Wealth Building With Friends

Bob & Usha with Melanie & Josh McCallen
Wealth Building With Friends Podcast

Join Usha Patel & Bob Wells, and Melanie & Josh McCallen for thoughtful conversations with everyday, hardworking families like yours: as we discuss the experiences that have been the touchstones of our unique journeys to financial freedom.

  1. 03/12/2021

    Ep 25: Learning and Growing, From Visitor to Investor with Joanne Bradley

    After hearing a podcast about Renault, Joanne Bradley decided to drive down to the winery just as a visitor. Being a big history buff, she got the feel of the place, the authenticity, and the vision shared and presented in a way she could understand. Along with its history, authentic people, wind, agriculture, golf, and deer – all that was enough for her to write a check. In this episode, Joanne Bradley shares more about her investing journey at Renault Winery. Joanne is an advocate of Accountable Equity’s Learn and Grow Event Series, because not only do you get to come to a beautiful place, you also have the opportunity to meet great people, enjoy good food, and have fun –  without the pressure! You don't have to invest.  It's all about the education and seeing how our investor community works. Here’s what we talked about: The relationships that come from investing How Joanne started her investing journey with Renault The emotional connection being part of the Renault community Why more Renault is more than just a winery! What to expect from attending Learn and Grow at Renault Episode Highlights: More Than Just a Winery! The good news is that Renault is a winery, in fact, the second oldest winery in America. The better news is that it’s not dependent on just wine sales. It’s the biggest wedding business in America, having sold over 800 weddings. Renault is not just a winery but a community. It provides an asset for the investors as well as an income for those employees that need it. It’s a little more complex, but in a good way, because it brings in different cash flows. You can own private real estate deals and get distributions along with building wealth and building relationships. The Relationships That Come From Investing A nice side effect that comes from investing is the relationship you get to build with other people. When it comes to privately investing, the safest way to do it is to get to know the people you're going to invest with on top of really understanding the business. Links: Learn & Grow Event Series Renault Winery Accountable Equity

    19 min
  2. 09/11/2021

    E24: SPECIAL EPISODE - Behind the Scenes at Accountable Equity

    In this episode, Scott Bindas, operating partner at Accountable Equity, joins us as we discuss our new offering for Phase 2 of the Renault Winery Resort. The Renault Winery Resort was acquired almost three years ago, and it was expected to grow over five to 10 years. We were ready to stretch that to 15 years due to the pandemic, but surprisingly, we have already well exceeded our 10-year goal of revenue. Recognizing the demand for rooms, we have decided to launch the Phase 2 development process to increase our room quantity, potentially increasing profitability. Now, if you're not interested in being an investor but want to learn how deals are put together, you're still welcome to listen to this episode and learn the basics as well as come to the webinars and other training we have put together. Here’s what we talked about: Attracting investors through quality operations Why investors are joining our community Why we’re doing Phase 2 of Renault Winery Resort Learning new investing terminologies The minimum investment for equity and returns Understanding the conversion option Participating in the upside The number of revenue streams from hospitality investing Episode Highlights: Things to Look into with Hospitality Investing Culture - As an investor, you need to look at the culture and the community that has been built. At Renault, we're genuinely touching thousands of guests, especially on weekends. And so, it’s important to be able to come and see the culture and how they treat their guests. Offerings - Don't worry about learning the terminologies because you don't have to know everything at once. You will learn it over time. The beauty of investing in a resort is you can have 10-20 plus revenue streams, and even more, as new ones are being created. The Minimum Investment for Equity and Terms of Returns Investment for equity at Renault starts at $25,000 a fund. Then you can buy at a minimum of $25,000 increments. One of the options available for returns is preference payment. For instance, if you put $100,000 in, and we're selling at 10% preference, you're going to be earning an equivalent of $10,000 a year, which is a much better way than almost everything else going on in the world today. You can buy in and make a lot of money for six years, and redeem it. Or you also have the option to convert it and potentially become a perpetual owner with us into the future. Links: Accountable Equity Renault Winery Resort

    28 min
  3. 28/09/2021

    E023: Taking Baby Steps in Private Investing with Ryan & Mandy Rosenberg

    Born and raised in New Jersey, Ryan & Mandy Rosenberg met in high school, got married in 2003 and now live in Hightstown, New Jersey, an old, one-square-mile town founded in 1721. As a teacher and administrator in public education, Mandy never paid that much attention to the person who would show up in the faculty room once a month to talk to them about their investments. She later realized that once you open your mind to what this path could yield, it opens the door to more opportunities, and sometimes, you just have to take baby steps. They made their first jump into private investing helping out a local brewery. Here’s what we talked about: What drew them to Accountable Equity Their first jump into private investing at a local brewery Looking at all investing options Understanding good debt and depreciation Syndication vs. doing your own deal Episode Highlights: More Than Just Investment What drew them to Accountable Equity was how the company is taking properties that need some love and breathing new life into them. It's a great investment opportunity, but there's something more than that. It's about community building, historic preservation, and the ROI and all those things wrapped together. If you have been very traditional in your investing, you just have to take baby steps. The learning curve can be steep in the beginning especially when you're starting out and not knowing much. Then you begin to know a little and then it accelerates from there. You start doing some research. Syndication vs. Doing Your Own Deal Syndications and doing things with people like Accountable Equity that care about your money and are accountable with your equity is awesome. It's potentially going to yield far better than Wall Street. Although nobody knows the crystal ball, it should because of the direct access to the actual deal. And if you have that passion and you're an active investor, you should and can build more wealth quickly that way. The syndications are growing nicely. But sometimes, if you run your own project yourself, you can grow it quicker. There are also more opportunities. When you own your own private house or short term rental, you have all the tools available to you such as a debt and of your own capital going in and maybe pulling it back out. You're in charge and you can liquidate it. Links: www.oldhightsbrewingcompany.com www.AccountableEquity.com

    31 min
  4. 02/09/2021

    E022: Building Wealth Through Real Estate with Val Skripek & Mike Gawell

    In this episode, power couple Val Skripek and Mike Gawell join us as they share their investing journey. Val is one of the most talented real estate sales performance coaches. She has been in real estate with Keller Williams for over 10 years and heading on her 30th year in real estate, six years in coaching the rest as a sole proprietor agent. Mike, on the other hand, has an extensive retail background. He has a furniture wholesale business covering eleven states. Recently, Val and Mike have invested in Renault. Here’s what we talked about: What made Val and Mike jump into real estate investing Educating people about real estate investing, especially your children Mike’s retail background What made them decide to invest in Renault Episode Highlights: Educating People About Real Estate Investing Too often, people become anxious about owning real estate. They worried about what would happen if the tenants don't pay or whether they have to get an accountant. And many times, Val and Mike have to explain that so they can get the message across. That being said, it's about being selective about where you buy or what's it going to be like to manage that property? Is there a professional management company in play or how much work do you want to do? And that all comes into what is the investor going to buy? What is their ability to absorb risk? How dangerous do they want to live with that? How many units do they want to have? Teaching Your Kids the Value of Building Wealth Through Real Estate Real estate is all about relationships. Being able to share that knowledge with your kids is very important so they would understand the value of building wealth through real estate. And your kids seeing you being successful with it is empowering for them. Links: Accountable Equity Renault Email Val at vskripek@comcast.net or call her at 215-872-7936. Email Mike at mgawell@comcast.net

    33 min
  5. 05/08/2021

    E021: Demystifying Tax Strategies and Investments with Chad Gallagher

    Chad Gallagher is the co-founder of SlateHouse Property Management, which currently manages over 7,000 units across the Mid Atlantic, SouthEast, and Southwest with local offices throughout. Today, he's going to teach different strategies to move pieces around so when the money comes in, you don't pay tax on profit. Here’s what we talked about: How Chad got into property management What is accelerated depreciation and how to make use of it Why you should refinance a property and who can help you do it People you should be talking to Real estate investing strategies Episode Highlights: Some Work You Should Be Doing When Getting into Real Estate Investing Most Americans get a paycheck. It's ordinary active income. And on that, you pay taxes. Think of it as the red bucket. Then there's this green bucket, which is this glorious world of passive income. Have a portion of your week allocated towards investing time. Here are some people you should be talking to your accountant, real estate agents, and syndicators. Look at new green energy opportunities because that's where the world's headed to Who can you meet? Who can be educated? Read the company earnings of different companies because they'll tell you exactly what they're doing and why they're doing it. Real Estate Investing Strategies Choose the right guide. The first part of this is who you are working with. You should have a team of 10 to 15 to 20 people who you are using and with a couple of different real estate agents at all times. If you believe in investing, there's no rule that says you have to have one real estate agent. Have a whole bunch of people out there scouting for opportunities for you based on whatever you're looking for across the country. You don't even pay them until they find you a deal. Work with an agent who understands investments, specifically B class properties because, in general, they are the most predictable in terms of returns. Think about investments in 10 years because you can't accurately predict what's going to happen in six months. And 2020 is a great example of that. Understanding Appreciated Depreciation Depreciation is basically how quickly you’re writing off an asset over time based on what type of asset. This is the layman's version. And most properties depreciate over a long period of time, 27 years or more. What's fascinating about accelerated depreciation is it allows us to really compress that depreciation into one or maybe two years. When other passive income is coming in, these investments you're making are actually being used to write off taxes. That's how you play the game where you can invest money and have more tax write offs. Passive income spins off money for the rest of your life. And that's how you start winning and stop just trading hours for dollars where every dollar is taxed at 35%. Why It Makes Sense to Refinance Properties You don't pay taxes on refinance. You may refinance an asset four or five times in your life and that's a home run. So you can pay off the asset and then refinance it, and the refinance comes back, and it's all just cash. Interest rates are so low and appreciation has just gone through the roof. It's going to keep going when we have inflation. So people will be sitting on a ton of equity. You can take that money out and put it into projects and be making that 15% IRR (internal rate of return). That's leverage and that's how you start to change the game Links: www.slatehousegroup.com

    1h 6m
  6. 28/07/2021

    E020: Cultivating a Purposeful Partnership with a Growth Mindset with Amit and Puja Gaglani

    Today's guests on the podcast are Amit and Puja Gaglani, who are not only investors in Accountable Equity, but they've also done the entire lifecycle of an entrepreneur. Amit is an investor in Renault as well as Capital H3. Amit owns a physical therapy company, and then transitioned on the business side of it.  He was initially the producer as the physical therapist. Then he started hiring a team under him, stepping out of the clinician path, and started working on his business, instead of in his business. Currently, he has an equity stake in a larger company. Puja helped him with everything, being a person in the background that would be his sounding board. And they both credit all they’ve achieved to the dynamic of their relationship that’s purposeful and believing in the things they want to accomplish. Here’s what we talked about: What the dynamics of their relationship looks like Investing with a growth mindset Going out of your comfort zone Sharing wisdom to other people Episode Highlights: Investing with a Growth Mindset Usually, at the beginning of the journey for many people, it's all about being a great employee and generating revenue. And then sometimes it unfolds. After you start getting good at what you're doing, you start realizing there's way more to it, you know, than that. Growth is a little scary for a lot of people because it's outside their norm. But sometimes, you have to be willing to venture outside the norm, open your eyes to the possibilities and listen, do your own investigating and due diligence, and ask questions. Nobody's forcing you to do anything. But if you don't go down that road to at least stretch your mind, then you'll never know what you've missed. Going Out of Your Comfort Zone You don't learn until you come out of your comfort zone.  And then you set that example for your children too and teach them to still go out of their comfort zone in order to grow. It's also who you surround yourselves with. It’s about stretching what you already know to learn more. Links: Renault Capital H3 Capital Hacking Episode 183 with Amit Email Amit at gaglani_amit@hotmail.com

    32 min
  7. 21/07/2021

    E019: Managing Student Rental Properties with Adam & Nicole Zell

    Adam and Nicole Zell are two exceptionally interesting and talented people. Adam currently works at a $100-million water purification company. This year, he helped secure a $140-million tax incentive from New Jersey and built a brand new factory in Camden. Nicole works as a grants and contracts specialist for a scientific research organization in University City, Philadelphia. Adam and Nicole have a number of student rental properties in Philadelphia, and they continue to grow their portfolio through leveraging friendly relationships with clients. Here’s what we talked about: Buying their first rental property Private investing to reach financial freedom Their first experience living with the college students How they’re looking to continue building their portfolio The power of education Nicole’s background in aerial acrobatics Episode Highlights: Managing Student Rental Properties Adam emphasizes the importance of forming a personal relationship with all of the students. Try to meet them and any of their parents that come along on the tour, and build a personal relationship with the parents. There are some big faceless property management companies for student rentals. But they're in the hospitality business. They have to focus on the relationship and the hospitality aspect of it. And so, if the tenants don't feel like you care about them, they are so much less likely to care about your property. They are less likely to trash the house because they understand this is something they've poured a lot of time, effort and money into and because they've made enough of a connection with them. Focusing on Relationships In the student rental market, there's a lot of moving houses every year, and they tend to have much less than the average. And when the kids eventually graduate, and they leave, a lot of them refer their younger friends to them. So it makes it much easier to keep their houses fully occupied. Again, they credit their success to those personal relationships they’ve built over time. The Power of Education One of the biggest barriers to going down the wealth path is fear. There are all these jargons and it's scary. But if you can educate and teach people, you can take away that anxiety, and encourage them to take those first steps so they too can progress to whatever their financial goals are. Links: Accountable Equity

    45 min
  8. 07/07/2021

    E018: The Greatest Wealth Builder with Aaron and Elena Powell

    From being a part-time realtor since 2014, Aaron Powell became a full-time realtor in 2017. Prior to that, I was a financial advisor for about 10 years. Elena has been a veterinarian for 21 years. Together, their passion is to help make people's lives better. Their first flip was an uptown duplex that had a liveable basement, where they ended up living in the basement and renting out the other two units which paid for his mortgage. Here’s what we talked about: The catalyst behind their decision to investing Real estate investing as the best wealth builder The irony of people in the financial industry How their teamwork works through their dual income The best takeaway he got from the book, The Richest Man in Babylon Episode Highlights: The Greatest Wealth Builder Real estate investing is scary for a lot of people that aren't used to it. But it's the best wealth builder. Not only are you building wealth for yourself, but you’re also providing quality homes to people. It’s great to be investing in something that can make you proud. Everyone deserves a quality home but so many people can’t afford houses for themselves. So being able to create that opportunity to help provide quality homes to people is a great privilege in and of itself. The Irony of People in the Financial Industry The financial industry was cutthroat and it's a burnout industry. Different companies have different corporate cultures and some are much more aggressive than others. And it's ironic how people in it tend to lean towards helping themselves rather than helping their clients. It’s just all about making money. The Synergy of a Dual Income Family Elena admits she ain't much of a risk taker, but whenever there's passion, she just allows her partner to go with it, ultimately realizing it's a great deal and seeing the passive income starting to come in. With a steady income and benefits, minimizing the risk made Elena feel more comfortable to let Aaron expand his passion and grow from there because. Links: www.AccountableEquity.com www.ourfamilysagent.com The Richest Man in Babylon by George Samuel Clason

    40 min

About

Join Usha Patel & Bob Wells, and Melanie & Josh McCallen for thoughtful conversations with everyday, hardworking families like yours: as we discuss the experiences that have been the touchstones of our unique journeys to financial freedom.

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes and get the latest updates.

Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada