps, Kenner, as to how to get private money for your deals from your warm market. And I’m going to go into detail on these at the upcoming private money conference.
Jay Conner [00:51:46]:
Here’s step number one. Make your list. Actually, I’m going to have you go through a little exercise at the upcoming private money conference. And within less than 10 minutes, you’re going to have identified what I call your top 44 potential private lenders from your own contacts. I’m telling you, you could have millions of dollars in private money sitting right in your contact list. That’s step number one. Make your list. No, step number two is what I call the opening conversation script.
Jay Conner [00:52:20]:
Now there are two different methods to start a conversation with a potential private lender. Now, due to the lack of time here on this presentation, I’m just going to mention them to you, but at the upcoming private money conference, I’m going to give you the scripting of exactly what to say to a potential private lender that’s in your own contacts. I’m going to teach you at the upcoming conference what I call the direct method, which employs what I call the magic question. And then I’m also going to teach you what I call the indirect method of raising private money without asking for money. I’m actually going to share with you the story of the very first $500,000. And neither of these methods, neither one of them has anything to do with asking for money. Now, step number three on getting private money from your own warm market is what’s called the Stress Free investing audio. Here’s what this is in a nutshell.
Jay Conner [00:53:19]:
When I first started raising private money, all the way back in 2009, I recorded a 16-minute audio that I called Stress Free Investing. And this was back in the day, Kenner, when we actually had CDs. Everybody remembers what a CD was, right?
Kenner French [00:53:36]:
That’s old school right there, buddy.
Jay Conner [00:53:38]:
So we would hand out CDs called Stress Free Investing. Well, now we no longer use CDs. I actually give my community members 1000 business cards with a dedicated QR code that people can hand out while they’re networking. They can actually take their dedicated QR code and put it as part of their email Signature. Well, I have recorded this audio, Kenner, for hundreds of my community members who want to raise private money. And just quickly, for the sake of this presentation. The purpose of this audio is to introduce and expose people in your own connections on your email list. You know, they’re in your cell phone as to what private money is.
Jay Conner [00:54:25]:
But it doesn’t teach the opportunity; it just raises those questions. So step number three actually leads to step number four. And step number four is what we call the one-on-one appointment,o r where we’re actually teaching the program, the opportunity. Now, at the upcoming private money conference, you’re going to actually see the PowerPoint presentation that I use and that my community members use to raise private money. You’re going to learn in this presentation, actuallywhat you teach the interest rate, how they can get their money back in case of an emergency, etc. At the upcoming private money conference, we’re actually going to have a whole session on private money luncheons. How I raised $969,000 at one private money luncheon. And so this step number four, whether you’re doing it just one on one with a, with an individual potential private lender or you’re doing it in a group presentation, you’re going to see this presentation at the upcoming event.
Jay Conner [00:55:34]:
Now, how can you get the word out about the opportunity of your connections getting, you know, loaning you private money? Well, it can be on one, it can be virtual, it can be on Zoom, it can be in groups, and as I just said, it can be in the form of private lender luncheons. It can be webinars. No, step number five in the warm market is where we get what’s called a verbal pledge from your private lenderThere are’s no papers to sign. They simply tell you how much money they’ve got to work with. And if they’ve got retirement funds, then you’ll introduce them to the self-directed IRA rep that I’m going to put you in contact with at the upcoming event. Now, I don’t have time here in this presentation to go over the five steps as to how to raise private money from existing private lenders and how to find these private lenders. But I’m going to cover all five steps at the upcoming private money conference on how you can locate these existing private lenders right in your own backyard.
Jay Conner [00:56:40]:
First things first, you want to have the right mindset. No selling, no begging, no persuading. You want to be a teacher, right? And you want to leave with A servant’s heart. Here’s a writer downer. This is so important. This is an actionable item. Establish a relationship with a self-directed IRA representative. Here’s why.
Jay Conner [00:57:04]:
You see, I mentioned earlier, I got 47 private lenders that are funding our deals. Over half, Kenner, over half of my 47 private lenders are using their retirement funds to fund our deals. So the reason it’s so important to have this relationship in place is so that when you’re talking with a potential private lender and you learn that they have retirement funds and they’re not happy with those retirement funds, well, you can introduce them to the self directed IRA representative that you know that will help them move their funds over to then fund your deals. So at the upcoming private money conference at the event, I’ve got one big session that’s titled How to get your deals funded with self-directed IRAs. And I’m going to be introducing you to the gentleman who’s been my go-to for 7 years now. I get my deals funded in 3 days when I’m using the self-directed IRA for people who have accounts. This is going to be a powerful session, a nd I’ll get you connected with this individual at the private money conference. First things first, you’ve got to know the opportunity that you’re sharing.
Jay Conner [00:58:18]:
Never talk about your opportunity to your private money lenders and have a deal in the initial conversation. Write this down. This is so important. Desperation has got a smell to it. Desperation has got a smell to it. If you’ve got a deal under contract that you need funded and you’re talking about the private money opportunity, you already sound desperate. So, the details of exactly what to teach your new potential private lenders, I’m going to cover that all at the upcoming event on the first day, first session. Now I’m going to briefly mention this before we start wrapping up, and I’m going to give you all that QR code again to the upcoming private money conference.
Jay Conner [00:59:04]:
And of course, Kenner, any questions that you have, I’ll have plenty of time for that. So 30,000 foot view. I’m going to drill down on this at the upcoming event. Where can private lenders get money to fund their deals? Well, obviously, if they’ve got any kind of investment capital in the local bank, they can use that. But how about this here? How about self-directed? How about retirement funds? As I just mentioned, I’m going to teach you at the upcoming live event. And by the way, this is an in person event. I’m going to teach you about the upcoming event, how private lenders can actually leverage home equity lines and get more money to loan to you. That’s called arbitrage.
Jay Conner [00:59:48]:
I’m also going to teach you at the upcoming event how if they have stocks or mutual funds and they don’t want to sell their stocks, how they can leverage portfolio, portfolio revolving accounts, and get more money for you for your deals. I’m also going to teach you, and I don’t have it here on the slide. I’m going to teach you how your private lenders can use a whole life insurance policy to leverage and get you even more money to fund your deals. All that at the upcoming event. No,w of course, all the closings that you do in real estate, you’re going to use your real estate attorney or closing agent to do the closings. They’ll prepare all the paperwork, and of course, you’re going to take care of the closing costs to the attorney. No fees or commissions are charged to your private lenders, and of course, no disbursement of funds until after you close the deal and secure them. Now, the insurance policy, we’re going to name the private lender UL as a mortgagee on the insurance policy as a mortgagee.
Jay Conner [01:00:49]:
That gives them another layer of protection. And you’re going to name your private lender as an additional insured on title policies to protect them as well. You’ll use larger amounts of money for purchasing properties, and smaller amounts for rehabbing, of course. Here are the documents. Now these are the documents you use for single-family houses. You’re going to have a promissory note that lays out the terms. You’ll have a deed of trust or mortgage that collateralizes the note and then the insurance policy. You’ll name your private lender as the mortgagee on the insurance policy, and you’ll name your private lender on the title policy as an additional insured in case there are any title issues down the road.
Jay Conner [01:01:32]:
Well, as I said one more time, Kenner, here is the big event, the private money conference, October 8th, 9th, and 10th right here in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. That QR code will take you to the live event page to give you all the highlights of what’s happening at the live event. Be sure and click on two or three of those attendee reviews. I mean, we got Carly Manino there on the website. They got $900,000 with one phone call right after the event. You’ll see Jonathan Broyles on there that right after the event got $780,000 in private money. And so it’s a three-day event. We actually have a rehab renovation bus tour where we go out in the field, look at properties.
Jay Conner [01:02:23]:
At the event, you’re going to meet my entire dream team and learn how we work together and how you can duplicate the business. You’re going to meet my real estate attorney, Julie Wickeiser, how we work together. You’re going to meet my realtor, who’s been my realtor for 20 years. You’re going to meet Beth Garner, who’s been our interior designer for 20 years on all these properties. You’re going to meet my project manager and see how we work together, and it’s because. And you’ll meet my general contractors as well, and see how we work together. It’s because of this team that I’m able to work in this business less than 10 hours per week and get to enjoy the seven-figure income every year. There’s the QR code.
Jay Conner [01:03:03]:
The URL of course is go.jConner.com v You get to come to this $2,997 event for only a $97 registration fee. I can’t wait to meet you at this event that’s coming up right around the corner. Kenner, I’m going to turn it back to you for any questions or things that we want to clarify.
Kenner French [01:03:26]:
Yeah, this has been helpful. This really has been helpful. Again, you know, I’ve said it a few times, I know people who’ve used you, you know what you’re talking about. It’s not just me, it’s other people. But so let me ask a few questions about kind of the overall, well, just you over. So it seems as though you’re going to be opening up basically the curtain to everything you’ve done over these many years, as far as real estate investing goes. And more importantly, it’s the private money. Your magic potion is the private money.
Kenner French [01:03:56]:
Access to private money, actually access to all the things that you have experienced over these years. But private money, what’s on?, Give me one more example of one person who’s come to you who’s been whatever, down and out, they’re worth whatever, a thousand dollars. And because you’ve supplied your, you know, looking behind the curtain, and now they’re worth x some huge amount of money. Give me one other example just so I can put everything in perspective.
Jay Conner [01:04:21]:
Sure. Well, when you ask that question, I think of Crystal Baker. Crystal came to this live event and she was already making multiple six figures up in the six figures of income per year. She was an occupational therapist, and she oversaw five or maybe six clinics. She was working almost 80 hours a week, had two small children, and she promised herself that she would never take her children to fast food. And so she found herself one night going through the fast food line, and she had the big wake-up call that she had to change something that was going on. So she found her way to the private money conference, and from that private money conference, this, this three-day live event that I’m talking about, within nine months of coming to the event, she had totally retired, gave up a multiple six-figure income. Totally retired because she was working all the time, and retired from that. She now has over $4 million in private money that she uses on various projects that she’s got going on.
Jay Conner [01:05:45]:
She began to start homeschooling her children, and because of coming to this event, it completely changed her life. I’m all, I know you just you asked for one Kenner. But I’m also thinking of Eric and Erica Carmadell, who live in Poplarville, Mississippi. They came as a couple of this event, and he was working for the railroad. Eric had to travel one hour each way twice a day to work for the railroad. In seven months from coming to this event, he retired and quit the railroad, went into full-time real estate investing, and has over $3 million now, about three and a half million in private money that they use on different projects. And you know, you get to reuse this private money over and over and over again without having to go out and continue to raise more money. So you know, we just have so many success stories of people that have come to this live event, and it literally has changed their life and their financial situation, and their personal level of happiness and joy forever.
Kenner French [01:06:53]:
Yeah, that’s, that’s exactly what I was looking for. And thank you. I know it’s a big benefit that you’re supplying such a discount to our people. I really do appreciate that because of this, I believe in what you’re doing. I think real estate, I think it’s one of the best ways to increase net worth and to do it in such a way where you’re not having to ask for money, you’re not having to ask for, you know, money from a bank. I think you’re truly adding value. So I really do appreciate it. I’m going to do a real quick reset right as we’re getting ready to close the doors on this one once again.
Kenner French [01:07:20]:
I’m Kenneth French with vast SolutionsGroup.com, we’re with Jay Conner, who’s helping us to help investors, real estate investors, to, well, increase their net worth without having to ask for money, which I think that’s a very, very powerful thing. So just kind of in closing, Jay, any other thoughts you have? I have a bunch of other questions, by the way, but I’m going to reserve them for the event, October 8th through the 10th. I’m going to be there, by the way, in Atlanta, Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. Any other closing thoughts you have? Otherwise, we’ll just be meeting, you know, in North Carolina later in the fall.
Jay Conner [01:07:51]:
Well, my closing thought would be that you are in Kenner French’s community, and Kenner is coming to the event. Well, there’s the icing on the cake right there. Get this event because you’re going to be hanging around Kenner at the event as well. Again, Kenner, thank you so much for inviting me to come along to share this overview of what this world of private money is all about. And I can’t wait to meet you. For those of you who are watching and listening to this presentation, I can’t wait to meet you at the live event October 8th, 9th and 10th. By the way, the hotel that we have it at is right here, Oceanfront, right on the water. When you register for this event, you’ll have an opportunity to upgrade to vip.
Jay Conner [01:08:36]:
It’s not required, but if you upgrade to vip, then we’re going to be treating you down at the private beach club, the Dunes Club, on Thursday evening of this event. And you’ll have even more opportunity to network with more private lenders. God bless all of y’all. All. Can’t wait to see you in person at the upcoming private money conference. Thank you, Kenner.
Kenner French [01:08:59]:
Once again, he’s Jay Conner. He’s the money man. You like that? The money man. I’m Kenneth French. Basiliconsgroup.com, we’ll be seeing you in North Carolin, a October 8th through the 10th. Thanks, everybody.
Narrator [01:09:18]:
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/MoneyGuid,e, and download your free guide that shares six, seven 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.
Are you a real estate investor frustrated by the limitations of traditional financing? You’re not alone. In the latest episode of the Raising Private Money podcast, Jay Conner shares his transformative journey from relying on banks to harnessing the power of private money—a shift that reshaped his investing career and can do the same for you.
The Asset-Backed Debt Advantage
Jay emphasizes that private money deals in single-family real estate are distinct from syndications regulated by the SEC. What makes them different? They’re structured as “asset-backed debt,” meaning every loan is secured by an individual property—protected by a mortgage or deed of trust.
Jay puts it simply: “We’re not borrowing money unsecured; we’re securing that note with a deed of trust or a mortgage.” This structure opens the door to a wide range of lenders, regardless of accreditation, each with their own promissory note for each property.
There’s also flexibility. Whether you have one property or a portfolio, there’s no limit to the number of private lenders you can work with, nor do your lenders need to meet strict financial requirements. As Jay notes, “All the notes are secured by individual properties,” freeing you from the headaches and restrictions of bank lines of credit.
The Origins of a Private Money Mindset
Jay didn’t always have access to private capital. He started in mobile homes and, for years, funded his deals the traditional way: “Go to the local bank or the mortgage company and fill out applications.” That changed dramatically in 2009 when, during the financial crisis, his bank shut down his line of credit overnight.
Without options, Jay reached out to peers and discovered the world of private lending and self-directed IRAs—a revelation that allowed him to raise over $2 million in new funding, even as markets crashed.
Central to Jay’s success was a mindset shift. He advocates “owning the real estate between your ears,” urging investors to approach private money not as desperate borrowers but as educators who offer opportunities.
Jay became a “private money teacher,” sharing the mechanics and benefits of private lending with people in his network who, more often than not, had never heard of the concept.
The Good News Phone Call: How to Get Your Deals Funded
If you’re wondering how Jay gets his deals funded 100% of the time, it all hinges on transparency and preparation. Before presenting any deal, he educates potential lenders about the program: interest rates (often 8%), terms, collateral, and protections.
He separates teaching about private money from pitching individual properties, insisting, “Desperation has a smell to it. The worst time in the world to be raising private money is when you need it for a deal.”
Once a lender is onboard and prepared—sometimes moving their retirement funds to a self-directed IRA—Jay calls with the “good news”: a deal matches their criteria, here are the numbers, and here’s how to wire the funds. This process builds trust and excitement, ensuring lenders are ready and eager to participate.
Flexibility for Investors and Lenders Alike
One of the most powerful aspects of private lending is that the investor sets the terms. Payments can be monthly, quarterly, or only upon completion, depending on the lender’s objectives.
Jay highlights that elderly lenders seeking income can receive monthly payments, while those using IRA funds may prefer less frequent payouts. When buying property, Jay’s deals often generate enough “excess cash to close” to cover renovation and interest payments.
Where Can You Find Private Lenders?
Jay outlines three categories: your own network (friends, church, coworkers), your extended connections (BNI groups and local business clubs), and existing private lenders—often found via self-directed IRA custodians. Even if investors run out of immediate contacts, expanding the network is always possible.
A True Win-Win Strategy
Jay’s philosophy is clear: offer lenders attractive, secured returns while maintaining strict buying criteria to protect their interests. As he puts it, “let the math make the decision—not your emotions.”
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Jay Conner talks about the concept of “asset-backed debt” in real estate investing. What are the key differences between asset-backed debt and unsecured loans, and why is this distinction important for investors and lenders?
Jay shares his experience of transitioning away from institutional lending after the 2008 financial crisis. How did the global financial crisis reshape options for real estate investors seeking funding, and what lessons can be learned from his story?
The episode describes the mindset shift needed to raise private money. What are some common misconceptions about borrowing money in real estate, and how does Jay’s approach challenge them?
Jay emphasizes the importance of teaching potential private lenders about how the process works before presenting a deal. Why might this approach be more effective than pitching deals directly, and how does it impact trust?
Mattias and Jay discuss using self-directed IRAs for private lending. What opportunities and risks do self-directed IRAs present for individuals looking to diversify into real estate?
Jay mentions paying private lenders differently based on their needs, such as monthly payments versus accrued interest. How can tailoring payment structures attract and retain private lenders?
The podcast reviews the process of bringing home a “big check” when purchasing properties using private money. How does Jay’s strategy minimize personal financial exposure, and what are the implications for newer investors?
Jay states there’s “no limit to the number of private lenders you can have” in asset-backed lending. What advantages and potential pitfalls does this present compared to syndications requiring accredited investors?
Jay and Mattias talk about the ethical responsibility investors have when working with private lenders. Why is ethical conduct and investor protection so crucial in private lending relationships, especially when teaching novices about the process?
Jay recommends mastermind groups and continuous learning as keys to success. How can community and peer groups specifically help real estate investors grow their business and avoid common mistakes?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner raised $2,150,000 in private money in just a few weeks during the 2009 financial crisis—after his bank cut off his line of credit with no notice! (Jay shares how, after being turned away by his bank in 2009, he learned about private money lending and was able to raise over $2 million from individuals who had never lent privately before.)
Jay Conner has 47 private lenders, and most of them had never even heard of private money lending or self-directed IRAs until he introduced them to it. (Jay explains that he puts on his “teacher hat” to share the opportunity of private lending with people in his network, and many of his private lenders didn’t know this kind of investing existed before he approached them.)
Jay’s method allows him to bring home a check when he buys a house—rather than having to bring his own money to the closing table. (By structuring deals so the loan covers both the purchase price and renovation costs, Jay often receives excess cash at closing, which he can use for renovations and even to make interest payments to his lenders.)
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.
Building Wealth With Private Money: Jay Conner’s Guide to Asset-Backed Real Estate Investing
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
Everything we’re doing here is called asset-backed debt. Right. This is not a security in the form or as it relates to syndication. So the SEC is not regulating what we’re doing with single-family houses, with this being an asset-backed out, meaning we’re not borrowing money unsecured, we’re borrowing money, and we’re securing that note with a deed of trust or a mortgage. So everything that we do with single-family houses is called one-offs. You’ve got a property that is being funded by one or two or three, whatever, private lenders. Each one of them has its own promissory note. Each one of them has its own mortgage or deed of trust.
Jay Conner [00:00:53]:
So as a result, there’s no limit to the number of private lenders we can have. They do not have to be accredited. All the notes are secured by individual properties.
Narrator [00:01:05]:
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 to raise private money. We’ll speak with new and seasoned investors to dissect their deals and extract the best tips and tips and strategies to help you get the money. Because the money comes first. Now here’s your host, Jay Conner.
Mattias Clymer [00:01:33]:
Welcome to the REI Agent: A holistic approach to life through Real Estate. I’m Mattias, an agent and investor.
Erica [00:01:39]:
And I’m Erica, a licensed therapist.
Mattias Clymer [00:01:41]:
Join us as we interview guests who also strive to live bold and fulfilled lives through business and real estate investing.
Erica [00:01:47]:
Tune in every week for interviews with real estate agents and investors.
Jay Conner [00:01:51]:
Ready to level up?
Erica [00:01:52]:
Let’s do it foreign.
Mattias Clymer [00:01:57]:
Welcome back to the REI Agent. We are here with Jay Conner. Jay, thanks so much for joining us today.
Jay Conner [00:02:02]:
Matthias, thank you so much for inviting me to come along and talk about what I’m so passionate and excited about, and that is private money. And the reason I’m so excited about private money is that private money alone has had more of an impact on our real estate investing business ever since we started in 2003, more so than any other strategy that we’ve implemented.
Mattias Clymer [00:02:26]:
Yeah, that’s the Holy grail. That’s kind of where people want to get to often in the real estate investing space. Tell us a little bit about how you got started in real estate in 2003.
Jay Conner [00:02:37]:
Well, before single-family houses, and that’s been my focus since 2003, I was raised in the mobile home business, affordable housing, and the financing for that product virtually went away in the early 2000s. So if I knew I knew if I ever got out of mobile homes and manufactured housing, I wanted to get into single-family houses. And so that’s what I did. And from 2003, Mattias, until January of 2009, the only thing I knew to do to get my deals funded is, was to go to the local bank or the mortgage company and fill out applications, and get on my hands and knees and say, Please fund my deal. And the banker makes me pull up my skirt, and I have to show my personal assets and get my credit score pulled and all that jazz. Well, that worked okay the first six years from 2003 to January 2009. But then everything changed. Matthia, in January 2009, I called up my banker.
Jay Conner [00:03:41]:
I had two houses under contract, and I thought I still had a line of credit at the bank. But I learned like that over the telephone that my line of credit had been closed with no notice to me. And my banker’s name was Steve. And I said, Steve, I said, What in the world are you telling me? My bank, my line of credit, is closed? We’ve done a ton of deals, always made my payments on time. He said, Jayy, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? I said no, but you just gave me a financial crisis. I don’t have a way to fund these two deals. And so I hung up the phone with Steve the banker, and I thought for a moment, and I asked myself a very powerful question. I thought to myself and asked myselfWhoho can help me with my problem? And you know, when I asked myself that question, I immediately thought of Jeff Blankenship, a dear friend.
Jay Conner [00:04:36]:
He was living in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the time, and he was flipping houses. And I called up Jeff, and I told him what had just happened. And he said, Well, welcome to the club, Jay. And I said, I’m not sure I want to be a member of that club, but what club are you talking about? He said, Well, that’s the club of having your line of credit closed by your bank. He said they shut me down last week. I said, Well, what in the world? I said, How are you going to fund your deals, Jeff? He said, Well, have you ever heard of private money? I said, nNo He said, Have you ever heard of self-directed IRAs and how individuals can use retirement funds and move those retirement funds to a self-directed IRA company and then lend that money to us? And the money we pay them, the interest we pay them, is either tax-deferred or tax-free. I said, Jeff, I don’t have a clue what in the world you’re talking about.
Jay Conner [00:05:25]:
I said, What is private money? He says, Well, I’m not exactly sure, he said, but there’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron Legrand that says we can get private money. I said, Well, what is it? He says, I don’t know. But Ron says we can get a lot of it really, really fast. So that’s when I went to my first real estate investing seminar in February of 2009. I learned about private money, and I came back, and I was able to raise $2,150,000 in new funding that I didn’t have since being cut off from the bank. And you know, Mattia, since that time, I’ve never missed out on a deal for not having the funding.
Mattias Clymer [00:06:11]:
$2 million in 2009 when the world was crashing.
Jay Conner [00:06:17]:
Yes, yes, that’s impressive.
Mattias Clymer [00:06:19]:
That’s very impressive.
Jay Conner [00:06:20]:
Well, and I wasn’t dealing with institutional money. So you see, all these private lenders I’m talking about, there’s an interesting a few interesting things about them. Number one, they’d never heard of private money. They didn’t know what private money was. They were not already private lenders. They’d never heard of self-directed IRAs. So what did I do? Well, the first thing I did was I put my opportunity together that I was going to offer people, first of all, in my own connections, my own network. So I got my mindset right.
Jay Conner [00:06:56]:
People ask me all the time, Jay, how do you get started raising money? I said, well, the first thing you’ve got to do is own the real estate between your ears. Get your mindset right. So this whole world of private money, Mattias, that we’re talking about, it’s a 180-degree shift from the traditional way people think about borrowing money. Most people think that when you borrow money, whoever’s loaning the money makes the rules. They think that whoever’s got the money to loan is going to set the interest rate, is going to do the underwriting, is going to set the length of the note, and all that. And so this world of private money, we turn that upside down. So we are our own underwriter. Instead of asking for a mortgage, we’re offering an opportunity.
Jay Conner [00:07:43]:
So what did I do? I just went about it. I put on my teacher hat, Matthias. My teacher hat says private money. Teacher, private money, teacher. So I just went about sharing with people. I go to church with people in my own network, and at this water, private money was all about. And showing them how they can earn high rates of return safely and securely. And a big secret sauce to this, Matthias is, is separating conversations with teaching what private money is, to actually having a deal for them to fund. Here’s a writer downer.
Jay Conner [00:08:24]:
Desperation has a smell to it. The worst time in the world to be raising private money is when you need it for a deal. Hey, Matthias, I’m going to ask you a question. Have you ever heard the guru on stage teaching new real estate investors and say something to this effect? Oh, just get the deal under contract, and the money will show up. Yep, that makes me want, I want to be like the Kool-Aid guy on TV and run into a brick wall. That is the most stupid thing I have ever heard in my life. Or they’ll say something to the effect of, Oh, money finds good deals. Well, now come on, you get a deal under contract, is money going to just fall out of the sky and a big old box of money show up on your front doorstep? No.
Jay Conner [00:09:11]:
So I practice and preach, get them, get the money lined up first. There’s always going to be deals. So another big secret sauce to this, Matthias is separating conversations, as I just said, between sharing the opportunity and teaching the opportunity. What kind of rates do I pay, how are they protected, et cetera, and then having a deal for them to fund. So, Matthias, whenever you cue me up here on the show, I will share with your audience the exact script, which I call the good news phone call. The exact script is how I get my deals funded 100% of the time by my private lenders without ever asking or pitching the deal.
Mattias Clymer [00:09:59]:
I love it. I, it must be good because I’m still thinking, I’m still kind of shocked that you were able to raise that much money when the real estate world was, was crumbling. Because I know it’s not institutions, they may not have been lending, but I would imagine there was a mass amount of fear and that it would be harder to convince people into giving their savings, giving their, you know, self directed IRAs to real estate when it felt like the, you know, the world was falling in, in that world, in that realm. So kudos to you. So let’s, let’s go ahead and hear it. I, I’m, I’ve got a bunch of money in my IRA. Tell me, tell me why I should invest with you.
Jay Conner [00:10:36]:
Awesome. Well, let’s do a little setup here and have a couple of hypothetical scenarios. So first of all, Matthias, let’s pretend that you and I have known each other a while. Let’s say we know each other through church and each other one to three Times a week anyway, so we’ve already got the trust in place. You know, we know each other, we like each other, we trust each other. So we’ve known each other for some time. Secondly, let’s hypothetically suppose that you have $150,000 in a 401k. And let’s say that that’s with a previous employer, and it’s still sitting over there in their plan in the stock market.
Jay Conner [00:11:26]:
And you know, it’s volatile, it goes up and down. Let’s also hypothetically suppose that I have shared with you how this program works. You know, I’m gonna pay you 8%. You know, there’s no origination fee. You never even heard of origination fees because you’re not, you haven’t been a private lender, you haven’t been a hard money lender. And let’s also, so you know how the program works. You know I’m not going to borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value. I didn’t say 75% of the purchase price, 75% of the after-repair value.
Jay Conner [00:12:03]:
You know, the length of note is, you know, two years, etc. So you know the program. And so you’ve told me that you’re interested, you’re interested in investing, and you tell me about this $150,000 IRA that you have or 401 (k) at a previous employer. And so let’s also hypothetically suppose I have introduced you already to a self-directed IRA company that I recommend, and you have moved that $150,000 over to the self-directed IRA company with no tax effect, no tax consequences, you just moved it over, and they helped you do that. And that took a couple of weeks. And after you did that, I told you, I said, Matthias, I’m gonna put your money to work for you just as soon as possible. So that’s the setup, that’s where we are so far. And so now I’m gonna call you with the good news, phone call, and here’s the exact script.
Jay Conner [00:13:00]:
So I call you up, we have a little chat, and then here’s exactly what I would say to Matthias. I said, Matthias, I’ve got great news for you. I can now put your money to work. I have a house under contract in Newport, North Carolina. It’s got an after-repair value of $200,000. Now the funding required for this deal matches up to what you have at the self-directed IRA company. $150,000. And closing is going to be Next Tuesday.
Jay Conner [00:13:33]:
So I’ll need you to have your funds wired to my real estate attorney’s trust account by next Monday. I’m going to have my real estate attorney email you the wiring instructions. That’s the end of the conversation. I mean, I mean for goodness’s sakes. I mean. There are three huge reasons why Matthias is excited and can’t wait to fund my deal. The first reason is that he trusted me to move his money over to the self-directed IRA company. He’d never heard of self-directed IRA companies until I told him about them.
Jay Conner [00:14:10]:
And he’d never heard of this private, this world of private money lending until I told him about it. And I told him how the program works. The interest rate, the length of the note, the frequency of payments, and how he’s protected not borrowing unsecured funds. I’m going to give him a deed of trust. Most people call it a mortgage. North Carolina. It’s a deed of trust. I’m going to name him, name him as a mortgagee on the insurance policy.
Jay Conner [00:14:32]:
So Matthias knows all that stuff already. He’s been sitting by the phone waiting for me to give him the good news phone call. So first of all, he trusted me. Secondly, Mattias knows I’m not going to bring a deal to the phone call for him to fund unless it matches the criteria of the program that I already taught him. Did you, did you hear the numbers? I told him the after-repair and value is $200,000, and the funding required for the deal is 150,000. That’s 75% of the after-repair value. And the third reason Matthias is ecstatic to fund my deal is because he’s not making any money until I put his money to work. And so now, because I’m not paying any interest until he’s actually funded a deal.
Jay Conner [00:15:23]:
So those are the three reasons that Matthias is sitting by the phone, ready to fund my deal.
Mattias Clymer [00:15:30]:
That makes sense. Yeah. I mean, is it, is it difficult? I mean, I guess you’d almost have to be able to guarantee a deal fairly quickly because I would imagine somebody wouldn’t want to have their money not earning any interest for months waiting around for something.
Jay Conner [00:15:46]:
Right, exactly. I mean that, that’s one of the first questions a new private lender is going to ask is how fast can you put my money to work? Right. And so of course I tell people, typically with my deal volume it’s, you know, with a new private lender coming in, typically it’s going to be 30 to 60 days before we’ll actually be closing and When I have a new private lender come in, I do what’s called, I move them to the top of the queue because I want to show them. When I say top of the queue, like when I pay off a private lender, then their cash is sitting there ready to go. And of course, it’s just what you said, Matthias. They want their money working, they want their money making money, earning interest. And you and when you cash out and you get ready to pay them off, they don’t want their money back. They’re going to say, can’t you just keep the money? Right, right.
Jay Conner [00:16:39]:
And the answer is no, I can’t keep the money unless I can secure it. And so I do a lot of what’s called substitutions of collateral, where I’m cashing out or selling a single-family house, and I’ve got another house I’m getting ready to close on right away, or I may have equity in another house. And so I’ll just get my attorney to do a loan modification, keep their promissory note open to where they keep earning interest, and then we just change the property that’s collateralizing that note.
Mattias Clymer [00:17:11]:
Okay, and can you put multiple private lenders on one property?
Jay Conner [00:17:17]:
Absolutely. So now what we have is what we call total loan-to-value. So total loan-to-value. So, you know, I don’t borrow more than 75%. And all of my members of my private money community and students, they do the same thing. We’re not borrowing more than 75% of the after-repaired value. So let’s use that same example of the after-repaired value of $200,000. And so in the example we went over, you were my only private lender at 150,000.
Jay Conner [00:17:50]:
Well, with a total loan to value of 75%, I can have one private lender in first position, say at $100,000, and I can have another private lender in a second lien position, say with 50,000. So I’m going to add the 100,000 to the 50,000. That’s a total of 150 divided by 200. After the repair value is still a total loan-to-value of 75% of the after-repaired value.
Mattias Clymer [00:18:19]:
Okay, yeah, that makes sense. And yeah, I was curious too. Now, one of the things that’s beautiful about what you had mentioned this, like you’re making the rules. I mean, this is you’re creating these scenarios and offering them to people. You know, one would expect if they were getting a mortgage that they’d be making monthly payments, but that doesn’t have to be the case in this circumstance. If you’re flipping the house, for example, it could be that they get their payment upon completion, with, you know, totaling up the interest. Are you in this scenario? Are you paying them monthly?
Jay Conner [00:18:55]:
It depends on the private lender and their objectives. So I have some private lenders that are elderly, and they’re not using self, they’re not using IRA funds, they’re using liquid investment capital, and they want the interest that it earns to supplement their income. So if the private lender needs monthly income to supplement their income, then I pay them monthly. That’s fine. I’ve got a lot of private lenders that are using retirement funds, and they move their funds over to the self-directed IRA company that I recommended. And so I’ll pay them either quarterly or semiannually. Some of them don’t care if I’m doing a flip and I’m going to be in and out of that, maybe in nine months or so. Then, as you just said, we can let the interest accrue and not make any payments.
Jay Conner [00:19:48]:
But let’s follow the cash flow on that. Let’s say that I have a private lender and they require and they need monthly payments to supplement their income. Well, let’s stop and think about this. You see, I’m bringing home a big check every time I buy, and it’s going to be a renovation or a rehab. So let’s go back to that scenario of an after-repaired value of $200,000. I’m borrowing up to 150,000. Well, if that home needs a renovation, say 30,000, $35,000, I’ll buy that property all day long for $100,000, 50% of the after-repaired value, because it needs renovation. Well, let’s follow the cash.
Jay Conner [00:20:33]:
$150,000 comes wired into my real estate attorney’s trust account. Most states use a title company. Here in North Carolina, we use real estate attorneys. So the 150,000 is wired to the trust account. Well, $100,000 of that 150 is going to go to the seller of that property. So now what do we have? We have this thing called excess cash to close. And for all of you, all who are real estate agents and realtors, you know what excess cash to close means. That means there’s excess cash sitting in that trust account that’s now going to come to me, the buyer of that property.
Jay Conner [00:21:15]:
So in that scenario, I’m bringing home a $50,000 check, less some closing costs. Now the majority of that check is going to go towards the Renovation. But let’s stop and ask this question. Notice, I do not take any of my own money. The buyer to the closing table. I’m picking up a check. Right? Here’s the question. Who wants to get paid to buy houses? Right.
Jay Conner [00:21:39]:
And so here’s a rider downer and a good double check if you are doing a renovation and a flip, if you can’t bring home a big check when you purchase the property. You’re paying too much for the property.
Mattias Clymer [00:21:55]:
And, you can sometimes get that with the bank. Maybe not a big check, but sometimes you can get, you can get that. I’ve had that a couple a couple times. But it’s a lot harder. And you probably can’t get 75%. They’ll probably be a lot more conservative, just depending on who you’re working with.
Jay Conner [00:22:10]:
That’s right.
Mattias Clymer [00:22:12]:
But yeah, that’s awesome. So like you were saying, $100,000 purchase 30, $35,000 in. So you still have $15,000 there that you’re making interest payments with. If you’re doing it monthly, quarterly, whatever.
Jay Conner [00:22:26]:
That was the point of the story. If I’m making monthly payments to them initially, whose money am I using to make their monthly payments? I like it. I mean, let’s stop and think about this. I buy a property, I take no money to the closing table, I bring home a check, and I use the private lender’s money to make their monthly payments. I mean, it doesn’t get any better than that.
Mattias Clymer [00:22:49]:
And if anybody’s scratching their head, it all makes sense. Thenonce the property is sold.
Jay Conner [00:22:54]:
Right.
Mattias Clymer [00:22:55]:
So then you can pay back their principal in total, like the 150, right?
Jay Conner [00:23:00]:
That’s right. That’s right.
Mattias Clymer [00:23:02]:
So, so there might have been, I don’t, I can’t do the math here quickly, but you know, you might have paid them another 5,000, 3,000, whatever in interest, and then you’ll have that additional 150 back to them. So they will, in turn, get their whole 8% back. It’s just the way the cookie crumbles. You’re able to use their funds to pay that interest until that. Yeah, that you, you realize the, the, the plan overall, I love it. Because you could also refinance. You could put it on a traditional mortgage in theory.
Jay Conner [00:23:35]:
Right.
Mattias Clymer [00:23:35]:
You could do what, called the BRRRR method if you wanted to at that point.
Jay Conner [00:23:39]:
Right.
Mattias Clymer [00:23:40]:
Let’s say the interest rates on a secondary market, you know, the product is going to be less than 8% and it’s 6. Just to throw that out there, you could, in theory, then also put it onto a regular mortgage and then pay them back, and you know, and then have a property that you keep instead of selling it.
Jay Conner [00:24:00]:
That’s correct. And that brings up a good point right there, Matthias. In this world of private money, and remember, I’m not talking about hard money. This is not an institution, this is not institutional money. And by the way, I’m not poo pooing hard money lenders. Some of my best friends are hard money lenders, and they use my techniques to raise more money from their investors to invest in their fund, which they turn around and loan out to real estate investors. So if the math makes sense, you can still do the deal. Of course, sure.
Jay Conner [00:24:30]:
But yeah, you know what’s interesting is I got 47 private lenders and not one of them, not one of them ever heard about private money or self-directed IRAs and this world until I put on my teacher hat and exposed them to them. Which reminds me, Matthias, there are three categories where you can find private lenders. Where are these people? Where are these, where are these private lenders or potential private lenders? Well, the first category is what I call people in your own warm market, your own connections. Where do you go every day, every week, and see the same people, right? So they’re in your cell phone, right? You go to church with them, you play golf, they’re your coworkers, any of those connections. The second category of private lenders is what I call your expanded warm market. Because if you want to scale your business and do multiple deals simultaneously, you’re going to run out of your own contacts sooner or later. So how do you grow your own network very, very quickly? Well, I can tell you one very, very quick way to grow your network is to join your local BNI Business Networking International. I mean, every city and small town has got a B and I, and I have raised millions of dollars by being an active B and I member.
Jay Conner [00:25:55]:
The third category of where you find private lenders is existing private lenders. These are ordinary people just like you and me who are already loaning money out to real estate investors, either using investment capital or using retirement funds. Well, did you know that over 70% of account holders in self-directed IRA companies want to loan you money? They want to be a private lender. They are already a private lender. But there’s one little caveat to that. Instead of putting on your teacher hat, you’re not going to teach those people about private money. They already know what it is. So now you’re going to have a negotiation conversation versus a teacher-student relationship.
Jay Conner [00:26:46]:
And I’d much rather be a teacher than a negotiator. Sure.
Mattias Clymer [00:26:51]:
No, that makes sense. Another thought that comes to mind is in, this is this is different, but anybe, you can help me explain the difference here. But when you get into a syndication and there are private investors in the syndication, limited partners, those all have to meet certain requirements. They typically have to be an accredited investor, and that means that they have a net worth of a million dollars outside of their personal residence, or they make, I think it’s 200,000 personally or 300,000 jointly a year for the past two years.
Jay Conner [00:27:29]:
Yeah, 250.
Mattias Clymer [00:27:31]:
So it doesn’t sound like this; this has the same requirements. It sounds like this is also not a security. And that might be one of the main differences. But can you, can you talk about that a little bit?
Sure. So a syndication, which I don’t do because I’m not in commercial. So typically, if you’re doing a larger project such as apartments, a commercial building, self-storage, any kind of multifamily, etc. Then you’re going to do, as far as raising capital goes, you’re going to do what’s called syndication, or you’re going to syndicate. And what that means is that you’re going to hire a, you’re going to hire an SEC attorney to draw what’s called a private placement memorandum, PPM. And that’s going to be the document that you disclose how your deal works and what the opportunity is. Well, all that is regulated by the SEC. The Securities Exchange Commission regulates all syndication activity in the world of single-family houses, which would also include duplexes, triplexes, and quadplexes.
Jay Conner [00:28:42]:
In this world, we’re not syndicating. So here’s a writer downer. Everything that we’re doing here is called asset-backed debt. Asset-backed debt, right. So this is not a security in the form or as relates to syndication. So the SEC is not regulating what we’re doing with single-family houses, with this being an asset-backed out. Meaning we’re not borrowing money unsecured, we’re borrowing money, and we’re securing that note with a deed of trust or a mortgage. So everything that we do with single-family houses is called one-offs.
Jay Conner [00:29:25]:
You’ve got a property that is being funded by one or two or three, whatever, private lenders. Each one of them has its own promissory note. Each one of them has its own mortgage or deed of trust. So as a result, there’s no Limit to the number of private lenders we can have. They do not have to be accredited. In fact, here’s what’s funny, Matthias. Of my 47 private lenders, I do have some that are accredited. But you know what’s funny? They don’t even know they’re accredited.
Jay Conner [00:29:57]:
They don’t even know what an accredited investor is. Right. I mean, I’ve got some private lenders that have, you know, over a million dollars with me. But, but all the notes are secured by individual properties.
Mattias Clymer [00:30:12]:
Yeah, that makes sense. That’s a key difference there between when you invest in a syndication. Yeah. You’re not going to get that. And so you said there are no limits. So, like I, you could have no limit on the number of investors in a deal if it’s secured. I mean you, I know you already mentioned that it would have to be first, second, and third mortgages. And it sounds like you go in order with how much you invest.
Mattias Clymer [00:30:35]:
So that’s that. There’s no real limit there either. How many people could you have in one deal? I know, it would be a nightmare. And you wouldn’t want 30 people on a $150,000. But.
Jay Conner [00:30:43]:
That’s right. Yeah. I mean, typically on a single-family house, on average, you’re probably not going to have more than one to three private lenders, you know, depending on, you know, depending on how what the after-repaired value is, you know, on that property.
Mattias Clymer [00:31:00]:
Right.
Jay Conner [00:31:01]:
When I said there’s no limit to the number of private lenders you can have, I mean, overall, like, you know, properties. Yeah, multiple properties, you know, I got 47. So, this means there’s no limit to the amount of private money that you can borrow at any given time. And the reason I bring that up is that it’s in contrast to doing business with the local bank or mortgage company, because I had a limit to my line of credit before it was shut down. Right. And so yeah, it was a huge blessing in disguise over time because if the bank had not shut me down, Matthias, odds are you and I would have never met. Sure, sure.
Mattias Clymer [00:31:45]:
It’s. And it is a really different world. So, I have a deal with a, you know, seller financing deal. So basically what we’re talking about, except the person used to own the house and it is just, and it was just so much fun to get creative with the whole process because it was, there were no preset rules. Like, you know, there’s no preset rules. What’s the interest rate going to be? There are no preset rules for the length of the note willre’s a balloon, it’s just all sorts of moving.
Mattias Clymer [00:32:17]:
There are no preset rules about what the down payment would be, all that kind of stuff. Now you, now you teach good principles where you’re not wanting the people to get overleveraged because they could and get their service in hot, hot water. Right. That’s where that 75% rule comes in.
Jay Conner [00:32:30]:
Right, Correct. Yeah. And I mean, you know, we are morally and ethically bound to protect these private lenders because you know, when you’re, when you’re exposing people to this world and teaching them how this works, they never heard of this. Right, right. So they’re looking to you to be the person who’s going to look after them and protect them. Right. And, so you got to do that. You’ve got to look after your private lenders.
Mattias Clymer [00:33:01]:
No, it makes sense. And obviously, that’s the best way to get repeat business. And I would imagine some of them are telling their friends as well.
Jay Conner [00:33:11]:
The opportunity and oh my lands, they can’t keep their mouth shut. I mean, I haven’t, I haven’t actually had to put my teacher hat on in a long time because the referrals just come and come and come. And you mentioned it when we started. But it is a challenge to be able to use all the money, which is a good problem.
Mattias Clymer [00:33:36]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. To find enough deals. I mean, I think around our area right now, it has been a little bit since I found a good deal that pencils out. We finished one. Not as actively pursuing currently flips and that kind of things, but you know, if the right one comes across my plate, I’ll definitely jump. So I could I could see how that would be a challenge. And I know that in the syndication world, sometimes people get tempted to keep the lights on by, by, by, you know, lessening their standards as to what the deal is itself. Do you ever feel that gives a problem, like a pressure to, you know, get their money working? And, you might, I could see that being a trap, picking up a deal that isn’t as good because they really want their money working.
Jay Conner [00:34:26]:
Yeah. So I follow the rule of letting the math make the decision and not my emotions. So I stick to the same hard and fast formula as to what my maximum amount is that I will pay for a property when I’m using private money. And if the math doesn’t make sense, then we don’t do the deal.
Mattias Clymer [00:34:50]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:34:51]:
And ultimately, I would rather pass on the deal than put my private lender’s money at risk.
Mattias Clymer [00:34:56]:
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. That makes sense. But now that’s, that’s, that’s super interesting. I think that there is definitely a big. Yeah, I think what could be cool for people, and one thing that you probably do talk to people about as well is that if they are heavily invested in stocks, want to have some diversification, want to get into real estate, they don’t want to be a flipper, they don’t want to be an active property manager, they don’t want to do all the work involved with it. This is a great way to diversify their portfolio.
Jay Conner [00:35:28]:
Oh absolutely. Being a private lender is a great way to be totally passive for someone who doesn’t want to negotiate deals, oversee deals, deal with all the different vendors, but just sit back, collect checks, or watch their account grow. This is a wonderful passive way to get involved.
Mattias Clymer [00:35:49]:
And I would imagine that, for the investors, they would not be able to capitalize on depreciation, is that correct?
Jay Conner [00:35:56]:
That’s correct, yeah. The income that a in or is to capitalize on depreciation, then it’s your company that has to own that property so they can depreciate it. So, the income that the private lender earns, if they’re using just liquid investment capital, then they get a 1099 Int at the end of each year, and that interest income they earned is taxed at their ordinary income tax rate. If they’re using retirement funds, dedicated retirement funds, a nd a self-directed IRA company, then there’s no tax, there’s no 1099 INT. There are no taxes. Because they don’t pay any taxes. They don’t pay any taxes at all. If they’re using a Roth IRA, that’s all after tax.
Jay Conner [00:36:47]:
Yeah. But if it’s, if it’s a401 (k) that they moved over or whatever, then that’s all tax deferred, and they won’t pay any taxes on that until they take any distributions.
Mattias Clymer [00:37:00]:
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. And yeah, like you said that Roth could be the real sweet spot there.
Jay Conner [00:37:08]:
Oh yes.
Mattias Clymer [00:37:09]:
And if anybody’s out there wanting to invest themselves, they can also obviously invest their own deals with the same strategy of a self-directed IRA.
Jay Conner [00:37:19]:
Absolutely.
Mattias Clymer [00:37:21]:
I, I’ve, I’ve been tempted. I do, I’ve kind of used that as my balance because most of my net worth, most of my world is in real estate. So I have maintained some in stocks, but it has been tempting to convert to a self-directed account and go all in.
Jay Conner [00:37:40]:
Well, she will convert part of it.
Mattias Clymer [00:37:43]:
There you go. There you go. Yeah. So I gotta ask if you have any golden nuggets for our listeners that you want to pass on. It could be about this space, it could be a general mindset, etc.
Jay Conner [00:37:58]:
Well, there are lots, there are lots of golden nuggets. My most expensive lessons that I’ve learned are through my mistakes. I guess I have A golden nugget I would share with Matthias, to your audience, is that one of my favorite quotes is that your destiny is determined by the books you read and the people you meet. And so when I say the people you meet, I’m talking about who you hang around. Some of my most, most profitable money that I’ve invested is being member, is being a member of mastermind groups, hanging around people who are like-minded that you can serve each other and help each other grow. So I highly recommend getting involved in a mastermind that’s got, you know, like minded people of whatever it is that you’re, that you’re trying to work on. So that would be my golden nugget for today.
Mattias Clymer [00:38:58]:
No, I love it. That’s so true and so true and people can really pull you down, even like negative people. So it’s good to curate your friends.
Jay Conner [00:39:10]:
Absolutely, absolutely. You don’t get to pick your parents, but you do get to pick your friends.
Mattias Clymer [00:39:17]:
I love it. Now, how about a favorite book? If you’re watching this, Jay has a background of a bunch of books, and he just mentioned that reading was a recommended thing. Do you have any fundamental books you think would be helpful in the space, or just maybe one that you currently really enjoy?
Jay Conner [00:39:37]:
Well, I got a long list of that, but I’ll share one that is very, very impactful, and that is by Jack Canfield. He’s the co-author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, and he wrote a book called The Success Principles. The success principles. There are 65 success principles in the book, and he just came out with his, I think it was 1the 0th anniversary edition. But anyway, very impactful book. I highly recommend it. The chapters are not long, it’s easy to read and digest, and the very first principle in that book out of all 65 is foundational to all the other principles, and that is to be 100% responsible for everything that happens in your life. Until you take 100% responsibility for everything that’s happening, the rest of the principles don’t matter.
Mattias Clymer [00:40:40]:
That’s so true. That is so true. That is such a fundamental shift. When you stop blaming everybody else and everything that happens to you on outside circumstances, that’s when you can truly start growing. That’s. That’s great. I haven’t read that one, so thank you. Did that.
Jay Conner [00:40:58]:
You’re welcome.
Mattias Clymer [00:41:00]:
Jay, what about if people want to find out more about you, follow you on social media, and learn more about your private money? You have a private money program, is that correct?
Jay Conner [00:41:10]:
Actually, I would love to give your audience, Matthias, a free copy of my bestselling book, which is called Where to Get the Money Now. And the subtitle is how and where to get money for your real estate deals without relying on hard money lenders or institutional money. The book is 20 bucks on Amazon, but let me give it to you as a gift. Just cover shipping, and I’ll autograph it, and I will express mail it to you. I’m also going to include two tickets valued at $3,000 to my live and in-person private money conference that I put on three times a year. The next one coming up is in October, and so I’ll include those tickets for the book. You can pick up the book at www.jconner. www.JayConner.com/Book so I’m an ER, not A, or so that’s www.JayConner.com/Book.
Jay Conner [00:42:14]:
I’ll rush it right out to you. And if you’ve enjoyed this podcast, let me invite you to come over and check out my podcast. I’m now in my eighth year, and it’s easy to find on all the podcast platforms. All you do is search for raising private money. Imagine that. Raising Private Money with Jay Conner, and I have two shows a week. We release some early Monday mornings and Thursday mornings. So twice a week, I interview other real estate investors about how they have gone out raising private money.
Jay Conner [00:42:47]:
And so we learn from two other guests every week. I love it.
Mattias Clymer [00:42:51]:
That’s fantastic, Jay. Thank you so much. Definitely check that out, guys. And yeah, thanks so much for being a guest on the show. I really enjoyed this conversation.
Jay Conner [00:42:59]:
Matthias, thank you so much for having me, and God bless you.
Erica [00:43:03]:
Thanks for listening to the REI agent.
Mattias Clymer [00:43:05]:
If you enjoyed this episode, hit subscribe to catch new shows every week.
Erica [00:43:10]:
Reiagent.com for more content.
Mattias Clymer [00:43:12]:
Until next time, keep building the life you want.
Erica [00:43:15]:
All content in the show is not investment advice or mental health therapy. It is intended for entertainment purposes only.
Narrator [00:43:22]:
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 shares seven 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.
When most people think about investing in real estate, they envision long hours at banks, filling out tedious paperwork, and waiting anxiously for loan approvals. But what if you could sidestep all of that?
What if you could leverage alternative lending options that not only offer security but can transform the way you approach your investments? On a recent episode of the Raising Private Money podcast, Ken White sat down with Jay Conner, known as the Private Money Authority, to pull back the curtain on the world of private money lending—and why it might just be the game-changer for real estate investors across the country.
Ditch the Traditional System
Jay Conner’s passion for private money stems from his years of experience in real estate. As he shared with Ken White, “Private money for my real estate deals has had more of an impact on our real estate investing business than any other strategy that we’ve employed ever since we started back in 2003.”
Unlike traditional bank loans, which leave the borrower at the mercy of underwriting terms and interest set by institutions, private money empowers investors to set their own terms. “In my world of borrowing money,” Jay notes, “I make the rules. I set the terms. I’m my own underwriter.”
What is Private Money and Who Are the Lenders?
Private money is not hard money. As Jay explains, hard money lenders are institutional entities that raise funds from various investors to create a lending pool, often charging origination fees and high interest rates. Private money, however, is a direct transaction between the investor and ordinary individuals—such as retired teachers, law enforcement officers, and military personnel—who are seeking a reliable return on their investment.
Many of these private lenders had never heard of the concept until it was introduced by a real estate professional. They use either investment capital or retirement funds such as self-directed IRAs, enabling them to invest outside of the traditional stock market and bank CDs.
“Prior to Covid, there was $18 trillion in cash in just ordinary people’s… Today, $31 trillion,” says Jay, highlighting an enormous pool of untapped potential for real estate investors.
Safety Comes First
One of the biggest concerns potential lenders and investors have is security—how is their money protected compared to the FDIC-insured deposits in banks? Jay lays out a structure designed to mitigate risks. Private lenders aren’t left unsecured; every loan is collateralized by the asset in question.
In Jay’s words, “Everything we do is what’s called asset-backed debt.”
What does this mean in practice? If, for any reason, the borrower fails to repay, the lender has the legal right to foreclose on the property, just as a bank would. Additionally, loans are conservative—never more than 75% of the property’s after-repaired value (ARV).
Lenders are named as mortgagees on the insurance and title policy, explicitly giving them a claim if anything goes wrong. “It’s secured. It’s not unsecured. It’s a conservative loan-to-value,” says Jay.
Getting Paid to Buy
One of the most exciting aspects Jay discusses is the potential to receive multiple “big checks” in a single transaction. He breaks it down using simple math: buy a distressed property at 50% of its ARV, rehab it, and finance up to 75% of ARV through private lenders. This often leaves “excess cash to close” that the investor can use for renovations—or even to pay the lender’s monthly interest upfront.
Do More, Worry Less
Jay Conner’s system isn’t just accessible to those in North Carolina. “Private money works anywhere there’s real estate and anywhere people have money,” he tells Ken White—even internationally, as in the Philippines resort property Ken asks him about.
Final Thoughts
Private money is abundant—according to Jay, “There’s more money available than there are deals.” The key is to educate potential lenders, structure secure transactions, and line up funds before pursuing deals. As Jay emphasizes, “Desperation has a smell to it. Get the money lined up first.”
Real estate investing doesn’t have to be complicated or beholden to big banks. With private money, investors and lenders alike can find win-win solutions built on trust, transparency, and solid returns.
For more insights and a free book, Jay Conner invites listeners to visit www.JayConner.com/Book.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
What is the difference between private money and hard money lenders in real estate investing, according to Jay Conner?
How does Jay Conner describe the protections that private money lenders receive when they fund real estate deals?
Why does Jay emphasize the importance of securing funding before looking for investment deals, and what does he mean by “desperation has a smell”?
How does the process work when an investor receives “multiple checks” in a real estate transaction funded by private money?
What are some of the backgrounds of Jay’s 47 private money lenders? Why is this significant for those considering entering private lending or borrowing?
What risks exist for private money lenders, and how are these risks mitigated in Jay Conner’s process?
Jay mentions that there is more private money available than there are deals. What factors contribute to this abundance, and what does it mean for investors?
How do self-directed IRAs play a role in private money lending, and what are the potential tax implications for lenders?
Is private money lending limited to certain geographic areas or types of properties? What did Jay say about doing deals in places as diverse as North Carolina and the Philippines?
Based on the advice given in the episode, what steps should someone new to real estate investing take if they want to leverage private money for their first deal?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Private Money vs. Hard Money: Jay Conner explains that private money is distinct from hard money. While hard money lenders are still institutions with their own rules and fees, private money comes directly from individuals—regular folks, such as retired school teachers, law enforcement officers, and military personnel—who seek reliable returns outside of banks and Wall Street.
Trillions in Potential Funds: Prior to COVID, Jay says there was $18 trillion in cash available from ordinary people for private lending. As of the recording, that number had grown to $31 trillion, showing just how much untapped funding is potentially out there for real estate deals.
Getting Paid to Buy a House: Jay shares that with his private money strategy, real estate investors can actually receive a check at closing when they buy a property, not just when they sell. For example, by borrowing up to 75% of a home’s after-repair value, investors can cover the purchase price, renovations, and walk away with extra cash for themselves—sometimes before any work has even started.
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.
From Banks to Private Money: Rethinking Real Estate Financing with Jay Conner
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
How are they protected? It’s a very conservative loan-to-value. So how are we protecting them? We don’t borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value of a single-family house.
Narrator [00:00:16]:
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 to raise 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.
Ken White [00:00:54]:
Hey, hey, hey. It’s your boy, Kim White, host of the Southside Unicorn show. And today’s guest is Jay Conner. Now, is that any relation to Sarah Conner? No, it’s not. He’s not here to terminate you. He’s not here to get you. But he is here to help inform you on something very, very important. When we don’t feel well, we go to a doctor.
Ken White [00:01:18]:
If our car isn’t working right, we go to a mechanic. But where do you go when money’s not working right? Because you see, some people don’t understand the actual utilitarian use of money. Money is a system, money is a machine. And if your money’s not working right, perhaps at the bank or at your local credit union, you need to find a way to make your money work right. Well, today we have Jay Collins. He is the private money authority. He’s the mechanic who can help you fix your money situation. So that’s why I asked in this show, what condition is your money in? So without any further ado, I want to introduce you to Mr.
Ken White [00:01:58]:
Jay Conner, the Private Money Authority. Hi, Mr. Conner, how are you?
Jay Conner [00:02:03]:
My lands, I’m doing fantastic. Thank you so much for inviting me to come along and be on your show and talk about my favorite topic, my favorite subject that I’m so passionate about, and that’s private money. Why am I so excited about private money? I’ll tell you why. Private money for my real estate deals has had more of an impact on our real estate investing business than any other strategy that we’ve employed ever since we started back in 2003.
Ken White [00:02:35]:
Wow, now you’ve said a mouthful when you said that. And, you know, I’m considering, when it comes to private money as it relates to the real estate industry, a gentleman comes to mind. His name is Jerome Powell. Are you familiar with Jerome Powell, sir?
Jay Conner [00:02:49]:
I’m familiar with the name Jerome Powell, yep. He is the chairman of the board of governors that oversees the Federal Reserve.
Ken White [00:03:00]:
That mythical place that, that. And it’s not even a government entity, if I’m not mistaken. They don’t actually. They’re not the government, are they?
Jay Conner [00:03:09]:
Well, that depends on your definition of the government. The. The government tells the federal. Well, doesn’t really tell the Federal Reserve what to do. They are their own entity. But the president can hire and fire whoever the president wants to run that particular department. So depends on how you want to define part of the government.
Ken White [00:03:34]:
Okay. So, since that part of the government seems to be acting pretty sketch, if you ask me, because with everything that’s going on in our nation, the tariffs seem to be doing what they’re supposed to do, Immigration is having an impact, and I don’t think it’s necessarily a negative impact, but that’s yours truly. My own opinion, but I’m about to say, since the Fed and this Mr. Jerome Powell seem to be behaving sketch, and they are connected directly to what we consider the banking system, where real estate draws its mother’s milk from, which is money, I think it’s time we start looking in other directions to get money for financing. That’s someplace that I think you can help us with. Is it, Jay?
Jay Conner [00:04:15]:
Oh, my word, yes. Because in this world of private money and getting funding for real estate deals, it’s got nothing to do with what mortgage lenders are doing. It’s got nothing to do with what the Federal Reserve is doing. And here’s why. The. The traditional way to borrow money is you go to the local bank, you go to the mortgage company, and you get on your hands and knees and you say, Please fund my deal. And the traditional way to borrow money is. And this is, this is stinking thinking.
Jay Conner [00:04:49]:
This is the old way of thinking. The traditional thinking is whoever’s got the money to lend makes the rules, does the underwriting, sets the terms, sets the interest rate. But guess what? In my world of borrowing money, I make the rules. I set the terms. I’m my own underwriter. And here’s the difference. Instead of applying for a mortgage or asking for a mortgage, I’m offering a mortgage. You know, I’ve got 47 private lenders right now funding my real estate deals.
Jay Conner [00:05:25]:
And what’s interesting is not one of my lenders ever heard of private money until I put on my teacher hat, which says, private money, teacher, private money.
Ken White [00:05:44]:
So, classes in session, I take it. I. I should have known we were in class today. So now, when it comes to the private money, the lender, and it sounds like you, you got connections, as we used to say on the south side of Chicago. You got the hookup. And when a man has the hookup, you should listen to what he’s saying. But I do want to ask you what? Okay.
Ken White [00:06:05]:
It sounds like private money is like a big secret, right? Is there a private club, or just how much private money is there out there? Is this, is this like a one little thing, or how much private money is there?
Jay Conner [00:06:18]:
Right? So private money is not a club, you see. So I said something really important, Ken, and that was none of my private lenders ever heard of private money until I told them about it, until I exposed them to it. So, who is a private lender? So first of all, let me tell you who a private lender is not. A private lender is not and is not equal to a hard money lender. A hard money lender is still institutional money. A hard money lender is down.
Ken White [00:06:50]:
You do realize that, right? We’re all writing this down. Hard money lender.
Jay Conner [00:06:55]:
Yes. It’s not private money. And the reason I say that is that you’ve got. And by the way, I’m not pooh-poohing hard money lenders. Some of my best friends in the world are hard money lenders. But, but you know, why, why do I want to borrow that money when I can go directly to the source? So, a hard money lender is an institutional lender that has gone out and has raised money from individual investors to invest in the hard money lending fund. And then the hard money lender turns around and loans that money out to real estate investors to charge origination fees, etc. That’s not private money.
Jay Conner [00:07:32]:
Private money, Ken, is when you’re doing business with an individual. And these are ordinary people. I mean, of my 47 private lenders, I’ve got retired school teachers, I’ve got law enforcement officers, I’ve got people in the military. And they use either their investment capital, just liquid funds that they don’t want to get stupid low rates in the local bank, aCD, or they’re sick and tired of the volatility of the stock market. They’re looking for a reliable rate of return. These are ordinary people who are using their investment capital and/r their retirement funds to get a nice rate of return. So there’s this thing called a self-directed. A self-directed IRA is a company, also known as a third-party custodian, that is approved by the IRS.
Jay Conner [00:08:26]:
And so an individual just like us can take current retirement funds, which might be in the stock market, might be in a previous 401 (k), or an employer. And they can move that money over with no tax consequences, no penalties to the self-directed IRA company, the third-party custodian. Now they can truly self-direct. So now they can be a private lender in addition to just investment capital. They can be a private lender with those retirement funds and loan to us, real estate investors, on real estate deals. So we’re doing business on one transaction with ordinary people with no middle person involved. How much private money is available? Before COVID, there was $18 trillion in cash in just ordinary people’s hands.
Ken White [00:09:16]:
Did you, did you say 18 with a T?
Jay Conner [00:09:19]:
Before Covid? Before today, 31 trillion. Today I think, I think the White House has been printing some money.
Ken White [00:09:32]:
Wow. Now I’ve got to ask you a question. I hear what you’re saying. And now for retirees, those of us who, well, I’m not a retiree yet. I’m still out here on the grind. But for those people who are actually like some of my friends, they’re retired or semi-retired and they’re watching their 4k 401ks do somersaults. It’s going up, it’s going down, it’s doing this, it’s gone, it’s back. This sounds great for them.
Ken White [00:09:55]:
I heard what you said about safety nets for them. But now, because this is something different than the FDIC, where, you know, $100,000 of your money is insured. Should something go cattywampus, what is the protectorate for someone who would actually take these private loans? Is there, is there any risk for them?
Jay Conner [00:10:16]:
Ken, I’m so glad you asked the question. Of course, there’s risk in anything you do. There are no guarantees in life. So let’s talk about mitigating the risk. How do I, how do other real estate investors who are using private money, how do we protect, how do we protect our private lenders? Well, there are several ways. Number one, we do not borrow unsecured funds. Now we could legally, we could just borrow money, give them a promissory note, and all they got is a paper receipt. But we don’t do that.
Jay Conner [00:10:50]:
Not only do we give them a promissory note, but in addition to that, we secure the note, we collateralize the note by the real estate that we’re buying. So everything we do is what’s called asset-backed debt. Asset-backed debt. So that means we’re going to protect the private lender, just like the bank is protected. So so our private lenders are not equity sharing in the profits; they’re getting a set rate of return. How much? I’ve been paying them 8% ever since 2009. And they love it. Particularly when you compare that.
Ken White [00:11:30]:
Wow.
Jay Conner [00:11:31]:
When you compare that to what you can get in the local bank now, which is less than 3% and a 7-month CD. So it’s backed by the real estate. So what does that mean? I mean, what does that security mean? That means if the borrower, the real estate investor, does not pay the private lender, guess what? The property does. If they don’t get your money from the borrower, if they don’t get that interest, if they don’t get paid back, well, their legal recourse is they can foreclose on the property just like, just like a bank would. Now they don’t want the property. I mean, they want to be a passive investor. That’s why they’re a private lender. But that’s their security.
Jay Conner [00:12:11]:
Now, secondly, how are they protected? It’s a very conservative loan-to-value. So how are we protecting them? We don’t borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value of a single-family house. Now I didn’t say 75.
Ken White [00:12:30]:
I’m sorry, that sounds like a NASA spaceship to me. I mean, you know, on the spaceship, they have what’s called redundancy. You know, you’ve got two systems that kind of make sure if one goes bad, there’s another one to hold it up. Well, it’s 75%. Yo, you’re already dealing with positive money the minute you even secure this deal. Am I right?
Jay Conner [00:12:49]:
Correct. Correct. So, wow, it’s secured. It’s not, it’s not unsecured. It’s a conservative loan-to-value. How else do we protect them? Well, we name the private lender, these ordinary people, as the mortgagee on the insurance property, on the property and property and casualty insurance policy. That means if there’s a claim against that insurance, you know, by that insurance policy, that coverage, well, the insurance company is going to make the check payable to the private lender and to the borrower. Well, that private lender’s got to sign off on that check before they, before you, the borrower gets the check.
Jay Conner [00:13:30]:
That’s the same thing the bank does.
Ken White [00:13:32]:
We also get their money back.
Jay Conner [00:13:35]:
Exactly. And we name them on the title insurance policy as an additional insured in case there are any title issues. So think of the private lender as the bank. As the bank is giving them the same. They know exactly that it’s just like them putting money in a CD certificate or a deposit in the local bank. And they know exactly what the rate of return is going to be. If they invest or loan $100,000 for that year and you’re using the money for the whole year, they know they’re going to get $8,000. Now, if they’re using retirement funds, their interest is either tax-deferred or tax-free, depending on the kind of retirement account they have.
Jay Conner [00:14:18]:
If it’s investment capital, just liquid capital, then they’re taxed at ordinary income tax rates. No way.
Ken White [00:14:26]:
Come on.
Jay Conner [00:14:26]:
Yep. So,o depending on where the money’s coming from, as well as taxes.
Ken White [00:14:30]:
Wow. So, I mean, there must be people knocking down your door. Not so much for the ones who want to buy the homes, but for those who want to become part of your. Your clique, your family of private lenders. This is a really good system.
Jay Conner [00:14:44]:
Absolutely. See, here’s the deal. There’s more money available than there are deals. There’s more money. I just had a current private lender send me a text yesterday. Yesterday. And he texted me. He says, Hey, Jay, I just came into 295,000 more dollars.
Jay Conner [00:15:05]:
How soon can you put it to work? Right. I got. I got another call two weeks ago from a current private lender. He’s got an additional 300,000, wants to invest. That same week, two weeks ago, another private lender called me up and said, Hey, I’ve got 200,000 more when you can, so.
Ken White [00:15:24]:
Wow.
Jay Conner [00:15:25]:
So instead of seeing in this world of private money, as a real estate investor, instead of you begging and chasing and selling and persuading and chasing the money, you’re attracting the money that the money’s chasing us. And it’s a win-win for everybody. It’s a win-win.
Ken White [00:15:44]:
Speaking of win-win for everybody, I would like to get a little win up in here. For me to do that, I gotta get some sponsorship going on. So, Jay, it’s time for us to take a break. Ladies and gentlemen, this is really good information. I love it when we have guests like this. You want to keep your pen and paper out because Jay has more to tell us when we come back from these messages that go nowhere.
Jay Conner [00:16:05]:
I’m so glad that you’re listening and tuning in. I’m Jay Conner, known as the Private Money Authority, and I am so excited you’re here because I want to give you a gift. And that is my book, on where to get the money now, how, and where to get real money for your real estate deals without relying on traditional loans. And you can pick up the book for free at www.JayConner.com/Book. That’s www.JayConner.com/Book. And you are listening to one of the most amazing podcasts and hosts on the planet. His name is Mr. Ken White.
Jay Conner [00:16:41]:
He’s the host of the Southside Unicorn show. I’ve been a guest on over 800 podcasts, and Ken White wins the prize. You’re glad you’re here. Hey, hey, hey.
Ken White [00:16:55]:
It’s your boy, Ken White, host of the Southside Unicorn show. And today’s guest is Jay Conner. He is the private money authority, or better yet, he’s the private money teacher. So I hope you’re sitting down, I hope you got your pen and paper, because yours truly is really getting something good out of this $18 trillion available out there in alternative lending. You don’t have to go cap in hand to the bank. You don’t have to go to your credit union and go, please, you can call Jay Conner, and I’m sure he has somebody who’ll be happy to help you. Think about it this way. It’s sort of like your martial arts classes.
Ken White [00:17:33]:
When you’re in your martial arts classes, you have to do the same move over and over and over. The more you do it, the more proficient you are at that particular move, or you become a black belt. Well, because Jay Conner has done over 500 deals, he’s rehabbed thousands of homes. He’s done this thing so many times. He’s a black belt in financing. Yeah, that’s right. So, ladies and gentlemen, Jay Conner, once again, let’s, let’s do this. You were saying as we left off abou, about the protection of the lenders.
Jay Conner [00:18:09]:
Yes. Yeah. We don’t borrow unsecured money from our private lenders. We give them the security-backed debt. So it’s the real estate that we’re purchasing or investing in that’s backing that note. They get a mortgage or a deed of trust here in North Carolina, just like a bank does. And they got the promissory note, they’ve got the mortgage or the deed of trust. We name them on the insurance policy.
Jay Conner [00:18:34]:
It’s a conservative loan-to-value. We don’t borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value. So they’re very well protected.
Ken White [00:18:43]:
Okay, I got, now, you know, I got a thousand questions I’d like to ask you, but ladies and gentlemen, every show has its time limit, and so I just got to squeeze it in there. When these deals go down., I think I read somewhere in your works that they get three big checks. What, what are these three big checks?
Jay Conner [00:18:59]:
Yeah. Well, actually, it’s us, the borrower,r that gets. We can get multiple checks. That’s why I love private money. Because the traditional way to borrow money for real estate is that you only get one check, and that’s when you cash out. Unless you’re doing a buy and hold, of course, and you’re getting rental income, et cetera. So here’s where you get multiple checks on these private money deals. So first of all, your first check that you get when you’re borrowing private money is when you purchase the property.
Jay Conner [00:19:31]:
Yes, you actually get a check when you buy. And how in the world does that work, and you take none of your own money to the closing table?. Here’s the question. Who wants to get paid to buy properties? Right. So, Ken, the host, wants to get paid to buy properties. So let me, let me give you an example as to how this works. And I’m going to use small numbers, so it’s easy to follow small numbers. So let’s assume that I am purchasing and I’m investing in a single-family house.
Jay Conner [00:20:05]:
And let’s say the after-repaired value is $200,000. Now I know in California you can’t even get an outhouse for $200,000. But let’s assume here in eastern North Carolina, we have this little 1200 square foot home, after repair value, 200,000. Now second thing, let’s assume that I’m going to buy that house at a deeply discounted price of $100,000, 50% of the after-repair value. Now, the reason I’m going to buy it for 100 is because it’s distressed, it needs renovation, it needs rehab. So the after-repaired value is 200,000. I’m going to buy it for 100,000. Now, let’s also assume that the renovation, the rehab, is going to cost $30,000 to make that house look beautiful again.
Jay Conner [00:21:01]:
So there’s your three numbers. There’s one more number. One more number. Remember, I can borrow up to 75% of the after-repaired value. Well, 75% of the after-repaired value is $150,000. So follow the math. Here it comes. I go to the closing table to purchase this house, and my private lender wires to my real estate attorney’s trust account.
Jay Conner [00:21:30]:
If you’re in a state that uses title companies, then it would be wired to the title company’s trust account. So here comes $150,000 from the private Lender. Well, let’s see, where does that money go? Well, $100,000 of that 150,000 goes to the seller of that house because I bought it for $100,000. Now guess what? I love this phrase on my real estate attorney’s checks. It says excess cash to close, and I love me some excess cash. So I got a, I got $50,000 check minus a little bit of closing cost. I’m going to pick up as the purchaser of that property, as the borrower of that money. I’m getting a $50,000 check when I buy that property because there’s 50,000 of excess money in the trust account.
Jay Conner [00:22:27]:
Now what am I going to do with that $50,000? Well, remember, so remember, I’m going to take 30,000 of that 50,000 for the renovation, the rehab.
Ken White [00:22:40]:
Okay?
Jay Conner [00:22:40]:
Now I have an additional 20,000 left over, minus a few closing costs. Like I mentioned. I got an additional 20,000 leftover that I can use anyway I want to. Let’s say my private lender needs a monthly interest income. So instead of letting the interest accrue, which you can, if that’s okay with your private lender. But some of my private lenders need the monthly income. So let’s say my private lender needs monthly interest, right? Whose money am I using to pay their monthly interest income? Because they loaned out the 150,000, right? They loaned the 150 now. So that cash flow.
Ken White [00:23:24]:
Let me ask you a question, Jay, because I’m sure my audience is feeling this, and I want to make sure that they get, get some of this. So, is the sweet spot in this entire arrangement the distressed property? Is that, is that the ideal project?
Jay Conner [00:23:38]:
So I’m glad you asked that question. Private money, you’re going to use it whenever the seller requires all the cash. Now that could be a for-sale-by-owner. That could be a bank-owned property. It could be bought at an auction anytime the seller requires cash.
Ken White [00:23:57]:
Now that’s when you jump in with the private.
Jay Conner [00:23:59]:
That’s when you use the private money. You either use your own cash or use private money. For goodness’ sake, don’t, don’t go to the bank or the mortgage company. Now, the biggest profits and the biggest checks that you bring home from the closing table are distressed properties. My average profits right now per single-family house in our little area here in eastern North Carolina is $86,000 profit per deal. We do. Now the reason is the average.
Ken White [00:24:31]:
Why do I feel stupid still being here in California, scratching and scraping every day? I mean, the production assistant, Connie, she’s living in the filet mignon of Southern California. She’s over there in Orange County. And let me tell you, you know, you can’t buy a soda pop over there, you know, without five bucks. But now, Jay, I want to run something by you for the edification of my audience. Your program, would it work in California? Is California like a verboten? You guys kind of stay away from this area, right?
Jay Conner [00:25:02]:
Well, private money works anywhere there’s real estate and anywhere people have money. Now, that brings up a good point.
Ken White [00:25:12]:
I don’t mean to interject so much, but I’m doing it for a reason. You said anywhere there’s real estate and anywhere there’s money. So I wanna. This is a, is a litmus test, and it’s a real test, and I’m doing it in real time so that the audience can get a feel for private lending. Jay, there’s a property, a resort property in the Republic of the Philippines, and it’s beautiful. It’s, it’s. It says beautiful as anything you see on Fantasy Island. It’s a very nice home, but you just dated yourself.
Ken White [00:25:44]:
Yeah, right, right. It’s, It’s. It’s valued at 45 million pesos. Now I have spent some time in the Philippines. That converts to $1.5 million. In American cash. Right? American money. Say somebody wanted to do a deal, and they said, If you give me a million dollars cash, which is five, you know, half a million dollars on the table, like I just learned from you.
Ken White [00:26:07]:
Right. Is that something you could touch? Is that something you could do?
Jay Conner [00:26:12]:
Absolutely. I’ve got multiple private lenders who have more than a million dollars with me. Now, that brings up another good point. You can have more than one private lender funding the same property. So how does that work? Well, you could have one private lender in the first position, a first lien on that property. You could have another private lender in the second position. That’s called a junior lien. And here is what you want to watch.
Jay Conner [00:26:42]:
There’s this. There’s this thing called total loan-to-value. Total loan to value. So, what is the total loan-to-value? Total loan to value is when you add up all the notes from private lenders that are being secured by that one property, and you still don’t want all the notes to total more than 75% of the after-repaired value. That way, it keeps it a conservative investment.
Ken White [00:27:09]:
So if it’s meant for you to have A home. If these people want you to have the home going with a private lender system, like you’re saying, it’s almost a guarantee you’re going to get that home.
Jay Conner [00:27:20]:
Oh, sure. Oh, and that. That brings up another point. You’re asking the best questions, Ken. So that brings up another point. So you might. I’m getting ready to say something, Ken. I’m getting ready to say something.
Jay Conner [00:27:31]:
I’m going to take a little risk. Take a little risk when I say this, but have you ever heard this? The guru, the real estate investing guru on stage, teaching, educating an audience of real estate investors. And the guru says, Oh, just get the deal under contract. The money has shown up. Have you ever heard that?
Ken White [00:27:54]:
Yeah, yeah. The checks in the mail, that’s. That’s basically. Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:27:58]:
So, like, that’s the most stupid thingI’veI ever heard in my life. Where’s the money going to show up? Has money got, like, legs that’s going to come run you down? Is like, you get a deal under contract, right? You get a deal under contract, and like, a box full of money just drops out of the sky at your front door. No, that’s why I practice and I preach. The money comes first. Get the money lined up first. And listen, here’s a big tip, here’s a big takeaway, here’s a writer downer for all of y’all taking notes, quote, unquote. Desperation has a smell to it. Oh, desperation has a smell now.
Jay Conner [00:28:43]:
Wonder, what am I talking about? You see, a lot of real estate investors are taught you gotta pitch deals. You got, you know, you talk about the opportunity for the lender to invest in this particular deal. And listen, you already sound desperate if you’re trying to pitch a deal. So I practice and preach, get the money lined up first, offer your program, teach your program like I did, and do without any kind of deal attached to it. It’s the same program.
Ken White [00:29:17]:
Every word that’s coming out of your mouth, Jay. I’m learning. I. This is incredible. You make me feel like being a podcaster is not what I want to do. I want to get in on this real estate stuff. I. I am so sad that the show is only 30 minutes because there’s a wealth of information you have inside of you, and it’s just.
Ken White [00:29:37]:
It’s just bubbling out. So now, if people want to get in touch with you, how are they able to do that? How can we reach you?
Jay Conner [00:29:45]:
Thank you so much, Ken. Well, the best way to get in contact with me is to let me give your audience a Gift. And here’s the gift, my national bestselling book, which is titled Where to Get the Money Now. This is not an ebook. This is actually a real book. Where to get the money now subtitle: How and where to get money for your real estate deals without ever relying on traditional or hard money lenders. And I’m also going to include two tickets valued at $3,000 to my private money conference. The private money conference.
Jay Conner [00:30:21]:
I’ll autograph the book. I’ll ship it to you via priority mail through the United States Postal Service, which is still in business. And you can pick up the book, just cover shipping. The book is free. Just cover shipping. And here it is, www.jconner. And I’m an E.R., not an O R.
Jay Conner [00:30:41]:
So J-A Y C-O-N-N-E-R.com forward slash book. Again, that’s J. Conner. J-A Y C O-N-N-E- R.com book. I’ll autograph it. I’ll rush it right out to you.
Ken White [00:30:57]:
Wow. Now that. Ladies and gentlemen, this is why I love having guests like Jay Conner on the show. You have just been enriched. You have just been given the hookup. If it doesn’t make dollars, it doesn’t make sense. You gotta wake up with your money on your mind and your mind on your money. Jay Conners is just such a man.
Ken White [00:31:17]:
Jay, that deal in the Philippines is real. So I’m hoping to talk to you off this, off the air. And get you the information for this potential deal because it’s right there. It’s valued at a million and a half. I’m not sure, but I’m thinking maybe if they saw a million dollars on the table, it might. It might motivate them.
Jay Conner [00:31:36]:
Nice. Well, that sounds exciting.
Ken White [00:31:39]:
I can’t speak for them. I’m just saying I think. You know how they say money, money talks, and everything else runs the marathon, right?
Jay Conner [00:31:48]:
Hey, you cleaned that up nicely.
Ken White [00:31:52]:
Well, that means you’re familiar with the phrase, I like you, Jay. Jay, you’re one of those people who, if you get to know you and the person, you’ve got to be about your own business, too. This is not all about Jay Conner. If you’re going to deal with such a man, you’d better come correct. Have your chips in order, have your ambitions straight, know what you’re doing, go into it with your eyes wide open. But somehow, I think if you work with Mr. Jay Conner, you’ve enriched your life incredibly.
Jay Conner [00:32:20]:
Ken, thank you so much.
Ken White [00:32:22]:
You’re welcome. Hey, listen to me. There’s no place I’d rather be. There’s nothing I’d rather do than be right here doing this show for you. I’m Ken White with Jay Conner, and we are out.
Narrator [00:32:59]:
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 shares seven 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.
When it comes to breaking into real estate investing, one myth has persisted for years: just get a deal under contract, and the money will show up. On a recent episode of the Raising Private Money podcast, John Odermatt sat down with Jay Conner—also known as the Private Money Authority—to bust that myth and reveal a smarter, safer path to funding real estate deals.
Why Private Money Changes the Game
Jay Conner, a veteran investor who’s bought, flipped, and rehabbed over 500 houses, attributes the success of his business not to market timing or secret deals, but to the strategic use of private money. As Jay explains, “Private money’s had more of an impact on our real estate investing business than any other strategy that we’ve employed since I started using private money to fund my deals.” The difference was clear during the 2009 financial crisis. Jay was suddenly cut off from traditional bank loans, but instead of giving up, he pivoted. After a critical conversation with another investor, he discovered the world of private money and self-directed IRAs.
Turning Problems into Opportunities
Jay’s story began with adversity: his bank stopped lending, and his deals were at risk. Rather than dwelling on the setback, he asked himself, “Who do you know that can help fix your problem?” That single question led him to a seminar on private money, and ultimately to raising over $2.15 million in alternative funding in just a few weeks. Instead of seeking help from institutions, Jay got creative and built relationships with private lenders—ordinary people interested in secure, high-return investments.
The Servant’s Heart Approach
A unique aspect of Jay’s approach to private money is his attitude. He decided never to ask anyone directly for money or pitch specific deals. Instead, he adopted a “servant’s heart” mindset, positioning himself as a teacher. As Jay puts it, “I started sharing… with my own network, my own connections, my own warm market as to what private money is and how they could be a private lender and how they could earn high rates of return safely and securely, either using their investment capital or… their retirement account.”
Jay designed a private money program offering 8% interest, with no points or origination fees. He secured these investments with deeds of trust or mortgages and included additional protections like naming lenders on insurance and title policies.
How Jay Gets Deals Funded Without Pitching
Instead of pitching deals, Jay educates his network about the opportunity first. When a suitable deal comes up, he simply provides his lender with the good news: he can now put their money to work, matching the funding required with the lender’s available funds.
Jay says, “The most stupid thing I could do is ask… do you want to fund the deal? Of course, they want to fund the deal.” His system separates the teaching of private money from the timing of specific deals, making the process seamless and stress-free for both parties.
Getting Started in Private Money—Even If You’re Brand New
Many new investors wonder, “Who’s going to loan me money if I’ve never done a deal before?” Jay emphasizes two reasons why this is possible: first, private loans are secured by the property itself. If the investor defaults, the lender gets the property, making it a safe bet.
Second, Jay recommends partnering with experienced mentors. “A brand new real estate investor should not be doing this business unless they have joined forces and… are working with somebody that already knows the ropes.”
Advice for Today’s Market
Jay’s advice for current investors? Focus on first-time homebuyer price points in your market—those properties represent the largest pool of buyers. And remember, private money isn’t just for purchasing homes: it can be used for refinancing and for other real estate investments, from land to self-storage.
If you want to learn more from Jay Conner or receive his new book “Where to Get the Money Now,” visit www.JayConner.com/Book. And for more private money strategies, tune in to Jay’s podcast Raising Private Money.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Jay Conner criticizes the advice to “just get the deal under contract, the money will show up.” What are the potential risks of following that approach in real estate investing?
How did Jay’s early experience in the manufactured housing business and his father’s influence shape his approach to real estate investing?
Jay shares his “aha moment” during the 2009 financial crisis when he was cut off by his bank. How did this challenge become an opportunity, and what mindset shift did it require?
Can you explain the concept of private money lending versus traditional or hard money lending based on Jay’s description? What are the key differences?
Jay talks about never asking for money or pitching deals directly. Instead, he “puts on the teacher hat.” Why does this educational approach work for raising private money?
Self-directed IRAs play a significant role in Jay’s funding strategy. How do self-directed IRAs work for private real estate investing, and what are the tax benefits he mentions?
What are the three big reasons Jay gives for why his private lenders are eager to fund his real estate deals? How do these reasons relate to building trust and credibility?
Jay suggests focusing on first-time homebuyer price points in today’s market. What factors make this segment particularly attractive during times of high interest rates and uncertain markets?
For new investors, Jay emphasizes partnering with experienced mentors and building credibility. What are the specific advantages of this approach, and how does it help secure private funding?
How does Jay’s system for using private money provide security for both the investor and the lender, and why is the deal structure (e.g., collateral, insurance, title policy) so important in private lending?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner has never missed out on a real estate deal due to a lack of funding since he started using private money in 2009. He credits private money with having the biggest impact on his business, saying, “I’ve never missed out on a deal for not having the funding.”
Jay Conner and his wife Carol Joy have flipped and rehabbed over 500 houses in eastern North Carolina, averaging $86,000 profit per deal—despite operating in a market of only about 40,000 people! He believes in being a “big fish in a small pond” rather than competing in large cities.
When raising private money, Jay takes a unique approach: he never pitches deals or asks people directly for money. Instead, he acts as a teacher, educating his network about private lending and letting them come to him when they’re ready to invest. He says, “I’ve never asked anybody for money and I’ve never pitched a deal.”
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.
How Jay Conner Raises Private Money and Empowers Real Estate Investors
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
Have you ever heard the guru stand up on stage and say, Oh, just get the deal under contract. The money will show up?
John Odermatt [00:00:10]:
Yeah, I’ve heard a few say that. Similar to that.
Jay Conner [00:00:12]:
That’s the most stupid thing in the world I’ve ever heard.
John Odermatt [00:00:15]:
It is.
Jay Conner [00:00:16]:
I mean, how’s the money going to show up? Is it going to like, rain out of clouds? Or sometimes they’ll say, Oh, get the deal under contract. Money feed finds good deals. Has money got legs? Has money going to come knocking on your door, saying, Heyy, here I am, some money. Have you got a deal? That is stupid. It just makes sense to me. Get the money lined up first and think about how much more confident and how many offers you’re going to make as a real estate investor if you know exactly where the money is coming from to begin with.
Narrator [00:00:54]:
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 to raise 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. We are born free, and we will die free. The time in between, though, that’s complicated. In that time, governments, institutions, and our egos will limit our ability to find.
Jay Conner [00:01:37]:
True freedom in this life. These are real stories of real people.
Narrator [00:01:41]:
Overcoming the odds, persevering through injustice, and unlocking their potential. Welcome to Finding Freedom.
Jay Conner [00:01:49]:
Here’s your host, John Oderman.
John Odermatt [00:01:56]:
Hey, what’s up, everybody? Welcome back to Finding Freedom, right here on the Lions of Liberty podcast network. Have an awesome guest for you guys. Today, we’re going to be talking about real estate funding for your real estate deals. So for those entrepreneurs out there, either maybe you’re already working in real estate, or maybe you have some, you know, some dreams. Maybe you have some aspirations too. To tap into the real estate market and invest. Definitely. Hang on.
John Odermatt [00:02:26]:
You don’t want to miss this one. But before I do that, I just want to remind you guys about my friend Stephen Fox and Fox and Sons coffee. It’s my favorite coffee. I start every morning with it. My wife just asked me to make some cold brew. I go back and forth between the cold and the hot, but. But this time of year, the cold brew is definitely refreshing. He’s got several different beans that I love.
John Odermatt [00:02:53]:
I love his espresso bean. I’m having an Ethiopian bean right now that is good either hot or cold. So check those out, you can shop all of those different beans by going to Fox n Sons. That’s fox the letter n sons.com. And you can get 15% off orders $40 or more by using promo code John Johan at checkout. So please go ahead and support a good entrepreneur and a good friend of mine, Steven Fox. All right, guys, let’s get into today’s show. And my guest today is Jay Connor.
John Odermatt [00:03:32]:
And Jay is a longtime real estate investor. He’s an author. He is known as the Private Money Authority. He’s on a mission to help investors raise capital without relying on banks. And if you’ve ever, ever thought that the only way to get into real estate is with your own money or with a bank loan, think again. You’re going to learn about that today. So, Jay, welcome to Finding Freedom.
Jay Conner [00:03:59]:
John, thank you so much for inviting me to join you here on your show and talk about my favorite topic, which is private money for real estate deals. And the reason I’m so excited and so passionate about the topic of private money is that private money’s had more of an impact on our real estate investing business than any other strategy that we’ve employed since I started using private money to fund my deals. All the way back in 2009, I started using private money. You know what, John? I’ve never missed out on a deal for not having the funding.
John Odermatt [00:04:37]:
Well, that’s something I like to hear as someone getting into the real estate game, especially in these interesting times. I guess we’ll call it that, with very high interest rates, hard to get bank loans in many different circumstances. Before we dig into that, dig into some more details around private money. Just curious, so my audience can get some framework and learn a little bit more about you, if you could just share, you know what drew you into the real estate market? What brought you here?
Jay Conner [00:05:08]:
Well, into the real estate investing world at large actually goes back to my childhood and what I grew up around. So my father, Wallace Connor, who’s almost 92 years old, was at one time he was the largest retailer in the nation of mobile homes mo manufactured housing. So I grew up around my dad and his company, helping families purchase a mobile home or manufactured home. So that was affordable housing. Well, unfortunately, the industry for mobile homes and manufactured housing, the financing for the consumer, fell out of favor with Wall Street back in the early 2000s. So, no financing for that product. You really can’t sell a product. So I knew if I ever got out of mobile homes and manufactured housing, I wanted to get into single-family houses.
Jay Conner [00:06:05]:
And here’s why. All the way back to 1993, which was 10 years before my wife, Carol Joy, and I started in this industry of investing in single-family houses. Ten years before that, in 1993, good friends of ours, Craig and Kim, lived in New Bern, North Carolina, and they wanted to build their own house, but they didn’t have their money to do it. Well, Kim’s father was a real estate investor down in Florida, and he said, I’ll come up to Newber, North Carolina. I’ll find you a fixer-upper. You all can do the sweat equity, and then we’ll sell it, and you can keep the profit to start building your house. Well, in less than 90 days, they pocketed $30,000 in less than 90 days back in 1993. And I said, you know what? I know what I want to do if I ever get out of mobile homes, right? Well, the opportunity came along in 2003.
Jay Conner [00:07:02]:
So in 2003, that’s when we started investing in single-family houses right here in eastern North Carolina, if you haven’t picked up on that accent yet. And so ever since 2003, Carol Joy and I have been investing in single-family houses. We’ve bought and sold, and we’ve flipped and rehabbed over 500 houses so far. We’re in a small market, only 40,000 people, but we’ll do two to three transactions a month. Our average profits are $86,000 per deal now, and I don’t share that to brag at all. I share it to make a point. And that is, there’s an argument to be made to be a big fish in a small pond instead of competing in the large cities where you’ve got all those other real estate investors.
John Odermatt [00:07:52]:
Yeah, no, that. That makes sense. And those prices, your money goes a lot longer in, in those smaller, more rural markets, for sure, from what I’ve seen. So we talked about your introduction into real estate. What got you, you know, interested there in single-family? What was your aha moment when you realized, you know, really the power that you could unlock, generating wealth through using private money?
Jay Conner [00:08:23]:
Oh, boy, John, I remember it like it was yesterday. I was sitting right here at this desk, and it was in January of 2009. So I started investing in single-family houses in 2003, and then in January 2009, six years later, everything changed. What I’m getting ready to share right now, John, changed the total trajectory of our business. I was sitting here at this desk. I had two houses under Contract to purchase. And I thought I still had a line of credit at the bank. And so I called him a banker.
Jay Conner [00:09:04]:
His name was Steve. And I told him about these two houses that I had under contract to purchase. Now, this was back in the day, John, when I was using unsecured lines of credit. And so anyway, I told him about these two deals, and he said, Jay, we’re not loaning money out to real estate investors anymore. I said, Steve, what in the world are you talking about? We’ve had a great business relationship for six years. You funded a ton of my deals. The banks made a bunch of money off of me. We’ve had a great relationship.
Jay Conner [00:09:43]:
Why is the bank closing my line of credit? And Steve said, Jay, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? I said no, but you just gave me a global financial crisis. I said, I don’t have a way to fund these two deals. He said, Sorry, Jay, the bank’s not loaning out money to real estate investors. So I hung up the phone, John. And I sat here at my desk for a moment, and I thought. And I thought to myself, and I want to share with you and your audience, John, a very powerful question that I asked myself right after being cut off from the bank, in my conversation with Steve, the banker. And here’s the question I asked myself. And by the way, this question will help fix any problem anybody’s got going on.
Jay Conner [00:10:33]:
I don’t care if it’s relationships, career, or financial health; it doesn’t matter. Whatever the problem is, this question will help fix the problem. And you know what, John? I can’t. I can’t stand these people running around saying, Oh, every problem’s an opportunity. I want to throw up. I didn’t have an opportunity. I had a problem. Let’s face facts right now.
Jay Conner [00:10:57]:
That problem did become an opportunity, because you and I wouldn’t be having a. A visit today without that problem. But at the time, it was a problem. So here’s the question I asked myself. I said, Jay, who? It’s not how. I said, Who do you know that can help fix your problem? And you know, it’s funny, John, when I asked myself that question, I immediately thought of my good friend Jeff Blankenship. He was living in Greensboro, North Carolina, in January of 2009, and he was investing in single-family houses. I said, Well, maybe my buddy Jeff will help me out.
Jay Conner [00:11:40]:
So I called up Jeff. I told him what had just happened with me getting cut off from the bank. Jeff said, Well, Jay, welcome to the club. I said, Well, I’m not sure I want to be a member of that club, but what club are you talking about? He said, Well, that’s the club of having the bank shut your line of credit down. He said, My bank shut me down last week. I said, Well, Jeff, how are you going to fund your real estate deals? He said, Well, have you ever heard of private money? I said, No. He said, Have you ever heard of self-directed IRAs and how individuals can take existing retirement accounts and move them over to a self-directed IRA company, and then they can loan that money out to us real estate investors, and the interest we pay them is either tax-free or tax-deferred. I said, Jeff, I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.
Jay Conner [00:12:30]:
I said, What is private money? He said, Well, there’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron Legrand. I said, Well, who’s Ron LeGrand? He said, Well, I don’t really know, but he says he can teach us about private money. I said, Well, what is it? He says, I don’t know, but Ron Legrand says we can get a lot of it really, really fast. I said, Okay. So I went to my very first real estate investing seminar in February of 2009 to learn about private money. And John, oh boy, did I learn about private money. I came back home here to Morehead City, and I was able to raise $2,150,000 in private money, private funding that I did not have before being cut off from the bank. So how in the world did I do that? Here’s the answer.
Jay Conner [00:13:24]:
The first thing I decided, John, is I’m not going to ask anybody for money. And the second thing I decided was I’m not going to pitch any deals. You know, it’s funny, to this date, since 2009, when I started using private money, I’ve never asked anybody for money, and I’ve never pitched a deal. And people ask me all the time, they say, Jay, how in the world do you have eight and a half million dollars in private money that you just use from project to project, house to house? And how do you get it without ever pitching a deal?
John Odermatt [00:13:58]:
It’s a good question.
Jay Conner [00:14:00]:
I was gonna say, John, if you want the answer to that question, I’ll.
John Odermatt [00:14:03]:
Keep plowing forward, keep on going, keep on going, Jay.
Jay Conner [00:14:07]:
So first of all, how to get money without asking for it. So here’s what I decided. You see, the traditional way, don’t miss this. This is critical. The traditional way to borrow Money from anybody, an institution, whatever, is to have the belief that whoever’s got the money makes the rules. The traditional thinking is that whoever’s lending the money sets the interest rate. The traditional thinking is that whoever’s lending the money is the underwriter and decides on the terms as to how that money is going to be loaned out. That’s all traditional thinking.
Jay Conner [00:14:50]:
I decided I was going to turn that thinking upside down on its ear. So what did I do? I took on the attitude of having a servant’s heart, and I took on the attitude of being a teacher. So I got my teacher hat here, and my teacher hat says, Private money teacher, private money teacher. So let me unpack what that means. First, I had to decide what I was going to teach and who I was. And what and who was I going to teach it to? So I decided I was going to start sharing, first of all, with my own network, my own connections, my own warm market, as to what private money is and how they could be a private lender and how they could earn high rates of return safely and securely, either using their investment capital or their retirement account. So to do that, I had to decide, well, what in the world am I going to teach? What am I going to teach? So I decided I was going to put the private money opportunity together, the private money program, if you will.
Jay Conner [00:16:01]:
So I decided what interest rate I was going to pay my private lenders, 8%. I’ve been paying them 8% with no points, no origination fees, ever since February of 2009. So I’m going to pay them 8%. I decided what I could put in place to protect them. So I decided I was not going to borrow unsecured money. I was going to give them a deed of trust. Here in North Carolina, most people call it a mortgage and collateralize their notes. I decided I was going to name them on the insurance policy as a mortgagee to give them another layer of protection.
Jay Conner [00:16:37]:
I decided I was going to name them on the title policy as an additional insured. So I put the framework together, and then I started sharing the opportunity. Now, I need to make this very, very huge, big, important point, and that is the big mistake that real estate investors make, particularly new real estate investors looking to raise capital or seasoned real estate investors, is that they pitch deals. I’ve never pitched a deal in my life, so how do I not pitch a deal? Well, here’s the answer to that. I separate the conversations between teaching the opportunity to someone who’s never been exposed to the world of Private money. Here’s what’s interesting, John. I got 47 private lenders today. Not one of them had ever heard of private money or private lending until I put on my teacher hat and exposed them to what this world is all about.
Jay Conner [00:17:40]:
So I’m going to separate the conversations of teaching the opportunity and then having a deal for them to fund. Now, John, I’m going to take a little bit of risk right here, and I’m going to step out on a limb. I’m going to ask you a question. Here’s the question. Have you ever heard the guru stand up on stage and say, Ohh, just get the deal under contract. The money will show up?
John Odermatt [00:18:06]:
Yeah, I’ve heard a few say that. Similar to that.
Jay Conner [00:18:09]:
That’s the most stupid thing in the world I’ve ever heard.
John Odermatt [00:18:12]:
It is.
Jay Conner [00:18:12]:
I mean, how’s the money going to show up? Is it not like rain out of clouds? Or sometimes they’ll say, Oh, get the deal under contract. Money finds good deals. Has money got legs? Has money going to come knocking on your door, saying, Hey, here I am, some money. Have you got a deal? That is stupid. It just makes sense to me. Get the money lined up first. First. And think about how much more confident and how many offers you’re going to make as a real estate investor if you know exactly where the money is coming from to begin with.
Jay Conner [00:18:50]:
So separate conversations of teaching the opportunity and then having a deal for them to fund. So the best way I can illustrate this, John, on how I get deals funded without ever pitching a deal, is to share with you and your audience the exact script as to what I say to my private lender when I’ve got a deal for them to fund. And they always fund the deal 100% of the time without me pitching a deal. So here it is. Now, let me do a little setup. Let me do three hypothetical scenarios here between you and the. And this is going to make sense. So let’s pretend.
Jay Conner [00:19:34]:
First of all, John, let’s pretend you and I go to church, right? Let’s say you and I have known each other for some time. We go to church, we’re friends, and we see each other two or three times a week at church. We know each other. No question about that. The second thing we let’s assume is. Let’s assume that I have put on my teacher hat and you and I have gone and gotten coffee at Starbucks or whatever, and I’ve told you about this world of private money, and I’ve asked you if you’ve ever heard of self-directed IRAs. And you told me no. I learned in the conversation that you worked for a previous employer and that you still have $150,000 401k with that previous employer, and it’s in the stock market, a nd you don’t like it, it’s volatile, le and it’s all over the place, and you don’t like it.
Jay Conner [00:20:30]:
And let’s also assume that I have introduced you to a self-directed IRA company that I recommend. And let’s also assume you have moved that $150,000 over to the self-directed IRA company, and now you have your account funded. And I have told you I’m going to put your money to work for you just as soon as possible. So now that’s the setup. Now I’m going to call you with what I call the good news phone call. So here’s the script of the good news phone call. I call you up, you answer. We have a little chit chat, and then here’s exactly John, what I would say to you as one of my private lenders.
Jay Conner [00:21:17]:
I say, John, I’ve got great news for you. I can now put your money to work. I’ve got a house under contract in Newport, North Carolina, with an after-repaired value of $200,000. Now the funding required for this deal matches up to what you have in your self-directed IRA company. $150,000 is the funding that’s required. Now closing is scheduled for next Tuesday, so I’ll need you to have your funds wired to my real estate attorney’s trust account by next Monday. I’m going to have my real estate attorney email you the wiring instructions. That’s the end of the conversation.
Jay Conner [00:22:00]:
The most stupid thing I could do is ask John, Do you want to fund the deal? Of course, he wants to fund the deal.
John Odermatt [00:22:07]:
And John, and you also, you didn’t go into detail about the deal. You didn’t say you know what needed to be. I’m assuming this would be a flip in this that’s right scenario. You didn’t explain what needed to be done. If the kitchen needs to be done, it costs this much in the bathroom and this much. And a new roof, do they get in any of that?
Jay Conner [00:22:28]:
No. And you know why I didn’t? Because you don’t care. You don’t care.
John Odermatt [00:22:34]:
Right.
Jay Conner [00:22:34]:
And so there are three big reasons in that example why John is ecstatic to fund my deal. Let’s unpack the three reasons. Number one, John is excited to fund my deal because, first of all, he trusts me to move his money over to the self-directed. He had never heard about private lending. He never heard about self-directed IRAs. He knew he wasn’t happy where he was. He likes this program; he likes the 8% I’m going to pay him. And so he likes the program.
Jay Conner [00:23:10]:
He liked the program, and he moved his money over to the self-directed IRA at my recommendation. That’s number one. He trusted me. The second reason John is ecstatic to fund my deal is that John knows I’m not going to bring a deal for him to fund unless it matches the underwriting criteria that I already taught him. Did you hear the numbers I told John in the good news phone call? The after-repaired value is $200,000. I also told him the funding required is $150,000. Well, that is 75% of the after-repaired value. I didn’t say 75% of the purchase price.
Jay Conner [00:23:53]:
I’m going to bring home a big check called excess cash to close when I buy this property. I’m gonna buy it for 100,000. I’m bringing home a $50,000 check that I’m gonna use primarily for the renovation. So the second reason John wants to fund my deal is that it matches the criteria of the program that I already taught him. And the third big reason John wants to fund my deal is that he’s not making any money until I put his money to work. So I am ethically obligated to invest John’s money that he’s already moved over.
John Odermatt [00:24:30]:
Yeah, makes sense. So let me ask you this. You’ve gone through how you’ve done this, right? Through putting the teacher hat on, teaching people about self-directed IRAs, underwriting the deal, what they can expect, and how to make that phone call. How do you recommend people who are brand new and want to do this? How do they get started? Is this something that takes a long time to learn about to ramp up, to be able to teach it, and then build up your own network of private money investors?
Jay Conner [00:25:02]:
That’s a great question. I have many, many members of my community who have come into my world to learn all the details about this. And it’s so realistic to get $500,000 or more within 30 days. And this is for people who have been real estate investors. This is for people who are brand new and have, haven’t even done their first deal yet. And you know, that reminds me, John, one question, and it’s a very valid question. One question that new real estate investors ask is, who in the world’s going to loan me Money on a real estate deal? ?nd I’ve never done a deal before in my life.
Jay Conner [00:25:43]:
Who in the world is going to, I mean, who in their right mind is going to do that? And there are two reasons why a new real estate investor can get a lot of private money very, very quickly. And here are the two reasons. Number one, if the borrower, the real estate investor, does not pay the private lender, the property will be paid for by the private lender. In other words, if the private lender doesn’t pay them, the lender gets the property. That’s their security. Now they don’t want the property; they don’t want to mess with the property. That’s why they are a passive real estate investor. That’s why they are a lender, but that’s their security.
Jay Conner [00:26:22]:
So they’re going to loan the money out because it’s not unsecured money that’s being loaned, but it’s secured money. Now, the second reason a private lender is going to loan money to that real estate investor is because that real estate investor better not be out there doing business on their own without working with somebody who’s experienced and knows what they’re doing. S,o for example, new real estate investors that come into my community, which is about a third, about a third of my community, that come into my world for me to work with them, about a third of them have never done a real estate deal before. So guess what? I’m their business partner who has flipped over 500 houses and got over 8 and a half million in private money and got 47 private lenders. So for sure, a brand new real estate investor should not be doing this business unless they have joined forces and they’re working with somebody who already knows the ropes.
John Odermatt [00:27:24]:
Yeah, that, that definitely makes sense. Let me ask you this kind of, I guess zooming back in to the market right now, just to get your take on if somebody were looking to get started today. I know you mentioned earlier, you know, not going into big cities, but is there anything else when it comes to selecting a market to implement this private money strategy that people should be looking for in this uncertain market, where rates are high, there’s a big supply of homes? But a lot of these sellers, it doesn’t seem like they’ve got the memo that they should be dropping their prices.
Jay Conner [00:28:03]:
Right? Well, that’s a great question. So let me answer this way. First of all, private money works in your market anywhere. And by the way, private money is not just for single-family houses. Private money can be for any kind of real estate, private money can be for land, it can be for self-storage, it can be for apartments, it can be for mobile home parks, it can be for mobile homes. I mean any kind, any kind of real estate, it just comes down to how you structure the deal. But one thing that I would advise on, where or what types of deals you should be investing in, for goodness sakes, in this market, in this market, focus on first-time home buyer price points of single-family houses. Focus on first-time home buyer price points.
Jay Conner [00:28:56]:
Why is that? Because that’s where the biggest pool of buyers of houses is, first-time home buyers who have never bought before. And in addition, as I mentioned a moment ago, private money is just not for purchasing single-family houses. Private money can be used for refinancing. So if you’ve got equity in real estate and you want to pull some of that cash out for whatever reason, operating capital, or what have you, you can use private money for refinancing as well.
John Odermatt [00:29:30]:
And you talk about refinancing, I mean, with private money, you’re generally talking about a shorter term, right? So, typically, what terms are you looking at? And maybe I’m kind of going all over the place with this question, but you can kind of take it where you need to. But when you talk about, you know, bringing someone in self directed IRA, they invest $150,000. Is this something where they’re getting their return and getting their money back within three years, five years, or what is it?
Jay Conner [00:30:01]:
Right. I’m glad you asked that question, John, because that allows me to talk a second about the difference between private money and hard money. So when we’re talking private money, I’m not talking about hard money. Hard money is typically a brokerage. Hard money is typically institutional money where the hard money lender has gone out, raised capital for their hard money lending fund, and then the hard money broker turns around and lends that money out at a higher interest rate, charges points, and origination fees, and that kind of thing. In this world of private money, we’re talking about doing business for the just ordinary people, individuals, you know, just like, you know, you or me. But since I started talking about hard money and private money, I already forgot your question. What did you just ask?
John Odermatt [00:30:52]:
It was asking in general.
Jay Conner [00:30:53]:
Oh, the length of the note. Thank you.
John Odermatt [00:30:54]:
Length of the note?
Jay Conner [00:30:55]:
Yeah, length of note. So the reason I, the reason that triggered me to talk about hard money, is because most hard money lenders, the length of the note is only going to be six months or nine months for a flip, maybe 12 months if you’ve got a track record with that hard money lender. But in this world of private money, there’s no hurry to pay the money back. Here’s why. And in fact, my notes are two years or five years old. If a private lender is loaning me money from their investment capital, then I’ll set the note up for five years, even though I’m typically not going to use it that long. I sell a lot of homes on rent-to-own or lease purchase, and that gives people time to get ready for a mortgage, and then we cash out. If they’re just using investment capital, then I’ll set the length of the note up for two years, particularly if I’m just doing a flip.
Jay Conner [00:31:43]:
And I’m not going to use it for two years either. But the reason there’s no hurry to pay back private money because I’ve been paying my private lenders the same interest rate ever since February 2009. Well, guess what? The bank right down the street from my office here in Morehead City, North Carolina, is charging more than 8% for commercial rates on real estate for single-family houses. So you’re actually at 8% on private money with no points, no origination fees, no extension fees. You’re saving so much money just paying a straight 8% to the private lenders.
John Odermatt [00:32:25]:
Yeah, that makes a ton of sense, Jay. Unfortunately, we are out of time here pretty much.
Jay Conner [00:32:31]:
I know we just got started. I got so much I want to tell.
John Odermatt [00:32:34]:
I feel like we did. But before I let you go so people can follow you, nd you know, if they want to go, learn more about you, where can they do that? Give me your plugs.
Jay Conner [00:32:46]:
Sure. Well, John, first of all, I would love to give a very valuable gift, in fact, two gifts to your audience, and that is my new book,o k which is called Where to get the Money now, subtitle: How and where to get money for your real estate deals without relying on hard money lenders. This is not an ebook. This is a real book, and it’s 20 bucks at Amazon. But don’t spend 20 bucks at Amazon. I’d love to give you the book for free. I’ll autograph it. I’ll express mail it to you through the United States Postal Service.
Jay Conner [00:33:21]:
Just cover shipping and handling. You can pick up the book to get the money now at www.JayConner.com/Book, again, that’s www.JayConner.com/Book. I’ll rush it right out to you. I’m also going to include two tickets to my live event, which is called the Private Money Conference, and I do that event three times a year. Those tickets are valued at $3,000. I’m going to include two tickets along with the book. I’ll rush that right out to you. Jconnner.com book in addition to that, if you’ve enjoyed the information about private money here on this show, then come over and check out my podcast and my podcast. We’re in our eighth year of podcasting, and the name of my show is Raising Private Money.
Jay Conner [00:34:17]:
Imagine that, Raising Private Money with Jay Connor. I’m on all the podcast platforms, and twice a week, I release them early Monday morning and Thursday mornings. Twice a week, I’m interviewing other real estate investors, interviewing them as to how they have gone out and been successful in raising private money.
John Odermatt [00:34:38]:
That’s awesome. Jay, I want to thank you for coming on the show, being so generous with your time, and you know, generous with my audience with that, with that gift for today. So I appreciate that. I will link to where everyone can get that book on the Show Notes page, and I’ll link to your podcast as well. So Jay, thanks for coming on the show.
Jay Conner [00:34:58]:
John, thank you so much for having me. God bless you.
John Odermatt [00:35:03]:
Alright, guys, that is a wrap for today’s show with Jay Connor. Want to thank Jay once again for joining us today. Hopefully, everyone learned something, maybe piqued a little bit of curiosity. And if you are curious, if you are looking to learn more, please do check out the Show Notes page with those links I talked about before. You can find those, of course, at lions of liberty.c.One note before I let you all go for today, of course. You know, now here at Lions of Liberty, we have a new podcast every other Friday on our network called Politics. That’s politics spelled with tick, like the blood sucking insect, because that’s what most politicians are. So you can check that show out every other Friday with me with Brian McWilliams, Brian Nichols, and Lou Perez.
John Odermatt [00:35:56]:
It’s been getting great reviews, so please check it out. Subscribe to the feed, and that’s all I’ve got for this week. I’ll see you all next week with another awesome guest. Next week is my 500th episode, so definitely tune in for that. But in the meantime, always remember to keep your head up and those fires of liberty burning foreign.
Narrator [00:36:32]:
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 shares seven 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.
In a recent episode of the Raising Private Money podcast, Jay Conner—a respected investor, coach, and mentor—joined Troy Kearns to dive deep into strategies that are working in today’s ever-shifting property market. Their candid conversation offered not only actionable insights but also inspiring perspectives for both beginners and seasoned pros.
Navigating Shifting Markets
One thing Jay and Troy agree on: the real estate landscape is always on the move. Rather than fearing change, Jay emphasizes the importance of adapting and staying informed. “You have to stay close to the ground, plugged into what’s happening nationally and locally,” Jay advises. Whether new interest rates, inventory shortages, or emerging technology, savvy investors continuously educate themselves and adjust their strategies accordingly.
Creative Financing is King
Perhaps the biggest theme in their discussion was the power of creative financing. Jay, known as “The Private Money Authority,” shared how he’s helped countless investors secure deals without relying solely on banks or traditional lending. Private money, he explained, means working with individuals—think professionals, retirees, and even neighbors—who are looking for a solid return on their investment, typically backed by real estate.
Jay and Troy broke down the steps: find people who have idle cash or underperforming retirement accounts, show them how lending it in real estate can be safer and more profitable, and structure straightforward win-win deals. Jay pointed out that this approach is especially crucial during times when conventional lending tightens or property values fluctuate.
Building Relationships First
Both Jay and Troy stressed that real estate remains, at its heart, a people business. Whether working with private lenders, sellers, or other professionals, trust and clear communication are paramount. Jay’s personal approach—educating potential investors before ever asking for funds—reflects this philosophy. By building relationships and proving yourself as a reliable partner, you not only secure more deals but also develop a solid network that supports your long-term success.
Practical Deal-Making Tips
Throughout their chat, Troy prompted Jay to share practical advice listeners could apply in the field. Among the tips:
Focus on Off-Market Deals: Both speakers highlighted the value of sourcing properties before they ever hit public listings. This could mean direct mail campaigns, networking, or leveraging existing relationships.
Offer Solutions, Not Just Transactions: Jay’s success comes from approaching sellers as a problem-solver—understanding their unique situations and crafting offers that address both their needs and his business goals.
Always Have Multiple Exit Strategies: Particularly in uncertain markets, Jay suggests having several options for every deal. That might include wholesaling, rehabbing and selling, or holding as a rental.
Mindset Matters Most
Beyond tactics, Jay and Troy delved into the mindset required for true real estate success. Jay spoke candidly about the importance of perseverance, lifelong learning, and thinking like an entrepreneur. “You have to treat this like a business, not just a hobby,” he reminded listeners, emphasizing systems, consistency, and the willingness to pivot when necessary.
Troy, echoing these sentiments, shared stories of tough deals and lessons learned, underlining that setbacks are just part of the journey. For those just starting, both men encouraged taking action, no matter how small the first step, and finding mentors who can offer guidance and accountability.
Final Thoughts
Jay Conner and Troy Kearns’ energetic exchange served as both a tutorial and a motivational kick in the pants. Whether you’re a new investor or a veteran, their advice is clear: adapt to market changes, get creative with financing, put people first, and keep pushing forward.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Mindset Shift: Jay Conner talks a lot about the “real estate between your ears.” What mindset changes do you think are essential for real estate investors who want to successfully raise private money?
Traditional vs. Private Money: What are the biggest differences between traditional financing and raising money from private lenders, according to Jay Conner, and how do those differences impact deal-making?
Education as a Tool: Jay emphasizes “putting on the teacher hat” when introducing private lending opportunities. Why do you think education is such a powerful strategy in attracting private lenders?
Fear and Rejection: Many investors struggle with the fear of rejection when raising money. How does Jay’s approach help overcome this fear, and what techniques could you adopt from his method?
Assumptive Close: Jay mentions using the “assumptive close” rather than pitching or asking for money directly. How might this approach change your success rate in securing funding?
Building Trust: Jay’s process relies on building trust and relationships before ever pitching a deal. What are some ways you can build similar trust with potential private lenders?
Self-Directed IRAs: The use of self-directed IRAs is mentioned as a funding source. How does this work, and what are the potential benefits for both the investor and the lender?
Dealing with Financial Crises: Jay shares how being cut off from traditional bank funding in 2009 forced him to seek out private money, which ended up tripling his business. How can adversity create new opportunities in real estate investing?
Learning and Growth: Jay references books and masterminds that contributed to his personal and professional transformation. What role does ongoing education play in your career or business growth?
Adapting Over Time: Both Jay and Troy discuss the importance of adapting and reinventing yourself in business. How can real estate investors ensure they continue to evolve and succeed as the market changes?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
Jay Conner emphasizes the importance of building strong relationships with private lenders, explaining that trust and ongoing communication are crucial to his real estate investing strategy.
Troy Kearns and Jay discuss how they both started in real estate with little knowledge and learned most of what they know through trial and error—proving that persistence is key to success in the industry.
The conversation highlights some creative deal-structuring tactics that Jay uses, such as buying properties with very little of his own money by leveraging private funding, showcasing the power of thinking outside the box in real estate investing.
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.
Real Estate Game Changer: Attract Private Lenders Without Fear of Rejection
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
The reason real estate investors shy away from raising private money is that, first of all, they’re not using the mindset that I have. People ask me all the time, they say, Jay, what’s the first thing I need to do to start raising private money? And I say, you need to own the real estate between your ears. And what I mean by that is we have to have a 180-degree shift in thinking about the traditional way to raise money or to get money in thinking about funding for your real estate deals, the traditional way. And the only way that 99.9% of real estate investors think about getting funding for their deals is that they think they have to apply for a mortgage. They think they have to abide by the rules of the lender. The old thinking, traditional thinking, is that he or she who has the money makes the rules. They think they have to have their credit score pulled and all that kind of stuff. And all of that. The opposite is true.
Narrator [00:01:04]:
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 to raise 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 Connor.
Troy Kearns [00:01:31]:
Welcome to the Troy Kearns podcast. We discuss real estate investing, entrepreneurship, in business to help you retire and become financially free. Make sure you share this podcast with someone who could benefit from it and leave us a five-star review. It truly helps me out. This show will mentor you towards financial freedom. If I can do it, so can you.
Troy Kearns [00:01:53]:
Welcome to the Troy Currents podcast. Today, we’ve got an authority on raising private money. He actually has an entire YouTube channel built on it. His name is Jay Connor. Jay, welcome to the show.
Jay Conner [00:02:04]:
Troy, thank you so much for inviting me to come along. I’m so excited to be here because we’re going to talk about private money. And the reason I’m so passionate about private money is that this one strategy has had more of an impact on my real estate investment business than any other thing I’ve done since 2003. Wow.
Troy Kearns [00:02:26]:
So tell me, like, you know, one of the things I coach a lot of people and a lot of guys, it’s either you got it figured out or you don’t. And why do you think so many people don’t have it figured out when it comes to raising private money? What has made you kind of go full tilt into this? Jay?
Jay Conner [00:02:42]:
Well, my answer and my opinion on that on that the reason real estate investors shy away from raising private money is because, first of all, they’re not using the mindset that I have. People ask me all the time, they say, Jay, what’s the first thing I need to do to start raising private money? And I say, you need to own the real estate between your ears. And what I mean by that is ‘we’ve got to have a 180 degree shift in thinking about the traditional way to raise money or to get money and funding for your real estate deals. The traditional way. And the only way that 99.9% of real estate investors think about getting funding for their deals is that they think they have to apply for a mortgage. They think they have to abide by the rules of the lender. The old thinking, traditional thinking, is that he or she who has the money makes the rules. They think they have to have their credit score pulled and all that kind of stuff.
Jay Conner [00:03:46]:
And all of that, the opposite is true. You know what’s interesting, Troyy? I have 47 private lenders right now that are funding my real estate deals. And you know what? Not one of them, not one of my private lenders ever heard of private money or private lending or self-directed IRAs and how they can use retirement funds to earn either tax-deferred or tax-free interest that I pay them. None of them ever heard about it until I put on my teacher hat, my teacher says, private money, teacher. None of them ever heard about it. And so the reason, back to your question, the reason real estate investors that have heard of private money, and by the way, when I say private money, I’m not talking about hard money, I’m not talking about any kind of institutional money, because hard money is typically an institution, a brokerage that has gone out and raised money from investors to invest in their fund and, and then they turn around and loan that to us real estate investors, that’s not this world we’re talking about. I’m talking about doing business, borrowing money from ordinary people, just like you and me, that loan us real estate investors money either from their investment capital, or their retirement funds. So, the reason real estate investors who even know what private money is and getting money from individuals from ordinary people, the reason those people shy away from it is because they think they’ve got to ask, they think they’ve got to pitch deals, they have a fear of rejection.
Jay Conner [00:05:24]:
How can you be rejected if you’re never asking anybody for anything? So I get the question all the time, Jay. How in the world have you got eight and a half million dollars that you use from project to project to project on, you know, different single-family houses? How do you get all that funding? And you never ask for money. Here’s the answer, here’s the secret. We separate the convert. First of all, you’ve got to have the right attitude. I’m leading with a servant’s heart. I’m sharing this opportunity of being a private lender with ordinary people that’s never heard of it.
Jay Conner [00:06:01]:
And I’m giving them the opportunity. I’m teaching them the interest rate that I will pay. I’m teaching them the maximum loan to after-repair value. In other words, I am my own underwriter. You, as the borrower, you’re your own underwriter. You make the rules, you set the terms. So we teach the opportunity without having any deal attached to that initial exposure. Teaching, having a conversation.
Jay Conner [00:06:31]:
Here’s a writer downer, Troy. Desperation has got a smell to it. And the worst time to be raising private money for funding for a real estate deal is when you need it for a deal. Right? So, I mean, Troy, I’m going to take a little risk. I’m going to step out here on a branch. I’m going to ask you a question. Here’s the question. Have you ever heard the guru on stage, the real estate guru on stage, say something like this? Oh, just get the deal under contract, and the money will show up.
Jay Conner [00:07:07]:
Have you ever heard that?
Troy Kearns [00:07:08]:
I think everybody says that, right?
Jay Conner [00:07:10]:
And, or they’ll say, Oh, just get the deal under contract. Money finds good deals. That’s the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard in my life. Where’s the money going to come from? Is it going to rain out of clouds? Right.
Troy Kearns [00:07:24]:
So I think that’s the smartest thing I’ve heard someone say. You know, I probably have used that term myself, just because you know that you should, you should always find a good deal, and then you can always unload it as a wholesale deal. But you’re not going to be able to raise capital last minute. I totally agree with you there.
Jay Conner [00:07:40]:
Yeah, yeah. I mean, if you’re a wholesaler and you’ve got a list of buyers, you’ve already raised the money for that business model. You already know where the money’s coming from for that wholesaling business model. So if you want to stay in a deal, it’s the same thing. You get the money lined up first. I mean, if you are an Imarta wholesaler and they got good training, they were taught, build your buyer’s list first. Right. Common sense.
Jay Conner [00:08:11]:
Right back to the answer. First, we teach you to get the money lined up; there’s always going to be deals, always going to be deals. And then how do you get your deal funded without asking for money? How do you get your deal funded without pitching a deal? You know what, Troy, since February 2009, when I started using private money, I’ve never pitched a deal. Troy, I’m so excited. I want to share with you and your audience right now my exact script that I get my deal funded 100% of the time when I have a deal for funding. So, Troy, let’s do just a little hypothetical assuming and set this up. And people understand once I do this. So first of all, Troy, let’s assume that you and I have been friends for a while, and we know each other, and we’ve got the trust factor.
Jay Conner [00:09:07]:
Let’s assume we go to church just to really bring it home. All right? So we go to church together. We know each other. We’ve known each other a while, and we’re friends. Now, let’s also assume that I have, as your friend, I have taught you the private money opportunity. You know what interest rate I pay, which by the way, has been 8%, no points, no origination fees ever since 2009 through all these different market cycles. So you know the program, you know the frequency of payments, you know how I’m going to protect you. You know I’m going to name you as the mortgagee on the insurance policy and all those layers of protection.
Jay Conner [00:09:46]:
You already know all that stuff. No,w let’s also hypothetically assume that you told me in our conversation when I was exposing you to this. Let’s hypothetically assume that you worked for a previous employer and you still got a 401 (k) there with that employer, that plan administrator. Let’s assume it’s in the stock market, and you don’t like it, you don’t like the volatility of th, and you would really like, you know, set rates of return, like putting money in a CD in a local bank. Let’s also assume that I have introduced you to the self-directed IRA company that I recommend. And let’s assume you’ve moved that $150,000 over to the self-directed IRA company at my recommendation. And now you are waiting for me to call you because I told you I would put your money to work for you just as soon as possible. So that’s the setup.
Jay Conner [00:10:41]:
Here comes the phone call. I call this the good news phone call. Here’s the script. I call up, you answer the Phone. We have a little chit-chat, a nd here’s exactly what I say. Troy, I’ve got great news for you. I can now put your money to work. I’ve got a house under contract in Newport, North Carolina, with an after-repaired value of 200,000.
Jay Conner [00:11:06]:
Now the funding required for the deal is $150,000. That matches up to what you’ve got at the self-directed IRA company. Now the closing on this deal is going to be next Friday. You’ll need to have your funds wired to my real estate attorney’s trust account by next Thursday. I’m going to have my real estate attorney email you the wiring instructions. That’s the end of the conversation. The most stupid thing I could do is ask Troy. Do you want to fund the deal? Of course Troy wants to fund the deal for three big reasons why Troy wants to fund my deal.
Jay Conner [00:11:41]:
Number one, he trusted me to move his money over to the self-directed IRA company that he never even heard of until I taught him about it and exposed it to him. The second reason Troy wants to fund my deal is that he knows I’m not going to bring a deal for him to fund that doesn’t meet the criteria of the underwriting that I already taught him. Did you hear the numbers? I told Troy the after-repaired value was 100,200 thousand dollars. I also told him the funding required for the deal is 150,000. Well, that’s 75% of the after-repaired value. He already knows that criterion. Notice parenthetically, I did not say 75% of the purchase price. I said 75% of the after-repaired value.
Jay Conner [00:12:28]:
Troy knows I’m gonna bring home a big check at closing at purchase every time I buy. Who wants to get paid to buy houses? The third reason Troy wants to fund my deal is that he’s not making any money until I put his money to work. I promised him I would. So I’m ethically obligated to invest Troy’s money in my deals.
Troy Kearns [00:12:53]:
Jay, you’re smooth. I mean, I’m just going to say it like that. I mean, you are very, very smooth. I feel like you’re almost like a preacher slash businessman. I mean, you just had a really, really good delivery now, before 2009, and you started to do this. What got you into this game? Because you’re you. Well, what I just heard there, and I know most people probably won’t know, but you did the assumptive close. You didn’t say, hey, you know the ABC? Do you want to give me X or Y?
Troy Kearns [00:13:22]:
He said, Let’s get it to work. So I think that you, you, the other thing that you might be leaving out is you got to be smooth because you, you basically directed them, you gave them what they needed to do. But by the way, which IRA company, self-directed IRA company, do you like?
Jay Conner [00:13:40]:
Yeah, currently, and I have been for seven years now, I use Inspira. Inspira recently acquired the assets of Quest Trust, and I was with them for many years. I’ve had the same rep. Colin has been taking care of my deals. In fact, he speaks at all of my live events. But I get my deals funded in seven days from the time the paperwork starts using Inspira.
Troy Kearns [00:14:07]:
Got it. And what did you do before investing in real estate? Because I mean, I would guess that you were a preacher. I mean, just the way you talk.
Jay Conner [00:14:18]:
Like he’s smooth. Well, I do go to church three times a week, and I have been known to fill in the pulpit every now and then. But anyway, you’re natural. So,o from 200,3 when I started investing in single-family houses. Now, by the way, private money is for all assets of real estate. Single-family houses, apartments, self-storage, land, and commercial buildings. It all just comes down to how you structure the deal. Now, all the deals that I do with single-family houses, the SEC does not regulate what we do in this world of private money.
Jay Conner [00:14:57]:
And here’s why. I’m not raising money for a fund. If you’re going to raise money for a fund, then that’s not asset-backed debt. That’s where the SEC comes in and regulates what you can do, who you can borrow from, who you can’t borrow from, and all that kind of stuff. But in this world of single-family houses, everything we do is called a one-off. What’s a one-off? A one-off means use. You have a single-family house, which could be a duplex, triplex, or quadplex. But it’s one property that is being funded by a private lender, maybe two or three private lenders.
Jay Conner [00:15:33]:
They have their own promissory note, they have their own deed of trust or mortgage collateralized on that note. So it’s an asset-backed debt. Therefore SEC is not involved. But back to your question. How did I get into this world? Yeah, private money. Well, I started in 2003, and as you know, I went to the local bank. Hey,y look, Troy, I never even heard of hard money until 2009. And I’m not talking hard money, right, I’m talking individuals here.
Jay Conner [00:16:01]:
But I never heard of hard Money brokers. So for the fixed first six years, Troy, the only thing I knew to do was go to the local bank or mortgage company, get on my hands and knees, say, please, fund my deal, fill out applications, have my credit score pulled, pull up my skirt for the banker to look at all my personal assets and abide by their rules. You know, I had to play by their rules. That’s all I knew to do, Troy, for six years, until January 2009. And, Troy, everything changed. Everything changed. In January 2009. I was sitting right here at this desk.
Jay Conner [00:16:38]:
I called up my banker. His name was Steve. Steve had funded a ton of deals for me for those first six years. And I called up Steve. I told him about two houses that I had under contract that I wanted him to fund loan money on. And I’m telling you, Troy, I learned that my line of credit had been shut down. Had been shut down. I said, Steve, what in the world are you telling me? My line of credit’s been closed? We’ve had a great relationship for six years.
Jay Conner [00:17:07]:
Steve said, Jay, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? I said no, but you just gave me a financial crisis. I don’t have a way to fund my deal. Steve said, Sorry, we’re not loaning money out to real estate investors. Well, Troy, I sat here at this very desk for a moment after hanging up the phone with my banker, where I no longer had a line of credit, thinking about those two deals I got under contract. And I thought to myself, Troy, I want to share with you and your audience a very powerful question that I ask myself. And you know the power in asking the right questions. By the way, this question I’m going to share with you and your audience will help fix any problem that anybody’s got going on. I don’t care if it’s a relationship, health, business, career, or financial.
Jay Conner [00:17:54]:
I don’t care. And by the way, these people running around saying, every problem’s an opportunity. I want to throw up. I didn’t have an opportunity. I had a problem. Let’s face the facts now, this problem did become an opportunity, but without this problem, you and I wouldn’t be on your show today. But here’s the. Here’s the question I asked myself right after getting cut off from the bank.
Jay Conner [00:18:15]:
I said, Jay, who? You know, the powers in who, not how. I said, Who do you know that can help fix your problem? And you know what’s funny? I asked myself that question, and immediately I thought of Jeff Blankenship. Jeff was a dear friend, still is. He was living in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the time, investing in single-family houses. And I called up Jeff. I told him what had happened. He said, Well, welcome to the club, Jay. I said, What club is that? He said, It’s the club of having the bank shut down your line of credit.
Jay Conner [00:18:47]:
My bank shut me down last week. I said, Well, Jeff, how are you going to fund your real estate deals? He said, Well, have you ever heard of private money? I said, No. He said, Have you ever heard of self-directed IRAs and how individuals can loan money to us real estate investors and get either tax-deferred or tax-free interest from the interest that we pay them? I said, Jeff, I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. I said, What is private money? He said, Well, I’m not exactly sure, but there’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron Legrand who can tell us about private money. I said, Well, okay, that’s interesting, but what is private money? Jeff said, Jay, I don’t know, but Ron says we can get a lot of it really, really fast. So I went to my very first real estate investing conference down in Florida to learn about private money. And Troy, I learned this whole mindset of no asking, begging, selling, you know, persuading, talking anybody into anything, but putting your program together that you’re going to offer. You know, I came back home, Troy.
Jay Conner [00:19:57]:
I put my program together as to what I was going to teach and share. I was able to raise over $2 million in less than 90 days of new funding that I didn’t have prior to this world of private money. That was all through my own connections. And you know what’s interesting? None of them had ever heard of private money until I taught them about it. And because of that problem, I. Our business tripled. Tripled in 2009. Here’s why.
Jay Conner [00:20:28]:
You may recall. Barely. You’re hardly old enough to remember. But anyway, you may recall back in 2009, all these foreclosures.
Troy Kearns [00:20:38]:
I was in the middle of it.
Jay Conner [00:20:41]:
All these foreclosures that were hitting the market, a nd the banks weren’t loaning money. Well, let’s think about that. Lots of foreclosures. Banks aren’t loaning money. You had to have all the cash to buy those foreclosures for sure. So my business tripled because I had all this private money and all these foreclosures to choose from. So our business tripled that first year because of having access to Private money and the funding.
Troy Kearns [00:21:12]:
I actually loved that time. That was probably the most fun that I’ve ever had in my entire life was during the foreclosure crisis. In fact, I wanted it so bad again that I stayed in real estate, selling real estate for another 10 years because of it, because I thought the. The market was going to collapse again. For those of you who aren’t around back when, what Jay was referring to, I mean, he’s not lying.
Troy Kearns [00:21:35]:
It can happen. And for those people who went through it, like everybody’s, if you had an American Express card, they shut down your funding. If you had a bank loan, banks were. There was like a. There was a bunch of websites that were keeping track of all the banks that were going out of business. And if you had cash or knew how to get cash, I mean, you were very rare, number one. And number two, you made a ton of money. Because that’s what started me in my career as well.
Troy Kearns [00:22:02]:
It’s like I sold 2200 homes in those five years that were foreclosures. And those foreclosures made a lot of people money because the banks were taking whatever they could get for them then. Jay, for someone new, and as you know, it’s pretty scary. You’re pretty smooth, Jay. And it’s pretty scary for people who are worried about saying rejection. A lot of them won’t even pick up the phone to call anybody, as you probably have learned over time. What if, what are the steps that you could teach people for that are. That’s uncomfortable, Jay.
Troy Kearns [00:22:32]:
That’s like, they’re worried about the fear of rejection. You made it sound so eloquent. And they’re worried about forms, and they’re worried about being named as a secondary beneficiary on the insurance policy. How do they get? How do they get that information? Are you able to help them with that?
Jay Conner [00:22:47]:
There’s a direct correlation between the lack of confidence and fear. Lack of confidence and fear. I don’t know which comes first. They’re sort of closely related, right? So when someone can fix. Can fix the level of confidence to where you can talk with surety. And come across truly from your heart that you know what you’re talking about, then how do you get that? It begins with knowledge. It begins with knowledge, but it even begins before knowledge. Why are you in this business? Why do you want to be in this business? If you’ve got the mindset that this business is all about you or this business is all about me, then we’re starting at the wrong point.
Jay Conner [00:23:38]:
What I’ve discovered in this business, Troy, as to whether I’m talking with a family that’s facing foreclosure or if I’m talking with a new potential private lender, it’s all about them. It’s all about me serving them and bringing them a solution to their problem. All 47 lenders, my private lenders, had a problem. They were not happy with the stupid returns, they the getting at the local bank. Right. So I came along with a way to fix that problem for them. So how do we up the confidence level? Knowledge. How do you get the knowledge? Well, hey, look, you know, you’ve been hearing me talk about teaching people this opportunity and having my teacher hat on.
Jay Conner [00:24:23]:
Well, you’ve got to know what you’re going to teach, right? Like what in the world are you going to teach? Well, here’s how I can serve your listeners to your show, Troy, and that is inside my book, which is titled Where to Get the Money Now, and the subtitle is how and where to get money for your real estate deals without ever relying on hard money lenders or institutional lenders. Inside this book, I have got, in one chapter in this book, I’ve got the exact program for you to teach. I mean, just duplicate what I teach because it seems to work pretty well. But I’ve got the program in the book. I’ve got all kinds of strategies in the book on where to get the money now, such as private lender luncheons, how to put on a luncheon, and where to? I mean, my very first private lender luncheon, Troy. I raised $969,000 with no deals attached whatsoever. They gave me a verbal pledge. Well, what did I do? I bought them lunch.
Jay Conner [00:25:24]:
I invited 20 people from my own connections. I bought them lunch. I did my little 20-minute PowerPoint presentation, which teaches the program. And then, you know, I met with them on one that was interested. Afterwards, they told me what I had, you know, what they had to work with and fund the deals. Anyway, the book is 20 bucks at Amazon. Don’t go to Amazon. Let me give you the book for free.
Jay Conner [00:25:48]:
If you’ll just cover shipping, I’ll autograph the book, and I’ll three day express. You can pick up my book to get the money now at www.JayConner.com/Book. Again, I’m an er, not an o r. That’s www.JayConner.com/Book. I’ll rush it right out to you, Jay.
Troy Kearns [00:26:13]:
You are a smooth operator. I’ll tell you what, I feel like you should be speaking next to Tony Robbins. You’re very like, from the minute we hit the word go on the podcast, you’ve transformed. I mean, I mean this in the utmost respect. I don’t mean this as you are a showman, like, and I, and I, and a teacher, and you, you come across as so authentic, it’s hard not to like you. I can see why it’s not, it’s, it’s not a problem for you to raise capital. So for people who maybe need to work on their personality, I’m sure you’ve done a lot of self-help books just by watching your inflection, your tonality, how you call me by the first name. Right away, I’m like, this guy is a student of the game.
Troy Kearns [00:26:53]:
So, now you’re sharing that knowledge with other people through this book. What, what, besides your book, what other tools have helped you out along the way?
Jay Conner [00:27:03]:
What other tools as far for raising private money?
Troy Kearns [00:27:07]:
Well, I just actually, I mean, more, something more personal than that, with the way that you use my name so much. I’m very aware of that. And, and, and I’m like, this guy’s smooth. Like, it’s the Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends in Influence. It’s the the name is the most powerful thing that you can use. And if you guys are paying attention, he’s probably dropped my name 100 times. And I do the same thing. And so, so game recognizes game is what I’ll say.
Troy Kearns [00:27:31]:
And I’m like, Jay is smooth. And so he’s a, he’s a, he’s a guy who studies, practices, and preaches, which you don’t see often. Usually, what you have is you have somebody who gets up on there, knows no idea what they’re talking about, and doesn’t know how to articulate what they’re saying. And I’m very glad. A lot of times, I’ll do a podcast and I’m sitting there drowning out, just like going in my La La Land. And when I’m watching you speak, I’m like, this guy is eloquent, he’s masterful. And you, it’s one of those things where, you know, you’ve, you’ve passed the teacher, so to speak, with. When you went to Ron the Grand, because I think you’re more engaging than he is.
Jay Conner [00:28:08]:
Yeah, I have. I have been to quite a few of Ron’s events. And yeah, Ron and I sort of like yin and yang. Right. It’s like the per. The personalities. The personalities are very different. But I will tell you, Ron LeGrand is one of the most brilliant individuals I’ve ever met in my life. Well, I thank you for the compliment.
Jay Conner [00:28:33]:
Dale Carnegie. Yes. Rule number six in Dale Carnegie’s list of human relations principles is that remembering a person’s name is the sweetest sound to them in any language. Rule number six from Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends. I went to Dale Carnegie’s human relations course when I was 24 years old. And yeah, that was a game-changer right there. So I’ll share this. You said that I’m authentic, and I appreciate that.
Jay Conner [00:29:06]:
Thank you. I’ll share with you and your audience. When I. When I was 23 years old, and the first half of my 24 years old, I was in a very, very dark place. Alcohol, drugs, no friends, working in the restaurant industry 80 hours a week, no life, no church, no God. I mean, it was a pot, weed. I mean, it was. It was a very dark place.
Jay Conner [00:29:36]:
And thank goodness I woke up one morning and I said, you know, okay, there’s got to be a better way. And so I found myself in the self-help book section in the bookstore. And I’d never been in the self-help section, but I knew I needed some help. And it didn’t need to be self because self was not getting it done anyway, so I came across this book and Troy, this book changed my outlook on life. It changed my trajectory, it changed the way I looked at life. And here’s the book. Thank goodness it’s still in print. And the name of the book is University of Success by OG Mandino.
Troy Kearns [00:30:21]:
I love Augmentino. I did not hear of that book. I know about the Greatest Salesman.
Jay Conner [00:30:26]:
Yeah. And so what OG did is he. He brought together a collection of many, many different authors in the self-improvement world. And he put together semesters in the book and, you know, different lessons. You got so many lessons in different semesters’ books about that thick. And so in the book, you get exposed to so many thought creators of how you should be thinking about life and how you should be going about life, you know, to begin with. And so I read the book. I still have that book at the end of my leather sofa in the sunroom, where I live when I’m not working.
Jay Conner [00:31:15]:
And I mean, it’s underlined and the pages are bent down, and it’s highlighted and all this stuff. But yeah, I don’t know who is credited with this quote, but I love this quote. And the quote is, your destiny is determined by the books you read and the people you meet. And so how in the world have I been so blessed to grow in this, in this world of real estate investing and mindset and et cetera. And that is the masterminds, the mastermind groups that I have been so active in for so many years. And the relationships and the knowledge and the opportunities and the doors that have been opened by me being in a group of like-minded people. You know, Napoleon Hill, in his book Think and Grow Rich, talked about the mastermind in one of his chapters.
Troy Kearns [00:32:14]:
Yes.
Jay Conner [00:32:14]:
And I just can’t endorse enough. The reason I’m thinking of mastermind groups is because of that quote, the books you read, and the people you meet, or where are you going to meet the people? Really high-quality mastermind groups. One of the best places to meet like-minded people. Like you, Jay.
Troy Kearns [00:32:36]:
How do people learn more about you? How do they get hold of you? You said you have a YouTube channel. Can you break that down for everybody as well?
Jay Conner [00:32:44]:
Sure. So you can go to YouTube and search for Jay Connor, the Private Money Authority. But if they really want to interact with me, and get some more juice twice a week, Monday mornings and Thursday mornings, then come on over and hang out with me like you’re hanging out with Troy here on his show. Come over to my podcast. And the name of my podcast is Raising Private Money with Jay Connor. I’m now in my eighth year. We have almost 800 episodes that are all there, and that’s old, across all the podcast platforms.
Troy Kearns [00:33:23]:
You’re the Joe Rogan Private Money.
Jay Conner [00:33:25]:
Say what?
Troy Kearns [00:33:26]:
You’re the Joe Rogan of private Money.
Jay Conner [00:33:28]:
I would, I would like to think so. I would like to think so. Yes. But I’m always interviewing other real estate investors who have already raised private money, and I interview them on how they go about raising their private money.
Troy Kearns [00:33:42]:
Jay, I really appreciate you coming on the show. I would like to extend an invitation for you to come speak at one of our masterminds that we have coming up. You mentioned the word I. I’m sorry, I was running late at the beginning of this thing. You’ve been an exquisite guest. I would I wish I had planned more time. Would you be willing to come back on another podcast to take a deeper dive? I’d like to know more about your personal story. We have some things in common, alcohol, drugs, things like that that we both have in common.
Troy Kearns [00:34:06]:
I think it’s. I think your story is inspirational. I think we’ve just scratched the surface of it, and I think that you’re a type of guy that I’d like to surround myself with if you’d be so generous with your time, Troy I.
Jay Conner [00:34:16]:
Would be honored and blessed. Thank you so much. Yes.
Troy Kearns [00:34:20]:
Guys, make sure that you follow what Jay Connor is talking about. I’m telling you, he has got a to. I talked to a lot of guys who are BS artists. I talk to people all over the country. This guy is genuine. He’s continuing to reinvent himself. I didn’t ask him how old he was, but based on the fact that we both have been in the career for a while and that he’s on a podcast and I’m on a podcast, that means he is adapting and changing and learning, and this is somebody that you want to pay attention to. Make sure you hit the subscribe button.
Troy Kearns [00:34:48]:
Make sure you give Jay a five-star review. Jay, I appreciate you coming on the show.
Jay Conner [00:34:52]:
Thank you so much, Troy. God bless you.
Narrator [00:34:56]:
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 shares seven 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.
If you’ve ever wondered what separates the good from the great in real estate investing, the conversation between Jay Conner and George Wright III shines a light on the subject. While some jump from deal to deal, always searching for that elusive secret, others quietly build thriving portfolios by focusing on fundamentals and cultivating the right relationships.
In their fascinating discussion, Jay and George unpack the mindsets and strategies that propel real estate investors to the next level.
Mindset Before Mechanics
One of the central themes Jay and George highlight is the importance of mindset. While technical know-how—like understanding contracts, negotiation, or analyzing properties—is essential, both agree that success starts before any deal is signed. Without the right mindset, even the best tactics can fall flat.
George shares how self-belief and the ability to persist through setbacks played key roles in his journey. Jay emphasizes that investors should see challenges as opportunities, not roadblocks. As Jay puts it, “It’s about being solution-oriented and always looking for how to make things work, not why they won’t.”
Building Relationships for Long-Term Growth
Another powerful takeaway from their conversation is the undeniable importance of relationships in real estate. George recalls how some of his early deals came from simply reaching out, being authentic, and asking peers for advice or connections.
Jay echoes this, explaining that private money lending—a cornerstone in his success—relies on trust and rapport. The duo agrees: if you’re not networking and building relationships, you’re leaving money (and deals) on the table.
They discuss the concept of “adding value first.” Instead of asking experienced investors for a favor, new investors should look for ways to help others, whether by sharing leads, assisting with due diligence, or providing support at events. Over time, this approach creates a strong, supportive network that benefits everyone involved.
Systems and Consistency Win
Jay and George stress that the most successful investors are those who treat their business well, like a business. That means implementing systems for finding and analyzing deals, following up with contacts, and managing properties. George describes how, early on, he fell into the trap of “chasing shiny objects”—getting distracted by the latest tactic or opportunity. It wasn’t until he focused on building repeatable processes that his results became predictable and scalable.
Jay adds that consistency, not intensity, delivers results over the long haul. A great week of networking or deal sourcing doesn’t matter much if it’s followed by three weeks of inactivity. Establishing a routine—even small daily actions—compounds over time.
Leveraging Private Money Without Banks
A highlight of their discussion revolves around the power of private money versus traditional bank financing. Jay shares his framework for attracting and working with private lenders, enabling him to do more deals with less red tape.
He outlines how private lending isn’t just about pitching deals—it’s about educating potential lenders, demonstrating credibility, and providing them with attractive, secure opportunities. George nods in agreement, noting that when you master private lending, the barriers to scaling your business drop dramatically.
Final Thoughts: Take Action and Keep Learning
Jay and George close their conversation by urging listeners not to get stuck in analysis paralysis. Study successful investors, absorb wisdom, but most importantly—take action. Every deal, good or bad, teaches lessons you can’t learn from books or podcasts alone.
In summary, Jay Conner and George Wright III’s dialogue is a masterclass in what it takes to thrive in real estate investing: the right mindset, strong relationships, consistent systems, and the willingness to act. If you’re ready to move beyond theory and start building your own legacy, their insights are a great place to start.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
Jay Conner talks about the impact private money has had on his real estate investing business since 2003. What do you think makes private money such a game-changer compared to traditional bank financing?
Jay shares a pivotal moment when his line of credit was cut during the 2009 financial crisis. How might you have reacted in his situation, and what lessons can be learned from how he responded to that setback?
The concept of “private money” and using self-directed IRAs for real estate investing can be new to many people. What parts of Jay’s explanation helped clarify how this approach works?
Jay emphasizes the importance of teaching, not begging, when it comes to raising private money. Why do you think this mindset shift is so effective in attracting private lenders?
The podcast discusses finding private lenders within your own warm market and through networking organizations like BNI. What are the potential pros and cons of each approach?
Jay mentions that desperation has a “smell” and that the worst time to raise private money is when you desperately need to fund a deal. How could this principle apply more broadly in business or life?
According to Jay, over 70% of self-directed IRA account holders want to be private lenders. Why do you think this opportunity is not more widely known or utilized?
Both Jay and George talk about the benefits of having control over your own investments. In what ways does private lending shift the balance of control for real estate investors?
Jay’s journey includes not only finding success as an investor but also giving back through coaching and education. What do you think motivates successful entrepreneurs to teach others?
Looking at Jay’s advice about finding mentors and not “going it alone,” how important do you think mentorship is when it comes to financial or entrepreneurial pursuits?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
George Wright III shared unique insights from his personal journey in real estate investing, revealing how his background in the mortgage industry gave him a fresh perspective that sets him apart from other investors.
During their conversation, Jay Conner and George discussed a little-known negotiation tip that George uses to turn hesitant sellers into enthusiastic partners—a technique that Jay hadn’t heard before!
The episode features an entertaining story about an investment deal that almost went sideways, but thanks to creative problem-solving (and a bit of humor), George was able to turn it around and make it one of his most memorable successes.
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.
Never Ask for Money Again: Jay Conner’s Proven System for Real Estate Funding
Jay Conner [00:00:00]:
Did you know that over 70% of account holders in self-directed IRA companies want to be private lenders?
Jay Conner [00:00:13]:
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 to raise 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 Connor.
George Wright III [00:00:47]:
Welcome back to the Daily Mastermind, George Wright III, with your daily dose of inspiration, motivation, and education. And we’re going to talk a little bit about money today. So we are excited to have a special guest on the podcast. His name is Jay Conner. Jay, how are you?
Jay Conner [00:01:01]:
George? I am fantastic. And let me tell you, I’m so excited to be here. I’ll tell you why, because we’re going to be talking about private money. And private money, I’m so excited about it because it’s had more of an impact on my real estate investing business than any other strategy that I have employed ever since 2003.
George Wright III [00:01:23]:
I know, I love this because I have so many, you know, we got a lot of CEOs, owners, entrepreneurs as part of our listening audience, and they’re so busy building their business and growing, but they don’t spend enough time on their investing and strategies. And so just for people that don’t know you, I mean, look, you are really the private money authority and you’ve raised tons of money, you do hundreds of deals, you know, but at the end of the day, folks, I want you to realize Jay’s a national speaker, real estate coach, he’s the author of where to get the Money Now. And we’re going to be talking about everything really around that, but also kind of getting to know him and what he’s got going on, because I was pretty impressed, which is why we’ve got this going. So hey, why don’t you do us a favor and just, real quick, for those people who don’t know you, just give us kind of your background, give us a little bit of the journey that took you into this space, and then we can dig into the weeds a little bit.
Jay Conner [00:02:12]:
Sure. Thank you, George. Well, my wife Carol, Jo, and I live here in eastern North Carolina. Really, really small town, Morehead City, Atlantic Beach. Our total population target market to where I buy my single-family houses, is only 40,000 people now. We’re so blessed. Over the past 12 months, our average profit per deal is $86,000. I don’t share that to brag.
Jay Conner [00:02:36]:
I share that to make a point. I’d much rather be a big fish in a small pond than, you know, competing with all those other real estate investors. Well, here’s what happened, George. So from 2003 until January of 2009, all I knew to do to get funding for my real estate deals was go to the local bank or the local mortgage company, get on my hands and knees, and say, Please fund my deal. And the banker would make me raise my skirt to look at all my personal assets and pull my credit score and appraisals. And I had to abide by their rules, right? So all that worked out okay the first six years, from 2003 to January 2009. And then, George, everything changed. In January 2009, I was sitting right here at this desk.
Jay Conner [00:03:29]:
I called up Steve, my banker. Steve had funded a ton of deals in those six years for me. And I told him about these two deals I had under contract that represented over $100,000 in profit. And I learned like that over the phone, George, that the bank had closed my line of credit. And I said, Steve, what in the world are you telling me? You’ve closed my line of credit? He said, Jay, don’t you know there’s a global financial crisis going on right now? I said no, but you just gave me a financial crisis. I don’t have a way to fund these two deals. He said, Sorry, we’re not loaning money out. Well, I hung up the phone.
Jay Conner [00:04:06]:
I sat right here at my desk. George, I want to share with you and your audience a very powerful question that I asked myself right after that conversation, learning I’d been cut off from the bank. And you know the power in asking the right questions. This question that I asked myself changed the total trajectory of my company and mine and Carol Joy’s life, to tell you the truth. And this question will help fix any problem anybody’s got going on. And by the way, these people running around saying, Oh, every problem, an opportunity, I want to throw up. I didn’t have an opportunity. I had a problem.
Jay Conner [00:04:42]:
Let’s face the facts now. Did that problem become an opportunity? And yes, here’s the question I asked myself. I said, Jay, who do you know that can help fix your problem of losing all your funds for your real estate deals? I immediately when I asked myself that question, I thought of Jeff Blankenship, a dear friend who lived in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the time he was investing in single-family houses. I called up Jeff. And I told him what had just happened with me getting cut off from the bank. And Jeff said, Well, Jay, welcome to the club. I. I said, What club is that? He said, The club of losing your line of credit.
Jay Conner [00:05:18]:
My bank cut me off last week. I said, Well, Jeff, how are you going to fund your real estate deals? He said, Well, yeah. Have you ever heard of private money? I said, No. He said, Have you ever heard of self-directed IRAs and how people can use their retirement funds and loan us money for our deals, and we pay them interest. It’s either tax-deferred or tax-free. I said, Jeff, I don’t have a clue what in the world you’re talking about. What is private money? He said, Well, I really don’t know, but there’s this gentleman down in Jacksonville, Florida, by the name of Ron LeGrand, and he can teach us how to get private money. I said, Well, what is it? He said, I don’t know.
Jay Conner [00:05:56]:
But Ron LeGrand says we can get a lot of it really, really fast. So that’s why I went to my very first real estate investing conference in February of 2009. I learned what private money was. And you know what, George? I came back home, and I put the right mindset on. People ask me all the time, How do you get started in real estate? I said, you’ve got to own the real estate between your ears. So I put my mindset on. If I was not going to ask anybody for money, I wasn’t going to chase, I wasn’t going to beg, I wasn’t going to sell, I wasn’t going to persuade, what was I going to do? I put my opportunity together, and then you know what I did? I put on my teacher hat. I put on my teacher hat.
Jay Conner [00:06:38]:
My teacher hat says private money, teacher. And I went about teaching initially young people in my own network what private money is, what self-directed IRAs are. And in less than 90 days, I was able to raise a little over $2 million in new funding that I didn’t have. And you know what’s interesting, George? I got 47 private lenders today that are funding our real estate deals. And, and you know what? Not one of them people ever heard of private money, private lending. They never heard of how they could use retirement funds to invest and be a passive real estate investor by being a private lender. And so what’s the secret to all this? And look, my business tripled in 2009 for having all this funding available. The secret to all this is never having to ask for money.
Jay Conner [00:07:28]:
What do I do? I share with people, individual people, ordinary people like you and me, what private money is, how they can earn high rates of returns safely and securely. And here’s a big part of the magic. Here’s a writer downer. Desperation has a smell to it. The worst time to be raising private money is for a deal. So I teach the opportunity. They tell me how much money they have to work with if they want to use retirement funds.
Jay Conner [00:07:55]:
I introduced them to my self-directed IRA company representative. They tell me how much they have to work with. And then here’s the secret sauce. I call them up when I’ve got a deal to fund. Never ask for money. I call them up with what I call the good news phone call. And it’s in that phone call that they learn about a deal where they can invest their money. And you know what, if time permits on your show, we may not have time, but if time permits, I will share with you and your audience the exact script that I say to my private lender when I have a deal for them to fund without asking for money.
Jay Conner [00:08:33]:
And I get my deals funded 100% of the time.
George Wright III [00:08:38]:
Yes. I love so many things about what you just said. You know, the first is that most investors, most individuals are relying on everything outside their world, right? Their banker, their lender, whatever it is. And they don’t really have a lot of control over their own economy. And it’s probably because they don’t know, they don’t know any better. So what you did out of a problem is you turned that into, you know, a new course of action which has really changed the trajectory of whatever you’re doing. And what you did is, you know, you created certainty in a very uncertain market that I’ve also found over time carries through all types of markets and cycles. Right, because you’ve now been through, you’ve done this multiple market cycles, and yet you have some stability because you’ve taken control of what you’re doing and how you’re doing it.
George Wright III [00:09:22]:
I also like your perspective. I tell our audience all the time, you know, success leaves clues. The way you look at things determines your success. It’s not just about having the right contact, the right connection, the right deal. And your, your, the way you approach helping and not asking for money, but actually giving the opportunity, as well as not needing to go out and find these lenders. So, you know, for individuals that don’t know this market and what works and how it works, I’d love for you to share with us just, you know, A few more, you know, ideas. Because I think people are thinking things like, well, would I find lenders? Like, where would I do this? What would be the best way? And so I think it would be appropriate for us to kind of go down the rabbit hole just a bit and just kind of talk a little bit about what the strategy entails, and maybe some nuggets of wisdom you can share along those lines.
Jay Conner [00:10:11]:
Absolutely. Well, one of the most valuable things that I can share about this world, this world of private money and not asking for money, is again, an example of how I’m serving people. How you are will serve people when you start raising capital this way. I think a good place to start or go next is, for example, that script that I just mentioned. So, George, let’s do just a little bit of role play here. You’ll get your words exactly right. All you’ve got to do is shake your head, and you’ve got it down.
George Wright III [00:10:44]:
So I love it.
Jay Conner [00:10:46]:
Let’s do a little hypothetical assuming here. Now, let’s first assume for those of you that are listening to this show, let’s assume that George and I have been friends for some time. Let’s, let’s say, let’s assume we go to church together, right? And we see each other every week. And so we’ve already got the likability, the trust factors in place. We have a relationship there. The second thing let’s assume is, let’s assume I have shared this opportunity of becoming a private lender with George. I’ve. I’ve shared with him what the interest rate is that I pay, which, by the way, I’ve been paying 8%, no points, ever since February 2009.
Jay Conner [00:11:28]:
Same thing through all these markets. So George, let’s assume, like the interest rate, he likes the length of the note. He knows I’m not going to borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value. I didn’t say 75% of the purchase price. 75% after. George knows I’m gonna bring home a big check every time I purchase a property. Who wants to get paid to buy property? So, yes, let’s assume George loves the program. And let’s also assume that George had $150,000.
Jay Conner [00:12:00]:
I’m using small numbers to make a point. Let’s say George had $150,000 in a 401 (k) with a previous employer, and it was in the stock market. And let’s say he doesn’t like the volatility of the. How does that work? And George is going to want just a reliable straight Return, he’s happy with 8% because he knows he can only get a half a percent in a savings account or maybe 3% in a CD. So, and finally, let’s assume that I have introduced George to the self-directed IRA company that I recommend, and George has moved that $150,000 over to the self-directed IRA company at my recommendation. And now George is sitting at home waiting for me to give him a phone call and put his money to work. So a couple of weeks go by, and I call up George.
Jay Conner [00:12:53]:
Here’s the exact script is exactly that I would say to George in this scenario. George answers the phone, we have a little chit chat, and then here is the good news phone call script. George, I’ve got great news for you. I can now put your money to work. I’ve got a house under contract in Newport with an after-repaired value of $200,000. Now the funding required for this deal is 150,000, which matches up to what you have available. Closing is going to be next Friday. So you’ll need to have your funds wired from your retirement account to my real estate attorney’s trust account by next Thursday.
Jay Conner [00:13:36]:
I’m going to have my real estate attorney email you the wiring instructions. That’s the end of the conversation. The most stupid thing I could have done was ask George. Do you want to fund the deal?
George Wright III [00:13:48]:
Right.
Jay Conner [00:13:49]:
Course George wants to fund the deal. And here are three big reasons why George is dying to fund my deal.
George Wright III [00:13:56]:
Well, and I just got a comment. Jim, you laid it up like you literally laid it out like there’s nothing to really object to. So go ahead and finish your thought. But it’s like, what is there to even say other than okay, what, when, and where exactly?
Jay Conner [00:14:09]:
Well, here are the three big reasons George wants to fund this deal. Number one, he trusted me to move his money over to the self-directed IRA company. Right? He wouldn’t have done that unless he liked the program. He trusted my advice, so he moved his money over. The second reason George is ecstatic to fund my deal is that George knows I’m not going to bring a deal for him to fund unless it matches the criteria of the program that I already taught him.
George Wright III [00:14:40]:
Right?
Jay Conner [00:14:41]:
Did you hear the, did you hear the numbers? I told him it had an after-repair value of 200,000, and I told him the funding requires 150. There’s 75% of the after-repair value. And the third reason George is dying to fund my deal is because he’s not making any money until he puts that money to work. So I am ethically obligated to put George’s money to work for him.
George Wright III [00:15:07]:
Right. No, I love that. And you know, the obvious question here that comes up, and I, and I’m sure you get this a lot because I think most people are going to be listening to this, Jay, and saying, man, that just sounds like another brain-er. So where’s the heavy lift? Well, obviously, you know, you’ve got to find your money lending partners, and you’ve got to learn about private money. So you know, give me, give me just a couple of thoughts there because I think what a lot of people don’t understand. And listen, for those of you listening, our goal here is not to give you the full education on private money. I think that’s something. We’ll give you some links in the show notes and some ways you can do that with the book.
George Wright III [00:15:39]:
But one of the questions that comes up i,s if there are a lot of people who don’t understand the world, where do you find these people? And I think that the logical answer is like, everybody out there with retirement plans isn’t getting anything. Would love, love to have opportunities to do this. But where do, where do you find most of your private money lenders?
Jay Conner [00:15:59]:
There are three categories of where you find private lenders, and here are the three categories or places. The first category is what I call your own warm market. Your own connections, people that send you a cell phone, people you go to church with, people you play golf with, you know, who do you see regularly, you know, every week or every month, you know, who are you talking to? So your own connections, right? Even your social, even your social media. So that’s number one. Your second category is what I call your expanded warm market. Now, what do I mean by that? If you want to scale your business, if you’re like ordinary people, you’re going to run out of your own connections sooner or later, depending on how much private money you want to raise. So I teach real estate investors how to grow their network and blow up their network overnight. I’ll give you one great big nugget right now.
Jay Conner [00:16:58]:
I’ve gotten millions of dollars from being active in our local BNI, which stands for Business Networking International.
George Wright III [00:17:06]:
Right?
Jay Conner [00:17:07]:
I love BNI. And you know what? I volunteered to be the education coordinator. So I got the spot five minutes every week in that hour where everybody else only got 30 seconds, right? So, BNI, Ivan Meisner founded that organization. It’s fantastic. I’ve raised millions of dollars just from here in our little old local Morehead City, North Carolina, with 20 BNI members. The third category is what I call existing private lenders. Where do you find existing private lenders? These are individuals, ordinary people just like you and me. And by the way, when I’m talking private money, I’m not talking hard money.
Jay Conner [00:17:49]:
I’m not talking about any kind of brokerage or any kind of institutions. I’m talking about doing business with individuals just like you and me, with no middle person or broker involved. So, existing private lenders, where do you find these people? Well, if you’re like me and you start, don’t do it the way I started. I hired my real estate attorney to look for public records in our local county of deeds of trust, of individuals’ names. Well, that’s slow going right there. I actually, A couple of years after I started that, I started my software, which is called the Private Lender Data feed. We update that for my community members every month. There are over 12,000 private lender loans closed in the nation every month.
Jay Conner [00:18:37]:
We get all their contact information. But if you’re not in. But if you’re not a member of my community, where can you go to find existing private lenders? Well, let me give you a free resource. You can never be free if it’s good quality. And so, self-directed IRA companies, I mentioned that a few minutes ago. Well, a self-directed IRA company is also called a third-party custodian. It’s approved by the IRS, and it allows people who have current retirement funds to move their funds over to the self-directed IRA company with no tax effect, no penalty whatsoever, and then they can truly self-direct and invest those funds. Well, one way that they can invest those funds is to be a private lender and be totally passive.
Jay Conner [00:19:26]:
So, did you know that over 70% of account holders in self-directed IRA companies want to be private lenders? Surely they don’t want to go negotiate deals and find deals, and oversee deals. They just want to be totally passive, invest their money as a private lender in real estate with real estate investors and operators, and just sit back and watch their account grow. Well, guess what? These self-directed IRA companies have networking events, some of them monthly and virtual, and you don’t have to be an account holder to attend. So, at self-directed IRA networking events, private lenders are walking around all over the place. But don’t be mistaken, I’m not putting. You’re not putting your teacher hat on at those networking events?
George Wright III [00:20:18]:
Not at those. Right.
Jay Conner [00:20:19]:
Yeah, you’re not offering your opportunity of 8%, no points. You’re now having a negotiation conversation with people who already know this game. And unfortunately, a lot of them are spoiled, wanting 12% or more. I’m not doing business with them people. I’d much rather raise my own capital through my connections, through networking, through growing my network, a nd offering this opportunity because they love it. They never heard of it. And it puts you in control of where you are, your own underwriter of your deals. You set the interest rate, you set the terms, you set the frequency of payments, you set the maximum loan to after-repaired value.
Jay Conner [00:21:01]:
It puts you in control. Hey, there are no applications. You are already approved, right? No credit score. There’s no limit to the number of private lenders or private money you can have. You’re not regulated by the SEC when you’re doing single-family houses. Because we’re not borrowing unsecured debt.
George Wright III [00:21:20]:
Right?
Jay Conner [00:21:20]:
It’s all asset borrowing backed debt, collateralizing those promissory notes, with the real estate. So I got 20 reasons I love private money.
George Wright III [00:21:30]:
No, there’s. And those are great places to go to. So let me ask you this, because we don’t. We’re getting kind of to the end of our time. But, you know, one of the things that I was thinking when I kind of first contacted you is, what made you decide you wanted to kind of pivot a bit into writing a book and teaching and training and coaching? Because obviously that’s a whole lift in and of itself. You’ve got a very successful real estate and private money lending business. What made you decide to write the book, where to get the money now, and start doing, you know, building a community, talking and teaching, and educating people? What was your motivation behind that?
Jay Conner [00:22:05]:
That’s a great question. Well, I remember bacinIn January of 2011, after I started raising private money two years previously, my business, my investing business, was literally on automatic. I got a great team in place. I’ve had the same experience when talking to sellers for 20 years. Her name is Kim. I got the same general contractors, and I got the same project manager for 15 years. And I was totally bored, George. And I called up my friend and mentor, Ron Legrand, and I called up Ron and I said, Ron, what is next? I’m bored.
Jay Conner [00:22:45]:
I said, my company’s running, you know, netting over seven figures a year in our small market. And I’m bored to tears. I said, All I’m doing is making offers and making sure the marketing machine is turned on. He said, Well, Jay, what are you really good at? I said, well, I’m pretty good at raising a lot of money pretty quickly. He said, Well, you just need to teach other real estate investors how to raise private money the way you do. So Ron Legrand actually launched my coaching and education business. He scared me to death. That phone call was in January of 2011.
Jay Conner [00:23:18]:
I had my first live event in Atlanta, Georgia, in 60 days later in March, and in January, I had nothing written. And so I had to prepare for that live event, and I created my first home study course. And then I actually did not write my book. Where to get the Money Now Subtitle: How and where to get money for your real estate deals without relying on hard money lenders or institutional right. I didn’t write this book until very, very recently. And I discovered, George, I just have a passion. I absolutely love coaching, teaching, educating other real estate investors, and giving back what I have learned and still do in the real world. And there’s, I just, there’s no way to describe how it makes me feel.
Jay Conner [00:24:10]:
I’m thinking about Eric and Erica Carmadell, who live in Poplarville, Mississippi. Yeah, their nearest BNI is an hour away. And, but I think about them, they started working with me, and I started coaching them. And within seven months, Eric had retired, quote unquote, from the railroad. He was not even 40 years old. And I watched their lives transform totally to where now Erica is homeschooling. You know, I think about Crystal Baker. When we started working together, she was an occupational therapist making multiple six figures a year.
George Wright III [00:24:48]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:24:49]:
But she was totally miserable, working 80 hours a week. And we started working together, and I showed her the way I do real estate investing and private money. And in less than a year, she quit that multiple-six-figure income, went full-time into real estate investing. And now she homeschools. And those stories just are so meaningful to me that I’m able to give back.
George Wright III [00:25:14]:
Yeah, it’s, it’s, it’s something I found with a lot of individuals is that at the end of the day, you know, you, you can, you can make money, you can business, you can invest, but when you can actually give back and you can really see that transfer to other individuals, there’s a, there’s a huge sense of accomplishment with that, which is why I think, you know, you continue to do it. It’s why I’ve got the Daily Mastermind. And I, you know, I don’t sell any products on the Mastermind, but I love doing it just to help and kind of help drive people. And one of the Reasons I tell our audience, you know, look, if you’re looking to get into anything, especially private money, you know, why take that trip and go the long way? Why not, why not expedite your journey by working with individuals who have been there, done that, and save you the time, energy, and money in learning the lessons yourself? So that is really, really a key point. Let’s, let’s do this. I think for those individuals have this has kind of piqued their interest. It’s got them really starting to think, hey, I want to, I’veI got to spend some more time building my wealth.
George Wright III [00:26:10]:
I’m trying to create a life that is going to get me out of the office and get me off, you know, just doing things myself. What’s the best way for them to connect with you? What’s the best way for us to give them to connect as we kind of wrap up here? What, what do you recommend?
Jay Conner [00:26:24]:
Yeah, the best way to connect with me, Jay Conner, by the way, I’m an ER, not A or C O N N E R, is to let me give you my book. And the book, as I said, is where to get the money. Now, this is not an ebook. This is an actual book. The postal service is still in business. I’ll autograph it. I’ll three day express it to you. You can pick up the book at www.jconnner.
Jay Conner [00:26:48]:
www.JayConner.com/Book. Again, that’s www.JayConner.com/Book, and I’ll rush it right out to you. In fact, I’m going to include two tickets valued at $3,000 to my private money conference, and you can learn all about what that event is about as well.
George Wright III [00:27:11]:
Yeah. And just, and just to clarify for everybody listening to the show, he’ll actually give you that book for free. You just cover the shipping, and it’s covered. So if you’re interested in getting involved with that, you know, and look, just want to even connect and follow Jay’s journey, see what he’s got going on. I’ll put links to his social media in there as well. And you know, I guess the thing I would say for those of you who are kind of thinking, because one of the reasons I do episodes on investing and money is, you know, if you’re, you’re trying to create the life that you want to live, you know, your best life. First of all, I know and I always tell our audience it’s never too late to start creating the life that you were meant to live, the one you want. You want to live.
George Wright III [00:27:50]:
But you’ve got to take action. You’ve really got to move forward. You’ve got to do things, and that involves your mind, body, money, business, and lifestyle. So, you know, this is why we have the topic here. And, Jay, before we take off, is there any last, you know, maybe piece of advice or maybe it’s something that people are wondering if, you know, the, you know, the logical thing people say, like, what’s the timing of the market, is a good time or a bad tim,e and politics and things. Any last, you know, piece of advice you would give somebody, just, you know, from your knowledge bank.
Jay Conner [00:28:19]:
Don’t make the mistake I made that cost me hundreds of thousands of dollars. The first six years that I was in this business as a real estate investor, I was out here on my own on an island, and it was during those six years that I made all kinds of very, very expensive mistakes. What’s my advice? Find somebody you like and you trust to work with. Get a mentor to work with you, particularly if you’re new at capital raising or you’re new at real estate investing. Don’t go on this journey by yourself.
George Wright III [00:28:53]:
I love that. That’s great advice. And that’s one of the things, kind of a state of our podcast here is, you know, after working with 30 over 30 years, you know, hundreds of thought experts, celebrities, you know, you know, really successful people, that’s one thing I’ve learned is why, why try to do it on your own? And why not benefit from the decades of experience that people already have to expedite your journey? And it’s never been easier to actually expedite your path because of the knowledge and the stuff that’s out there right now. So, Jay, I certainly appreciate you being here with us, man. I know your time’s hard. It’s been like lining up the planets to try to get the two of us on a call. So it’s been really good. I appreciate you being here for us.
Jay Conner [00:29:36]:
George, thank you so much for having me come along. God bless you.
George Wright III [00:29:40]:
Yeah. Well, listen, guys, if you’re. If you’re listening to this for the first time, make sure you. You hit that subscribe button, so you’re not missing any episodes. But do me a favor and remind yourself of a couple of things. Number one, it’s never too late to start creating the life you’re meant to live. And number two, if you got some value from the show, go share the episode. If you share it, it means the world to me.
George Wright III [00:29:58]:
I think it’ll make a difference for other people as well, and I look forward to talking with you tomorrow. Have a great day.
Narrator [00:30:13]:
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 shares seven 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.
