Ryan Webber RIP
Joshua D.Pro Member
BiggerPockets Founder · HI · Member since 2008 · 16k+ posts · 5k+ votesRyan Webber RIP
Most Popular Reply
Real Estate Investor · Amarillo, TX · Member since 2008 · 547 posts · 214 votes
13yIf I had never met Ryan I definitely wouldn't be where I'm at today in the real estate world, and may have never invested at all. For a year if not longer before I met Ryan I could not compete with the "bigger players" in the several markets I attempted to, and being the newbie not one person wanted to take the time to try and help. Ryan was willing to take the time to help. I first met Ryan here on bigger pockets. He was investing in a market I was interested in, so I asked him a million questions about the market before I even came down,He told me if I ever came down, he'd take me to lunch. I hopped on that opportunity and lunch as Chili's happened that next week., I asked him another million questions, and we were there forever, he wasn't in a hurry, wasn't trying to sell me anything, just wanted to help. He helped guide me to the purchase of my first rental, which I still have, helped me get financing, and did whatever he could to make sure I survived in the real estate world. His contacts he provided me still enable me to increase my portfolio, I'm closing a property this Friday, funded by people Ryan helped me get involved with. Ive never met someone so willing to help out his own competition. He just wanted to help, no matter who it was. I'm still in shock, but lucky to have a mentor most would only dream of.
Thanks Ryan, without you who knows where I'd be. Rip buddy.
27 Replies
- 13yBrandon TurnerPro MemberInvestor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
Wow that's so sad! I've read so much from him over the years and learned a lot. He will be missed.
- Lexington, KY · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes13y
Such sad and terrible news. I got to know Ryan a little bit at the Summit last year and he is a really cool and intelligent guy. My condolences to his family and friends.
- Real Estate Investor · Amarillo, TX · Member since 2008 · 547 posts · 214 votes13y
If I had never met Ryan I definitely wouldn't be where I'm at today in the real estate world, and may have never invested at all. For a year if not longer before I met Ryan I could not compete with the "bigger players" in the several markets I attempted to, and being the newbie not one person wanted to take the time to try and help. Ryan was willing to take the time to help. I first met Ryan here on bigger pockets. He was investing in a market I was interested in, so I asked him a million questions about the market before I even came down,He told me if I ever came down, he'd take me to lunch. I hopped on that opportunity and lunch as Chili's happened that next week., I asked him another million questions, and we were there forever, he wasn't in a hurry, wasn't trying to sell me anything, just wanted to help. He helped guide me to the purchase of my first rental, which I still have, helped me get financing, and did whatever he could to make sure I survived in the real estate world. His contacts he provided me still enable me to increase my portfolio, I'm closing a property this Friday, funded by people Ryan helped me get involved with. Ive never met someone so willing to help out his own competition. He just wanted to help, no matter who it was. I'm still in shock, but lucky to have a mentor most would only dream of.
Thanks Ryan, without you who knows where I'd be. Rip buddy.
- Property Manager · Brooklyn, NY · Member since 2013 · 66 posts · 7 votes13y
RIP RYAN...I saw his picture all around this site but never connected with him...seems like a great loss to the BP community, my condolences.
- Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 928 votes13y
Clearly Ryan was a very astute investor, and Scott R., your tribute is very moving, thanks for posting that. Those are the kinds of below-the-radar stories that reveal the true nature of an individual, and Ryan's was obviously a life well lived. I went back and looked at his last post, and it was excellent.
Prayers of comfort and peace for his family.
- Rental Property Investor · Mercer Island, WA · Member since 2008 · 22k+ posts · 14k+ votes13y
Incredibly sad.
- Real Estate Broker · Canton, GA · Member since 2010 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes13y
It is sad.
I remember him on here and he always had interesting responses to topics.
I feel for all his family as this has to be shocking and unexpected for them. I know how this feels as my dad was killed suddenly in a car accident when I was 16 and I am 38 now. It's especially hard on the kids as their world is turned upside down. You have to rebuild a new identity without one of the most important persons in your life.
It shows that while we are busy with day to day activities we have to value every year, month, week, day, minute, second we have with the people we care about. Luckily me and my dad ended the previous day on a positive note the night before it happened.
Hopefully Ryan's legacy and light will keep shining on throughout the world with the people he touched and came in contact with.
- Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2013 · 22 posts · 1 vote13y
Condolences to his family.
- Investor · Boise, ID · Member since 2011 · 1k+ posts · 736 votes13y
Thank you for letting us know. Loved his smile around the BP site and at the Summit. Praying for peace for his family and loved ones.
- Real Estate Investor · Piscataway, NJ · Member since 2012 · 167 posts · 19 votes13y
Truly sad to hear this news. Sincere condolences to his family.
Never met him in person. But, I knew him after listening to last years BP Summit audio on Wholesaling and it was excellent and I benefited a lot.
- Developer · Garland, TX · Member since 2008 · 8k+ posts · 4k+ votes13y
Sad news. My condolences to Ryan's wife, children, and loved ones. I had the pleasure of meeting Ryan at the 2012 BP Summit in Denver.
He was quick to share what he knew without holding back. He was a highly advanced wholesaler, as is his wife. If you read everything he wrote here at BiggerPockets, you will have a better education than any wholesaling course or book could give. He knew his stuff.
Ryan didn't post much over the past couple of years, but if you search the early years of BP, you will find gold.
Thank you for your contribution, Ryan Webber.
- 13yJerry PuckettPro MemberWholesaler · Fort Worth, TX · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
Thank you Joshua Dorkin for bringing this to our attention.
Ryan Webber was a huge influence on me and my business. His posts are some of the most informative there have ever been on this site.
Scott R. is right on target about his character. Ryan answered gazillions of my questions also, and unlocked a strategy for finding buyers that has never let me down. He took the time to teach me the difference between "Golden Nugget" and "Silver Nugget" strategies.
The mantra that I repeat over and over "persistent and consistent" came from Ryan
The exact technique I use to find probate deals also came from Ryan.
I got to meet Ryan and his wife (who is also an accomplished wholesaler) at the BP Summit, and his and Aaron's boot camp was over the top.
Fun Memories: I used to just LMAO when Ryan would get in a thread and start arguing with the likes of Will Barnard or Bill Gulley. You don't really see that kind of days long battle royale around here any more, but that is just classic BP. As is Ryan Webber...part of the BiggerPockets heritage and culture.
You will be missed Ryan.....condolences to all family and friends alike.
- Realtor, General Contractor, and Developer · Redding, CA · Member since 2009 · 7k+ posts · 4k+ votes13y
I've read some of his older posts too, and they were very thoughtful. Though I didn't know him, I'm sending prayers to his family for comfort and peace.
- Wholesaler · Bay Shore, NY · Member since 2009 · 359 posts · 199 votes13y
I always enjoyed Ryan Webbers posts. He will be missed...RIP Ryan Webber.
- Wholesaler · Anaheim, CA · Member since 2008 · 5 posts · 2 votes13y
Ryan was a great man and also my brother-in-law. It's nice to see all of the posts of the people that he has touched through the years here on BP.
I'm one of the ones that he tried to help along with his wife (my sister), but the markets here in CA are much different that in TX.
The will be missed by the many people that he has touched with the huge heart he had.
- Investor · Riverside, CA · Member since 2011 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes13y
Wow. Just shocking. I didn't know Ryan at all until Joshua talked me into speaking with him at the conference. This was a huge leap of faith because someone might be real personable in a forum, but a stick in the mud on the stage. Luckily, he was great to work with while building our presentation and he ran with the bulls when we got up there to present. There were moments when I thought I might not get to talk at all because he was so overflowing with information. I had a great time that day and he was an absolute pleasure to work with.
- Investor · Farmington, UT · Member since 2011 · 314 posts · 179 votes13y
I’m shocked. Words can’t describe the way I feel right now. If Aaron hadn’t bumped this thread I would still be in bed, probably asleep by now, instead of at my office at 12:30 AM deep in thought. I keep writing and rewriting this post and questioning about whether or not to post it. I’m not a big contributor or poster on BP, but I guess this is the best way I can think of to honor my friend Ryan because he loved BP because he loved helping people.
I’m not a big social network guy. I don’t currently tweet, blog, or even have a Facebook page. My friends are my friends, not my “online friends”. So when I found BP a few years ago I reluctantly went to the BP summit. I’m glad I did, because I found an awesome friend in Ryan. He was honestly the best thing I got out of the BP summit. He and I spent hours and hours that weekend talking about life, business, and everything else. Have you ever met someone that you had an almost instant rapport with? Like you had been friends forever? He helped me to push my limits of what I thought was possible. He was exactly what I needed.
After the BP Summit we decided to set monthly goals and keep each other accountable. We would then call at the end of the month to see how we did. We would talk for hours about life, family, and eventually business. I can tell you he was the real deal. He had his priorities straight. Two of his favorite thoughts about success were:
“If I arrive at my grave and all I've really done with my life is traded it for a giant pile of gold, then I've made a very bad trade.”
“Live your life around what is most important to you and then fill it in with all the other details.”
Our January 9th, 2013 phone call where we shared our business goals for the year was really weird. I had big goals and plans for the year in business and for some reason he wasn’t pushing as hard. He was still super driven in his life (family, gym, church, service, etc.) but for some reason I felt like I was having to talk him into going bigger in his business.
I’m sad to say we haven’t spoken as consistently this year. We both got busy and the monthly phone calls turned into every other month. The last time I spoke with him was a couple months ago and he had just returned from a “sabbatical” of sorts. He spent some time away from the constant reaction to email and phone calls. He seemed really good and had clarity. I invited he and Lillian to come out to Utah in the spring and stay with my family and he said they would. I’ve thought about calling him a lot the last month and I didn’t. You never think that you won’t get another chance to talk. I’m really going to miss Ryan.
I had a project I was working on last year and I asked for Ryan’s input. Basically I wanted to know what books and quotes had had the greatest effect on his life to this point and here was his response on 10/8/12:
“Alright, Andy, here you go.
Books
The Greatest Salesman in the World by Og Mandido
I've read this one twice and it deeply impacted my thinking about success and the basic principles of success; takes 10 months to read as instructedThe 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell
I've read this one at least 3 or 4 times; phenomenal leadership teacher; I've read probably a dozen of his books
Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Deeply influenced my ideas about money, investments, and business; I've read 4 or 5 of his books and highly recommend playing his Cash Flow Game to beginning investorsThe Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason
A huge influence on my ideas about money managementThe 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
Phenomenal book about success in lifeThe Four Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris
This book is insane; a book about the balance of what wealth and lifestyle really means; this is a paradigm changerThe Millionaire Mind by Thomas Stanley
Excellent research based book on what a millionaire really looks like; about consumerism and money managementHow To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
Foundational book about people skillsThe E-Myth by Michael Gerber
An excellent book about business systemsSkill With People by Les Giblin
A very short and very practical book about people skillsThe Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews
A great fiction book about success principlesThink and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
Foundational book about wealth mentalityA couple of biographies that I remember off the top of my head:
Sam Walton, Made in America by Sam Walton
Trump, The Art of the Deal by Donald TrumpAnd some biographies that I don't remember the title but their general stories had profound effects on my thinking: Andrew Carnegie, Martin Luther King Jr, Teddy Roosevelt, and Mohandas Gandhi.
Quotes - I've referenced ones that I've come back to over and over throughout my life.
"Failure will never overtake you if your determination to succeed is strong enough" From The Greatest Salesman in the World
". . . I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life . . ." Henry David Thoreau
"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." Teddy Roosevelt
General Thoughts About Success
If I arrive at my grave and all I've really done with my life is traded it for a giant pile of gold, then I've made a very bad trade.
Live your life around what is most important to you and then fill it in with all the other details
Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they are yours.
Success in any great venture, financial or otherwise, is more about determination than anything else.
Consistent and persistent action are the foundations of success.”
Ryan, you made this world a better place, I’m really going to miss you buddy!! I know I’ll see you again on the other side.
- Residential Real Estate Agent · Fort Worth , TX · Member since 2012 · 211 posts · 152 votes13y
Long before I started posting on the forum I would lurk here and follow a select few individuals here on bigger pockets. Ryan Webber, was one of those individuals.
I would spent a great deal of time analyzing every forum post and every thread he ever created. I learned so much about this business from escrow and title companies to marketing and assignment fees from his posts.
Unfortunately, I never had the opportunity to meet with Ryan in person or communicate with him online. I just wanted to chime in and let it be known that Ryan has helped out a ton of users on these forums even if indirectly, just from the information he has shared here openly.
My thoughts go out to his friends and family for their terrible loss. Ryan leaves behind a grand legacy, and I am very thankful that he shared information so openly.
You will be missed Ryan.
- Residential Real Estate Agent · Chandler, AZ · Member since 2009 · 1k+ posts · 928 votes13y
I had the pleasure of meeting Ryan at the BP summit and having dinner with him. He was wise beyond his years and I learned a lot from him. We corresponded a few times over email and he was always willing to help and give advice. His raw and blunt posts are a refreshing addition to BP and will be missed. RIP Ryan.
- Amarillo, TX · Member since 2014 · 1 post · 11 votes12y
You have all blessed me beyond belief. My name is Sharon. I am Ryans mom. Today is 1 year since we lost this incredible man, my baby boy. I was searching for something on Ryan tonight & came across these posts! I want you all to know how much he loved this site, the conversations, the learning & the sharing. He would often tell me about the discussions. I can not put into words what it did for me to see all of these posts today! To come across one of his biggest joys & to see all of the wonderful thoughts you all had...wow, I am unable to express what it feels like. Ryan has been teaching something, all of his life. When he was 4, he was part of a group that were clowns for terminally ill children in hospitals...and it just progressed from there. Andy M...how fun to see the book list he shared. We were always avid readers & would "steal" each others books. Always checking each others bookshelves to see which books the other had stolen & claimed!" When Ryan died, I bought a journal. I had many people come see me that he had impacted over the years. I had them write something in the journal. My intention is to leave that journal for his children. I am excited to print each of your posts as well as his interview and put them in the journal. If you have anything else you would like in there, feel free to email to me. When you think about him, please keep his 4 children and 3 stepchildren in mind & prayer. It has been very hard on all of us, but especially hard on his children. Thank you ALL again for your kind words of remembrance. I will certainly cherish all of your posts!!!
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