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Show Summary
In this episode of the Real Estate Pros podcast, host Michelle Kesil interviews Rickey Chavez, a seasoned real estate agent and buy-and-hold investor based in Texas. Rickey shares his journey from corporate America to real estate, discussing his strategies for success, the importance of networking, and the challenges he has faced along the way. He emphasizes the significance of understanding personal financial needs, exploring new markets, and building strong relationships in the industry. The conversation wraps up with practical advice for aspiring real estate agents and insights into the evolving market landscape.
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Investor Fuel Show Transcript:
Rickey Chavez (00:00)
So NAR put out 2025 NAR numbers. So there was over there’s over 1.3 million realtors in the US. right. Almost 72 % of them didn’t sell one house last year.That’s like just crazy. So ⁓ it’s not hard to sell houses. You just have this, work ethic. People don’t really have the work ethic. They come from corporate America, don’t know any different.
Michelle Kesil (02:03)
Hey everybody, welcome to the Real Estate Pros podcast. I’m your host, Michelle Kesil, and today I’m joined by someone I’m looking forward to chatting with, Rickey Chavez, who is a real estate agent, as well as a buy and hold investor in the Texas area. So excited to have you here today, Rickey.Rickey Chavez (02:22)
Thanks for having me, I appreciate it.Michelle Kesil (02:24)
Definitely. So let’s dive in. First off, for those who are not familiar with you and your work, can you share what your main focus is?Rickey Chavez (02:33)
You know, I’m in a good place. I’m retired andabout eight years ago after I retired from corporate America, I decided to go in the real estate realm. First was just to kind of figure out, you know, I’ve been always buying and selling as an individual, but never helped anybody else. So I started helping people buy and sell. And then probably in the last five years, I started seeing opportunities where I can buy properties that…
had some equity in them and then were in good markets to rent. I was basically, I did it to start setting myself up for retirement, like forever. Like I call it mailbox money, know, take care of the house, make sure it’s good, keep warranties on it. And so every year since ⁓ then we’ve purchased a house and we get renters in it and we have a steady income.
Michelle Kesil (03:29)
Amazing and which markets do you operate out of?Rickey Chavez (03:32)
So I’m in the Houston markets, predominantly Cypress, KD, Tombaugh, Hockley, ⁓ and downtown. I mean, I have a house in the Heights, which is kind of the up and coming young professional area. ⁓ And, you know, it’s fun, it’s always rented. It’s actually, you know, I’ve been asked if I want to use it as an Airbnb. Haven’t really pushed down that realm. I have some friends that bought houses and used them at Airbnbs. ⁓I didn’t think they had as much luck as maybe it was the platform they were on. But yeah, but it’s always rented and that’s great.
Michelle Kesil (04:14)
Awesome. What do you feel have been some of the main keys that made the biggest difference in allowing your business to grow and to run smoothly?Rickey Chavez (04:24)
Well, I think it was the work ethic I put into the real estate market and buying and selling houses allowed me to have the income to be able to actually purchase what I wanted and the areas I wanted.Michelle Kesil (04:42)
Yeah, absolutely. And as far as like your agency, what does that business look like?Rickey Chavez (04:49)
You know, work, I am a team lead ⁓ for the Rickey Chavez team with Better Homes and Gardens, Gary Green. know, Better Homes and Gardens is one of the largest ⁓ corporate… ⁓real estate agencies in the US and our Gary Green. We’re actually in Houston. We’re the number one in the network for the Better Homes and Gardens. I’m down here. think I’ve had the opportunity to learn a lot from a lot of the veteran individuals. And I think the biggest thing I’ve learned over the years is put a team together. You know, the joke is always, everybody laughs at me, is I got a guy.
doesn’t matter what needs to happen, I got a guy. You need your pool fixed, you need a pool, you need a roof, you need this, you need that, I have a guy. And the benefit of that is also in my rental, and having my rental businesses, so when a client or someone, one of the tenants calls me, I’m able to find somebody, have them at the house, have them address whatever’s going on. I think that’s what’s helped us always have really good tenants and keep them long-term.
Michelle Kesil (06:42)
Yeah, absolutely. And so what are you most focusing on solving or scaling for your business?Rickey Chavez (06:51)
I think right now, this year, we’re actually, my wife’s from Indianapolis. And so we’ve been looking at picking up a house in Indianapolis also. Right now everything we have is in the Houston area. But you know.In Texas, we have the tax thing. know, the taxes are pretty crazy here. So it affects our payments and it affects our return on investment as we purchase properties. So we’re starting to look at other areas. And my wife’s very familiar with Indian officers. So we’re looking at that area as a possible opportunity to pick up another couple houses. I’m in my 60s, so it’s like, I’m pretty close to being done. And I want to get postured so that…
you know, at the end of each month that the net profit, you know, is just money that we can start ⁓ enjoying our life or continue to enjoy our life, I guess.
Michelle Kesil (07:51)
Yeah, amazing. And does that look like continuing with buy and hold properties?Rickey Chavez (07:57)
You know, I’m going to say…Probably 80 % yes, but I think 20 % I’ve just gotten involved with some individuals that they actually, they flip houses and I would really like to at least one time flip a house and see what that’s all about. I have helped people on many occasions.
sell their flipped houses. So I’m just like, I have the team, I have the guys, so I’m gonna take a look at that as an opportunity just to try it.
Michelle Kesil (08:37)
Yeah, absolutely. That can be an exciting process.Rickey Chavez (08:43)
Did you disappear?Michelle Kesil (08:45)
Now I’m here.Rickey Chavez (08:46)
But yeah, so for the most part, that’s the game plan. then continue, because the great thing about it is the values are going up. So a lot of equity in the homes, and pretty soon they’ll be paid off, and that’s when the fun really begins.Michelle Kesil (09:08)
Definitely. And so what do you feel like the opportunities are right now in the market?Rickey Chavez (09:15)
You know, there’s a couple different opportunities. know, I do commercial ⁓ real estate also. through some of my clients, I’ve had the opportunity to watch them buy strip malls or parking lots. And I think the big deal is parking lots. Everything’s taken up. Texas is just, I mean, here in the Houston area, it’s just growing, growing, Lots of ⁓ neighborhoods and, ⁓ you know.have had some friends purchase some ground, level it off. Didn’t even have to put buildings on it. Fenced it off, put a gate, and they’re starting to use them as parking lots and finding a lot of success with that.
Michelle Kesil (09:54)
Yeah, wow, that’s an interesting new way to invest, I guess.Rickey Chavez (09:59)
Well, you know, it’s funny. I have a friend of mine. I went to meet him and it was like, ⁓ he showedin his pickup. He was in a t-shirt and shorts and flip-flops. A guy from Columbia came to the United States and all he did was pick cans up when he first got to get about seven acres. We sat on the back of his pickup truck. There’s no buildings. And seven and half acres of pure trucks. While we were there, I think probably three or four…
People came in and asked him, was there any available slots? They’re paying like $250 a month per slot. mean, he’s like, Rickey, just buy my toys. He just buys toys. And I’m like, okay, I want to be like you when I grow up.
I mean that was pretty, you know, he’s just doing a great job of and doesn’t have to have, he says he pays his taxes out of his first month and then once a quarter he pays about $3,500 to clean up all of the debris and any of the oil spills and then just pockets the rest.
Michelle Kesil (11:17)
youYeah, that’s definitely something unique.
Rickey Chavez (11:43)
Mmm would have never thought it right and I came out of transportation so a lot more People are trying to you know, because the people in these neighborhoods a lot of them are, you know truck drivers some of them have their own trucks and Most neighborhoods don’t allow them to park in the neighborhood. So they have to park it somewhereMichelle Kesil (12:05)
Yeah, well, interesting. what about, like, are you working with investors as well when you sell houses?Rickey Chavez (12:17)
yeah, you know that’s just met with a couple just recently and joined their team. ⁓ So I’ll be listing all of their fix and flips and their high end they’re bringing. These guys are bringing stuff in from overseas ⁓ as far as ⁓ the granite and the different things. I mean it’s just it’s pretty amazing the thekind of products that they’re bringing in and how well it looks. So I’m pretty excited to see how well the people receive it. actually put my first one on the market Friday and we had a couple showing. So we’re waiting to see how fast they turn over. Pretty fun.
Michelle Kesil (13:02)
Yeah, definitely. What has been some of the biggest challenges that you’ve experienced in your real estate journey?Rickey Chavez (13:09)
I’m sorry, I missed that.Michelle Kesil (13:12)
What have been some of the biggest challenges that you’ve experienced and overcome on your real estate journey?Rickey Chavez (13:19)
I think, you know, this is the funnest thing I’ve ever done. when I say experiences, I’m prior military, so was in the military 20 years, and then I was with Corporate America for like 16 or 17 years.I think this is probably the funnest thing I’ve ever done. ⁓ I think people are always going to have their own personalities and you just need to be able to understand what they’re looking for and what they want and just kind of guide them to get where they’re at. I never want to be the reason somebody buys or sells the house, you know?
So when they ask me, give them the market and you know, the market answer. This is what the market says, this is the market supports. And they ask me, Rickey, what’s your, personally, what do you think? And I don’t think because everybody’s financial situation is different. There is a resource for everything. ⁓ So people just need to be motivated to go find the resource and then they can also, I mean, have a great, great time out here.
Michelle Kesil (14:25)
Yeah, what do you mean like motivated to find the resource? Like does that mean money?Rickey Chavez (14:28)
Well, I mean, everybody, there’s a lot of people that I talk to that are like, man, I really can’t do this, or I don’t have the time, or I don’t have the ⁓ finances. sometimes you gotta do what you don’t want to get what you want, right? And so… ⁓I mean with chat GPT now, mean come on. If you use chat GPT and ask specific questions on exactly what you want to do. I was in a class probably a month ago and this lady just blew me away.
And you know.
everything you want or need, it gets, learns you and they can help you find houses, you know, where it will be your best return on investment, you know, just everything out there. Where are places that you could possibly get ⁓ financial help from? Just, there’s just so many things out there, but people have to sit down and really want to do it.
Michelle Kesil (16:11)
Yeah, absolutely. Is that something that you had to like overcome as well?Rickey Chavez (16:16)
You know, I’m a mess. I just… I was an Army recruiter. Nobody wakes up in the morning when…join the Army, right? So coming out here and finding people that are interested in, you know, everybody wants to have their home. That’s the American dream, right? Have your own home, you know? And so there’s plenty of people out here just getting out there and getting in front of them and helping them. And as you help them, each time you help somebody, you learn something from the other people you’re dealing with.
⁓ And there’s some pretty crazy folks out there for sure and just ⁓ as long as you make their the Journey easy for them, you know make it relax and minimize their stress, you know, they realize how easy it is out here so it’s just a matter of just being there holding their hand and getting them through all the the self-induced stress, I guess
Michelle Kesil (17:17)
Yeah, absolutely. Is there any advice you would give to people looking to get into real estate?Rickey Chavez (17:26)
Yeah, so, it kind depends on what they want to be. If they want to be a realtor, I would tell them they need to decide why they want to be a realtor. I mean, why? They want to look like the other realtors, they don’t need to do that. Because I just send a message to my manager. You’re familiar with NAR, right? ⁓So NAR put out 2025 NAR numbers. So there was over there’s over 1.3 million realtors in the US. right. Almost 72 % of them didn’t sell one house last year.
That’s like just crazy. So ⁓ it’s not hard to sell houses. You just have this, work ethic. People don’t really have the work ethic. They come from corporate America, don’t know any different.
I think the point is ⁓ know why you want to do it. Talk to your family and friends, the people that support you, and especially if you’re married or have a significant other, they need to understand that at the beginning, you’re gonna work.
a lot. And if you’re not ready to do that and they’re not ready to support you, this is not the place for you. That’s just my personal opinion. But I also was an Army recruiter and, you know, we brought people in to be Army recruiters and they didn’t want to be recruiters either, but they had no choice. Out here you make a conscious decision to join, be in real estate, so you need to do your homework.
know and know your numbers. And what I mean by that is a lot of people come into real estate and especially if they come into it as a change of life, most people stress themselves out because they don’t know their personal numbers. What do you need to make?
Not what you want to make, but what do you need to make financially to get yourself to the next area? And then it’s what you want to make and then, oh my God, and then you work your numbers that way. But that’s the big thing. Some people leave corporate America making 90 to $100,000 and they think they’re to make that out here right away. And there are some people that do, but very, very, very few.
So what do you need actually need to make? How much money is that? It could be 40,000. Maybe now you’re not doing a 41 401k. Maybe not the health benefits. Maybe there’s no travel and no extra entertainment. But for you to just pay your rent, pay your bills, pay everything, that’s 40,000. Then that’s where you work your numbers. That’s what you need to make. What you want to make, I’m sure, is to replace your income. And oh my God, is everything you make above that. But if you work your numbers that way, I mean,
the stress goes away, you talk to people different when you’re not broke.
Michelle Kesil (20:13)
Yeah, definitely. I think that’s important to always know those little details and yeah, your mind in that way as well.Rickey Chavez (20:23)
No, sure. The big thing is have fun. I mean, you gotta have fun out here. know, schedule time for family, friends, and just going to hang out. That’s the joke we have. And this is kind of a, maybe before your time there was a show called Cheers. Do you remember, do you know Cheers? You ever heard of that show?Michelle Kesil (20:42)
No.Rickey Chavez (20:42)
Ilove it. anyways, it’s a show about a bar and this one guy named Norm always went to the same bar and every time we walked in they called him, Norm. So the point was find a place where everybody knows you and everybody trusts you and that’s where you will make the biggest impact, you know? And I go to a place all the time, a place called Andy’s and my wife jokes with me like, where you at? I’m hanging out with my guys doing this, that and the other.
But then I figured out what I’ve spent there and having a drink or eating or whatever. And then how many houses that I have sold out of there. I’m like, for every hour I spend at Andy, I’m making like $500 an hour. Come on, why wouldn’t I be there? So just know where you get your business from.
Michelle Kesil (21:35)
Yeah, I love that. think so many people over complicate networking, but it can just be like in a fun, easy way that you’re already naturally doing.Rickey Chavez (21:45)
No, you’re 100 % right. mean, people look at networking as a way, they’re looking for instant gratification. The only reason I’m gonna go there is so that I meet that person that’s gonna buy a house for me and I’ll be able to pay my bills. But when I used to teach networking in the military and even in corporate America as a HR director that had a bunch of recruiters, networking is about meeting people that know people that need to know you.Knowing that, you know, if you meet people that know people that need to know you, that’s how you build your sphere. That’s how you grow. That’s how things get better. And why not do it? And I think the biggest challenge for people in networking is they go to a network of events, two hours, and they talk to two people. That’s all they talk to. And they just wasted their time.
You you go to networking events to meet people, schedule a follow-up meeting with them, and then talk to the next person. So if it’s an hour, I mean, try to every 10 minutes go find somebody else. And be polite, say, listen, it’s been a pleasure talking to you. I need to go meet a couple people. Can we schedule a meeting to follow up later? So that’s six people in an hour. Two hours, that’s 12 people. That’s 12 new people that you didn’t know instead of staying comfortable and just know. Go on a mission.
Michelle Kesil (23:07)
Absolutely, that’s great advice. Thank you for sharing. So before we begin to wrap up here, if someone wants to reach out, connect, learn more, where can people find you and connect with you?Rickey Chavez (23:11)
Yeah, no worries.So I’m at the Cypress Area Realtor Rickey Chavez, the Rickey Chavez team. I’m in LinkedIn. I actually also host a TV show on Now Media. It’s called Battle Ready. You can see some of that. It doesn’t have anything to do with real estate, but it’s all about people’s journeys from where they’ve been to how they got to where they’re at now.
I it’s been pretty amazing. I had NFL players on there, had some basketball players, had some doctors, lawyers, besters, just people that have not been scared to take the next step. it’s kind of like what you’re doing here. You’re trying to teach people that don’t know what they don’t know, what they can use. So that’s amazing. Yeah. So it’s a great show. Now, I’ll you.
Michelle Kesil (24:07)
Perfect. Appreciate your time and your story. Thank you for being here.Rickey Chavez (24:11)
Thank you for having me. It was a good time.Michelle Kesil (24:15)
Awesome. And for the listeners tuning in, if you got value, make sure you’ve subscribed. We’ve got more conversations with operators like Rickey who are building real businesses and we’ll see you on the next episode.
