{"id":3117,"date":"2016-01-23T16:59:37","date_gmt":"2016-01-23T21:59:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jeannorton.com\/?p=3117"},"modified":"2018-01-03T15:35:06","modified_gmt":"2018-01-03T20:35:06","slug":"how-my-masters-degree-in-technology-commercialization-plays-out-in-real-estate-investing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mct.amw.mybluehost.me\/jeannorton\/how-my-masters-degree-in-technology-commercialization-plays-out-in-real-estate-investing\/","title":{"rendered":"You don&#8217;t need an MBA to Invest in Real Estate&#8230;but it helps&#8230;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>When I received my M.S. degree in Technology Commercialization (MSTC), the last thing I thought about was going into real estate investing. \u00a0I went from that degree to working for 3 different technology companies; one got bought, one wasn&#8217;t a good fit, and one failed. \u00a0When the economy tanked in 2009, nobody was hiring so I ventured to find something else, and that&#8217;s where I discovered the ability to make money buying foreclosed homes, improving them and selling them. Given my background as a serial entrepreneur, especially with technology focuses, I&#8217;m often asked the question: why real estate?<\/p>\n<h1>The Real Estate Industry<\/h1>\n<p>Nobody needs to be educated to make money in Real Estate. \u00a0I&#8217;ve never seen an industry with such diversity where so many people can make money. \u00a0It doesn&#8217;t matter about your race, religion, level of education, speaking skills, presentation or even how smart you are. \u00a0This, with the onset of of Social Media, I&#8217;m doing business with anyone and everyone. \u00a0I&#8217;m talking real estate strategies with anyone and everyone. \u00a0We all have the same goal; making money. \u00a0<strong>The one and only golden rule in this business is &#8220;Everyone has to win&#8221;<\/strong>. \u00a0You don&#8217;t have to know rocket science to understand that one. I&#8217;m going to point out a few people that I know doing quite well in real estate, and are as different from me as anyone could imagine.  <script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- jean norton blog posts -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-0935485499415877\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2108872114\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n First: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/juztin.w.brown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Juztin William<\/a> &#8211; 20-something tattoo artist that went from being in significant debt to now managing hundreds of rental properties, rehabbing and flipping houses, and managed to crawl out of that whole without any handouts, without any &#8220;student loans&#8221;, and still living with the same problems 20-something kids have to deal with. \u00a0He and I would private message for hours on our real estate businesses, and I was honored when he approached me on a deal he didn&#8217;t feel qualified to take down. \u00a0That deal never worked for unrelated reasons, but having that relationship between us, we knew how to take down that deal and where it would be profitable. \u00a0And yes, we would do that deal together, and yes, everyone of us would win. Next: <a href=\"http:\/\/realestateduru.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Nasar Elarbi <\/a>&#8211; another 20-something, or maybe 30-something guy that tore himself out of da &#8216;hood and discovered real estate investing as a way to go. \u00a0He calls himself a graduate school dropout &#8211; his mother was a teacher so he understood the value of education, but much like me, found himself to be &#8220;unemployable&#8221;. \u00a0He is as black as they come, admits to having problems using correct grammar in his writings, yet is able to pay for and take his father to a super-bowl game from the money he makes as a real estate investor. \u00a0He volunteers his time going to schools and inspires hope for so many. I&#8217;ve known him for years and I tell him to keep doing what he&#8217;s doing (In fact I told him to accept his grammar, that is a part of WHO HE IS, and people are attracted to him because of who he is). \u00a0He is an inspiration for so many and yet criticizes himself for his spelling or grammar. \u00a0I just want to shake my head. \u00a0<strong>He is such a success, helps so many others and is a perfect example of how by\u00a0&#8220;being himself&#8221;, he has mastered real estate investing. \u00a0<\/strong>He has since gone on to help others get into real estate investing. \u00a0You can read more about him at <a href=\"http:\/\/realestateduru.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">http:\/\/realestateduru.com.<\/a>  <script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- jean norton blog posts -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-0935485499415877\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2108872114\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n And More: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/stacee-nelson-714736a\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Stacee Nelson<\/a> &#8211; probably closer to me in demographics in that she is a white female, and so am I, with only a few decades in age to separate us and our differences in hair colors (she&#8217;s liking pink hair these days). \u00a0She is educated with an MBA in international business and quit her cushy corporate job in mergers and acquisitions to go into real estate full time. \u00a0She knew that is where she meant to be. \u00a0She is a mover and shaker and won&#8217;t take no for an answer. \u00a0Her learning about real estate was insatiable. She started with flipping houses, then got into some commercial deals, examined note investing and finally found her sweet spot in buying properties in bulk. \u00a0Now flipping some 30 houses a quarter, she has leveraged her education in finance and international business to deal with some of the largest bulk buying groups in the country. \u00a0She has surpassed me in\u00a0bringing her expertise in new industries and still has the passion for real estate. \u00a0(If I didn&#8217;t know her personally, I may be a little intimidated by her.) And she a girl that likes to have fun! All I can say is KUDOS to those that have entered into this industry where education, race, color, and gender doesn&#8217;t matter. \u00a0These examples are just some of the incredible people I have met on my real estate journey. \u00a0I have never known an industry that enjoys\u00a0such diversity and the potential to make money is there for everyone.<\/p>\n<h2> <script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- jean norton blog posts -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-0935485499415877\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2108872114\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<\/h2>\n<h2>Mapping a Technology Commercialization Degree to Real Estate<\/h2>\n<h3>Raising\u00a0Funds<\/h3>\n<p>The year long Master&#8217;s program focuses on finding a technology and developing a business plan around the technology. \u00a0Many know that a few\u00a0technology companies are bought for many times their annual revenues, yet\u00a0most technology companies fail. \u00a0The failures have to do with a multitude of issues, all studied in the program so we all know what to expect, how to avoid getting caught in those positions and therefore have in the business plan contingencies on how to handle these unsuspecting surprises. \u00a0But the main focus is to end the year with a venture presentation competition viewed by Investors in order to raise money for the technology venture. Raising money in Real Estate is no different. \u00a0And yes, I use other people&#8217;s money in Real Estate. \u00a0I use the tools and the strategies to make a compelling presentations,\u00a0outlining the problem in the markets, the opportunity it presents and the expected return and the timeline. \u00a0I share my stories, right here in this blog, to authenticity speak to the reality of this business and prove to potential investors that I am a credible source to handle their funds. Is commercializing a technology risky? \u00a0YOU BET! Is real estate investing risky? ABSOLUTELY! \u00a0Do I know how to protect potential investors rather it being in real estate or starting a new technology platform? \u00a0YES.<\/p>\n<h3>Communicating So They &#8220;Get-it&#8221;<\/h3>\n<p>Being a former geek, computer programmer, etc., I had little patience for those that &#8220;sucked up&#8221; in the corporate community. \u00a0My work was solid and I didn&#8217;t have to play any games or do any manipulating to get the job done. \u00a0Therefore I didn&#8217;t communicate much. \u00a0Being opened to this new world of identifying pain points in the market, viewing those as business opportunities and teaching me to learn how to develop a business based on solving that pain point was a real eye opener. Part of marketing is more than understanding the &#8220;pain point&#8221; in the market, but being able to communicate that pain point to others that aren&#8217;t aware it exists. \u00a0I always remember the marketing professor with her comment, and it&#8217;s ingrained in me today: If the person you&#8217;re speaking to doesn&#8217;t understand the message, there is something wrong with they way YOU say it. As a geek, I remember thinking that if they didn&#8217;t understand what I said, there was something wrong with them not to understand. \u00a0The reality is I always have to make my message very clear, so the recipient always understands the opportunity. \u00a0<strong>If they don&#8217;t &#8220;get-it&#8221;, then it&#8217;s because of the way I said it.<\/strong> \u00a0I continue to work on my messaging every single day.<\/p>\n<h3> <script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- jean norton blog posts -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-0935485499415877\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2108872114\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<\/h3>\n<h3>Being Held Hostage<\/h3>\n<p>The Strategy class was probably my favorite. \u00a0There are a ton of different ways you can be &#8220;held hostage&#8221; in business. \u00a0This means pretty much running out of resources so you can make the right decision for your business, but are forced to make a decision that could cost your entire business, or lead you down a less desirable path you never expected. \u00a0Many that start in the science industries are probably most at risk since their future depends on major government authorities approval of your product. \u00a0Sometimes companies find themselves &#8220;held hostage&#8221; because one supplier is out of a part and they must turn to other suppliers that provide less quality and\/or higher priced materials. \u00a0They must make the decision to operate with a lower quality product that has a higher price, or eliminating product sales until the problem is solved &#8211; thus reeking havoc amongst employees expecting a paycheck, etc. I&#8217;ve seen this in real estate too. \u00a0Not so much about the lender that drags their feet on approving your new buyer, thus costing you more money, but with investors not understanding a delicate situation and refusing to fund what is needed to get a project profitable. \u00a0Yes it happens, and I&#8217;ve had to make it very clear that I was being &#8220;held hostage&#8221; and forced to make decisions for the best purpose of the project. \u00a0It was costly, but we got through it and there was damage to the relationship with that investor. It happens.<\/p>\n<h3>Risk Analysis<\/h3>\n<p>What a fascinating class. \u00a0It was filled with super analysis tools that allowed us to analyze the &#8220;what-if&#8221; scenarios on very complicated decisions and how it impacts a company with multiple moving parts. \u00a0I wish I had more access to those types of tools to help in my presentations to investors, as I have a lot of great ideas for leveraging opportunities I see in real estate. \u00a0I don&#8217;t have the tools, and haven&#8217;t really explored the opportunities mainly because it was lower on my priority list, but when the hedge funds inundated the tax lien market, I knew EXACTLY what they were doing and how they knew they could take the risks of purchasing tax lien certificates even if the property was a dud. Here&#8217;s a little background. I had great luck purchasing tax lien certificates in Florida earning 17.5%-18% interest and I didn&#8217;t lose any money. \u00a0I blogged about that time <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jeannorton.com\/florida-tax-lien-sale\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">HERE<\/a>, and even was mentioned on a CNN Money article <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jeannorton.com\/jean-norton-featured-on-cnn-money-article-on-tax-liens\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">HERE<\/a> when the tax lien certificate opportunities were taken over by the hedge funds. Someone was able to use a complicated risk management analysis tool to penetrate the Florida Tax Lien system and they knew how they could do it with a profit. \u00a0Where individual investors like you and I would analyze each property we bid on to make sure we didn&#8217;t suffer a loss, the hedge fund gathered the statistics necessary where they knew where to bid and that by bidding a mere half a percent on each property, their chances of being profitable were greater than not. Here&#8217;s how they knew this business model would work: \u00a0Florida has a minimum 5% penalty to tax payers who don&#8217;t pay their taxes on time. \u00a0The hedge funds win the certificate because they claim they will accept the lowest possible bid at the open auction. \u00a0They win the certificate and they also know what percentage of the certificates are redeemed within the first month or 2 of the certificate being issued. \u00a0I don&#8217;t know what that percentage is, but in my experience, most of the certificates were paid within the first few months. \u00a0So IF a certificate earns a 5% penalty and the certificate is redeemed in the first month after the certificate sale, the yield rates a, impressive 60% annualized. \u00a0Sure, they get 5% of their investment back within a month, which is not too bad these days, but to do it over and over can be very lucrative. So if these hedge funds could earn a pro-forma annualized yield of 60%, what about the properties they bid on that have outrageous liens or for whatever reason can&#8217;t be redeemed? \u00a0That would be a total loss of their investment. \u00a0Someone was able to statistically prove that bidding low on as many tax certificates as possible would prove more profitable and the risk less because they would merely abandon the certificates that never paid. \u00a0There is no responsibility in buying a tax lien. \u00a0True, if the lien is never paid, they may end up with the property, but they don&#8217;t want it and will let it get absorbed by the County. This is a complicated investing strategy. \u00a0But I totally understand their process in\u00a0determining that it would be profitable, and it has proven to be profitable because they have been doing this every year since. \u00a0Yep, risk analysis.<\/p>\n<h3> <script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- jean norton blog posts -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-0935485499415877\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2108872114\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<\/h3>\n<h3>Validation<\/h3>\n<p>If there is one thing that came out of the MSTC degree was the need to validate&#8230;EVERYTHING. \u00a0From the education perspective, just because YOU may think you have a good idea for a business, or your investor friend created some wonderful invention\u00a0he calls his &#8220;baby&#8221; doesn&#8217;t mean it will sell in the marketplace. \u00a0Besides all the issues that can come up, such as copy-cats, ease of exiting the market, ensuring the market is ready for that &#8220;baby&#8221;, we don&#8217;t really know that something is valid until we test the market. \u00a0And in real estate I validate constantly. So many new real estate investors come to me with statements like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>My agent told me I couldn&#8217;t do that &#8211; it was illegal<\/li>\n<li>The Wholesaler said the property was worth a MILLION DOLLARS!<\/li>\n<li>Asbestos Siding? \u00a0OMG &#8211; I&#8217;m going to run away!<\/li>\n<li>Nobody would lend on my project<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My agent knows her current market. \u00a0She knows what sells and she knows what doesn&#8217;t sell. \u00a0After years of working with her I know to believe her. \u00a0But in the beginning I validated everything she said, and most of the time she was right. I&#8217;ve had agents tell me lies about the way the transaction process works in real estate to put pressure on me to close a sale, and I know they are lies because I validated it. \u00a0All of it. \u00a0Contractors will tell me what I need to do to be code compliant (and have it cost me more money), but if it&#8217;s a really surprise, I&#8217;ll read the code myself. \u00a0This mindset of validation has saved me a lot of money. \u00a0Never let one person stop you from moving forward in your business because they said &#8220;you can&#8217;t do that&#8221;. Understanding motivators will also give you enough knowledge to know how deeply you want to validate an issue. \u00a0For example, contractors don&#8217;t care how long the project takes, they are getting paid and that&#8217;s all that matters to them. \u00a0Agents don&#8217;t get paid until the property is sold, and even if it \u00a0has to sell for less so they can get paid sooner, that&#8217;s what they will do. \u00a0Their motivation is to get paid quickly, not\u00a0necessarily maximizing their check. \u00a0I have found that by understanding their motivations you can learn if in fact you need to validate what they say. \u00a0I wrote a little ebook &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jeannorton.com\/store\/?ebpc_cat_id=6\">The 5 Styles of Contractors and How to Manage Them<\/a>&#8221; some time ago when I realized the motivations behind the different contractors. \u00a0Understanding who you are dealing with in business, what motivates them gives you the information you need to make smart decisions.<\/p>\n<h3>Multiple Exit Strategies<\/h3>\n<p>Much like technology companies hoping to be bought by some bigger company for multiple times earning potential, you always want to remain open to alternative strategies for your exit. \u00a0Of course the worst exit strategy is business failure, which happens all too often, both in real estate and in technology. \u00a0But if you are stuck on only one exit strategy you may find yourself in a losing situation. For example, let&#8217;s say you start a company with the intent to sell it to a big company at some later date. \u00a0Everything you do is to groom and build your company to be best aligned with that company. \u00a0You introduce the product, you market it, you start getting sales, you get the attention of the press, but then the big company you had hoped would buy your company creates their own competing product. \u00a0You had your heart set on this strategy and now it&#8217;s not there for you. \u00a0How do you handle that? \u00a0What if you had to sell your company to a company that was going to shut down your business, only to keep the employees they like and spit out the rest? The same is true with investing in Real Estate. \u00a0I really feel sorry now for the people that ran to west Texas to build these &#8220;man-camps&#8221; in the middle of nowhere so they could house the people working in the oil industry. \u00a0Sure the oil companies were paying a lot of money for their &#8220;per-diems&#8221; &#8211; living expenses while they were in the oil field. The profit projections were incredible. \u00a0But suddenly the price of oil went down and the oil companies stopped producing oil. \u00a0Those properties are worthless right now. \u00a0Well, not worthless, but certainly not worth holding onto, making mortgage payments and paying taxes on something that doesn&#8217;t provide an income. \u00a0Sure, it may come back some day, but these people are caught with no other exit strategy. \u00a0None. So too in real estate, if you buy a property to fix it up to\u00a0sell,\u00a0and then you can&#8217;t sell it, you are stuck. \u00a0Being open to other strategies is critical to your success. \u00a0Learning about the other strategies are critical. \u00a0Thats where we came up with &#8220;owner finance&#8221;, &#8220;lease options&#8221;, refinance and rent, or if all else fails, lower the price to bargain basement or do what some have done: hide their head in the sand.<\/p>\n<h3>\u00a0<\/h3>\n<h3> <script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- jean norton blog posts -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-0935485499415877\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2108872114\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<\/h3>\n<h3>Financial Analysis<\/h3>\n<p>When I started in the real estate business I started with a spreadsheet outlining the goals for my purchases, putting timelines on those goals, identifying when they would sell and leveraging profits to reinvest to grow the business. \u00a0While impressive to some of the other students &#8211; that I could map out such a plan &#8211; the message I got from that exercise about real estate vs technology commercialization is: The value of a real estate business is 1 times it&#8217;s current value. \u00a0All the time. \u00a0No exceptions. \u00a0Where as technology companies are often sold for multiple times of their current values.<\/p>\n<h3>Final Analysis<\/h3>\n<p>Many of those real estate &#8220;guru&#8217;s&#8221;\u00a0claim you don&#8217;t need a formal education. \u00a0And that is true, you don&#8217;t need an education to make money in real estate as many of my\u00a0diverse real estate friends prove. \u00a0The common threads I&#8217;ve found are with those successful:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>knowing the game<\/li>\n<li>persistence<\/li>\n<li>alternative thinking<\/li>\n<li>understanding risks<\/li>\n<li>understanding\u00a0market demands<\/li>\n<li>knowing when the market changes and being adaptable to that change<\/li>\n<li>building relationships<\/li>\n<li>leveraging funds<\/li>\n<li>being flexible when\u00a0dealing with unexpected events and most of all:<\/li>\n<li><strong>the ability to look at your mistakes as learning experiences.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u00a0 Watch for Jean&#8217;s new course: Business 101 for Real Estate Investors To learn more about the Masters of Science in Technology Commercialization at the University of Texas at Austin, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mccombs.utexas.edu\/MSTC\/Overview\/Program-Overview\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">CLICK HERE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nobody needs to be educated to make money in Real Estate.  I&#8217;ve never seen an industry with such diversity where so many people can make money.  It doesn&#8217;t matter about your race, religion, level of education, speaking skills, presentation or even how smart you are.  This, with the onset of of Social Media, I&#8217;m doing business with anyone and everyone.  I&#8217;m talking real estate strategies with anyone and everyone.  We all have the same goal; making money.  The one and only golden rule in this business is &#8220;Everyone has to win&#8221;.  You don&#8217;t have to know rocket science to understand that one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3120,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[172],"class_list":["post-3117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-estate","tag-real-estate"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>You don&#039;t need an MBA to Invest in Real Estate...but it helps... -<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/jeannorton.com\/how-my-masters-degree-in-technology-commercialization-plays-out-in-real-estate-investing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"You don&#039;t need an MBA to Invest in Real Estate...but it helps... -\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Nobody needs to be educated to make money in Real Estate. I&#039;ve never seen an industry with such diversity where so many people can make money. It doesn&#039;t matter about your race, religion, level of education, speaking skills, presentation or even how smart you are. This, with the onset of of Social Media, I&#039;m doing business with anyone and everyone. I&#039;m talking real estate strategies with anyone and everyone. We all have the same goal; making money. The one and only golden rule in this business is &quot;Everyone has to win&quot;. 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