Mindset + Strategy: The BIG Method for Real Estate Investing

Erika (01:31)
Hey everyone, welcome to the Real Estate Pro Show. I’m your host, Erika, and today I’m thrilled to be joined by someone who’s bringing serious energy to the real estate world. Big Mike Loera from Yuma, Arizona. Mike, it’s so great to have you on the show.

Michael Albert Loera (01:47)
Thank you, thank you so much for having me. I’m very excited.

Erika (01:50)
So let’s jump on in, Mike. For those who aren’t familiar with your world, give us the rundown. How did you get started in real estate?

Michael Albert Loera (01:58)
Okay, so that’s a whole story in itself.

But what got me started into real estate was I actually went to an auction to go buy a property cash and The guy that introduced me to that world was there. He was very nice and I got to bidding and They looked at me sideways with a weird smirk weird energy and they crazily out bided me and I shared that story with one of the local brokers and They said yeah, that’s so and so they do that. They don’t want new people here and

Given who I am, I don’t like no foreign answer. I believe that there’s always a way. So I remember asking myself with my very limited knowledge in real estate, how do you get the house before it goes to the auction? That’s when I started learning about what a pre-foreclosure was. I started learning about creative finance. And after that, the rest was history.

Erika (02:40)
That’s awesome. tell us where, like what markets are you operating in? What like types of properties are you focusing on?

Michael Albert Loera (02:47)
Yeah, absolutely. So I buy and hold in Yuma, Arizona. We do co-living. We add bedrooms, kitchenettes, and bathrooms, or midterm rentals to traveling professionals only. I love that model. They’re here to eat, work, sleep, whether it’s traveling nurses or government contractors. Recently, because I’ve connected so many deals and lenders, I decided to give it a go at the whole wholesaling. So we’ve been wholesaling nationwide. It’s been a challenge.

for sure. And we actually acquired property in Tulum, Mexico. We have an Airbnb out there and it’s also a family retreat. So we went international.

Erika (03:13)
I’m

That’s exciting. And Mike, you shared with me earlier that you’re a lineman. Was there a specific moment in your journey that you were like, this is it? I’m doing real estate, that you decided to make that jump.

Michael Albert Loera (03:34)
Absolutely. So I still have my W-2 job. I’m working 60 to 80 hours a week. I wake up at 1.45 in the morning, Monday through Saturday, to commute five hours every day. It took me 13 months to have enough properties to retire comfortably and a property for each of my kids. And I was just so locked in. I was like, you know what? I think I can replace my income.

So that is what I’m chasing now. Along the way, I help people.

Get landed first deal and help people who are not qualified to buy a home to the traditional route acquire a property creatively and Just bringing a bunch of people together to do epic deals

Erika (04:56)
That’s awesome, Mike. How do you figure out which markets to pursue and which strategies to use?

Michael Albert Loera (05:02)
Okay, that’s a very, very beautiful question because these strategies work in any market because my main way of purchasing properties is what the strategy called subject to. What that means is I am literally taking over people’s existing debt. So the highest interest rate I have on one of my properties is 3.25. So whether it’s in Hawaii, Florida or Oklahoma, it all comes down to the numbers. And if the numbers make sense, it’s a deal.

Erika (05:26)
Awesome and with with all the deals that you’ve been doing how how do you manage that volume?

How do you manage all that?

Michael Albert Loera (05:34)
Very, very important question. Along my journey, I have learned that it’s very, very crucial to do anything that you do with intention. That means time blocking, having a very, very strict calendar, and having a system in place. It facilitates anything that you’re doing. So that is how I became very intentional in everything that I do. And

For me, the biggest thing was time blocking, being more aggressive with my own time.

Erika (05:57)
Yeah, yeah, awesome. You know, I want to ask too. I was reading that you have what’s called a BIG method. Can you explain that to us?

Michael Albert Loera (06:06)
That’s why they call me big Mike because any investment that I do I’ve simplified it into steps like everything that I do in life Like I always have to go step by step The first step of me investing is borrowing money and then I invested into real estate and then it generates me passive income So when I explain to people how I simplify real estate, I see the light bulb turn on like wait You make it sound easy because it is I got tired of seeing people over complicate real estate

So when I break it down into three steps, it makes a lot more sense.

Erika (06:34)
Yeah, you know, when it comes to like newer investors, how, kind of advice would you give them to overcome, like come the mindset of, you know, fears and not taking action?

Michael Albert Loera (06:46)
Actually, I am so glad you asked that because the big method is not only real estate strategies. It’s a mindset. People who want to chase passive income, I strongly believe that they should take their active income and invest in themselves. Whether it’s paying for mentorship, whether it’s mindset development, it all boils down to having a limiting belief. When you figure out that when you change your thoughts, you change your life, you’re invincible.

Erika (07:09)
Awesome, awesome. You know, we have a lot of listeners who are new to the game and you know, they’re looking to make connections. What kind of advice do you have for people when it comes to building their network in the real estate world?

Michael Albert Loera (07:26)
You’re just full of beautiful questions, aren’t you? my, I’m so glad you’re touching on this. Okay. The reason I got to where I’m at with the time and speed and attention that I did is because before I was closing deals in wholesaling, I dedicated a year and a half, minimum two hours a day of intentionally connecting with people, providing value, whether it was underwriting with them, sharing my experience, my trial and errors, leading with value and

Erika (07:28)
You

Michael Albert Loera (07:52)
truly having a true connection with people and expecting nothing in return, the universe repays you back.

So I strongly believe that not everything is how, it’s who. Meeting the right people who have the same ambitions and goals aligned as you do is the life hack to being successful.

Erika (08:42)
Mike, you had talked about wholesaling earlier. Is there a strategy or tool that you rely on to close those deals?

Michael Albert Loera (08:50)
Yes. Okay. So the way I’ve had simplified that is there’s a lot of people who are trying to land their first deal or they have a very warm lead. It’s what we call somebody that they’ve made contact with. What I tell people is, Hey, I’m the best closer you’ve ever met and I’m bilingual. So people have a warm lead. We do a three-way conversation and I want it to be a three-way conversation so they can see how I pitch creative, how I overcome objections and

So they don’t need me forever. So they learn how to do this themselves. Once we lock in a deal, I send it over to my partner Lorraine, who is my Dispel Manager. And she has built a beautiful buyers list with VIP buyers in every state. And it creates a very streamlined process, very seamless process. And we all get paid evenly. We split the profits three ways.

Erika (09:33)
Awesome. Mike, every investor has a moment where things get real. know, a deal goes sideways and you got to pivot, change your plans quickly. Can you share one of those moments for you and how you navigated that?

Michael Albert Loera (09:48)
Absolutely. I strongly believe that as an entrepreneur it is very very crucial to learn how and when to pivot for me That was I was permitting two of my properties in Yuma, Arizona to turn them into residential assisted living and As I’m doing that as I’m getting the permits for the spring through systems and getting everything going they change the regulations in my county

They change them to the point where I can’t have ten residents for I couldn’t have ten residents per property

they were gonna do it back down to five. And at five, I had to work in the business instead of on the business. And I had such a beautiful plan for this. That was gonna replace my income to these properties. It’s crazy how much income they bring. So at that point, I remember asking myself, okay, if I’m chasing my income, how can I do it with bigger numbers? I’m a German alignment. I’ve traveled to 32 states across the country chasing storms and restoring the power grid. And one thing is always there.

RV parks and mobile home parks. So that is what I’m after now. I’ve been learning how to underwrite RV parks, sending three to five LOIs a week. So it is very, very crucial to not be so fixated on how things should work out. I believe that insistence equals resistance. If you have such a path in your mind of how things need to work out, you’re limiting on how things should come to you. Life hack.

Erika (11:04)
Yeah, totally. How did that experience change your approach when it came to future deals?

Michael Albert Loera (11:11)
Okay, I felt like a newbie again. I felt like when I was chasing my first deal because it’s such a bigger asset class, way bigger numbers and the underwriting of this asset class is completely different than from single family homes. So going from not having anything to my first deal, I had that same feeling like that mental jungle. You don’t know what path to take, but I relied on the network that I built, asking questions.

my god, I asked a lot of questions. I know I’m annoying. But if you want something, you gotta go get it, right? I tell people, go buy some Nike shoes and just do it, right? So that was a turning point for me, relying on the network that I’ve built, connecting with the right people.

Erika (11:44)
when you’re looking for specific people to partner up with, what are you looking for?

Michael Albert Loera (11:49)
Okay, beautiful. When I network with people, I use the acronym FORD. Even though I’m a Chevy guy, I use the acronym FORD. I start with a simple conversation. Family, occupation, recreation, and dreams. The first thing I wanna look for is are we vibing in the same frequency? Do we have similar goals aligned, right? Do we share the same values? And…

A lot of the networking that I’ve done is on a private group that is all about networking and branding. And I’ve met so many great people there who are all in one group with the same goal, to connect with people who are in real estate. If you’d like, we can share that group name for anybody that’s listening and would like to join. It is free, which is amazing.

So that group is called JJ’s Mastermind Networking. Every Saturday and every Wednesday, they teach you about Facebook 101, social media presence, and networking with intention. You guys can look them up on YouTube, on the flip side with JJ, or on Facebook, JJ Azzizian, A-Z-I-Z-I-A-N. It’s an amazing group.

Erika (13:29)
That’s awesome. So happy to hear that that’s worked out well for you. Going back to people who are new to the game, what’s one mistake that you see newer investors make when trying the network and how can they avoid it?

Michael Albert Loera (13:45)
okay a lot of things that I see with what we call newbies is not a derogatory term right people who are new into the game is I See this I see this too often They they’re comparing their chapter one to somebody else’s chapter 10 They’re trying to run when they haven’t crawled yet. So I’m gonna rephrase that into three questions three questions that people should ask themselves when they’re getting started into anything really question number one. What is it that you really want?

And that’s a very hard question for some people. They have an idea of what they want, but specifically, what is it that you really want? Who’s doing what you want to do? And how do you provide value to that person? If you can be a fly on a wall in whatever it is that they’re doing, you’re going to learn so much.

Erika (14:23)
Yeah, absolutely. That’s solid advice. And Big Mike, I think you got some big goals that you’re planning on. What’s the next hurdle that you’re focused on conquering and how do you plan to tackle it?

Michael Albert Loera (14:36)
I love your questions by the way. Okay, check this out. So I am blue collar. I climb poles for a living. I am such hands-on tools and hammers and whatnot. This computer stuff, I’m the type of guy that types with two fingers, you know? So I am launching my own community, the Big Method. It’s not only strategies, it’s a mindset. And that’s been a hurdle for sure. But being open to learning it, I don’t label myself as,

I’m not a computer guy. I’m just doing it. So a hurdle that I had is I released an eBook, but I didn’t have a landing page for it. So I’m working on my landing page now. So I’m figuring it out as I go. just, I see the end goal and I go for it. And then I figure it out along the way.

Erika (15:12)
That’s awesome. What’s the name of the eBook so we know where to look for it?

Michael Albert Loera (15:16)
The big method.

Erika (15:17)
Excellent! Alright Mike, before we wrap up, if someone wants to connect with you, maybe join one of your meetups or learn more about the BID method, what’s the best way for them to reach you?

Michael Albert Loera (15:29)
Ok, best way to reach me would be Facebook. I’m very active on Facebook or Instagram. My website is going to be ready pretty soon. So that’s going to be thebigmethod.com and if you want to email me, if you want to partner on Deals or you just want to connect, can email me at Deals at TheBigMethod.com

Erika (15:45)
Perfect, Mike. I appreciate your time and all the energy that you brought today. And I love that you’re building a business elevating others.

Michael Albert Loera (15:54)
absolutely, it is my passion to help people.

Erika (15:56)
Thank you. For those of you tuning in, if you got value from this episode, make sure that you’re subscribed to the Real Estate Pro Show. We’ve got more conversations coming up with heavy hitters like Big Mike who are out there building incredible real estate empires. We’ll see you on the next episode.