***Guest Appearance
Credits to:
https://www.youtube.com/@WinningTheMoment
“Unveiling the Secrets of Real Estate Success with Jay Conner”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjPO4l7hsNg
Are you tired of jumping through hoops with banks, tedious paperwork, and red tape when funding your real estate deals? If so, you’re not alone. In a recent episode of the Raising Private Money podcast, together with Cody Adent, Jay Conner, widely known as “The Private Money Authority,” shared his transformative journey and actionable tips on leveraging private money to fuel real estate success.
From Banking Setbacks to Private Money Triumph
Jay Conner’s path to mastering private money began in 2009, amid the chaos of the global financial crisis. Despite a stellar credit score and a long-standing relationship with his banker, Jay suddenly found his line of credit revoked; banks simply weren’t loaning to real estate investors anymore. Stuck, but determined, he turned to private money: deals funded by regular individuals, using their investment or retirement funds to back real estate.
The result? Jay’s business tripled within a year. Today, he oversees more than 2,000 investors he’s coached and manages over $8 million in private funds, regularly averaging profits of $78,000 per deal—without a dollar of his own money in play.
What is Private Money, and Why Does It Matter?
Unlike hard money or traditional bank loans, private money comes from individuals, not institutions. Jay explains that this direct lender relationship allows you to “make the rules.” There’s no need to beg for funds or suffer harsh lending standards and rates. Instead, you negotiate mutually beneficial agreements, and your deals close in days, not weeks.
Crucially, Jay points out, private money thrives regardless of interest rate fluctuations or market instability. While the Federal Reserve hiked rates 11 times in 22 months, what Jay pays his private lenders holds steady, because the deal terms are set within his program, not by institutional whims.
How Does It Work? Bringing Home “Three Big Checks”
Jay’s system ensures he never uses his funds and always brings home a check at closing. By borrowing up to 75% of a property’s after-repair value (ARV), he can not only cover the purchase and rehab but often takes home a surplus to manage carrying costs.
Here’s how the “three big checks” come in on a typical deal:
- At Purchase: When using private money, Jay structures the loan so it covers the purchase price, rehab costs, and extra buffer, meaning he collects a check at the closing table.
- Option Fees or Rent-to-Own: If selling on a lease-purchase, he collects a large, non-refundable option fee from tenants aiming to buy.
- At Sale: When the property is sold or flips, he receives another large check, pocketing the difference after paying the private lender their flat annual interest (often 8%).
Building Win-Win Relationships
Over half of Jay’s private lenders invest through self-directed IRAs, earning steady, often tax-deferred or tax-free returns entirely collateralized by real estate. Jay is clear: these “sleep-at-night” deals are hands-off for the investor, no joint ventures or profit splits. The lenders earn more than a traditional CD or high-yield savings account and retain security by being listed on the deed or promissory note.
Scaling Without Limits
Today, Jay manages 47 private lenders, often with more money queued up than he has deals available—a “good problem” by any investor’s standard. Relationships are key, and personal referrals have fueled much of his lender network. For new investors, Jay insists the beauty of private money is that credit scores are irrelevant; it’s about the value and safety of the deal.
Start Today: Gaining Real Estate Freedom
If you’re looking to break free from bank limitations, scale your business, or simply want to learn how to make consistent, significant profits—even in a small market—private money is the answer. Jay offers his book, “Where to Get the Money Now,” for free (just cover shipping), and invites listeners to his Private Money Academy Conference at a steep discount.
Remember, as Jay encourages: “Stop thinking about what you want to do, and do it.” Mastering private money could be the pivot that launches your real estate journey into its most profitable chapter yet.
10 Discussion Questions from this Episode:
- Jay Conner describes private money as a game changer for his real estate business. What do you think are the biggest advantages and drawbacks of using private money over traditional bank loans?
- Jay mentions that private money puts the investor “in the driver’s seat” and allows them to make the rules. What are some potential risks or challenges that could come with this approach?
- The episode highlights how Jay’s business grew after being cut off from bank funding due to the 2008 financial crisis. How can adversity or industry changes serve as catalysts for innovation in business?
- Jay explains his strategy of borrowing up to 75% of the after-repair value (ARV) and always bringing home a check at closing. What are the pros and cons of this approach, and how does it impact the risk profile of his investments?
- Private money relies heavily on building trust with individual lenders. How important are personal relationships in business, according to Jay’s experience? Do you think this model is scalable? Why or why not?
- The use of self-directed IRAs to fund real estate deals is discussed as a major funding source. What are the benefits and potential complications of tapping into retirement funds for private lending?
- Jay says he pays his private lenders 8% interest per year, sometimes 10% for junior positions, but doesn’t offer equity or a share of profits. Why might some investors prefer this model, and what could make others want more involvement in the deal’s upside?
- Jay’s investment philosophy involves flipping homes in a relatively small market—Morehead City, NC—yet he reports high profits per deal. What factors might make a small market more advantageous or challenging for real estate investors?
- Both Jay and Cody share stories about being denied by banks despite solid track records. How can experiences like these inform our attitudes toward financial institutions and alternative funding sources?
- Near the end, Jay talks about his purpose being significance and impact, rather than chasing material goals. How might having a sense of purpose influence one’s approach to business and investing?
Fun facts that were revealed in the episode:
- Jay Conner’s Big Deals in a Small Town: Jay can average $78,000 in profit per real estate flip despite operating in a small area with only about 40,000 people. Remarkably, he completes about three deals each month in this small market!
- Private Money Over Banks: After being suddenly cut off from traditional bank financing in 2009—despite having an 800 credit score—Jay pivoted to raising private money. Within just 12 months of making the switch, he was able to attract over $2.1 million from private individuals, tripling his business.
- Multiple Paydays Per Deal: By strategically leveraging private money, Jay often brings home a check when he buys a property, gets another check if he sells with a rent-to-own strategy, and secures a final check when selling the property outright—sometimes getting paid three times on one deal!
Timestamps:
00:01 Real Estate Success with Private Money
09:16 Bank Loan Rejection Experience
15:01 High Profits Flipping Houses Locally
18:12 Buying Property with Private Money
23:08 Creative Real Estate Financing Explained
29:06 Interest and Collateral Flexibility
36:06 Maximizing Profits in Property Flips
40:27 Leveraging Self-Directed IRA Companies
46:13 Private Money for Wholesalers’ Leverage
51:44 Real Estate Math Cautionary Tale
55:38 Success Beyond Materialism
Connect With Jay Conner:
Private Money Academy Conference:
Free Report:
https://www.jayconner.com/MoneyReport
Join the Private Money Academy:
https://www.JayConner.com/trial/
Have you read Jay’s new book, Where to Get the Money Now?
It is available FREE (all you pay is the shipping and handling) at https://www.JayConner.com/Book
What is Private Money? Real Estate Investing with Jay Conner
http://www.JayConner.com/MoneyPodcast
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.
#RealEstate #RealEstateInvesting #RealEstateInvestingForBeginners #Foreclosures #FlippingHouses #PrivateMoney #RaisingPrivateMoney #JayConner
YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/c/RealEstateInvestingWithJayConner
Apple Podcast:
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/jay.conner.marketing
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/JayConner01
Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/JConner_PrivateMoneyAuthority
Flipping Properties: Risk, Regulation, and Return Using Private Capital
Narrator [00:00:01]:
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 for 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.
Cody Adent [00:00:29]:
Ever you are reading or wherever you are listening, thank you so much for making us a part of your day. We’ve got an awesome episode today with Jay Conner. Jay is a proven real estate investment leader and is known as the Private Money authority. Jay uses his 8 million in private money almost exclusively to buy and sell properties. With profits nearing $78,000 per deal. Jay walks his talk and averages three deals a month in a small 40,000 population area of Moorhead City, North Carolina. Jay has coached over 2,000 real estate investors since 2011, teaching them how to raise private money. This is an incredible episode.
Cody Adent [00:01:04]:
If you’re interested in private money investing or you’re interested in real estate, Jay has a wealth of knowledge, and not only that, but he’s actually giving away tickets to two people for free to his private Money Academy conference. It’s normally $3,000 to attend that. You can get it for only $97 a person in a registration fee. And he’s got the event happening in February, Jun, and Oct.. So pick the one that works best for you. Stay tunedlike and listen. And I know you’re gonna love this episode. Welcome back to another episode of Winning the Moment.
Cody Adent [00:01:45]:
I’ve got a special guest with me today. This is our first time connecting, which is fun. I love it when that happens. His name is Jay Conner, and he is the Private Money Authority. Jay, thanks for being here with us today.
Jay Conner [00:01:57]:
My lens, Cody. I’m so excited to be here to be talking about that topic that I’m so passionate about, and that’s private money. Because private money and our business and our real estate business have had more of an impact and a bigger change than anything else we’ve ever done.
Cody Adent [00:02:13]:
Our business is that even more so now, with the struggles with the banking institutions and the crazy interest rates, does that increase your business or decrease your business?
Jay Conner [00:02:23]:
Increased our business. Increased our business. You know, the beautiful thing about private money for real estate is that we make the rules. We sit in the driver’s seat and we’re not dictated and you know, pushed around by the market. You know, in the past 11 months, excuse me, in the past 22 months, Cody, the feds have raised rates 11 times. And you know what? In that same period of time, the rates that I pay my private lenders haven’t changed 1.1 iota. And why is that? That’s because we make the rules.
Cody Adent [00:03:01]:
Yeah, I know, it’s, it’s devastating to see what they’ve done to interest rates. I mean, it’s just like when I think about, you know, the younger people on my teams that I work with, it’s hard to imagine when they’re ever going to get themselves a home, you know, because home prices didn’t necessarily decrease with the interest rates, they kind of stayed stagnant. But then, with those interest rate increases, it makes it difficult for a young first-time homebuyer to get into a house.
Jay Conner [00:03:26]:
Absolutely. Now I’ve got some smart friends. One says we’re going to see mortgage interest rates down in the threes by the end of 2024. Another one, they said they’re going to be down in the fours by the end of 2024. And so that’ll make a, that’ll make a huge impact on who can afford a house again.
Cody Adent [00:03:50]:
Wow, that’s great. I didn’t, I know that I’d heard they’re going to prob interest rates at least four times this year, but I didn’t think we’d ever see three and fours again.
Jay Conner [00:03:59]:
Yeah, well, time will tell because at the end of the day, really nobody.
Cody Adent [00:04:02]:
Has a. Yeah, right. No one knows. You had mentioned when we were getting started before we recorded about your book, and talking a little bit about that quickly.
Jay Conner [00:04:09]:
Oh, sure. So I’ve been investing in single-family houses. We’ve also done commercial deals, shopping centers, townhouses, and condos. Primarily single-family houses since 2003. But in 2009, I was cut off from the bank,,s and I had to find a better and quicker way to fund our real estate deals. And so I started using private money. And, in the next, and I’m not talking hard money, I’m not talking institutional money, I’m talking private money doing business with individuals that are using either their investment capital, or their retirement funds to invest in our deals. And so the first 12 months of using private money, all the way back in 2009, our business tripled because of all the access to the funding.
Jay Conner [00:04:58]:
And that’s the same today. So recently, I wrote a book that I’d love to give you for free. So if you’re listening to this show, this book is called Where to Get the Money. Now, that’s the funding for your real estate deals, and that’s without, you know, relying on the banks making the rules. And so I’d be glad to ship this to you in the mail. Priority mail. You can pick this book up, very easily to understand, at www.JayConner.com/Book. I’ll send it to you via priority mail. It’s free. All you do is cover shipping, and we’ll ship it right out to you.
Cody Adent [00:05:47]:
That’s great. Well, I will put that link in the show notes. So if you’re listening to this and you’re driving around, know that when you’re done driving or if you’re on your computer, just go down to the show notes. I’ll have that link right there. It’ll take them right to it.
Jay Conner [00:05:58]:
Perfect.
Cody Adent [00:05:58]:
That’s wonderful. So why did you get cut off from the banks?
Jay Conner [00:06:02]:
Well, I got cut off from the banks, not because of my credit score. I had an 800 credit score, not because of my payment record for 6 years. Had a great payment record. I got cut off from the banks because of the global financial crisis that was going on. Cody, I remember it like it was yesterday. I called up my banker. His name was Steve. We had done a ton of deals in six years.
Jay Conner [00:06:25]:
I called him up, I told him about these two houses, 100 I had on a contract to purchase, and I knew he was going to fund them. I mean, I’ve been doing business for, you know, six years. And I learned very quickly that my line of credit had been closed down with no notice. And I said, Stevee, why are you shutting me down? We’ve got a great relationship. He says, Well, Jay, the bank is just not loaning money out to real estate investors anymore. I tell you, Cody, and I know you remember it, it was like the spigot turned off overnight. You know, Goldman Sachs, they shut down. I mean, it was a mess.
Jay Conner [00:07:05]:
So what did I do? I picked up the phone, and I called my friend Jeff Blankenship in Greensboro, North Carolina. I told him what had happened, and I said, What are you going to do? He says, Well, first of all, Jay, welcome to the club. The bank just closed my line of credit. I said, What are you going to do? He asked me if I’d ever heard about private money. I told him no. He asked me if I’d ever heard about self-directed IRAs, where people can use their retirement funds to loan money out to real estate investors. I told him I had never heard about that. So I learned about that very, very quickly.
Jay Conner [00:07:38]:
I was able to attract, without asking, begging, chasing, selling, or trying to talk anybody into anything. I was able to attract $2,150,000 in new funding from individuals. And you know what, Cody? Since that time, I’ve never missed out on a deal for not having the money. And here’s the deal. You know, the traditional way to borrow money is you go to the local bank, or you know, maybe a hard money lender or whatever. You go to the local bank, you get on your hands and knees, you put your hands underneath your chin, and you say, Please fund my deal, right? You know, you’re begging. But in this world of private money, we don’t ask for a mortgage; we offer a mortgage. What’s the difference? Well, you’ve got to own that real estate in between your ears.
Jay Conner [00:08:25]:
What do I do? I put on my teacher hat, my private money teacher hat. And I just started teaching people that I had a relationship with, going to church with them, the Rotary Club, and Business Networking International. I started teaching them my private lending program. By the way, in the book that I’ll ship to you. The program is in the book exactly as I teach potential private lenders. I teach them the program, don’t ask them to fund a deal. But then I call them up with the good news phone call, and I say, I got great news, I can now put your money to work. I give them a little overview of the deal, and I don’t ask them if they want to fund the deal.
Jay Conner [00:09:06]:
Of course, they want to fund the deal. They’re waiting for the good news phone call. So it’s all about teaching, it’s all about serving. It’s got nothing to do with chasing, selling, or begging.
Cody Adent [00:09:16]:
Well, I know all about having a bank turn you down. We work, I still work in hospitality, and we have a property that we were managing at the time, and we’d worked at this banking institution for 30 years at that point. And we were in the process of doing a big conversion and joining Hilto, and we needed, I want to say, a $10 million loan at the time. And we had all the financials for it, and the bank actually approved it and said, Absolutely, we’ll fund this for you. We started demolition. We had torn all of the main buildings down to the studs. We demolished a building, and then we were actually flying to China to get our furniture order. And they had built a replica, a replica room in China in a warehouse of our furniture, because we wanted to make sure we could get there before the Chinese New Year.
Cody Adent [00:10:03]:
We don’t have time to kind of send it over, do it on site, and then order it. We had to go there directly. And we’re sitting in front of the Chinese consulate getting our visas, waiting to go in on a phone call with the bank. And the bank says, I’m sorry, we’re not going to. Not going to fund your project. And they had already given us a verbal that they would. And we’d been working with them for 30 years. And so here we are, my business partner, Breck, sitting in.
Cody Adent [00:10:29]:
In this rental car in front of the Chinese consulate. And Bre. Like, oh, my gosh, what are we going to do? You know, like. Like, do we even go to China? And it’s like, at this point, we were so leveraged trying to get through this project. I told him, like, look, we were. You know, ‘we’ve got to go. We’ll find it. We’ll find another lending institution.
Cody Adent [00:10:45]:
Luckily, we found a bank that agreed to do it, and we’re able to get through it. But we had to go to China and make a handshake deal with our furniture designer, Steve Mittman, because it was about a million dollars in furniture we needed to order. And so we had to tell him at the end of it, like, I’m sorry, we don’t have any money, but we will, you know, if you’re willing to start this for us on a handshake, that will take care of it. Luckily, he was the kind of guy who believed in us, and we found a solution. But certainly you don’t want to be. You don’t want to be held hostage by the banking institutions if you don’t have to be.
Jay Conner [00:11:18]:
Absolutely. You know, when you’re making the rules and, you know, you’re putting the deal together, then, you know, you don’t have to be at the mercy of somebody else who’s making the rules. And I mean, for goodness’ sake, I mean, I’m surprised. Anything closes traditionally, right? And all the red tape involved. But in this world of private money, the closing documents. Five pieces of paper.
Cody Adent [00:11:44]:
Wow.
Jay Conner [00:11:45]:
Five pieces of paper. I mean, it takes me maybe three minutes to sign the paperwork when I close the deal. Using private money.
Cody Adent [00:11:54]:
Do you work with banks at all anymore? Is it all private money?
Jay Conner [00:11:58]:
All private money.
Cody Adent [00:11:59]:
Wow. So, how did you get into real estate? Like, what was that?. What was your history of getting into that space?
Jay Conner [00:12:05]:
I was raised, Cody, in the mobile home business, also known as the trailer house business, manufactured housing. And so I was raised in that industry because of my father, Wallace Conner. He was the largest retailer of manufactured housing at one time in the nation. And then in 2003, the Consumer Finance the money that consumers that were buying mobile homes, they went away, went out of way, fell out of favor with Wall Street.
Cody Adent [00:12:38]:
Why was that?
Jay Conner [00:12:39]:
Why is that? Yeah, because of all the fraudulent business that was going on. Manufactured W2s, people, that of course. Doesn’t that sound familiar in 2007, 8, and 9, you know, with traditional houses. But you just had so much fraud in the industry. Wall Street says, you know what, we’re taking a bloodbath out here. We ain’t loaning money out anymore. So I knew if I ever got out of manufactured housing and mobile homes, I knew I wanted to get into single-family houses. So that’s what I moved over to, single-family houses, and then also did commercial.
Cody Adent [00:13:14]:
So did you. Were you like a real estate agent then? Is that what you were doing at the time?
Jay Conner [00:13:19]:
Oh, no, heavens no.
Cody Adent [00:13:20]:
No, I went.
Jay Conner [00:13:21]:
Are you kidding? I went to the realtor training here locally to get my real estate agent’s license. And by the second night, they had me scared to death as to the liability I had by walking around with that card in my wallet. And I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to list properties anyway. I wanted to be an investor. So instead.
Cody Adent [00:13:42]:
Okay, so you went into it wanting to be an investor.
Jay Conner [00:13:44]:
Oh, absolutely.
Cody Adent [00:13:45]:
Gotcha.
Jay Conner [00:13:47]:
Yeah. So, I mean, the relationships that I have with my realtors and real estate agents are very, very valuable. But I let them do what they do best. They pull my comps, they tell me my values. You know, when I have a property ready to list that they did research on, they’re going to get the listing. So I let the realtors do what the realtors do, and I do what I do.
Cody Adent [00:14:09]:
So when you started then, like when you left that mobile home business and went into real estate investing, were you looking, were you like, flipping houses? Like finding houses that need improvements and that you could do that, and then resell them for a higher price, or what was your investment strategy in the beginning?
Jay Conner [00:14:23]:
That’s how I started. I just wanted to flip.
Cody Adent [00:14:26]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:14:27]:
And then as time went on, I learned some other strategies about how I could buy and sell on lease, purchase osellng on rent-to-own where the renters were responsible for the repairs. Instead of me being responsible for repairs, I would help them get credit, repair, and help them get ready for a mortgage. And so I’ve done a ton of those deals as well, but primarily, as far as single-family houses go, ever since 2003, most of them have been flips.
Cody Adent [00:14:59]:
Okay, so. And is that still what you’re doing today, then?
Jay Conner [00:15:01]:
Is flipping them primarily today in this market? Oh, my lands. It’s just unbelievable. The profits. Our average profit right now per deal per house in our small area of only 40,000 people is $78,000 profit per flip that we’re doing. I don’t say that to brag, but I do share that to let the. The message is known. You don’t have to be in a large market to make a lot of money as long as you know how to find the deals and you’ve got the funding lined up to where you can close quickly without. I mean, in fact, I just went under contract yesterday on a house here on Rendell Street in Morehead City, North Carolina, and I had a competitor that offered more money than I did, but I got it under contract because I could close in seven days.
Jay Conner [00:15:59]:
That’s a big one. That’s a big one. You’ll get more offers accepted by being able to close quickly with private money. It gives you a great big hedge.
Cody Adent [00:16:09]:
And in most of those deals that you’re doing in that Morehead City area, do you guys venture out of that?
Jay Conner [00:16:15]:
North Carolina, primarily right here in two counties.
Cody Adent [00:16:17]:
Okay, well, that’s amazing. So, and then there are the people. So when you flip it, then. And then you’re listing it.
Jay Conner [00:16:25]:
The.
Cody Adent [00:16:25]:
The buyers of those properties are using traditional financing. Are you financing the buyers sometimes?
Jay Conner [00:16:30]:
No, no. If I listed, then, you know, they’re using traditional financing. But I’ll tell you, in addition to that, Cody, I’ve never ever seen so many cash buyers, I mean, listed in the multiple listing service, and they got the cash. So, you know, mortgage rates have gone crazy, you know, in the last year or two. But here in our area, cash buyers, I don’t know where they’re getting it from, but I’m glad they’re bringing it.
Cody Adent [00:16:58]:
Yeah, we’ve got a lot of that, too. If you don’t have cash, you’ll have a really hard time getting a home in the area where I live. Unless you’re at like, you know, a million plus. What’s the median house range for the houses, like, when you’re making $78,000 a deal? What’s the. What’s the house going for? 325. Okay. Wow, that’s. And what, and what does that usually consist of? Like, is it 1500 square feet, 3000 square feet? What’s the average house that you guys are doing?
Jay Conner [00:17:24]:
Yeah, your average house for 325 is going to be in that 1500, 1600, maybe 1700 square feet. So the range you see, we’re here on the mainland and we’ve got the beach right across the high-rise bridge. So you got resort properties. You’re not going to get anything over there hardly anymore these days for eight or nine hundred thousand dollars.
Cody Adent [00:17:45]:
Gotcha.
Jay Conner [00:17:45]:
After the repair value. But here on the mainland, not over on the beach, then, you know, you’re going to be talking 325,000, you know, for that, you know, ranch.
Cody Adent [00:17:57]:
Got it. And then, one thing I was curious about to looking like getting ready for this podcast with you, is one of the things you said that you could talk to me about was how to buy properties without using your own money. And that certainly sounds interesting to me. So I’d love to hear more about that.
Jay Conner [00:18:12]:
Well, there are lots of ways to buy properties using none of your own money. First of all, let’s talk about private money. How in the world do you use private money to not have any of your own money in the deal? And you know, you go along and you, and you grow up hearing people say, well, you can’t borrow money without skin in the game. You’ve got to have your skin in the game. Well, let me tell you what the skin is in the game in this world of private money. The skin in the game is the equity, the equity cushion that you’re giving the private lender. So let me boil this down for you. Private money.
Jay Conner [00:18:49]:
I always bring home a big check when I buy and take none of my own money to the closing table. And they say, Jay, how in the world do you do that? Well, here’s the formula. First of all, I don’t borrow more than 75% of the after-repaired value. I didn’t say 75% of the purchase price. I said 75% of the after-repaired value. So here’s sort of a little, here’s sort of a little checkpoint. If you can’t bring home a check from the closing table, when you buy and take none of your own money to the table, you shouldn’t do the deal. Now, I’m talking about a deal that’s, that is a rehab.
Jay Conner [00:19:33]:
So let’s just use some real numbers here. I’m going to use my phone right here to run the numbers. So this deal that I just went under contract on yesterday, because I could close quickly. Well, let’s run the numbers. The after-repaired value is $550,000.
Cody Adent [00:19:52]:
And are you, are you getting that number just from your understanding and expertise of the market? You just know, like once we do this, once we put the improvements in, that we are, this is what it’s going to be worth.
Jay Conner [00:20:02]:
I do not rely on my expertise because there could have been a sale on that same street that I didn’t know about last week. So I always have comps and a comparable market analysis run by my realtor.
Cody Adent [00:20:15]:
Got it.
Jay Conner [00:20:16]:
I’m doing business with them before I make my offer.
Cody Adent [00:20:19]:
Got it.
Jay Conner [00:20:19]:
Right. So I want to know, currently, what is the after-repaired value based on sold comps of houses that are already fixed up, looking beautiful? So I know this house, this property is $550,000 based on my realtor’s research.
Cody Adent [00:20:36]:
Got it. Okay.
Jay Conner [00:20:38]:
So I got a $550,000after-repaird value. Now let me just go ahead and run the formula for you as to my maximum offer on this house. So when you’re paying cash for private money, you cannot let your emotions dictate what you’re going to offer. The math always makes the offer. Yeah, math dictates that. So I’m buying it for 550. Excuse me. The after-repair value is 550.
Jay Conner [00:21:09]:
I’m buying it for 325,000. Okay. That’s my purchase price, 325,000. The repairs. Estimated repairs on this house are $70,000. Okay. So watch how I’m going to bring home a big check when I buy this property.
Cody Adent [00:21:29]:
So you’re going to invest a total of 395,000.
Jay Conner [00:21:33]:
Correct. Not including carrying costs and closing costs, but yeah. On the big picture, yeah, 550,000. So that’s the after-repaired value. So, if I know that I can borrow up to 75% of the after-repaired value. There it is, right there. $412,500. That’s the check that I’m gonna bring home from the closing table.
Jay Conner [00:22:03]:
So not. That’s not the check. Excuse me. That’s the most I’m gonna borrow.
Cody Adent [00:22:07]:
Got it.
Jay Conner [00:22:08]:
So I’m borrowing.
Cody Adent [00:22:08]:
And so you’ve got that cushion there because you’ve got, you know, about $17,500 of cushion if you needed it.
Jay Conner [00:22:15]:
Exactly. So I’m borrowing 412,500 on this property. The seller is going to get 325,000. So I’m bringing home a check of $87,500 from the closing table that I’m taking and putting in my company account. And as you just said, Cody, I’ve got a little cushion there over and beyond $17,000, over and beyond what the rehab is budgeted to be. So again, there’s my check and balance. If I can’t bring home this big check, then I shouldn’t do the deal. Now let’s be transparent and make sure everybody’s understanding what I’m saying.
Jay Conner [00:23:00]:
This formula is not going to work unless you’re buying at a discount, paying all cash. Right?
Cody Adent [00:23:07]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:23:08]:
Now let’s contrast. Let’s contrast private money to say buying creative, subject to the existing note. Right. Well, if I’m buying subject to the existing note, which means the seller of that house is agreeing for you, the buyer, to make their payments for them, you’re not assuming the loan. You’re just agreeing to make their payments. They’re giving you ownership. Well, my Lance, how is that a no-down-payment purchase? Well, in that example, you’re leveraging the current mortgage that is in place and down payment; you don’t have to bring any down payment to the table unless the seller is requiring more than what is owed on the property. So if you are buying for more than what is owed on the property, then that money you’d have to bring to the closing table will go to the seller.
Jay Conner [00:24:03]:
However, you can use private money in a second position and still buy creatively with seller financing or subject to the existing note and use your private money instead of pulling any cash out of your pocket.
Cody Adent [00:24:18]:
So let’s go back to this one deal quickly. So you’ve got an after-improvement value of 550, you bought for 325, anticipating about $70,000 in rehab, which is 395, you’re pulling out 412,500. So you’ve got about $87,000 at closing, $17,000 buffer-ish on your improvement cost. So if you sell the house for 550. Now, of course, this is not figuring interest, closing costs, any of that, but you’re at about 137,500 in profit on that deal, assuming all things work out.
Jay Conner [00:24:51]:
Right. So let’s run that just to double-check. So I’m selling it for 550, and I spent 70,000 on repairs. And that’s if Murphy doesn’t show up. Right. And Murphy always shows up. Right. And I put, I paid 325 for it.
Jay Conner [00:25:10]:
Right.
Cody Adent [00:25:10]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:25:11]:
So now I’m down to 155. Now. The realtor’s fee that I pay is 5%. Okay, so run that real quick for me. Cody, what’s 5% of 300? Excuse me, of 550. It’s gonna be 27,000.
Cody Adent [00:25:26]:
27,500. Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:25:27]:
So if you take that 27 5.
Cody Adent [00:25:29]:
Then you’re at 110.
Jay Conner [00:25:31]:
So I’m down to 127,500. Well, what’s got to come out of that? Carrying cost, Private lender, interest, utility bill, insurance, taxes, cutting the grass. Right?
Cody Adent [00:25:46]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:25:46]:
So all that over six months? Well, you know, I pay 8%, so that’s per year to my private lenders. So 8% of 325 is like 25,000, but I’m only using it for six months. So my interest to my lender is going to be like $12,000. So let’s double it. Let’s say the carrying cost was even $20,000, which is not going to be. I’m still profiting over a hundred thousand dollars on this example.
Cody Adent [00:26:17]:
And so in that example, you didn’t use your money because you got private investors that have a pool of funds, and you use those funds to execute this deal, and then what those investors are getting out of it is an 8% return.
Jay Conner [00:26:30]:
That’s it.
Cody Adent [00:26:31]:
And so they don’t care how much you make on the house. They’re not sharing in that. They’re only just getting the 8%.
Jay Conner [00:26:37]:
Correct. I don’t do any private equity. I don’t do any joint ventures. I pay my private lenders. I got 47 private lenders right now from all over that are loaning money on our deals, and they’re getting a straight 8% based on the time they’ve got the money loaned out.
Cody Adent [00:26:55]:
Okay, and is there a reason that none of those private investors want to work with you in any other capacity? Is it just because you don’t offer it?
Jay Conner [00:27:02]:
Well, first of all, I don’t offer it. I’ve only had one private lender all the way since 2009 that called me up. He says, Jay, I’m loving the private lending program. I’ve enjoyed it. But I don’t want to do business with you like that anymore. I want to get part of the action. I want to get part of the profit. I want to share in the profits.
Jay Conner [00:27:23]:
And I said, Man, I appreciate you bringing up this conversation, but here’s the deal. First of all, too many cooks in the kitchen burn the toast. I do what I do best. My private lenders do what they do best, which is lie in bed, sleep at night, and make money. So I said to my private lender, if you want to share in the profits, then you need to go out and do your deals. You need to find your deals, you need to negotiate your deals, you need to oversee contractors, and you need to deal with the problems that come up with repairs. And you just need to go be a real estate investor if that’s what you want to do. What do you think he did? He said, Okay, I’ll be a private lender.
Cody Adent [00:28:04]:
Okay, so then what is, you said you have 45 lenders, private lenders out there? 47. So what’s the minimum investment someone can make to be in that program?
Jay Conner [00:28:14]:
50,000.
Cody Adent [00:28:15]:
50,000. Okay. And then is there an amount of time that they have to leave that money in there?
Jay Conner [00:28:23]:
Well, that’s a great question. So the amount of time they leave the money in it is for the length of time that the deal needs it. But what’s in the promissory note? So the length of the note is two years, but we can cash out early with no penalty. And so typically on a flip, we’re going to cash out these days within that six to nine-month period, depending on the, you know, scope of the flip and the repairs. But as an incentive to my private lenders to do business with us, I give them a minimum of a six-month return. So you see, I’m paying 8% a year, right?
Cody Adent [00:29:05]:
Yeah.
Jay Conner [00:29:06]:
If I don’t use the money for the entire year, how am I taking care of them? Well, there are a couple of different ways. First of all, I give them a minimum of six months. So let’s say in the unlikely event I did a flip in three or four months, I’m still going to pay them six months’ worth of interest. So if I’m paying them six months’ worth of interest, they didn’t make 8%, they made 4% on their loan amount because they were only using, or I was only using it, for half a year. However, here’s a big rider downer. Okay. In the promissory note, I also mentioned that we can substitute the collateral in the event we cash out before the note comes due. Now the private lender has to approve that, but I do this all the time.
Jay Conner [00:29:51]:
Substitution of collateral. Let’s say I’ve got a private lender that’s got a note on a deal, and I cash out that piece of real estate. If I’ve got another piece of real estate, I’m buying or I’m getting ready to rehab, a nd it’s got the equity cushion available in it. I will move their note over to a different property. That’s why it’s called substituting the collateral. How do you do that? Simple. You send your real estate attorney an email that says, I want to substitute the collateral and move the XYZ note and collateralize it by this property over there. Then your real estate attorney will draw up what’s called a loan modification.
Jay Conner [00:30:27]:
Your private lender will sign that, and now you substitute the collateral. Your private lender is happy because their notes stayed in play and they didn’t lose out on making any money.
Cody Adent [00:30:38]:
Have you seen with, because right now with the interest rates, banks out there are offering like insane interest rates, right? Like, so you can put your money in Ally with no penalty to withdraw, and they’ll give you like 5% on your money just putting it in a bank. So has that impacted your ability to get private lenders at all? Or are you also putting those unused funds in an account?
Jay Conner [00:30:59]:
Because 8%, 8% is still a lot better than 5.
Cody Adent [00:31:03]:
Right, right. But if they, let’s say, in that example you gave, were only six months and they’re getting 4%. Right. Then, then, then they could have had zero risk and gotten a percent higher return.
Jay Conner [00:31:13]:
Well, they’re still getting 8% annual percentage rate.
Cody Adent [00:31:17]:
Okay, got it.
Jay Conner [00:31:17]:
And how do you decide on an annual, on an annual basis, how do?
Cody Adent [00:31:21]:
You decide when you’ve got your pool of 47 investors, how do you decide whose money are use for what deal? Or is your goal to be executing all of the money at all times?
Jay Conner [00:31:30]:
That’s a, ‘s a great question. Because when you use private money, and I’m speaking to your audience, when you use private money the way I do, you’re going to have a problem. It’s a good problem. You’re going to have more money than you can use.
Cody Adent [00:31:43]:
Yeah, I’d imagine.
Jay Conner [00:31:45]:
So, how do you keep them happy? Well, here’s my business practice. First of all, when I have a new private lender, come on, they go to the top of the list.
Cody Adent [00:31:57]:
Got it.
Jay Conner [00:31:58]:
Because I want to make sure they know that I can perform and I can put their money to work for them. What I’ve done, Cody, sometimes is when I have a new private lender, if I don’t have another deal, like within the next few weeks that I’m closing on, like in the next two or three weeks, I will take the new private lender money and cash out. A private lender I’ve already got on another property. And now move that money from the private lender that was already invested in a property over here to be available for the next property that comes along. So, new private money, you want to use that, you know, asap. Secondly, it’s really simple. It’s called going back in the queue. Going back in the queue.
Jay Conner [00:32:40]:
So when we pay off a private lender or we’re cashing out on a deal and there’s not another property to collateralize that note, we will cash them out. By the way, you cannot keep the money. You cannot keep the money. Right. So we cash them out, we tell them we’ll put their funds back to work just as soon as possible. And so they go into the queue. And of course, we use larger amounts of money because our private lenders have different amounts of money that they can invest.
Cody Adent [00:33:11]:
Yeah, the lowest is 50,000. What’s the highest you’ll take?
Jay Conner [00:33:14]:
There’s no limit.
Cody Adent [00:33:15]:
No limit. Okay.
Jay Conner [00:33:16]:
I mean the, the high, the highest would be, you know, what kind of property am I buying? Yeah, I mean, the highest property I’ve done is with an after-repaired value of $900,000.
Cody Adent [00:33:26]:
Okay.
Jay Conner [00:33:26]:
I’m not going to borrow $900,000 on an after-repair value of 900,000. So when the money becomes available and we’ve cashed it out on a deal, it goes in the queue. And, the larger amounts of money that a private lender has, we’re going to use for the purchase of properties, but the smaller amounts of money we will use in junior positions for rehab money.
Cody Adent [00:33:52]:
Okay. And they’re all getting their 8% return, whether it’s used on the purchase.
Jay Conner [00:33:59]:
First position, second position, I pay them 10% because they’re in a junior position, and they’re at a higher risk. So 8% first position, 10% in a junior.
Cody Adent [00:34:11]:
That. Because in the junior position, their money is going towards the rehab, which doesn’t have the collateral value that the first position has with the house.
Jay Conner [00:34:18]:
And in addition to that, if the second position forecloses on me and I didn’t pay for them to be made whole, they now inherit the senior position loan.
Cody Adent [00:34:30]:
Got it? Okay. So you get up to 10%. So, do some people prefer to be in the second position even though it’s more risky because the returns are better?
Jay Conner [00:34:39]:
No.
Cody Adent [00:34:39]:
No. Wow, that’s fascinating.
Jay Conner [00:34:43]:
They, they. Well, and the thing of it is, I’m not going to put a hundred thousand or whatever, you know, larger amounts of money in a second position because I’m using that money for purchase.
Cody Adent [00:34:53]:
Yeah, right, right.
Jay Conner [00:34:55]:
So, it took some training. It’s like, you know, some of my lenders will start at 10% because they’re using smaller amounts of money, and then their money grows over time because of the returns that we’re paying. And then I have to tell them, I say, well, you’re up to a larger amount of money, so now you get 8%.
Cody Adent [00:35:17]:
Yeah. And then another question that kind of just leads into what you’ve explained here is one other topic that you have is how you can get three big checks with every real estate deal. So you’ve probably touched on it a little bit, but just clarify that, maybe, for the listeners.
Jay Conner [00:35:33]:
Sure. So, how do you get multiple checks? I mean, who else wants to get paid to buy properties? Right. So, multiple checks on every transaction. First of all, you’re going to get your first big check when you buy, when you buy a property. You bring home a big check when you’re using private money without taking any of your own money to the closing table. If that doesn’t make sense, it’s right here in the book.
Cody Adent [00:35:56]:
Well, and would that first check be the 87,000 in that?
Jay Conner [00:36:00]:
Exactly. And how is that? Because you’re borrowing more than you need to buy.
Cody Adent [00:36:04]:
Yeah, right.
Jay Conner [00:36:06]:
It’s that simple. Now, when do you get another check? Well, if you’re just cashing out and flipping and cashing out, you get another big check when you sell. And by the way, all the interest that we pay is interest only. And you know what, when you’re doing a flip, you can just let the interest accrue. You don’t have to make monthly payments to the private lender unless they’re like needing payments to live off of. You can just let the interest accrue and cash out, you know, when you finish that flip. So you’re going to get another big check when you cash out. And that is the difference between what you sell the property for and what you still owe the private lender.
Jay Conner [00:36:43]:
Right. So the big check when you sell in the middle of that transaction, which I’ve done a lot of, if you sell on rent to own or lease purchase and you’re still owning the property, well, you’re going to get another check in the middle of the deal by receiving a large non refundable lease option deposit. The legal term is an option fee that would be applied to their purchase price. So you get a big check when you buy. If you sell on rent-to-own, you can get a large non-refundable option fee. And then when you cash out, you can get a third check.
Cody Adent [00:37:17]:
And you, when you’re doing these deals, do, do most of your investors prefer to just wait and let the interest accrue? I’d imagine it’s half and half.
Jay Conner [00:37:28]:
We’ve got some elderly private lenders who are living off the monthly interest.
Cody Adent [00:37:35]:
Got it?
Jay Conner [00:37:35]:
Right. We’ve received thank you notes from our private lenders about how we have changed their retirement years because of us paying the 8% interest. So you know, instead of having their money in the stock market or you know, in the local bank in a CD, they’ve got it with us. So I let the private lender determine how often they want to get payments.
Cody Adent [00:37:58]:
Well, and if your money is off, I’m sorry, if your money’s in stocks, you don’t want to be drawing out because every if, if you’re drawing out at the wrong time, that can have a compound effect on you. Right. And so. This is a more secure way of doing it.
Jay Conner [00:38:12]:
Absolutely.
Cody Adent [00:38:12]:
How many deals on average are you guys doing a year?
Jay Conner [00:38:16]:
So right now we’re doing about 25 deals a year. That’s been the average since 2009. We do two to three a month. Average profits, as I said right now, are 78,000 per deal.
Cody Adent [00:38:27]:
And, does to be a private lender, I’d imagine this is in your book. But to be a private lender, are there any regulations or certifications, or licensing that you have to have to be a private lender? Private lender?
Jay Conner [00:38:41]:
Don’t need any special licensing or certifications to borrow private money or to be a private lender. And here’s why. Private money is not regulated by the commissioner of banks in your local state. I have private lenders in 10 different states. And so we are not an institution, and the private lenders are individuals. They’re not regulated by the Federal Reserve. So it’s simply a one-on-one transaction between the private lender and the operator or the real estate Investor.
Cody Adent [00:39:15]:
Of your 47 investors that you have, do you know all of them personally, or how did you grow that, that, that client base that you have?
Jay Conner [00:39:22]:
Yeah, so I started with everybody, me knowing personally, either going to church together, on my cell phone at Business Networking International at the Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce, we knew each other with some kind of connection. But quickly, you know, private lenders can’t keep their mouths shut. They tell their family and friends about these high rates of return they’re getting so quickly. Here comes the Reflection referrals of other people whom I did not know, whom my current private lenders are referring to me. So all of my private lenders, I either knew or was introduced to them by a current private lender.
Cody Adent [00:40:03]:
And what’s your longest tenured client who’s had money with you for the longest amount of time, and how long is that?
Jay Conner [00:40:08]:
Back to 2009.
Cody Adent [00:40:10]:
They’ve kept it with you all that time?
Jay Conner [00:40:12]:
Yep.
Cody Adent [00:40:13]:
Wow, that’s amazing. So you kind of alluded to this, but one of the next questions is, how can you fund your deals with self-directed retirement accounts? And I imagine that’s what you were talking about there with those retired people. So want to elaborate a little bit more on that for the listeners?
Jay Conner [00:40:27]:
Absolutely. Well, here’s a writer downer. If you, as a real estate investor, want to attract a lot of private money in your world, you need to establish a relationship with an IRS-approved, it’s called third-party custodian, also known as a self-directed IRA company. Establish a relationship with them because here’s why. First of all, over half of my private lenders, of those 47 people, are using their retirement funds to loan us money on our deals. And if I hadn’t had a relationship with a self-directed IRA company, to refer a new private lender that I have that’s got retirement funds over to the self-directed IRA company, I’d be missing out on over half of my funding. So here’s the way it works. A self-directed IRA company is IRS-approved to be a third-party custodian to manage those funds.
Jay Conner [00:41:27]:
Now, a self-directed IRA company cannot give any financial advice. It allows a person with retirement funds. It’s either in a pension, a former employer, or currently a 401k. If they allow you to move part of it out, maybe you have retirement funds in the stock market. You can transfer those funds tax-free and penalty-free, with no tax effect, over to the self-directed IRA company. It takes a couple of weeks to get the account funded. And now you, as the private lender, are able to use your retirement funds. And now you can earn unlimited money.
Jay Conner [00:42:08]:
Listen to this. Per year, either tax-deferred or tax-free, depending on the type of retirement account you’ve got. I don’t know, another vehicle or way that people can make unlimited money per year, tax deferred or tax free, than using a self-directed IRA.
Cody Adent [00:42:27]:
Is that because the money, the profits, are going back into the IRA so they’re able to earn without a tax burden? And the,n when they withdraw, they could potentially have taxes, depending on which kind of fund they set up.
Jay Conner [00:42:37]:
Correct.
Cody Adent [00:42:37]:
Got it. Wow, that’s awesome. And you said more than half of your investors are using that now.
Jay Conner [00:42:43]:
That’s right.
Cody Adent [00:42:44]:
Are they of retirement age?
Jay Conner [00:42:46]:
Oh, yeah, yeah, they’re of retirement age if they’re using their retirement funds. And you bring up a good point there, Cody. You know, it’s just not retirement funds that private lenders use. I mean, it’s just liquid investment capital. We’ve got a lot of private lenders that are doing both. They’re using their investment capital, and they’re using retirement funds that they’ve moved over to the self-directed IRA company that we recommend. So they’re doing both investment capital that they’ve got, just liquid investment capital, and retirement funds.
Cody Adent [00:43:16]:
Okay, and so I feel like you’ve given a lot of this already, but what are your favorite reasons to use private money?
Jay Conner [00:43:24]:
That’s a long list. So here we go. I’ll do that. So why use private money? What are my favorite reasons? Well, number one, you make the rules. You’re not going to the bank or the hard money lender. And you know, begging, pleading, selling, persuading. It’s the opposite of that. What are you doing? You’re putting on your private lender teacher hat, and you are teaching the program.
Jay Conner [00:43:50]:
Now, the program is all here in the book, laid out for you to teach potential private lenders. So, number one, I love it because you make the rules. I mean, who would not want to make the rules in your business? Number two, I receive multiple checks on every deal, which I just explained. Talk about fixing your cash flow when you don’t have to bring money to the closing table. Right. Pick up a check when you buy, so fixes your cash flow. Another one, credit checks. Your credit’s got absolutely nothing to do with how much private money you can get.
Jay Conner [00:44:25]:
Why is that? Because private money is collateral loan. The private lender is not loaning you the money because of your credit score or your verification of income. Your verification of income has nothing to do with how much private money you can get. In addition to that, closing quickly, I get more deals, more offers accepted, because I can close quickly using private money. If you’re using institutional money, it’s going to take you weeks before you can close. And time kills deals. In addition to that, private money. If you’ve never done a real estate deal before, private money is your fastest way to get your first deal.
Jay Conner [00:45:06]:
Why is that? Because the majority of the deals out there require all the cash. And if you don’t have the cash, you’re going to be missing out. You know, I’ve reviewed thousands of property lead sheets from sellers over the years. My statistics show that only 13% for-sale-by-owner market houses will sell to you creatively. What are the other 87%? Require all the cash. So when you got the private money, I mean, talk about building your confidence. Talk about, you know, I tell you, Cody, I never bought a property I didn’t make an offer on. You know, stop and think about it.
Jay Conner [00:45:45]:
And so when you’ve got the private money lined up, by the way, get the private money lined up, the money comes first. When you’ve got the private money lined up, think about how many more offers and how much, how much more confident you’re going to be in making the offers, knowing that you can close quickly.
Cody Adent [00:46:02]:
Yeah, of course, it’s completely different. I mean, I know that people are losing houses left and right. If they don’t have money for themselves and they’re going up against people who have cash, they’re always going to take the cash offer.
Jay Conner [00:46:13]:
Now, you know, some of your audience, I’m sure, Cody, may be wholesalers, and if you’re a wholesaler, you may be thinking, I don’t need private money. You’re right. If you’re just going to wholesale a deal and get an assignment fee, you don’t need any private money. But here’s what I know. I know wholesalers, when they get into doing some deals, there’s going to be a deal that comes across very, very quickly. Where you go, man, if I had the money to take this down, I’d stay in this deal because, I mean, which would you rather have, $78,000 profit or a $12,000 assignment fee? Right. So, private money is the answer to wholesalers who want to pick and choose the deals that they want to stay in.
Cody Adent [00:46:57]:
I love that. So I’ve got a couple of questions I want to ask you that I go through that aren’t related, necessary to your private lending business. Is there anything else that you want to share with the listeners before we pivot to some of those other questions?
Jay Conner [00:47:08]:
Oh my lands, there’s a ton I want to share, but I know we’re out of time, so get the book. J. Conner.com forward slash book.
Cody Adent [00:47:16]:
Okay, so the first question I have for you, I find that when people who are thriving and accomplishing their goals and making headway in whatever space they want to make headway in, I find that they usually have A pretty defined purpose. So I’m curious, what’s your purpose?
Jay Conner [00:47:31]:
Yeah, that’s a great question, Cody. You know, that reminds me of a conversation that I had with a good friend of mine not too long ago. We were riding down the road, and he said, Jay, when is enough enough? And I said, What do you mean? He said, well, you know, you. You don’t have to be doing all this work that you’re doing. I mean, you know, you’ve made millions of dollars a year. You’re traveling all around the country, training and, you know, coaching other real estate investors. When is enough enough? And I said, Man, that’s a great question. Here’s the answer.
Jay Conner [00:48:09]:
Enough is never enough when it’s not about you. When it’s not about you. You know, any venture that I’ve gotten involved in ever since I was in my 20s, if the only purpose and the only reason I was in it was to make money, you know what, Cody? I never got off the ground.
Cody Adent [00:48:31]:
I believe it.
Jay Conner [00:48:31]:
So, what is my purpose today? Why am I still doing what I’m doing? I have reached a level in my life as to what I call significance. Significance. So one of my favorite books is called The Go Giver. I’m sure you’ve heard of it, Cody. The Go Giver. And it’s a great book that talks about identifying your purpose and leading with a servant’s heart. So that’s a long answer or question to give you the answer. What is my purpose? My purpose is to make an impact.
Jay Conner [00:49:06]:
How do I make an impact? The biggest way I make an impact right now, even though I’m still doing a ton of deals. My purpose is to make an impact and a difference in. In other real estate investors’ lives and worlds, and financial situations and share the knowledge. I have learned about private money because I know what private money has done for me and my wife Carol Joy, and our entire team.
Cody Adent [00:49:33]:
I love that. That’s funny too, because one of my questions was going to be, what’s your favorite book besides yours? And so you killed two birds with one stone, given us the Go Giver. So that’s great. Now I don’t think. You’ve not read my book Winning the Moment, have you?
Jay Conner [00:49:45]:
No, but I want it.
Cody Adent [00:49:46]:
So one of the questions I like to ask is, what’s the biggest win you’ve ever had in your life? And I leave the definition of winning up to you. So don’t feel like you’ve got to follow society’s definition there. But with that being said, what’s the Biggest win that you’ve ever had?
Jay Conner [00:50:00]:
I can tell you my biggest win. In addition to being a Christian and having Jesus Christ as my savior. In addition to that, the biggest win is my wife, Carol Joy.
Cody Adent [00:50:11]:
I knew you were gonna say that.
Jay Conner [00:50:12]:
I met. I met Carol. And look, I’m not saying that so she can hear it. She ain’t even here. And the odds of her even hearing this podcast are slim to none. And Slim just got up and left. Yeah, but. But Carol Joy is my biggest win.
Jay Conner [00:50:26]:
How is that? Well, we met in church, my very first Sunday in Wichita Falls, Texas, when I moved out there years ago. And she’s my mainstay. We’ve got the same core values. We were raised in the same type of church. We’re both Christians. And I mean, she. The list is long as to why she’s my biggest win, but I’ll just leave it at that.
Cody Adent [00:50:52]:
And how long have you guys been together?
Jay Conner [00:50:54]:
37 years that we’ve been together, 39 years. We’ve been dating for 39 years. We just happen to have been married 37 of the 39.
Cody Adent [00:51:02]:
That’s amazing. Any keys to that? Like, if you were to say, like, what are you? A few things that allowed you guys to have the success, what would you say?
Jay Conner [00:51:09]:
Yes. Number one, have the same spiritual foundation. If you don’t have the same spiritual or the same foundation whatsoever with your mate, it ain’t going to last. Yeah, right. So, same foundation. And number two, the nugget is put first. Put your other mate, your spouse, your significant other, you put them first. And look after their interest first.
Jay Conner [00:51:38]:
You’re not going to have to worry about yourself.
Cody Adent [00:51:40]:
I love that. So then the opposite of that question is, what’s the biggest loss you’ve ever had?
Jay Conner [00:51:44]:
Experienced in real estate? It was buying a property that I did not calculate the buy-and-hold math for. I bought this Property back in 2004. 5 Over on the beach, I ran the numbers for a flip. I didn’t run the numbers as if the market was going to turn down, and I was stuck, and I had to hold it. So that property was a blood bath. Because I also did not run the numbers on will renting it out cover the underlying debt? So always run math both ways. Flip if you’re flipping, but also run the math on buying hold.
Cody Adent [00:52:26]:
Can you share?
Jay Conner [00:52:27]:
I’m talking houses.
Cody Adent [00:52:28]:
What was your loss on that? Can you share that?
Jay Conner [00:52:31]:
Over a hundred thousand.
Cody Adent [00:52:32]:
Ouch. Yeah, that hurts. Takes. Takes two deals to make up for that one.
Jay Conner [00:52:38]:
That’s one and a half, yeah.
Cody Adent [00:52:40]:
So then I’m curious. You’re a mentor to people now. Pretty clear, you’ve helped over 2,000 real estate investors with their businesses. But did you have a mentor who made a big impact in your life?
Jay Conner [00:52:51]:
Absolutely. Ron Legrand in Jacksonville, Florida. I went to Ron Legrand’s first boot camp, or my first boot camp. Ron Legrand was in 2007. He was having a boot camp in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. And we’re still very, very close today.
Cody Adent [00:53:09]:
That’s awesome. Is that some of your inspiration to help all the people you’ve helped with their business?
Jay Conner [00:53:14]:
Absolutely. I mean, after I’ve been to some of Ron’s events, I thought to myself, I said, you know what, he’s making an impact on thousands and thousands of people. I said, you know what, when I learn enough and I know what I’m doing and I’ve made enough terrible mistakes that I can share with other people, I said, I want to be a coach and a mentor and a trainer as well. And so, Ron Legrand was my inspiration to be a real estate investing coach.
Cody Adent [00:53:40]:
And what is the, what does that coaching look like? How do people go through that with you? Is it just seminars, or is it one coaching? Like, how do you, how do you structure that, and what’s the fee structure for that?
Jay Conner [00:53:51]:
Yeah, all the above. We have one-on-one coaching, we have online coaching, we have group coaching, and we have live events. And I hadn’t planned on doing this, Cody, but I just guess I will. I don’t know why, maybe it’s a message from above. But anyway, I have a live event that I do only three times a year. It’s called the Private Money. The Private Money Academy Conference. It’s in person here in eastern North Carolina.
Jay Conner [00:54:23]:
And it’s a three-thousand-dollar event, which gets two tickets. But for your listeners, Cody, I’m gonna give out a URL where they can come for free. Two people with only a 97 registration fee. And that’s just to hold people’s seats because we. It always sells out, of course. But here’s a special URL for your listeners, and that is www.j’s live event.com J-A Y S live L I V E event.com, and that’ll give your listeners free access.
Cody Adent [00:55:02]:
That’s incredible. That’s awesome. What a. What a huge value add. That’s very exciting. We’ll be sure, of course, to put that in the show notes for you, too. For the people who are listening and not in Front of a computer, go do that. That’s a huge value, $3,000 value to get out there.
Cody Adent [00:55:16]:
And so if you’re interested, no better way to get it than from the horse’s mouth, live in person. I think that’s incredible. So, thank you for that. Jay, last question I have for you. This one I deem the most important. It’s one that I see the younger audience struggle with. So I’m curious how you perceive this, but how do you define success?
Jay Conner [00:55:38]:
I define success, first of all, as not a destination. So if someone is thinking that, you know, when I get this or when I get that or when I acquire this, or I can do that or I can take off any time that I want. Did you hear that word I that was repeated in that? Yeah, right. Yeah. So when it’s all about the eye, that negates the success. First of all, if you’re looking for material things to give you happiness, you might as well stop right now because material things are not going to give you happiness. They’re not going to give you happiness.
Jay Conner [00:56:21]:
You know, it’s a cliche. Success is a journey. Now, success in. In one definition, okay, what am I successful at? Well, you can be successful at achieving any goal, but when someone asks the question, what’s your definition of success? What’s being asked, in my opinion, is what’s your definition of happiness and joy? Yeah, that’s all we want. Yeah, that’s all we want in life. We don’t want success. That’s so vague. What we want is joy and happiness.
Jay Conner [00:56:58]:
And I can tell you the definition of joy and happiness. The definition of joy and happiness is being able to do what you want to do, when you want to do it, with whom you want to do it, and for how long you want to do it, because you can make an impact and a difference in other people’s lives. That’s it.
Cody Adent [00:57:15]:
I love that I even have in my book, stop looking for all be happy moments. Because when you predicate your happiness on a future event, you then you’re failing to be present. And the only thing that’s real and the only thing that matters is right now. So you’d better have your goals based on what you’re living versus where you’ve been in the past or where you think you’re headed in the future.
Jay Conner [00:57:35]:
You know, that’s so true, Cody. I can’t wait to read your book. I was riding down the road with another friend many years ago, very successful. He had all the toys, he said. I mean, he had the airplane, he had the boat, he had the jet skis, he had the weekends off. And bless his heart, he was frustrated. We were riding down the road, and he says, Jay, isn’t there something else? And I said, yeah, there is something else. And then we had the conversation of what you and I are now having.
Cody Adent [00:58:13]:
Yeah, I’ve had. I’ve had that same conversation with some of my real, really on paper, successful friends who have all the things you just mentioned. And none of that matters. Right. And so it is. I think that’s a really important point and a great way to end today’s podcast. I do want to kick it over to you, though. Is there anything else you want to share with the audience before we say our goodbyes?
Jay Conner [00:58:33]:
Yeah, stop thinking about what you want to do and do it.
Cody Adent [00:58:38]:
I love it. What a great way to end. Are you on Instagram, Jay?
Jay Conner [00:58:42]:
Say what?
Cody Adent [00:58:43]:
Are you on Instagram?
Jay Conner [00:58:45]:
I am, but there’s not much. There’s not much activity.
Cody Adent [00:58:48]:
Okay, so you’re. The jconner.com is the best place for people to connect with you, then would that be.
Jay Conner [00:58:52]:
Oh, yeah, yeah. Jay Conner.com. That’s my main website. J Conner.com Go there. Also, get my book. When you order my book, that’s the beginning of coming into my world. So order the book. J Conner.com book, and we will get to know each other well.
Cody Adent [00:59:11]:
And then also go to Jay’s live event.com and get yourself a ticket for two to go to the private Money Academy conference.
Jay Conner [00:59:18]:
And we will hang out together non stop three days.
Cody Adent [00:59:22]:
When is that conference, JD of the dates for it?
Jay Conner [00:59:25]:
Sure. So right here in 2024. The next one is February 14, 1,5 and 16. February 14, 15, and 16. And so if you’re listening to this before that date, you want to take advantage of that. The next one is going to be in June, by the way. All these are here in eastern North Carolina. The next one is here in June.
Jay Conner [00:59:48]:
And the dates for that are June. Let me pull it up here. June. Well, I thought I had it here. Bear with me a second. Yeah, here it is. June 12, 13, and 14. June 12, 13, and 14.
Jay Conner [01:00:05]:
And then the next one here towards the end of the year is going to be in October. And that’s October 23, 24, and 25.
Cody Adent [01:00:13]:
Okay, well, that is awesome, Jay. It’s been a real pleasure. Just a wealth of knowledge. All topics that I was not familiar with. So that was super fun. I’m sure the audience loved it. And maybe we’ll get some new private money investors out of this. So thank you so much for the time, and have a happy New Year.
Jay Conner [01:00:30]:
Cody, thank you so much. God bless you.
Narrator:
Are you feeling inspired by the knowledge you gained in this episode? Then head over to www.JayConnner.com/MoneyGuide, that’s www.JayConnner.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.JayConnner.com/MoneyGuide. To get your free guide, we’ll see you next time on Raising Private Money with Jay Conner.