A Newbie Reivew of The Dallas REIA

[Robert Ortega]

Hello all. Outside of a finance background, investment books, and many podcasts, I am new to real estate. I wanted to lead off by giving a newbie review of the Dallas REIA group for anyone else that may consider attending.

Brief Overview: I found the meeting fun and informative. Expect a sales pitch on their membership program and training material. Given there are around 100 people in attendance, you are not overly pressured into spending money. They will honestly cover the topic of the day, in this case house flipping, and will give real world examples.

Pros:

·         I was introduced to basic concepts I had not considered, such as investing with an IRA. If this is a good idea is debatable but novel concepts were given.

·         The leaders, Shannon and Phill Grove, are blunt about what they are selling. Phill flat out said the only reason he teaches is to network and find future deals. Personally, I appreciate knowing all cards are on the table.

·         Shannon and Phill are charismatic. They will share funny stories with pieces you can learn from.

Cons:

·         Little networking opportunity. The session lasted from 6pm until around 9:30pm and was filled with speakers and sponsors the entire time.

·         They are there to sign up members. I can see value in a large local network but the entire process was disrupted by it.

·         With over 100 people in attendance, you wonder how many people are serious vs curious

Conclusion: I had fun. I’m not sure I learned much but I finally attended a meeting and saw how hungry the population is to invest. With over 100 people in attendance, I know raising capital and finding partners maybe isn’t as difficult as I originally thought.