How a Detroit Real Estate Investor Created 500+ First-Time Homeowners | Keith Hudson

Keith Hudson (00:00)
Put out a program called $1,500 down on your home. And with that, we will offer basically, they will put us basically some fifteen hundred dollars down. Their monthly payment wouldn’t be no more than $500. And we would give them that payment for 18 months. And after they paid it off, they will own the house. And fortunately we created 500 first time, 500 plus first-time home buyers, man.

I had a call probably about a six months, eight months ago. And the lady said, You remember me? I said, vaguely, how you doing? What’s going on? And she was like, Man, I love you, man.

Issa Hanna (02:09)
Welcome back to another episode of the Real Estate Pros Show. I’m your host, Issa Hanna and today I have Keith B. Hudson, a seasoned investor here to share his knowledge with us. Keith, welcome to the show.

Keith Hudson (02:19)
Welcome, welcome. How you doing today?

Issa Hanna (02:21)
Doing great, man. We had a little pre conversation before we went live. Truly remarkable the things you’ve done in the game. But for our viewers at home right now, can you kinda run down what facet the real estate you’re in and then what Keith’s day to days look like right now?

Keith Hudson (02:35)
Well, facet of real estate. I’ve been an investor, for around thirty years, I cut my teeth first at the auctions. Back in nineteen ninety-eight. I went to the my first auction. Bought a few properties, didn’t know what I was doing, just had a few dollars saved up. Things were very affordable. So I just basically purchased what we could. We me and my cousin went, we had like seven thousand dollars apiece.

A 7200 to be exact a piece. So we put 14 four ran together. We bought a bunch of lots. We bought two ran down houses. And we bought a band apartment building. And from there, school started. What I’m saying?

Issa Hanna (03:11)
Mm-hmm. Definitely, and and in our game, you learn through the fire. So you you buy your first property, stuff’s gonna start going wrong. Your market, where you cut your teeth at is in Detroit, which is a very similar market to where I’m at, is in Cleveland. These houses are old, dilapidated. You can get for a good price, but they take a lot of work. And another thing that caught my attention when we were talking earlier, you did a deal with

sixteen hundred homes. But out of the sixteen hundred homes that you did the deal for, you created in your city five hundred new first time home buyers. So can you kind of give our public a little bit more about that?

Keith Hudson (03:48)
But at this time, this was 2012, I wanna say. Properties was going for very cheap. We had our own cash, we had a couple of investors come aboard. And we really in doing this, we really did our homework, we did our homework, we found the best properties that we could find. Some were still occupied, some were vacant. And in this journey, we

Put out a program called $1,500 down on your home. And with that, we will offer basically, they will put us basically some fifteen hundred dollars down. Their monthly payment wouldn’t be no more than $500. And we would give them that payment for 18 months. And after they paid it off, they will own the house. And fortunately we created 500 first time, 500 plus first-time home buyers,

I had a call probably about a six months, eight months ago. And the lady said, You remember me? I said, vaguely, how you doing? What’s going on? She was like, Man, I love you, man.

You you you you I the houses that you sold me, I still have I got my grandkids in them and I’m teaching them real estate. You got any more houses for sale? So I get calls from years back, that I bless people ten, fifteen years ago. And it’s a repetitive system.

Real estate is definitely, it should be anybody’s a go to when it comes to making some money, and wanting to help people.

Issa Hanna (05:53)
A hundred percent. Somebody who’s built it from the ground up, just like you. I always tell everybody, real estate is one of the only businesses where you could start with zero and build up to generational wealth. The smile on your face when you talked about the lady calling you back, the it’s such a rewarding field, you guys. I mean, Keith put 500 people who might not have been able to buy a home in a traditional mortgage in the traditional sense.

He got people to be 500 different people to buy homes. These homes are forever theirs as long as those taxes are paid, as long as, as long as the insurance. This is generational stuff. Keith helped 500 people build generational wealth and he’s still not done. He’s building it for himself. And I kind of want to get your origin story now. We you touched on it a little bit, but how did you told me you never had a job. You’ve been an investor your whole life. So how did the young Keith

the light bulb go off in his head and be like, what? I’m getting into real estate.

Keith Hudson (06:45)
Well, was about about eleven when my father he was he used to work at Chrysler and he had got laid off one summer and he had started a lawn service in Michigan. And even though he Chrysler called him back, he never got rid of the lawn service. And he used to put us me and my little brother and bigger brother in the backyards to cut the backyards because he wants to tear the grass up. So over the years

I was just cutting grass, learning lawn service. Then he took us to one of the predominant nice areas in Detroit. And we started cutting grass, and we was cutting a city councilman grass. His name was Clyde Cleveland. I remember like it was yesterday. And we was cutting Mr. Cleveland’s grass, and I’m like, I’m cut we cutting these grasses, Pop. I want to own these houses. So that thought hit my mind. That’s when the light bulb went off. Bling, okay.

So I was studying steel cutting grass. My father seemed that I had interest in it. He had gave me 10 clients. And literally in less than one year, I had a hundred and one customers because of my drive and wanting to save up money and accumulate money to start real estate, but it started from law service.

Issa Hanna (07:55)
Man, I love that. I actually, fun fact, I have a buddy who who’s a property manager and decided to start a lawn service to service all his property. There’s different branches in real estate. There’s different fields that go hand in hand. I love that, as a young kid, you had that ambition and that drive. And then that’s the one thing you guys that separates, the average from from the above average people in in our game. The ones that have that drive, the ones that could plan and

plot and say, okay, I’m gonna get these people, I’m gonna raise this money, but I’m not done. It’s not gonna be just a lawn service. I’m flipping this into I’m gonna be a property owner. So amazing inspirational story. Truly, truly I mean remarkable what you’ve been able to do in the game. And you’ve done it in your own city, where you’re from, built it up, helped the people of your community out. I mean,

I you’re checking every box on on being the hometown hero, the neighborhood hero that everybody looks up to. I’m sure there’s some kids in your neighborhood that look up to you like crazy. But not all things are sunshines and rainbows, right? As investors, we all have that. We all have it. Investor nightmare, the real estate nightmare. So give me one that sticks out in your mind, because I’m sure you have plenty of them.

Keith Hudson (09:06)
I didn’t lost properties for taxes, fire damage, water damage,

fraud. I mean, you tell me where you want to start, you flip the coin and I can speak to it, I’ll tell you this: one property, and I didn’t lose this property. Kept this property, but one property, we had bought at the auction, and we was just going through looking at the properties and seeing what we had in our inventory. And I literally went

in the property, and we got in through the side door because the front door was bolted down real tight. So we got in and gained access through the side door. So we’re going in, it’s winter time, middle, middle of winter, maybe February, January, February, winter time. So we get in the house, and then I’m the first one in because I’m I’m the I’m the first one in. You already know. I’m all hands on deck, boots on the ground. So I get in and I’m

first thing I do is always go to the basement first, check the basement out, make sure ain’t nobody down there, and then we survey the rest of the property. So I’m going to the basement and I’m going to the basement steps and I see my reflection when I’m going down the steps. I’m like, wow. And I stopped. I usually just rush down the steps. I stop and I look and I see my reflection. I’m like, what is that? A mirror? What’s that? It was literally a sheet of ice from the basement steps.

All the way to the basement. It had to be eight feet tall. So if I’d have walked on that ice, because I didn’t go no further, if I’d have walked on that ice, I could have literally fell through the ice, and drowned or died or whatever could have happened. Cause the whole basement was full of water. It had flooded. That was the one that sticks out, but because that was just like never in my life seen anything like that. What I’m saying? So that was just one of many stories. Yeah.

Issa Hanna (11:22)
As investors, we see a lot, but somebody who’s had some pipes burst in the middle of winter at a property that that I had just bought, yeah, you’re not prepared to see an ice skating rink in your basement, right? It’s it’s just like, what do I do now? You gotta tear up all the walls. I mean, it’s it’s just you might as well just get rid of the

Keith Hudson (11:41)
Everywhere is all piles with tragedies. Yes.

Issa Hanna (11:44)
A hundred percent. I could definitely relate to that one. Because it’s happened to me as well as an investor. Enough about the bad stuff though. One thing good that comes out of stuff like this though is that you you live, you go through it, you learn. Yes. You told me one of your strengths is how to find a deal. How to walk into a property, look at something, how much stuff is gonna cost, how to save on labor.

Can you shine some more light on on how you’ve been able or how long it’s taken you to accumulate this skill? Because it it just doesn’t come overnight.

Keith Hudson (12:15)
No, I’ve been I’ve been in this business 30 years, I actually have taught courses on how to wholesale, how to find good deals. I’ve even I’m also a licensed builder, so I have taught different trades as far as drywall paint, things of that nature, but I think I think learn over time, you just pick up

as much as you wanna I’m a human sponge, let me say that. So anything that I hear, can I’m gonna mimic it, I’m gonna modify it, I’m gonna I’m gonna I’m gonna see if it works. If it don’t work, no big deal. I’m not scared to fail, cause that’s only one step closer to succeeding. So I keep going forward and forward and forward, and then I just come up with my own twist to everything. So I’m looking forward to one day traveling the country to do public speaking. I got a lot to offer when it comes to that, because I’ve learned

and I’m still willing to learn, you have to, you have to always remain humble. And you also, it’s like a doctor. They go for a continual education. You can’t your heart surgery 20 years ago ain’t the same heart surgery today. So they always have to learn new things, implement new things, and keep an open mind to learn.

Issa Hanna (13:20)
A hundred percent, and all of our successful operators, guys, that come on the Real Estate Pros Show, every single one of them says something very similar to what Keith said. So obviously when things are a routine, you want to pick this up. So take your notes down. Whatever Keith just said, mark it down because you’re never done learning. You give me a guy that tells me I don’t know everything, or the guy that thinks that he knows everything, I’m gonna go mess with the guy that

that tells me he doesn’t know everything because Keith has over a thousand properties under his belt and he’s still saying, I’m a sponge, I’m still learning. And I love how you how you said I take things, I mimic them, and you make your own. That that’s that’s a mark of a a true entrepreneur and a true maverick in the game, a visionary, and that’s what you need in our game to be successful. And and you’re checking every box, thank you, man. And now I mean

truly an honor to have you on the show. I want to get some advice for you or from you, for our younger viewers. A lot of our younger viewers are brand new investors, right? Or they’re brand new realtors or brand new to the field of real estate. Our business, you’re not going nowhere without business relationships. You’re not going nowhere without establishing a network. So if you had to give them one tip on where to start building these relationships, what tip would that be?

Keith Hudson (14:32)
I mean, you build them at home. You ev love starts at home and spreads abroad. Same thing. You don’t have to go out far to establish relationships. Everybody needs a roof over their head. So and everybody needs it in a different type of f of fashion or or a way. So all I would say is every your everyday walk to the grocery store, to the gas station, or your everyday drive, wherever you go, everybody needs a home. So it you don’t it is not rocket science. What I’m saying? I’ve

been blessed to get into the right rooms. But I started literally from me and my pops cutting grass. What I’m saying? And and and we just it just extended from there and it just grew. So you don’t, it’s not hard, it’s it’s just putting forth the effort to know where you want to go and applying that energy to go there. That’s all it takes, it’s simple. And I and you as you say that, it reminded me, I have some books that I’m coming out with probably in the next

30, 45 days about they’re already written, they’re being published as we speak. Five easy ways. I have easy ways to do everything we’re speaking about. And I’m gonna share my experiences and my thoughts through these five easy ways to let y’all know it’s just as simple as just trying and it’ll happen. I mean, it’s just you you can’t imagine my life and where I come from to where I am now and where I plan on going, just trying. Don’t be scared to fail.

Issa Hanna (15:49)
You you make that roadmap, you make that battle plan that and you follow that battle plan to a T. You don’t stray from it. I know you guys, at home that some of you guys are hard on your luck and you’re watching the real estate pods and and you see successful guys like Keith Cook Keith come up and say, you just gotta put in that hard work and it’s true. This is coming from a guy, like he said, you wouldn’t believe circumstances he started in.

Me myself, I grew up as a son of an immigrant. So know, came from a different country and and and was brought up with nothing, and and was able to build my life. Keith was able to build his life through real estate, y’all. So it’s possible. You just gotta make that roadmap. You gotta see the vision clearly, you gotta walk that road no matter how hard that road is, because it is a long, bumpy road. But once you get to the other side, or once you you make it halfway through.

Your life is a lot better. And your family’s life and your family’s future, and security is a lot better on once you’re on that road. So golden advice, Keith. Golden advice. And now, you touched on it a little bit in your answer. Five years from now, I look you up. You come back on my show. Where am I gonna see you at?

Keith Hudson (16:57)
Five years from now. Well, I’ve I’ve truly accomplished majority of everything I wanted to accomplish in life, to be honest with you. There’s two things I haven’t accomplished, and I one of them I can I can make it happen if I chose to, but two things. I wanted to buy a helicopter and I wanted to buy the Renaissance building and that’s in downtown Detroit. Those only two things I haven’t accomplished as a as a youngster where I say I was gonna do. So I really have no ambition to be anywhere, any place.

I’ll still be doing real estate for the rest of my life. I love it. It’s fun. It’s always something new. It never gets old. So you’ll see me same old guy, I don’t know what I’ll be doing in five years. I’ll I’ll be doing more of what I’m doing now. I’ll tell you that.

Issa Hanna (17:35)
I love that. I love that. And enjoying life day to day, which is something that real estate will afford you to do, y’all. Keith and me, we don’t have to punch in to a nine to five job. We’re we have stress in other ways. But we’re able to enjoy our time at home, we’re able to spend time around our family, and that’s the type of life that real estate affords you. And now

speaking of books and speaking of of all this knowledge, if if one of my viewers wanted to get a hold of you, wanted to follow you, wanted to buy the book that’s coming out, where could they reach you?

Keith Hudson (18:04)
I have one right now that I’m revamping, but it’s it is currently on Amazon and Kindle Fire. I do have a book called Benjamin’s Five Easy Ways. I have a few more coming. I like I said I have a series coming. They also can follow me on either Facebook at Keith Benjamin Hudson on Facebook, on Instagram. I’m @theoriginalhiphopshop. I used to currently own the original hip hop shop where and got its start. The movie 8 Mile was

made off the original hip hop shop. So you can find me there on Instagram. And hey, get in touch with you and and and I’m sure me and you’ll be doing a lot of a lot of conversation over the next, time or what have you. So they can contact you to get in touch with me if necessary.

Issa Hanna (18:41)
One hundred percent. A true Detroit legend, y’all. The guy that founded the hip hop shop. You’ve all watched the 8 Mile movie. And I bet you guys didn’t know he was killing it in the real estate game and he’s a real estate investor. So Keith, thank you so much for coming on the show. I do want to extend an invitation to you to come back on maybe a year from now, just cause I I wanna have another conversation and go a little bit deeper into your life and and and and how you built yourself.

So strongly. So if you’ll have us maybe next year, I would love to have you on again.

Keith Hudson (19:11)
Most definitely, just give me a jingle and we’ll make it happen.

Issa Hanna (19:14)
One hundred percent. Super enjoyed this conversation. And to my viewers at home, if you enjoyed the conversation with Keith and want to see more like it, make sure to hit like and subscribe. I talk to people every day that can bring us different knowledge on every aspect of the real estate industry. Until next time. The Real Estate Pros are out.