How a Lunch With an Old Friend Led to 100 Real Estate Deals | Shane Taylor

Shane Taylor (00:00)

Coming back into it.

it’s like any other high performing job or a sport. if you’re not doing it on a daily basis and doing the reps daily, you leave out some steps. And on our recent flip we left out a step or two. a 90-day flip turned into a six month flip and then it was just like a perfect storm, right? Yeah the interest rates started shooting up.

so this thing has set on the market almost 80 days. We finally got it under contract two weeks ago and close here in another week, but I’m happy to see that one go.

Issa Hanna (01:02)

Welcome back to another episode of the Real Estate Pros Show. I’m your host, Issa Hanna and today we have Shane Taylor with us. Shane, welcome to the show.

Shane Taylor (01:10)

Thank you. excited to be here.

Issa Hanna (01:11)

Man, I am super excited to have you. wealth of knowledge in business, in negotiating, and just so many different important things we have in our field, in our industry, that I know the viewers are going to get a lot. Before we get into that though, give me a day-to-day in Shane’s World.

Shane Taylor (01:27)

most days I’m up early. I get up around six thirty, seven o’clock. first thing I do when I get in is I go through the MLS, look at now that I’m doing some retail, making sure, my listings are getting, views and things like that. and then I’m looking for deals.

and then the one thing I’m really focusing on right now is I’m drinking through a fire hose and consuming AI and how AI can help our business. so I do that in the mornings and then in the afternoons, I’m usually on either a listing appointment or a seller appointment of some sort.

Issa Hanna (02:00)

in our business, fellow agent here, you got to know how to manage time when you’re a CEO, when you’re at the top, or when you’re your own boss, you got to know how to manage your time. Super important. I love that you’re an early riser. Most of us are, because we got to get a lot of stuff done. and I love that you’re looking at the MLS like right away. You’re on top of it. It’s a daily thing. Agents at home, new agents.

Very good habit to get into to know the MLS, especially your markets, your areas, inside and out. That way you know what’s on the market, what’s fresh. be on top of that game, and I’m loving that because that’s what it takes to be successful. And you got licensed in 2019 as an agent, but you’ve been in the real estate game for a long time. So tell us about how you started investing back in 08.

Shane Taylor (02:45)

Yeah, so back in 08. I guess my journey is kinda like a lot of folks, read the book Rich Dad Poor Dad, got real excited about passive income and just walking away. Yeah, at that point I’d been in my career, corporate career about eight or nine years and already looking for an exit. so started looking at real estate.

back during that time, the education companies were coming around. So my wife and I signed up for one of the rich dad educational weekends. So we did that and then we took a couple of classes within that system. came out of there excited, but we didn’t really do anything or take action right away. just had a little bit of hesitancy. at that time my kids were

six and one. So we found it hard to work together and do things with the kids and then my corporate career. About a year after that, I ran into a longtime friend of mine. I’d known for 20 plus years. We had lunch.

Started having conversations, found out we were both interested in real estate and at that point we decided to start working together and doing fix and flips. And then, risk’s history from that point. about a nine, ten year period, I don’t have the exact number, but we’re somewhere in the neighborhood of a hundred transactions. Either wholesale flip, hotel, if you will.

And then a couple of rentals together, but together we worked on fix and flip.

Issa Hanna (04:04)

That man and fix and flips, best way to raise so much capital, right? I know a lot of guys that own thousands of properties that started off with their first 50, 100 fix flips, and that’s where it sparked, their long-term hold. So amazing. And the type of knowledge you gain when you’ve done over a hundred flips, right? Unbelievable because you start knowing how much a house is going to cost you just by looking at it. You’re man, that roof’s gonna cost.

this is going to cost that. You start knowing the systems, the processes. if you’re investing in the city a lot, now you know all the inspectors, right? So it’s definitely amazing. And then I want to dive in a little bit to your 20 years in the corporate world. you were in enterprising tech. So you brought in such a strong background because you were negotiating contracts, you’re a wheeling and dealing for 20 years in the corporate world. So tell us more about that.

Shane Taylor (04:56)

Yeah, I started way back when I got out of the Air Force, this new thing, the internet was coming around. So never did go back to school, never had to. I just jumped into that world and from there just progressed from a small company, went to Gateway Computers, went to a couple more resellers, and then, spent ten years with one reseller where that’s really where I gained

my most experience, gained the most traction, made the most money. but it was a great experience because, you’re in boardrooms on a daily basis. You gotta learn to take control of the room, present your idea in a comprehensive, coherent manner. And so did that for

over a twenty year period. it afforded me some fun times and trips that we won. My wife and I got to go to Monaco and a couple of times to the Caribbean, corporate trips that I’d won. a lot of fun. I don’t think I would have ever gone to Monaco had I not won

Issa Hanna (05:53)

even just hearing it, it just sounds so up there. You’re like, I’m good if they pay for it. I’m not gonna pay for it on my own, right?

Shane Taylor (06:00)

I joke it was the most expensive free trip I’ve ever had because

Issa Hanna (06:04)

Because right, everything, yep, a hundred percent, man. It’s so funny. And then recently we’re gonna dive into you’ve got some other business ventures, but before that, you’ve been an investor for a while, you’ve been in the real estate game for a while. We all have this story. I always ask all my guests, give me the real estate nightmare that you’ve had that sticks out of your mind, how you got through it, what you learned from it.

Shane Taylor (06:28)

Well, that one’s easy because it’s going on right now. No.

Issa Hanna (06:32)

Ha ha.

Shane Taylor (06:34)

and we’ll get into this a little later because I did step away from real estate in 2020 for a couple of years, doing another business venture, but

Coming back into it.

it’s like any other high performing job or a sport. if you’re not doing it on a daily basis and doing the reps daily, you leave out some steps. And on our recent flip we left out a step or two. a 90-day flip turned into a six month flip and then it was just like a perfect storm, right? Yeah the interest rates started shooting up.

so this thing has set on the market almost 80 days. We finally got it under contract two weeks ago and close here in another week, but I’m happy to see that one go.

Issa Hanna (07:49)

Definitely, man. these real estate nightmares, right? You’re in the fire. Things are like, man, I gotta get rid of this thing. Interest rate shot up. It feels like everything hit the fan. I always say though, you never lose, you always learn. Like you said, you’re like, I skipped some steps, I’ll never do that again. Also, I will say this to all the flippers at home, to you as well. The market’s not the same market as it was just even six months ago, right? So

Houses on average are sitting longer. There’s more sellers and buyers. There’s more competition when you’re trying to flip. so kudos to you for still having the guts to be out there and flip because I know a lot of guys on the sidelines right now. So I’m loving that.

Shane Taylor (08:29)

We’ve adjusted our strategy on how we approach market now. So we’re going with a retail first strategy, but we’re leaving in place for our sellers, hey, here’s our guaranteed cash price. I think we can list it, get it for this, sell it for this. If it sits too long, here’s our guaranteed price. So that’s the strategy we’re taking right now to kind of reduce that risk because we’re kind of in that.

transition period where people still think they can get X for their house. But it’s probably here before you can even make some money. So there’s this kind of irresistible object and this immovable force going on. So that’s how we’ve transitioned, at least temporarily until, people start

Issa Hanna (09:12)

and I love that idea because you’re basically guaranteeing them this. you’re giving them this security, like, hey, I’ll list it. Guaranteed, here’s your cash price. that tug of war game right now, as a fellow agent, I definitely feel it. And that’s why when you go on the real estate websites, you guys, you’re seeing thirty, forty K price drops because

usually the agent won’t pull hard enough, right? How are you gonna tell somebody their house is worth forty thousand less? A lot of times we’ll just let you find out on your own. I love that, man. I love that you’re doing it and you’ve got a new venture. we’re gonna get into it. Another thing that’s near and dear to my heart, long time martial arts fan and trained mixed martial arts for a long time. You’ve opened a very prestigious name franchise, gym

But very prestigious in the MMA in the combat world, premier. So tell us more about how you got into that, what made you want to open it, and maybe some challenges you’re experiencing.

Shane Taylor (10:08)

as twenty twenty was approaching and just before the zombie apocalypse, if you will, I had started looking at seriously just leaving the corporate world. I was traveling so much. I was gone four or five days a week and after twenty years it kind of grinds on you and burns you out. So unfortunately at that point I had not built enough passive income in the real estate world.

So I started looking at franchises as an option. So after about a year and a half long process, I got down to two franchises. I ultimately chose Premier Martial Arts because that’s something I did when I was a kid and in the military. and I know what it can do for kids. And so bought the franchise literally the day the world shut down.

And spent the next year trying to get it open. So it was quite the challenge. I hadn’t initially thought I would be out of real estate that long. But with everything that was going on just trying to find good people to run the place, it took longer than I expected, but ultimately I’ve got a team in place now where that business pretty much runs without me. We do a couple of

staff meetings together, where we go over, goals and things for the week and what we’ve accomplished in the previous week. And then I have a young man who runs it who’s awesome, great instructor, and just a great staff that I don’t have to worry about it. and what we’re doing in the community for kids, building self esteem and confidence. it’s an extremely rewarding experience.

I initially got into it for the money, but more reward than I anticipated out of it.

Issa Hanna (12:22)

One hundred percent, man. and you know what? the intelligence that you have projects to the screen. we didn’t talk about that before. I should say you Air Force guys, man, you guys are like top level guys. I grew up with three brothers, the Sotek brothers, very high level guys in the Air Force, but very smart guys. It’s not easy to be an Air Force guy. So shout out, thank you for the service for that. Thank you. Martial arts, right?

these gyms, super rewarding, right? The type of confidence you can see on a kid’s face where he might walk in very shy. A month later, he’s learning the kicks, he’s learning the punches, he’s learning to move, he’s walking with such confidence. And then the discipline it instills in you. you being a military guy, discipline is super important to instill in young people. This is, if you’re not joining the military, if you’re a kid.

the top level way to instill discipline in your child. I encourage everybody to check it out. It’s very safe. safety is very big priority. and it can really, really help even a young shy child or something like that that may be struggling. Throw them in some mixed martial arts, throw them at Premier for a month and see how much that kid comes out of his shell. I love it, man.

The integrity, the honesty, the intelligence, it comes right through the screen.

Shane Taylor (13:42)

I would love to give a shout out because we just hired our first student on our staff. Okay. when we opened in 2021. My first instructor quit on opening day. So my son had stepped in, learned the videos. He’d never done martial arts, learned the videos and taught for the first month, but

during that time we had this kid come in who did our intro and good kid, great family, just a little awkward, coming in and I think we got him, he is now sixteen.

So that’s been five years. So at eleven years old. So come in a little awkward. he has progressed, he’s now a second degree black belt in our system. He’s been a regional champion in competitions. And we just brought him on and hired him as an instructor. So to see him go from very shy, very awkward, to commanding a class, even in our adult class.

it’s outstanding and just a little shout out to Jordan buddy.

Issa Hanna (14:45)

Jordan, you’re killing it, man. Super proud of you. that’s what it’s all about, right? You get in, you get the confidence, you learn the knowledge, and then you teach it to others, right? And that’s really when you’ve become an expert in any field. You being in real estate so long, you’re doing that right now with your own son. Your son two years ago said, Hey dad, I’m interested in investing in real estate. Said, you know what?

Let me show you the way so you don’t make mistakes I’ve made along the way. Tell us more about how your son decided to get into RE.

Shane Taylor (15:16)

Yeah, so at that time he was a senior in high school. Comes to me and says, Hey, Dad, I want to get my real estate license. I said, No, you don’t want to get your real estate license. You want to build wealth. And so here’s how you do it. And so we had that conversation. just to back up a little bit, when my partner and I got started we invested in FortuneBuilders program. so Than Merrill, JD Asajan and

tallist agents program. And we were in early, we got a lifetime access to their library. So we still have that today. I say that to say when Noah, my son, came to me and said, hey, I want to do this, I’m like, yeah, okay, whatever. So I said, okay, if you really want to do this, here’s what we do. I told him the course is in there to take so I can track him in the academy. And sure enough, within a week he had gone through probably

three weeks worth of courses. So he took it on, he got excited.

So when we started to look at that and talk about moving forward, I started to look at all of our systems. I’m a systems guy. Yeah, came from tech. Okay, we need to narrow it down to just a few and just have a great, unified tech stack. So I had chosen a software program that I’ve known the founder for 20 years and

they were having a boot camp that was coming up. Well, Noah, my youngest, was not able to go to that boot camp. So I talked my oldest son, Jackson, into going. He didn’t want to go. But once he got there and he started meeting people and then, hearing these stories of success and things like that, he got excited. Well, then that got my wife excited. So shortly after we

Decided as a family we’re gonna start working together. So for a year and a half now, we’ve been working together as a family, doing fix and flips. Like I said, we just got our most recent one under contract. We’re in progress on another one. and so we’re looking to do two to three per quarter if we can. We’re primarily working Lincoln and Omaha markets.

Issa Hanna (17:20)

Now man, I love that. with the kids, with the family. Yeah. guiding them through, you’re helping them build wealth for the future. shout out to Noah, shout out to Jackson. your dad’s over here killing it, man. he’s bringing that knowledge to you guys, and then you guys are working super hard for it, right? it’s not easy to do those courses, so to do all those.

In a week, it just unbelievable. I know personally from personal experience, you’re on that computer for hours a day. Jackson, you got to the event, you got inspired, you got bit by the bug, right? So shout out to you guys, man. And you got the right guy guiding you. And now I want to give you the floor, If people wanted to get a hold, if they wanted to sign up for premier, your premier martial arts, or deal with,

have you represent them as an agent. Where could they reach

Shane Taylor (18:08)

you i live in wahoo nebraska which lies directly in between Omaha and lincoln

as an agent, I’m covering both markets right now. Premier Martial Arts, we are located 156th and Q Street in Omaha So if you’re near there and you see this, love to have you come in. tell them you know the founder and we’ll give you a free month. from an agent standpoint, again, like I said, I’m working both markets.

You can reach me at 402-576-2111. and I’d be happy to come and do an assessment. if you’ve inherited a house and you don’t know what to do, you’re overwhelmed, or your house is just ready to go and go on the market. We can help you no matter what. we’re gonna work with you where you’re at, not where the average agent will work with you is, hey, you need to fix this, this, and this to get it.

on the market. that’s how we work with our clients.

Issa Hanna (18:56)

Fine.

And guys at home, people in these markets, right? In the Omaha, in the Nebraska markets over there. This is a man, as an agent who’s won multiple awards, closed hundreds of deals, I can tell the good ones from the bad, if you will say, right? The man in front of me, integrity, honesty, a family man, he does it out of care, out of love. he doesn’t do it for the paycheck.

That’s just a side thing for him. So make sure if you’re in those markets and you need good representation and good guidance, check Shane out, premier martial arts. We’ve already gone over why it’s the best thing ever to have a founder like that who owns it, who cares so much, who brought up a student to now an instructor, right? and shouted out one of these guys live on air. This is the type of guy you wanna go to his gym because these are the guys that actually care about you.

Or if you gonna put your kid in there, this is a guy that’s gonna care about your kid and make sure they’re getting the best experience. truly amazing, Shane. Thank you so much for coming on the show. It was a true honor.

Shane Taylor (20:03)

Yeah, thank you. I appreciate it. And we look forward to seeing your guys’ success with the show and we’ll spread the word.

Issa Hanna (20:10)

Thank you, and I appreciate that. I enjoyed our conversation to my viewers at home. If you guys enjoyed my conversation with Shane and want to see more like it, make sure to hit likes and subscribe. I talk to people every day that can bring us different knowledge on every aspect of not just real estate investing, but even life. Until next time, the Real Estate Pros are out.