Off-Market Real Estate Deals in Southwest Florida – How Erica Finds Hidden Opportunities

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Show Summary

In this episode of the Investor Fuel Podcast, host Leo Wehdeking speaks with Erica Eister, a real estate professional in Southwest Florida. Erica shares her insights on navigating the competitive real estate market, focusing on investment properties, and the importance of communication and relationships in the industry. She discusses the challenges she faces, her resilience in overcoming obstacles, and her commitment to helping clients achieve their real estate goals. The conversation highlights the significance of understanding client needs and the value of networking in building a successful real estate business.

Resources and Links from this show:

• • • Investor Fuel Real Estate Mastermind
    • Investor Machine Real Estate Lead Generation
    • Mike on Facebook
    • Mike on Instagram
    • Mike on LinkedIn
    • Erica Eister’s Website
    • Erica Eister’s Zillow
    • Erica Eister on Facebook
    • Erica Eister on Instagram
    • Erica Eister’s Phone Number: (239) 898-4077

  Listen to the Audio Version of this Episode

  Investor Fuel Show Transcript:

  Erica Eister (00:00)
  you know, a successful story on that too. It’s just, part of the business. You have to have thick skin. You can’t take things personally and you just have to keep going and just get back up on the horse and keep going and find that buyer or seller or investor or situation that makes sense. But yeah, things go sideways and you know, I think that’s a real determining factor when something goes sideways. How does that person handle it?

  Leo Wehdeking (02:00)
  Hey everyone, welcome to the Investor Fuel Podcast. I’m your host Leo Wehdeking and today I am joined by someone I’ve been looking forward to chatting with. ⁓ Her name is Erica ⁓ and she’s actually been making serious moves in the real estate industry in Southwest Florida. So Erica, I’m actually pretty glad to have you here.

  Erica Eister (02:22)
  Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.

  Leo Wehdeking (02:26)
  Thank you, thank you, thank you for being here. Erica, I think our listeners are really going to take something away from you

  for how you’ve been able to approach the real estate market in South Florida nowadays. So for people who may not be familiar with what you do, can you give us the short version on what’s your main focus these days?

  Erica Eister (02:53)
  Yeah, thank you. ⁓ Of course. So my main focus these days on the real estate market is, you know, I’m in Southwest Florida and I am working with buyers and sellers as well as investors. My investors are my primary focus ⁓ as as my sellers are too. Many of my sellers and my buyers are investors, but

  I do do a lot of work helping people buy full portfolios down here, 1031 exchanges. Of course I help first time home buyers, but many of my clients come to me because of my expertise in getting them a good ROI on a rental property. So for example, somebody will come to me and they say, want to get started on real estate investing. I want to buy, you

  three properties to start off with and I want them to have a good return on investment with rental income. So what I’ll normally suggest is typically, you know, a single family home in our area and then we’ll go ahead, negotiate a great price on that single family home and then immediately get it ready for the rental market, get it on the market for rent. And typically I like to see them go into annual unfurnished rentals. And that’s what I’m really

  focused on the rental market is extremely strong here. And originally when I got involved in real estate, that’s the sector that I came from. I was working for a real estate investment trust for many years in the corporate world. And I would make sure that the return on investment was solid. And even if the numbers weren’t perfect at the beginning, having that potential for the future is very, important. So that’s.

  something I really do focus on right now.

  Leo Wehdeking (04:49)
  Alright, alright. And just to make sure you’re only operating in South Florida, alright?

  Erica Eister (04:51)
  Okay.

  Yeah, Southwest Florida, I specialize in Naples, Bonita Springs, Estero, Fort Myers. I go down to Marco Island and I go as, as north as normally Punta Gorda. Although occasionally I will do something in Sarasota because I’m very familiar with that market as well.

  Leo Wehdeking (06:02)
  Alright, alright, that’s cool. Erica, actually something that caught my attention about you is where you actually have your business. And know, Southwest Florida, we know that that is a place that is with high demand nowadays.

  Erica Eister (06:26)
  Yes? Yeah.

  Leo Wehdeking (06:28)
  How, tell me, can you tell us a little bit more about how you’ve been able to navigate or keep building your business in that particular area which is very difficult to do nowadays?

  Erica Eister (06:45)
  Yeah, it’s a challenge. I’m not going to lie, know, navigating through the ups and downs of the real estate market is not something that I’m a stranger to. I think communication is key. Follow up is key. ⁓ Listening to your client and their needs instead of what your needs are is extremely important. ⁓ And then really trying to think out of the box and

  Find the deals, you know, not everything that a buyer is going to buy is actually on the market. There are many deals that are privately done and I have been very lucky this year to be able to be part of that. Not everything that’s for sale is on the MLS. Not everything is, you know, public knowledge. So I think having a really good network of trusted individuals who turn to you in times like this in our market is.

  you know, something I’m very proud to be able to say that I do.

  Leo Wehdeking (07:47)
  Alright, so if someone wanted to buy a property today in Southwest Florida, let’s say Naples, and it’s off the market, you can bring them a list. Like, hey, look, I have this to show you that it’s actually not for sale, alright, but if the right buyer comes in, they’re open to have a discussion at least or a debate.

  Erica Eister (07:53)
  Mm-hmm.

  Yes,

  yes. mean, not like I said, not everything is on the market. You know, some things are private deals and only certain people know about these deals and that is part of this business. ⁓ I do of course utilize my MLS and, you know, all of the normal stuff that a real tour does.

  But I also know that not everybody wants to be a part of that. And sometimes you have to just kind of hit the pavement and go look for the deal. And I’m not afraid to knock on someone’s door and make them an

  Leo Wehdeking (08:46)
  Exactly, exactly. Love that, love that. Now, Erica, I know that every operator has a moment where things got real. Maybe a deal that went sideways or a time that you had to be with fast. ⁓ You mind sharing one of those moments?

  Erica Eister (09:03)
  ⁓ do I have to? No, just kidding. ⁓ yeah, of course. ⁓ you know, I’ve got, for example, I’ve got a farm that’s for sale. You know, was 12.9 million. It’s 20 and a quarter acres. And it’s, it’s a really great opportunity for someone. I put it under contract.

  You know, at 12 nine, it didn’t, it couldn’t put enough apartments on it. So it went back on the market. We canceled that contract and I got another contract. It was almost like a similar situation, but I was misled on what they wanted to do. So we went ahead and took that offer and now it’s back on the market. And now we are getting quite a few interested parties. It really makes sense for a commercial situation. It’s right near, um, SR 31 heading towards Babcock Ranch.

  which is in Fort Myers, very popular, popular area. And it’s a deal that I have on Palm Beach Boulevard and I’m not gonna give up on it,

  Leo Wehdeking (09:53)
  Okay.

  Erica Eister (10:36)
  but it’s a challenge, of course. I I sold 96 acres this year in Naples and everybody kept calling, like, is it sold yet? Is it closed? Is it closed? And there’s a lot of due diligence and a lot of time and permitting and different things that go into these huge land deals.

  When you’re dealing with like 96 acres and it takes two years to close, that’s really not complete. That’s not unheard of, but it did. We got it closed and we got almost full price. And I’m very proud of that. But yeah, it certainly went sideways more than once. And it was very, very challenging, but we did get it closed. And now I have this other one and it’s definitely a challenge too, but I’m working towards.

  Leo Wehdeking (11:01)
  Wow.

  Erica Eister (11:23)
  you know, a successful story on that too. It’s just, part of the business. You have to have thick skin. You can’t take things personally and you just have to keep going and just get back up on the horse and keep going and find that buyer or seller or investor or situation that makes sense. But yeah, things go sideways and you know, I think that’s a real determining factor when something goes sideways. How does that person

  it?

  You know, I’m not going to sit around and cry over it. I’m just going to move on and find another person to buy it. ⁓ And I think that not everybody has that passion and determination to get things done, but I do not give up. I don’t give up on anything. ⁓ If something’s not working, then there’s reasons for that. You have to determine what are those reasons? How can I fix this and fix it? Plain and simple, you know, just move on.

  Leo Wehdeking (12:15)
  Correct.

  Erica Eister (12:18)
  and you gotta brush it off and keep going.

  Leo Wehdeking (12:22)
  Yeah, actually you know that what you said is true. All right, and and and I I’m gonna give you points, you know on your favor because for me that’s You know, that’s what separate the folks who just dabble From the ones who actually stay in the game the long term. All right, and it’s actually you know, if you need to act quick if something is creating you Obstacles you need to move fast. All right

  Erica Eister (12:41)
  Yes, yes.

  Yes.

  Leo Wehdeking (12:49)
  So

  that’s actually pretty good. Now let me ask you something, Erica. What are you most focused on solving or scaling next?

  Erica Eister (13:00)
  What am I most focused on solving or what was the last thing?

  Leo Wehdeking (13:04)
  Scaling next.

  Erica Eister (13:06)
  ⁓

  Well, the more deals the better, of course. I always want more deals. I always want to keep working. I always want to keep going. ⁓ I work really well under pressure. So the more pressure that’s put on me, the better. I like it. I like being challenged. ⁓ I get a lot of challenging ⁓ inquiries where an investor or a seller or a buyer

  Leo Wehdeking (13:24)
  Okay.

  Erica Eister (13:34)
  you know, they have this problem and I really like to figure out a solution. Scaling. I want to continue to see my business grow. ⁓ I’ve got several family members that work within my family brokerage with me and I’d like to just continue to see that grow and one day leave behind a legacy for somebody to take over that is in my family. And that’s, you know, ultimately

  where I’m going with it. love to help people ⁓ and people love to help me. So it’s kind of a back and forth relationship. ⁓ I just want to keep going, keep growing. ⁓ There’s slow times of the market. There’s busy times of the market. And that really, you just have to navigate and adjust to who you’re going to focus on in those times. And that’s what I do.

  Leo Wehdeking (14:29)
  Okay, all right, all right. Actually, that’s pretty big. ⁓ that you were mentioning how good relationships you have with everyone, with your investors and your buyers, ⁓ I think that it will be good for the people that are listening over here because they’re early in their journey or they’re just trying to level up at some point.

  Erica Eister (14:44)
  Yeah.

  Leo Wehdeking (15:38)
  And I think they will benefit from hearing something like this when it comes to building relationships and growing up your network. What’s made the biggest difference for you?

  Erica Eister (15:56)
  in what’s made the biggest difference for me and what exactly in my business.

  Leo Wehdeking (16:01)
  Yeah, when it comes

  about building relationships and growing up your network, what makes the biggest difference for you? ⁓

  Erica Eister (16:05)
  Sure. ⁓

  Well, for me, I

  think it’s really paying attention to the small details and listening to what the client wants. ⁓ I think we’ve really lost touch with the fact that not that the customer is always right, but that the customer has needs and they have specific needs they’re bringing to you. And if you can’t listen before you talk, that’s a big problem. So I think that.

  That’s a big thing for me, communication.

  and not sugarcoating things. something, if you don’t agree with something, you need to tell the person you don’t agree with it, this is why. And you have to have information and data to back that up. you know, I’ve been doing this a really long time and I’m not trying to age myself, but I’m 47 years old and I have been in real estate since the early two thousands. And, ⁓ it’s really something I wake up wanting to do.

  and I go to sleep thinking about. ⁓ And besides my family and my faith, real estate is my main why besides them. ⁓ I think, again, communication is everything. And I think there’s a lack of it. And I also think being able to have differences of opinions and

  Leo Wehdeking (17:27)
  ride.

  Erica Eister (17:42)
  move forward in business is really important too.

  Leo Wehdeking (17:45)
  Okay, all right, cool. Erika, before we wrap up, if someone wanted to reach out to you, connect with you, or maybe collaborate, or learn more about what you’re doing, what’s the best way for them to reach out to you?

  Erica Eister (17:59)
  Sure, ⁓ well my cell phone, mean I’m a person, I’ll pick up my phone if you call, but you can text me, ⁓ is 239-898-4077. And then my web address is esterobenetahomes.com as well as napleshomebroker.com. And I’m on Instagram, I’m on Facebook, I’m on all of the social media.

  Situations. I mean, i’m not a stranger to any of that and I usually use my my actual name on those ⁓ platforms So, you know youtube, ⁓ instagram facebook twitter linkedin Tiktok i’m even on tiktok believe it or not while it’s still around although You know, I do have hesitation on that sometimes because i’ve heard so many different perspectives on tiktok, but

  Leo Wehdeking (18:27)
  platforms.

  Alright.

  Erica Eister (18:57)
  You know, I really just, I’m everywhere. You can’t miss me. You can Google me right now and I’ll pop right up, Erica Eister. And my maiden name was Erica Michaels. So if you see Erica Michaels, Erica Michaels is Erica Eister. Same person, just a married name.

  Leo Wehdeking (19:14)
  Okay,

  all right, perfect. Well, listen, I really appreciate your time, your story, and also your perspective, all right? We need more people in this space who are actually doing it the right way. So thanks again for being here. And for those of you tuning in, if you get value from this, make sure you’re subscribed, all right? We got more conversations coming with operators just like Erica, who are out there building real businesses. We’ll see you on the next episode, guys.