---
title: 'How I''d Start in Real Estate in 2026 (If I Had to Start Over)'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=6ITYRzAcuKI'
video_id: '6ITYRzAcuKI'
date: 2026-06-30
duration_sec: 1232
---

# How I'd Start in Real Estate in 2026 (If I Had to Start Over)

> Source: [How I'd Start in Real Estate in 2026 (If I Had to Start Over)](https://youtube.com/watch?v=6ITYRzAcuKI)

## Summary

The video outlines a strategy for breaking into real estate investing, specifically through RV parks and seller financing, as a means to replace active income with passive income. The speaker emphasizes learning deal underwriting through free online resources, then partnering with experienced investors to gain ownership and confidence.

### Key Points

- **Initial Advice for Those with a Job** [00:10] — If you have a job you hate but have decent income, the speaker advises starting with single-family homes or, more specifically, RV parks to build passive income supplementary to your active income.
- **Daily Learning Activity** [00:33] — Spend limited time (2 hours per week) on sites like Crexi and Loopnet, watching underwriting Zooms to learn why deals are bad. Do this for 3 months.
- **From Learning to Action** [01:23] — After 3-5 weeks of learning, join an owners' club and offer to bring a deal to an experienced buyer in exchange for a 10% finder's fee and a small upfront fee to gain confidence.
- **Scaling Ownership** [01:39] — Within 6 months, aim for a small ownership stake (10%) and a $50k finder's fee. On the second deal, negotiate 20-40% ownership. By the third deal, buy independently.
- **Chisel Away Bills** [02:05] — List all your expenses and systematically eliminate them with the cash flow from each asset purchased (e.g., rent, car, groceries). Continue working your job while building assets.
- **Seller Finance Explained (Apple Watch Analogy)** [03:03] — Seller financing means the seller acts as the bank. If a property has been on the market for a long time (e.g., 100 days on Craigslist for an Apple Watch), the seller becomes motivated to accept monthly payments close to their asking price rather than a low cash offer.
- **Finding Motivation and Pain Points** [06:15] — Call sellers of stale listings and appeal to their pain (not getting the price they want). Propose a full-price offer paid over time via seller financing. Reverse-engineer the deal so you net a specific monthly amount (e.g., $10,000).
- **Structuring the Deal (Mario Case Study)** [07:16] — For a 43-unit property in San Angelo, the seller wanted $3M. The speaker stretched payments to 50 years at 3% interest, paying $16k/month to the seller, and netting $11k/month after expenses. The seller's motivation was missing his son's events due to property issues.
- **Creative Terms** [08:57] — The speaker offered 50-year amortization, making payments after the seller's lifetime, which appealed to the seller's desire to leave a legacy (monthly checks for his kids).
- **Critique of Airbnb** [09:59] — Many people jump into Airbnb for tax benefits (100 hours/year rule for real estate professional status), but it's primarily an exit strategy, not an acquisition strategy. Most Airbnb operators don't make money, and 400,000 listings were dumped in a recent year due to poor operations.
- **Acquisition vs. Exit Strategy** [10:49] — Learning how to acquire leads (foreclosure, probate, seller finance) is more important than learning a single exit strategy (Airbnb, Section 8). The property determines the exit strategy, not the investor.
- **RV Parks vs. Airbnb** [12:25] — RV parks are an asset class with longer average stays (3-4 months, especially in oil country) and less competition than Airbnb. The speaker distinguishes between RV parks, trailer parks, and mobile home parks, noting that many RV parks are hybrids.
- **CPA and Tax Strategy** [12:59] — Most low-level CPAs recommend Airbnb for tax benefits, leading to oversaturation. The speaker advises upgrading CPAs as net worth grows, and notes that the real estate professional status requires 100 hours/year and assets with 7-day or less average stays (e.g., Airbnb, but not Section 8 or traditional multifamily).

### Conclusion

The core strategy is to learn deal analysis for free, joint-venture with experienced buyers, and use seller financing to acquire RV parks. This systematically replaces active income with passive cash flow while maintaining your job, avoiding the oversaturated Airbnb market.

## Transcript

What's another asset type that's better
than Airbnb that has an average RV
parks, but nobody talks about it?
If, you, told, me,, Pace,, I, have a, job, I
hate, my boss is the worst, and I'm
barely making ends meet.
>> I, would, tell, you,, jump, into, single
family right now
>> and, replace, your, active, income, with
other active income. Got
>> it.
>> What, you, need, to, do, right, now, because
you have good active income
>> is, you, need, to, get, supplemental, income
from passive income.
>> Okay?, which, would, be, an, RV, park., Here's
what I would be doing, a daily activity.
I would go on like Krexy, Loopnet, and I
would go into the sub two underwriting
zooms. There's four of them a week. Just
pick one that you like
>> and, go, in, there, and, say,, "Hey, guys,, can
you look at this and tell me why this is
not a good deal?"
>> And, I'd, spend, three, months, literally
just learning why something's not a good
deal. Why 3 months pace? Cuz you're only
going to do one Zoom a week.
>> You, don't, need, to, overwhelm, yourself
with 5 hours a day. It's like, let me do
two hours this week and then I'll spend
the rest of the week 20 minutes, 20
minutes, 20 minutes, 20 minutes every
day just looking through the sites
finding next week's reason why I'm going
to go into that Zoom.
>> You, go, into, the, Zoom,, they, underwrite, it
for you. Within 3 weeks, 4 weeks, 5
weeks,, you're, going to, go,, I, kind, of
know kung fu.
>> I, know, kung, fu.
Show me.
>> Like,, I, know, what, I'm, looking, at, now.
Okay. Now, what you're going to do is
you're, going to, go, find, somebody, that's
buying RV parks in owners club and go, I
want to bring you an RV park. I'd like
to get 10% and a little bit of money up
front so I can gain confidence and bring
you a second one.
>> Okay?
>> And, within, 6, months,, you're, going, to
have ownership in a park. You're going
to probably have made 50 grand in
finders fee for bringing that deal to
somebody and 10% ownership. Well, pays
10% ownership ain't going to change my
life. Yes, it will. Because now the
second one you bring, you can be like
20, 30, 40%. And by the third one, you
go, I think I could just do the third
one by myself. So your first deal, it's
like I I tell a lot of people that are
jumping into passive, I'm like
>> list, out, all, your, bills, and, start
chiseling them away with each asset you
buy.
>> Okay,, rent's, gone,, car's, gone,, cell
phone, groceries gone, and now you're
like in four assets, I'm I'm free
right? So that's what I would be doing
if I was somebody who has a good paying
job. Stay at the job, especially if you
like it.
>> Yeah.
>> And, it's, the, cheat, code, and, go, buy, a
couple of assets by the This is what
Jordan Rays did. He bought a park with
me.
>> Yep.
>> He, got, a, second, park,, brought, to, me,, got
another check for 90 grand. And then on
his third park, he went and bought a $5
million park on his own.
>> Nice.
>> And, now, he's, on, to, like, his, fourth,
fifth, sixth park. He's like, and he's
also simultaneously buying businesses
with creative finance. He just bought a
handyman business and a painting
business.
>> Yeah.
>> So,, he's, doing, other, things, with
creative finance, too, to bring in more
income, but he has the confidence now
because he knows I don't have to worry
about money because I have passive money
coming in. Okay. So, how does it work?
It's really, guys, seller finance is
self-descript. Meaning
>> it, means, exactly, what, it, says., The
seller is financing you. Okay? Okay. So
if I go to Adler, who's holding this
camera, and let's say this is Adler's
gear. Is this your Apple Watch?
>> Uh-huh.
>> Okay., What, do, you, think, this, is, worth
today?
>> Oh,, 100, bucks.
>> Okay., You, want, to, upgrade, that, Apple
Watch at some point, right?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay.
>> Or, you, want, to, get, rid, of, it?, You, want
to retire from it? Right. Okay. So, I go
to you, the seller, and I say, "Hey
Adler, I'd like to buy your Apple Watch.
What would you sell it to me for on
cash?"
You, go, list, it, for, a hundred, bucks.
Right? This is I'm describing how it
works right now because this is exactly
what happens. Him, the seller, goes and
puts it on a broker, which is
Craigslist, eBay, or whatever, and he
tries to get the highest number possible
on a cash offer. So, let's say I take
this $100 watch and I put it on
Craigslist., Am, I, getting, a hundred
bucks?, No., because, you're, going to, have
wholesalers or cash buyers or investors
come along and go that $100 watch I need
to make sure I got a deal to feed my
family. So, I'm going to pay I want to
buy that for 50 cents on the dollar in
order for me to make money. Follow?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay., This, is, exactly, how, real, estate
works, guys. It's no different. Okay.
So, this seller is belligerent. He's
owned this this Apple Watch for x amount
of time and he really has emotional ties
to it and he wants to make sure he gets
his hundred bucks. So, this thing sits
on the market for a significant amount
of time. That's where creative investors
come along and go, "Hey, uh, ring ring.
Hey, Mr. Seller, I see your watches on
Craigslist for over a 100 days. Have you
sold that thing yet?" No, I haven't.
Okay. Well, what's been keeping you from
selling? Well, everybody's lowballing
me. Bro, I'm literally describing every
conversation you're going to have in
real estate right now. This is happening
right now. And I go, cool. Um, okay.
Well, I would probably guess you're
getting offers somewhere around 50 or 60
bucks for your watch. Oh, yeah. Well
how how do Yeah, you're right. How do
you know that? Well, cuz if I was going
to give you a cash offer, I would also
give you that that number. Seller then
says, "What do you mean if you were
going to give me a cash offer?" Well
I'm not going to give you a cash offer
because if you were going to accept a
$50 or $60 offer, you would have already
sold the watch.
>> Yeah.
>> So,, how, about, I, give, you, a, $90, offer, as
close as possible as I can get to that
number, but I need to make monthly
payments to you instead of one lump sum.
>> Yeah.
>> And, you,, Adler,, let's, say, you, haven't
sold this watch for six months. It's
been on the market for a hundred bucks
and you're sick and tired of looking at
it and having to recharge the thing
right? maintenance on the property and
somebody comes along after 6 months and
says, "I'll pay you close to that
hundred bucks, but I need to make you
monthly payments to do that." What is
the likelihood of you saying yes to
that?
>> Yes.
>> Yes., Now,, here's, how, this, works., Again,
how does this work? If the Apple Watch
has been on Craigslist for 3 days, do
you think Adler's really going to be
motivated to give me seller finance?
>> No., So,, when, people, can, say,, "I, called
the seller. They said they're not
interested." Okay. Well, what's the
listing look like? And I look at the
listing. I'm like, "It's been on the
market for three days, you idiot.
There's no motivation.
>> You, So,, I, call, the, seller, and, I, appeal
to their greatest pain, which is I'm not
getting the number I want." And I go
"Great. I'll get you the number." And
the seller goes, "Yeah, I'll do
creative. I'll do seller finance. That
makes sense. Well, what kind of payments
are you looking for?" I go, "Well, look
I've got to make money on this
>> and, here's, what, my, terms, would, be.", So,
for example, I reverse engineer
everything with my sellers. So, I'll
tell my sellers on an RV park or a
multif family, I go, I need to make sure
that after all my team is paid, after my
payment to you, after utilities, after
capex, which is like monthly repairs and
capital expenditures is what that's
called. After everything, I need to make
sure I'm netting $10,000 a month. That's
my biggest concern.
>> Okay?
>> So,, I, reverse, engineer., And, that's, the
beautiful thing about creative finances.
You can skin the cat a thousand
different ways. And I start with the end
in mind. They go, "If I can get to a
point where I'm netting $10,000 a month
and I'm paying you a monthly payment and
you're happy with it, I can get you that
number." And that's how that works. And
guess what? We create what's called a
promisory note or a an IOU. And we
record that with the state, okay, as a
lean. And that is now a debt instrument
or a security or a lean or a promisory
note. Okay? It's an IOU. It's a fancy
way to say I and I owe you and I make a
monthly payment and guess what you
became? You became the bank, didn't you?
>> You, financed, me., You, gave, me, the, asset
and you let me make monthly payments on
it. So that is
um how that works.
>> So, with, that,, that's, how, you, like, you
can negotiate terms of like how how many
months you're going to like
>> Yeah., Like, I'll, give, you, we, haven't, been
to this property in a couple of years
but I have a property in San Angelo just
like four four hours away from here and
the seller wanted a really high number.
>> So, obviously, you, were, going, to, negotiate
like, hey, if I got to make X amount of
money, let's say it's the $10,000.
>> Yeah., He, wanted, Here's, what, I, told, him.
I said, I need to make $8,000 a month on
this property.
>> It's, 43, units., It, brings, in, 40, grand, a
month.
>> Okay.
>> Okay.
>> What's, the, the, cost?
>> So, 40, grand, is, what, it, brings, in
revenue. you've that's revenue. That's
topline, right? I I have 43 tenants. The
average rent is under $1,000. So, I'm
bringing in $43,000 a month. I'm sorry
bringing in 40 grand a month off of 43
tenants.
>> Um,, your, average, vacancy, is, going, to, be
about 5 to 7%.
>> Okay?
>> So,, 5%, of, 43, is, basically, three, units.
So, I have 40 units paying me about
$40,000 a month, right?
>> Cool.
>> I, collect, that, 40, grand, because, I'm, the
new owner. His payment, it goes to him.
His name is Mario. I pay him 16 grand a
month.
>> Yeah.
>> 3%, interest., That's, He's, the, bank.
That's my bank loan. 16,000. I've got
handymen. I've got insurance. I've got
maintenance. I've got repairs. I've got
all sorts of things. And after
everything's said and done, I take home
about $11,000 a month.
>> Okay.
>> Okay.
In order for me to get there, in order
for me to get there, we had to stretch
my payments out to 50 years. So, this is
what's crazy. You can skin the cat in
ways you don't even you can't even
comprehend. I will pay him well after
he's dead. Why? How did I structure this
deal? I structured this deal by saying
"Mario,
that's a really high purchase price. $3
million for these 43 units is really
high. I probably should be buying this
for about $2.3 million. And he goes
"Well, let's make it work. How can we
make your payment low enough to justify
the $3 million purchase?" I said "Well
we got to stretch this to maybe 50
years, maybe 60 years, so my payment
stretched out over a longer period of
time." And he goes, "Well, I'll be
dead." And I go, "Yeah, you will be
dead, and maybe even I will be, but my
team won't be. My company won't be. My
kids won't be dead. And wouldn't it be
cool if my kids are still alive paying
your kids who are also still alive? So
the case study of Mario is a good it's a
really good case study. I've interviewed
Mario. He's on the channel. We should
pull it up.
>> Okay.
>> And, Mario, and, I, have, had, multiple
conversations on live Zooms where
Mario's like, "I got another property
for you. Got another property for you.
I'm going to make you rich base." I I
bought that property from him three
years ago in San Angelo. And the way I
got the deal is it was with a broker on
the market for a really long time. We
called the broker and the broker said
"Oh, Mario fired me a long time ago. I
don't even know know why that listing's
on there." Okay, but this goes back to
the Apple Watch, doesn't it? It was on
the market for a long time. So, I call
Mario and I go, "Hey, man. Are you open
to seller finance?" He goes, "Yeah, of
course I am, but it just kind of depends
on what your terms are." And I tell him
"I need to make $8,000 a month net." And
he goes, "Well, you've never seen the
property." I go, "Well, if you're
interested in creative financing, you're
not going to waste my time. I'll fly out
and I'll meet you." So, I go out and I
meet him at the property, 43 unit deal
and we were in the parking lot and his
Escalade was running and we were sitting
there on the hood of his car with his
running vehicle. And I'm like, "Why are
like turn the car off, man? It's loud."
My kids's inside. And I go, "Why doesn't
he play on the playground, right? The 43
unit has an a playground." He goes, "He
hates this property."
I go, "Why? That's interesting. If he
hates the property, why would I buy it?
What's wrong with it?" He says, "Well
let me put it this way." On his 11th
birthday, when my wife asked him what he
wants for his birthday, his answer was
"I want my dad to love me as much as he
loves his tenants." Okay? See pain.
And on his 12th birthday, which was
about 6 months ago, this is when he put
it on the market. Okay? This is you got
to understand people's motivation. He
puts it on the market because for his tw
12th birthday, Mario had to miss his
son's baseball game to go fix a problem
with a leaky toilet. Okay? And so his
son didn't want to talk to him for like
a month. Like my dad misses games. He
loves these people more than he loves
me. And so Mario put it on the market
and tried to sell it for a high purchase
price, right? Because he cared about his
legacy and passing something down to his
kids cash-wise. And so I go
"Interesting." And so the way I
structure the deal, understanding what
his pain point is, is I said, "Well
what better way, Mario, what better way
to show your child that you love him
than to send him a check every single
month for the rest of his life for
$16,000 a month." He goes, "Where do I
sign?" And that's how I close the deal.
The other thing is like you want to
There's a couple of questions I would be
asking like what are asset types that
are going to be around in 10 years
right? Because
>> you, also, don't, want, to, would, you, go
marry I know it's a stupid question but
would you go marry an 85year-old woman
right, now, by, default, you're, going to
usually be like no she's going to she's
going to die in 10 years right or five
or whatever it's the same thing with
Airbnb like think about Airbnb it is d
it's not dying off
>> it's, just, dwindling, this, is, the, number
one reason why people jump into Airbnb
you want to know what it is
>> yes
>> no, you, have, no, clue
>> I
>> it's, going, to, make, so, much, sense, it's
tax benefits because they have a high
income W2.
>> Yeah.
>> And, their, CPA, is, a
>> what, is, the, what, how, can, I, qualify, as, a
real estate prof? You can't get the tax
benefits unless
>> spend, a, certain, number, of, hour, 100, hours
a year, right?
>> 100, hours, a, year, more, than, anybody, else
on that asset.
>> You, can't, do, it, as, education., You, can't
be like, oh, I'm in a mentorship that
gives me 200 hours a month or whatever.
>> Ask, that, question, to, Carl,, too., Yeah., So
the number one qualification is it has
to be an asset that has 7 day stays or
less on average. What are some assets
that do that? Section 8. No stay
forever.
>> Multif, family.
>> No.
>> No., That's, year, to, two, years,, right?
Okay. So what about Airbnb?
That makes sense. Okay. Average stay for
Airbnb is like 5 days. What's another
asset type that's better than Airbnb
that has an RV parks? but nobody talks
about it. I think that there's a really
massive misunderstanding of what
actually is an RV park versus a trailer
park, an RV park, and a mobile home park
are three different things. And here's
the thing is that there are a lot of RV
parks that also have trailers in them.
We call those hybrids. So my these RV
parks that I'm we're going to right now
the average stay is not 7 days. It's
much longer.
>> Okay?
>> Why?, Because, the, people, that, are, renting
from me in Big Spring, Texas, are oil
workers and they stay the whole year
because they're this is their job. They
work they move around for their job
right? So their average the average stay
here is like 3 or 4 months. Do you see
we're in oil country by the way?
>> Oh, yeah.
>> This, is, why, my, RV, parks, are, long., The
stays here are much longer cuz all the
guys that are renting my spots are
working these oil pumps. And so there is
some challenging parts there. But here's
the reality. Most Airbnb operators do
not make money. But what are they doing?
Here's what they're banking on. This is
why Airbnb is up. One, CPAs lie. Not
because they intentionally lie. They're
uneducated. So, this is interesting.
From your path from 0 to a million
dollars net worth. How many times does
the average entrepreneur change their
CPAs? Four times.
>> Four.
>> Four, times., Why?, Because, you, learn, that
most CPAs don't know. Then you realize
the only CPAs you should be working with
are their average clientele is worth a
hundred million bucks. Okay? So you but
you those why would that CPA work with
you
>> if, you're, not, worth, millions, of, dollars.
And so CPAs are meant to be upgraded
along the way. And so what happens is
low-level people I was also a low-level
net worth. You end up getting low-level
CPAs. a recommendation by a guy named uh
Brian about seven years ago. And I go
"Dude, I need a better CPA. This
paying, money, in, taxes, and, blah
blah blah blah blah." He goes, "Yeah
here's my here's my lady." And I go down
there and I said "How many of your
clients don't pay taxes?" She goes
"100% of my clients pay taxes. What are
you talking about?" I go, "You are the
wrong person for me immediately. I need
a CPA that is like,"None of my clients
pay taxes." That's a CPA. The difference
between a a bookkeeper, they just track
your expenses. you then have a an
accountant who then files your taxes. So
these CPAs that are lower level, they go
to these conferences or whatever and
somebody goes, "Oh, just tell your
clients to do Airbnbs." So imagine
200,000 CPAs around the country telling
their clients who have a 9 toive job
hey, if you want to get out of your
taxes, go buy a Airbnb. So all these
Airbnbs have gotten oversaturated. Did
you see the article last year that
400,000 Airbnbs were dumped off the
platform because they're such operators?
These are poorly done Airbnbs and that I
look I don't hate Airbnb. I hate the
people that think Airbnb is their
solution. There's literally I think one
person I've ever met, Bill Faith that
actually teaches Airbnb properly. He
says, you're, going to, be, buying, super
properties and you're going to be a
super host otherwise you can't compete.
>> Yeah.
>> And, your, properties, are, going, to, be
$800,000 to $2 million. going to have
incredible experiences. So anyway, that
is the reason why people jump into
Airbnbs is because they want the tax
benefits. The other thing about Airbnb
guys, let me tell you what Airbnb is.
It's a exit strategy. So if I tell you
how to manage an Airbnb, how to go
market it, fill the tenants, cash flow
blah blah blah blah blah. Where do I
find the property? That's an acquisition
strategy.
>> So, I, acquire, the, property, and, then, I
make money on it, which is an exit
strategy. So flip is an exit strategy.
>> Um, section, 8, is, an, exit, strategy,, right?
People go and learn exit strategies
before they've learned acquisition
strategies. So what happens is I go to
all these Airbnb conferences. Your
people in the hallway, they come up to
me after I speak and they go, "We've
been here 3 days. Nobody's once talked
to us about where these deals come from
because they're being educated on an
exit strategy to apply this to Adler
who's holding the camera. If you go
hey, I want to be a videographer. And I
go, cool. Let come to our videography
seminar for three days. And the only
thing I teach you is how to edit and
bill your client.
>> That, is, called, an, exit, strategy., What, I
acquired, which is the video, video, the
camera, the sound, the audio, the
equipment, the acquisition is more
important than the disposition. Okay? In
fact, the disposition, getting rid of or
the exit strategy, the house determines
the exit strategy, not you. Here's what
I mean by that. If I send you a house in
an HOA and you're an Airbnb investor
interesting. So, like 99% of the houses
on the planet do not apply to you. What
you, told, me, is, you, don't, know how, to
find deals. Why do I know that? Because
if I, let's say I go and I do an
acquisition strategy, which is
foreclosure, probate, tax leans
creative finance, sub 2, seller finance.
I'm acquiring an asset, right? I go and
acquire the asset and it's in an HOA
that does not allow Airbnb. Oh well, all
of a, sudden, Airbnb, doesn't, work., The
house determines the exit strategy, not
you. So, what you need to learn when you
first start real estate is how do I
acquire leads, motivated sellers, and
then determine what category they go
into. So, for example, if I'm a
videographer, I go into the wedding and
I go, "Okay, I'm going to acquire all
these, shots., I'm, going to, get, video,
still photos, drone shots. I'm going to
acquire all this stuff." And then based
on the bride that I'm working for will
determine what I edit and what I create.
Does that make sense? So, it's the same
thing in real estate. What I do is I I
now go, "Okay, well, somebody sent me a
deal. Well, it doesn't work for me
because I'm an Airbnb investor. I'm not
an Airbnb investor. I will I will put
stuff in section 8 when it's
appropriate. I will put stuff in a co-l
livingiving when it's appropriate. I'm
an investor. Imagine Walmart's like
"Yeah, we only sell milk." No. When you
limit yourself to one exit strategy, you
get screwed. And you also go, "Well, I
don't know how to find deals. I just
need people to send me exactly what I'm
looking for." And that's okay, too. But
you're just going to grow really, really
slowly.