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Posted over 8 years ago

-$382 to $4262: My First Wholesale Deal!

Last week I made a deposit to my bank account in the amount of $2262 which I know might not be much to some but for me it was a reigning accomplishment! That brought my first wholesale deal total to the grand sum of (drum roll please) $4262!! I could have twerked right out of the bank (if you don't know what twerkin' is please go to YouTube...but BEWARE for adult eyes only).

Anyway, if someone would have told me a year ago that it would be possible to make this much with less than $50 out of pocket of my own than I would think they were lying. I won't go all the way back to a year but 6 months ago my mindset shifted to try just about anything for capital gain.

6 months ago..........

I work for a market research company in sales. I feel like I am pretty good at what I do. I work from home so I feel "Freeish" and able to pursue other interest. So on long drives to client's homes I listen to audiobooks to learn new things. My friend let me hack her Audbile account and listen to the book The One Minute Millionaire: The Enlightened Way to Wealth. That book really intrigued me especially the fictional story of a lady named Michelle who had to make $1 million in 90 days to get her kids back. Motivated by the story I took my bonus check from work and purchased a property around the corner from me for $4300 (story for another post).

The plan was to buy the property, fix it up in 6 weeks, and make a sizable profit and repeat until I reach $1 million! But life happened........

Life and sickness........

My mother, my best friend, and one of my biggest supporters got sick. She was diagnosed with Stage 4 Kidney disease. She is my daughter's daycare, so I had to take FMLA to keep my daughter and take care of my mother. I foolishly dumped all my savings and my partner's savings into the home I purchased and my reserve quickly went to $0.00 with no income coming in. Also faced with the scary realization that my mother who believes in me so much may not be able to see my dreams of buying her a house and car and taking her on trips anywhere in the world she would want was proving to be too much for me. I began to sink.

Insufficient Funds.......

On top of all that my money house was so out of order that it began to bleed into my physical house. One day trying to pep talk myself I decided to get my head out of the sand and fight back. I checked my bank account and it said -$99. It upset me but I thought well at least it's just -$99. Nothing else can draft out anyway. The next day the -$99 quickly reached -$573!!! Oh My God! I was sick!! I quickly called the bank and explained my situation. And through some artful negotiation and lots of prayer the bank reduced my fees to -$382 on the condition that I could make a deposit in 40 days. Still in the red but not bleeding. Now I felt like Michelle from The One Minute Millionaire; I have to make a deposit in 40 days and I have to find other means just in case I would have to stay home fulltime to care for my mother.

The Hustle.......

I researched everything regarding passive income and I kept coming back to real estate. Since it looked like the house around the corner would not be finished soon (yet another blog post on contractors) I looked into wholesaling. I watched every YouTube video from Neva Williamson, a successful wholesaler in the Richmond, VA area. From her I found BiggerPockets and I consumed everything on the site. From BiggerPockets I was invited to 2 local real estate groups, RE360 and Shreveport-Bossier Real Estate Investors Association. I listened to everything said in the groups whether it related to what I was doing or not. From there I watched more YouTube, read books, articles, forums, and emailed & called & asked & watched....it was almost like playing an endless game of double-Dutch, but I had no time to get tired. So with $34.44 I scraped out of my 3 year olds piggy bank. I purchased 2 boxes of long white envelopes, a 3pk of yellow legal paper, a pack on red pens, and a book of postage stamps. I wrote 110 yellow letters by hand and mailed out 20 (because I only had 20 stamps) & hoped for the best.

[Quick Disclaimer: I wasn't starving or living out of my car. My wonderful hardworking boyfriend was paying all the bills, still paying for the house around the corner, and everything else. He would work 6 days a week 12+ hours a day to keep us a float, but it was wearing him down]

Miss B.........

My first yellow letter campaign netted me a call from Miss B. When she called I was shocked and scared but I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. We setup an appointment for the next day. I went to her beautiful home in an A+ neighborhood and I listened to her story. She purchased the home in 2005 putting down $80,000 at closing. After her mother passed in 2009 she went a little off the rails (her words not mine) and stopped paying her bills including the mortgage. Now she was so far behind she felt hopeless. I told her that I would do everything to help and she did not have to feel hopeless anymore. Here are the numbers: Projected value of home: $179,000 to $225,000; she was behind almost $20,000; she could not sale the home traditionally because of the shifted foundations; and her payoff was $102,000.

So I sent out an email blast to investors from the groups I attended and I also got another $25 to send letters out to real estate investors. Then came Mr. J.

Mr. J............

Mr. J came out viewed the home and was excited. We set the deal up that he would catch up her loan, get the foundation fixed, and do minor painting and try to sale the home and we all split the profits 1/3, less what he put into the property. Or if he had to rent out the home I would get $4000 and the owner would get $3000. Mr. J delivered everything on his end. On the 38th day before I had to make a deposit Mr. J cut me an advance check in the amount of $2000. Thank God! I continued to work with Miss B by going with her to find a lovely apartment for her and her 2 dogs, Ethel & Lucy:-). I also organized an estate sale for Miss B which she paid me $262 for helping her with. I also helped pack most of her things over the course of 2 weeks. At the end Mr. J found a great family to owner financed the home and last week he gave me my last check of $2000.

Only Up from Here!!   

So now that I am back to work full-time, my mother is doing better, and I have my first deal under my belt it is only up from here! The 2 real estate groups I am apart of has given me such confidence in doing future deals. I am using the profits from my first deal to get my real estate license, replenish my savings, and do more marketing. I have not made millionaire or even thousandaire status yet, but I am on my way;-).



Comments (40)

  1. @Marian L Claville I just found your post after googling "my first wholesale deal" as inspiration and I have to say congratulations Marian! Your story is amazing, unique and truly inspiring for me because I feel I've been too scared to get in the game but yours is the post I NEEDED to see. I applaud you for pushing through all the obstacles and I'm also wishing you the best for you family's  health and wellbeing! 


  2. Congrats on your first wholesale deal. Your story is very inspiring and motivating. I have been reading and listing to Podcast just like yourself. I just need to get out there and get my feet wet. Thanks for sharing your journey with us.


  3. Such an awesome story! Congrats to you on persevering through the adversity that you faced!  


  4. Amazing post @Marian L Claville . Your story is truly an inspiration and motivation for me to embark upon my REI journey. 


  5. Marion, Congrats, on your way is right. Thanks for the inspiration. Don


  6. Congratulation! Thanks for sharing this inspiring story!!! The hustle is real:)


  7. Congrats Marian!


  8. I love this story! you just didnt go out there and find a deal, you help went the extra mile by helping out miss B. kudos to you! best wishes


  9. @Marian L Claville

    The success of your first deal was the result of hard work, desperation, and more than a little luck.  But you're smart and you're driven to succeed.  Once you learn the ropes and get some systems in place you won't need the luck, you'll be unstoppable.

    Best wishes to you and your family.


  10. Wow! That's awesome.. Im getting starting as well. Im extremely nervous and excited at the same time.. But reading your story is very inspiring. Im ready to take action and hope for the best


    1. @Tranice Davis I am excited for you!  You will do great! Learn as much as you can and you will be confident in your dealings. I'm not an expert but please reach out to me if you need assistance.


  11. Amazing story. Glad you were able to get a deal done even with all the stress regarding your situation. Way to go! 


    1. @Kevin Rodriues thank you for the encouraging words and yes it was very stressful but instead of folding under pressure I reacted to try to make the situation better. I prat to stay focused.


  12. What an inspirational read, Marian. 20 letters to one phone call is all is takes. Thank you for sharing and helping push a little harder each and every day, because it is possible. 


    1. @Matt McConkey thank you and yes I was very blessed & lucky that first time. I am setting up systems now to pump out more marketing to get a greater response to get great deals.

  13. Congratulations. Your story is very inspirational and inspiring.  


    1. @David thank you for reading and encouraging :-).


  14. @Ethan she is doing much better thank you. 

    @Jeff M. You are amazing! If you would not have invited me to RE360 this would have not been possible do to you I am eternally grateful. I look forward to working with you soon:-).


  15. Congrats Ms. M!  You and Mr. J are both great people and some of the hardest workers I know! Keep up making life better for others and surely the rewards will continue to come for you. I am hopeful to one day of having the honor of working with you - There is so much I could learn from you!


  16. That was an intense read. Congratulations on getting back on the right track!

    I hope your mother is doing better..


  17. Way to push forward until you made something happen. We all need some of that type of hustle in us!


    1. @Jay Johnson thank you! & the hustle is always real:-).

  18. Congrats on doing the first deal! I am working toward securing our first wholesale deal, but haven't yet marketed because of funds. You're story inspired me. Thanks for sharing!


    1. @Sherna Willis thank you so much and your first deal will happen. Don't let lack of funds hold you back...get creative ;-).


  19. Ms. M  :)

    Great Job on this one.  So glad you joined the RE360 group fired up and on a mission to solve problems.  Keep the hustle on, look forward to working together again in the future.

    One Minute Millionaire is a good one.  Time to go back and listen to it again.  Mutliple Streams of Income and choosing to make it happen definitely important in long term success.


    1. Thanks for everything Mr. J :-D! Thank you for giving me a chance and being honest and open during the process. I hope to work with you again & provide value to the deal:-).

  20. Congrats Marion!!!

        ..its amazing what can be done when our back is against the wall!  Very inspiring and God bless you for your continued help toward Ms. B. In getting her settled in a new place! :))


    1. Thank you @Lisa Louise. Miss B is doing great.


  21. @Giavonn R. Thank you so much. Your statement means a lot to me. Thank you again.


  22. Great story!!!  Very motivational and inspiring.  I see that you will be very successful in everything that you do because you were driven by your circumstance, but your blessings came because of your heart :-). Everything in this story was about you giving and helping.  I love that.....  Keep up the good work and you will get to that million$ in no time.


  23. @Naoise M. Thank you and good luck on your deal!


  24. Congrats! That is an amazing story and truly inspiring.  I wish you continued success as I work to get my first under the belt


  25. @Dave Leresche please share when your deal is done...I am very excited for you and thank you for your encouragement!


  26. Congratulations on your first deal Marian! You rock! I am hoping to be in your position soon and getting MY first deal done as well. You are an inspiration to me too!


  27. @Michael Faulk you have been so instrumental in my development. Without you sharing with me and being honest this deal would not have happened. I thank you so much for being here for me truly.


  28. @Marian L Claville... I'm so incredibly happy that you have your first deal under your belt. I know you put your heart/soul into making it work. 

    As I have said before if I can assist you in any way to expand your knowledge, bounce ideas off of or anything in between I'm here for you. Congratulations on our first wholesale deal and I look forward to seeing what the future has in store for you. 

    Michael 


  29. @Shawn Corcoran thank you so much for the encouraging words :-). I hope I can give hope just like others have done for me. 


  30. Great job and you have really inspired me like I am sure you will inspire others. Keep up the great work!


  31. @Michael Sato thank you so much. The hustle is real and I will keep at it.  And yes check out the book it is great! 


  32. Congrats on the first wholesale deal @Marian L Claville

    Such great hustle really leads to success. I learned a lot and will check that book later.