From Fix’n Flips To Multifamily Real Estate

Full Transcript Below

Intro
Hi. My name is Rod Khleif, and I’m the host of “The Lifetime Cash Flow Through Real Estate Investing” podcasts. And every week, I interview Multifamily Rock Stars and we talk about how they built incredible wealth for themselves and their families through multifamily properties. So hit the “Like” and “Subscribe” buttons to get notified every Monday when a new episode comes out. Let’s get to it.

Rod
Welcome to another edition of How to Build Lifetime Cash Flow Through Real Estate Investing. I’m Rod Khleif, and I’m thrilled you’re here, and I know you’re going to enjoy the wonderful lady I’m interviewing today. Her name is Rayna Mike, and she’s the CEO of Love Apartments, and you know, she’s in over 750 units in the apartment front, but also has done lots of other stuff, redevelopment, retail, and lots of other commercial real estate activities. So we’re going to have a lot of fun today. Welcome to the show, Rayna.

Rayna
Thank you so much, Rod. I’m very honored to be with you.

Rod
Oh, thank you for saying that. Well, why don’t we start with having you do a much better job of your intro than I just did and give us a little background as to your real estate journey and, you know, kind of a 50,000-foot overview of why real estate and kind of bring us current if you would.

Rayna
That’s a wonderful question. 24 years ago, I started selling residential real estate in Southern California, and my first house I sold was $80,000.

Rod
Wow.

Rayna
And very quickly, I realized that I really didn’t like to talk a lot about kitchens and bathrooms with my buyers, and I wanted to go into the commercial field, and I started with fix and flips like I suppose a lot of people do.

Rod
Sure.

Rayna
And I did over 300 fix and flips, and then I started looking at acquiring two and four and eight and ten units, and that was the beginning of looking at multifamily and apartments, an economy of scale, and how much you can really create generational wealth. And I don’t regret it ever. I think it’s the best field I have discovered in real estate.

Rod
Yeah, for sure. So, did you do this all yourself? Did you do this with someone else? Was it just a team of one until you got into the larger commercial multifamily? I’m assuming you’ve got a team now, or give me a little background on the whole team dynamic. If you have partners, team members, employees.

Rayna
Absolutely.

Rod
Yeah, talk about that.

Rayna
I started first with my husband and my little bitty daughter. She was six years old when she started working in our office. She started answering phone calls and making copies and sending faxes back 20 years ago, we used to send faxes.

Rod
That’s funny. Yeah.

Rayna
I don’t think we send a lot of faxes today, but we started with that, and quickly we developed a team, [inaudible] that without them, really, I could not achieve what we have achieved. And working very, very hard with the right people. We are only about five people currently on the executive team not considering the ground staff [inaudible]

Rod
Right. Not the staff onsite. Right, okay. What role do you play on the team? Are you the person that puts the deals together, the person that underwrites them? What role do you now enjoy in the larger multifamily is really what I’m talking about.

Rayna
My main role currently, Rod is putting the deals together and doing the initial underwriting, but then the underwriters and the analysts on the team put the final touches to all the numbers and all crossing the Ts and dotting the Is.

Rod
I see.

Rayna
But I am the one that puts the whole deal together with the negotiations, with the contact, with being in touch with every piece of the deal.

Rod
Sure. So, you know, knowing what you know now, you know, you’ve started flipping, you flipped 300 houses, that’s a lot. And 80,000 for a property in Southern California, my God, if you’d only bought 100 of those huh, and kept them.

Rayna
That’s right. That’s right.

Rod
You’d be on the back of your yacht right now.

Rayna
Absolutely.

Rod
So let me ask you this. Knowing what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently or, you know if you went back and told the 18-year-old Rayna something or 25-year-old Rayna something– by the way, your comment about faxes, I remember when faxes didn’t exist and they were just coming to be because I had a friend that was selling fax machines. He’s like, dude, we can send stuff over the wire, you can send the document. I’m like, oh, that’ll never get big. And of course, it did, and now it’s passe, it’s like a dinosaur age.

Rayna
Amazing.

Rod
Yeah, that’s how old I am, too. But, you know, if you could go back and tell your younger self something, is there anything you might do differently? I’m just curious.

Rayna
I would have loved to have gone into multifamily, Rod from the get-go, from the very beginning.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
I would have had 10,000 doors by now. That’s what I would have told my 18-year-old Rayna.

Rod
Yeah, and I asked that question because that’s normally the answer and I want my listeners to hear it from other people besides me, go bigger as quickly as you can because you know, all the big operators that I have on say that. Now, let me ask you this. For someone just starting out that, you know, I have a lot of listeners that have not taken action yet. And I tell you, I think there’s an incredible opportunity coming in our space. I think economically we’re headed for some pain in this country. You know, I just saw a headline that there are 20 million families that are behind on their utility bills. 20 million households.

Rayna
Wow.

Rod
That was just in the headline. It was just in the Fox News this last weekend. So I think we’re headed for some pain in this country. But that said, you know, I think there’s an opportunity because with crisis comes opportunity. And so, you know, for someone that hasn’t taken action in real estate yet, what suggestions might you have for someone that’s just starting out, for example?

Rayna
I would say find the right mentor or the right people that can help you make this step, the first step that you can gain confidence, that you can start believing in yourself. Okay, I can buy ten units. I can buy 50 units, maybe. It depends on how big you can be. You can be as big as you want to be, really.

Rod
Sure. It’s all mindset, really.

Rayna
It’s all mindset.

Rod
You just have to take– you broke up for a moment. I think you said find a mentor. Is that what I heard you say? I wasn’t sure if I heard you–

Rayna
Yeah. That’s exactly right.

Rod
Okay, yeah. Okay. That’s what I thought. So let me ask you this. You know, in your career, I’m sure you had lots of aha moments, you know, where you say to yourself, okay, now I get it. Do any big ones come to mind? Any big epiphany moments that you said to yourself, okay, you know, I got the message, kind of a thing, anything like that?

Rayna
One of the biggest epiphanies brought to me was that I was to get out of the day-to-day operations of the business and work on the business versus in the business.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
It might sound like a little cliche, but it’s not really.

Rod
No.

Rayna
Because I used to want to get all my hands dirty and go and check on everything and micromanage and I’m learning now to delegate and let other people do that and myself focusing on growing the business.

Rod
Yeah, no, it’s super important.

Rayna
Yeah, I think that’s one of my [inaudible]. That’s one of my [inaudible].

Rod
That’s a real big one, and you have to step back and do that. In fact, we’ve implemented the EOS system from this book, “Traction”, and it’s an operating system for a business. Highly recommended, by the way. I suggested it to all of the members of my Mastermind. I host a Mastermind of some of the largest operators in the country. It’s about 16 billion in assets in that group, and it’s called The Multifamily Boardroom. And we meet three times a year. And I suggested it to them, and almost all of them use it in their organizations because it really helps give you clarity. So I would encourage you to get it.

Rayna
I would love to get it. I would get it immediately when we get off this podcast.

Rod
All right. I think you’d be glad you did if you do. Well, let me ask you this. You’re a dynamic woman, where do you get your drive? What makes you jump out of bed in the morning?

Rayna
I love people, Rod. And I believe that every day I can change a little bit of the life of every person I touch. Touching people, I believe, is way bigger than making money. Way bigger. It’s way bigger than even sometimes our human comprehension because people can be impacted in a way where you don’t know, maybe ten years from now that you made an impact. And people– I love people, Rod. It’s all about people. I honestly believe that. It’s about the people we touch every single day.

Rod
You know, I sensed that about you the minute I met you. And for those of you that don’t know, this is our third attempt at this podcast because we had some trouble with the audio. And I don’t think I’ve ever done that for anybody before. And I did it for Rayna because I loved her energy.

Rod
I adore you, Rod. I adore you.

Rod
Well, likewise. Likewise. And that’s why, you know, I wanted to, you know, make sure that we made this happen because you know, not only, you know, are you a huge success, but you’re also a beautiful energy. So let me ask you this. You know, what do you think is the most challenging part of what you do?

Rayna
I believe the most challenging part of what I do is people, again. People can challenge you to a point where you are not yourself. And I have learned to control that very, very strongly. But I still sometimes feel that I have to step back and say, this is not worth it. My husband used to say, who passed away, is this of any eternal consequence? And if it’s not, why are you so upset? Is that going to change your eternal destiny? That so and so did so and so.

Rod
Right.

Rayna
And my answer would always be, no.

Rod
Right.

Rayna
No, they’re not.

Rod
Right.

Rayna
And that’s what I– I am learning it every day, Rod. I haven’t mastered that art yet, but I am learning every day. I am getting better every day.

Rod
We are all works in progress, are we not?

Rayna
Yes, we are.

Rod
We are. Until we’re no longer here. We are working on us until we’re no longer here. And if you stop working on yourself, where you plateau, you’re actually dying at that point. If you’re not growing, you’re dying. You need to be consistently growing.

Rayna
Absolutely.

Rod
So, what is your definition of success, Rayna?

Rayna
My definition of success would be at the end of your life, whether you’re 100 or 120 years old, when you have done everything you wanted to do, you look back and you say, I really fulfilled my purpose. I discovered that purpose when I was 20, 30, 40, 50. Doesn’t matter. If you discover your purpose at 60, you still have plenty of time.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
And I discovered my purpose, and this is what I have accomplished. I have accomplished my purpose in life. And for many people, that could be $100 trillion. For others, could be a wonderful relationship with your spouse, with your children, or great, great, grandchildren. And really, if you measure only your success with money, you’re limiting yourself so much.

Rod
I couldn’t agree more. You know, like you can see behind me on the wall here, there are some of the hundreds of thank you cards from people whose lives have been impacted. The whole wall is covered behind me.

Rayna
I see that.

Rod
And I live for that, you know.

Rod
Same here.

Rod
The only love you fail to get is the love you fail to give. And, you know, whatever you want, you give and you get. You know, so, in this business, what sorts of people should someone align themselves with to be a success in the multifamily business? You know, what are your thoughts about that question?

Rayna
I personally think that you have to be very careful who you align yourself with. That person has to have integrity, first of all. Has to be loyal, has to be trustworthy, and dedicated. That this is not just a side gig. Maybe it would happen it would happen. That this is something that they have devout their life and their passion, too.

Rod
Yeah, I couldn’t agree more. Integrity, loyal, and just an incredible work ethic because they are passionate about what they’re doing. Couldn’t agree more. Yeah, those are the ultimate people to align with in any organization, for sure. What do you think is some of the best advice you’ve ever received, Rayna? And I know I didn’t prepare you for any of these questions, so you’re very quick on your feet. You’re doing great. So what do you think is some of the best advice you’ve ever received?

Rayna
The best advice I’ve ever received would be probably from my late husband, who was my greatest fan, Rod. And he was the wind beneath my wings. And he would always say, you can do anything you want to do. You just have to slow down sometimes. You’re too fast.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
You’re too fast. You’re going a million miles an hour. Focus. Those were his words, Rod, focus. Focus. Please focus.

Rod
That’s funny.

Rayna
And I think that’s the greatest thing.

Rod
Nice. Nice. Nice. So let me ask you this. Did you have any early failures that may have contributed later to success? You know, we all have setbacks in this business and any business, honestly, but any notable– I call them seminars. I never call them failures. Any notable seminars that you had in your journey here that anything comes to mind when I ask that question that you know, you learned from or became better from?

Rayna
Yes, absolutely. I overpaid for a six-unit complex in Pasadena, California, and I paid a high price. I had to bring money to the table when I sold it, and it was very painful. Very, very painful. And I learned that I don’t think ever since I have overpaid for a property because I wanted this property. This emotional attachment to properties, to me, is no longer something positive because as an investor, you’re not supposed to be emotionally attached to any property.

Rod
No.

Rayna
So this emotional attachment, I had to break, and it cost me a lot.

Rod
Yeah, guys, you can get caught up emotionally– I’m sorry. I’m sorry I interrupted. Please finish your thought. Sorry.

Rayna
It was very discouraging.

Rod
Yes.

Rayna
It was– I had to sit and cry over what happened, and I could be a big crybaby sometimes, and yeah.

Rod
Okay, well, listen, we’ve all had it happen and you know, I promise I have you beat on the seminar front as it relates to setbacks in life, but, you know. So, do you have any favorite stories from your real estate career? Any funny having a cocktail story that you tell about something that happened? You know, I’ve got some really funny landlord-tenant stories, but I don’t know if you’ve got any funny stories that come to mind from your career so far.

Rayna
Absolutely. I probably have a lot. Let me think for a moment. Landlord-tenant stories are to me the funniest because we’ve had tenants that their grandmas and great-grandmas pass several times, you know. Like how many can you have and how many can pass away at the same time? How many do you have at the end of the day?

Rod
Right.

Rayna
You should have only two, right? One on the mother, one on the father’s side. There is another very, very funny story. The first house I sold for 80,000 that I mentioned earlier, this gentleman had 485 FICO and I was able to raise his FICO to almost 600. That’s how I got him the house.

Rod
Wow.

Rayna
And it was very funny because he himself didn’t believe that he would ever own a home with 485 FICO.

Rod
Sure.

Rayna
So I thought that was pretty funny.

Rod
Yeah, well, I’d say that’s–

Rayna
I had to convince him.

Rod
Yeah, well, I don’t know if that’s funny or just very, very nice. Wonderful that you were able to make that happen. You know, let me ask you this. What, if anything, did you have to give up or sacrifice for your success along this journey to get to where you are today?

Rayna
I had to give up probably precious time with my daughter that she had to sleep in my office, under my desk, and we made a kid’s room where she had the cartoon videos there, and she practically lived in my office. So I had to sacrifice that. I had to sacrifice probably time with my husband and time with friends.

Rod
Sure.

Rayna
I had to sacrifice not being able to do anything I wanted to do at any time.

Rod
Right.

Rayna
Being disciplined. The big D-word that many people don’t like.

Rod
Right.

Rayna
I think discipline is the key to our success and how much we want to really influence people is by showing them that we are very disciplined people.

Rod
Yeah. No, that’s really, really good advice. In fact, I just heard there’s a big guy in the news called Andrew Tate. He just got debunked from social media. You wouldn’t know who it is, but he said, you know, it’s never about motivation. It’s about discipline. And I talk about motivation, but that really resonated with me because you’re right. It’s really more about discipline because the motivation won’t be there forever. You know, it doesn’t stay with you. But let me ask you this. What do you think is your unique skillset or superpower that has helped you the most in your success? I think I know the answer, but I’m just curious what you’re going to tell me.

Rayna
I think my superpower is having this love and passion about people.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
And people can feel that. People– anybody that encounters me knows that right off the bat. I don’t need to mention it. I don’t need to say it. They just need to be there.

Rod
Yeah, that’s what I expect you to say, and I couldn’t agree more. So if you could give just one piece of advice to my listeners, knowing that they’re aspiring– some have some multifamily already, small stuff, maybe some larger stuff. You know, if you could give one piece of advice to them, what might you say?

Rayna
I would be like Winston Churchill delivering his final speech at the Oxford graduating class of, I believe, 1942. He was late, about 25 minutes. Everybody waited and waited and waited for him. He was limping a little bit, right? And he limped up to the stage and the only thing she said is, never, never, never, ever give up.

Rod
Ever, ever give up.

Rayna
And he left the stage. And he left the stage.

Rod
Look. Look what’s on my desk.

Rayna
I love it.

Rod
Never ever, very give up. Winston Churchill. I’m showing a paperweight for those of you listening, that’s on my desk that says “never, ever, ever give up”. So I knew that’s where she was going with that one. Winston Churchill has some awesome quotes.

Rayna
Awesome quotes.

Rod
Like one of them, “if you’re going through hell, keep going”, you know.

Rayna
Keep going. Never turn back.

Rod
That’s right. If you don’t know who he is, now, he’s the one you know, that was in charge of Britain during World War II, and they were getting bombed by the Nazis and just getting beat to death. And he threw his radio broadcasts, rallied the British people you know, to just stay positive and everything else. He was a wonderful leader and he’s got some incredible quotes.

Rayna
Wonderful. Incredible leader.

Rod
So do you have any other quotes that you love? Any other quotes that come to mind you know from famous people or people that you admire?

Rayna
Oh, absolutely. I mean, one of the most admired people and deity is Jesus Christ, for me.

Rod
Of course.

Rayna
And everything he says, I absolutely admire. And one of my most favorite is “treat others as you want to be treated”.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
And you could never go wrong with that. Even when people mistreat you, you’re still planting seeds that are seeds of goodness.

Rod
Yeah. You exemplify that one. I wish I could say the same, but you absolutely exemplify that one. So let me ask you this. What do you think–

Rayna
Thank you so much.

Rod
Well, it’s very true.

Rayna
That’s so special coming from you.

Rod
Well, it’s not hyperbole. I say it. I totally mean it. So let me ask you this. What are some important questions that you think everyone should ask themselves, you know, either from time to time or consistently?

Rayna
I believe the most important question you can ask yourself consistently is, am I doing this just because I want to get money, or am I doing this because I want to influence people for the goodness that I would bring into their world? And if it’s just for money, you can go do anything for money. You can do anything.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
If you believe in yourself, you can be the CEO of JPMorgan, Bank of America, do anything you can do. But is this really only about money? I think that’s the most important question we need to ask ourselves every day.

Rod
That is such an awesome, insightful answer, Rayna. Because you know, when I teach people to, you know, create that burning desire in their lives through their goal-setting, and one of the biggest things I have them decide is their why and to dig deep on that why. Because it’s never about the money. It’s about what they’ll get from the money. And I will tell you when you ask that question why, numerous times, you almost always get to the fact that you just want love, really. That’s the bottom line. When you really are transparent and honest and that’s the name of your company, which is just so appropriate. So let me ask you this. What do you think is the most common reason that people fail or give up?

Rayna
Wow, that’s a really good question. I believe lack of trust and confidence in yourself. If you start doubting yourself, you would have very big variations from the path you want to go. You must not doubt yourself. If you chose that path, stay on it. Stay on it no matter what. Exactly as Churchill said, if you’re going through hell, keep going.

Rod
That’s right.

Rayna
And don’t turn back because you’re going to go through more hell because God has a purpose and he’s teaching you something. And if we’re a good students, we’re not going to repeat too many mistakes. But if we are not such a good students, which sometimes we’re not, he just keeps teaching us.

Rod
Yes, it’s a great way to define it. You know, when you don’t get the lesson, you get the lesson again. You know, that’s how he works.

Rayna
That’s it.

Rod
Let me ask you this. You know, when you first got started, or maybe when you first took down your really big deal, how did you overcome your fear? What did you do to get past the fear? Because it’s always there. Achievers call it stress, but it’s fear. You know, how did you get past that initially?

Rayna
Absolutely. I believe fear, Rod, is the opposite of faith. So, the more I have built up my faith, the less fear I have. Fear and faith are two opposite feelings and reactions and sets of– they’re a mindset, really, faith and fear. And the more you push the good faith up, the less fear you got. In the beginning, that was the key for me is building up my faith mindset. That I am the head and not the tail. I am an overcomer. I am not a failure. And you’re constantly telling yourself that because words are things, we need to speak to ourselves, not because we’re crazy. Sometimes we might be a little crazy, but it’s okay. But we need to speak to ourselves.

Rod
Yes.

Rayna
And tell ourselves who we really want to be. Maybe we’re not that today, but we want to be that. And we are telling ourselves we are an overcomer, we are victorious because we want the victory already, even though we’re in the fight right now.

Rod
Yeah. Well, I will tell you, those self-affirmations are super important. Like anything you put the words I am in front of is an identity statement. I’ll show you something on my wall here. If you can see it up there, it says “I am success”.

Rayna
“I am success”. Absolutely.

Rod
“I am the best in the world at what I do. I am a business genius”. So those are I am statements, not ego. They’re what I’m aspiring to be. And sometimes I will yell those things at the top of my lungs when I’m exercising in my exercise room. I used to do it running down the street. In fact, that’s the question I ask–

Rayna
Same here.

Rod
Did you really? Good for you. Yeah.

Rayna
Same here.

Rod
Yeah.

Rayna
Yes.

Rod
Because it works. Those are affirmations. They get into the fiber of your being. And, you know, like, if I’ve got something fearful going on in my life, I will say “I am courage”, and I will scream at the top of my lungs for 15 minutes. You know, my kids, they help me at my live events. And that’s the question they get the most often. Does he really do that shit? Does he really yell that stuff? You know, yeah, we grew up with it. But– because it works.

Rayna
It works.

Rod
You know, when you hear those affirming statements about yourself, you know those are the two most powerful words, I am.

Rayna
I am.

Rod
You know, and people fight and die and kill over those two words. You know, if they say I’m a great father or I’m a great husband or I’m a great you know, whatever.

Rayna
Absolutely.

Rod
Right. Well, listen, Rayna, this has been a real treat. Is there a question you wish I would have asked you?

Rayna
No, I think you covered the gamut from A to Z.

Rod
We could talk technical aspects of multifamily. Guys, just come to my boot camp for that, for God’s sake. This is so much more important than that. You know, 80% to 90% of your success in anything is what we just talked about, which is mindset. So, you know, and you’ll get that in my boot camp too. But the bottom line is this is why people are successful because they live this way, they love this way. And this is, you know, the name of Rayna’s company is Love Apartments and Investments. So, you know, such a perfect name. Well, listen, Rayna, it’s been a real treat. Great to see you again, and I certainly hope we stay in touch.

Rayna
Absolutely. Thank you so much, Rod. I am honored. I absolutely adore you and love you. And I am just on cloud nine.

Rod
Oh, thank you, sweetie. We’ll talk soon. Bye, now.

Outro
Rod, I know a lot of our listeners are wanting to take their multifamily investing business to the next level. Now, I know you’ve been hard at work helping our Warrior students do just that using our “ACT” methodology, which is Awareness, Close, and Transform. Can you explain to the listeners how they can get our help?

Rod
You bet. Guys, we’ve been going non-stop for three years building an amazing community of like-minded people, and our coaching students which we call our Warriors have had extraordinary results. They’ve purchased thousands and thousands of units and last year we did over 1000 units with our students. And we’re looking to grow this group and take it to the next level. We’re looking for people who want to follow a proven framework that’s really step by step and then leverage our systems and network to raise equity, to find and close deals, and to build partnerships nationwide. Now, our Warrior community is finding success in any market cycle. So if you’re interested in finding out more about how you can become more of our incredible network and take advantage of the incredible opportunities that are coming very soon, apply to work with us at “MentorWithRod.com” or text “CRUSH” to “72345” and we’ll set up a call so you can check us out and we can check you out. That’s “MentorWithRod.com” or text “CRUSH” to “72345”.