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Show Summary
In this episode of the Real Estate Pros podcast, host Michelle Kesil interviews Mark Canfora, founder of Bank Busters, who shares his unique approach to real estate investing through creative financing. Mark discusses his journey into real estate, the importance of mentorship, and how he helps investors buy properties with little to no money down. He emphasizes the need to challenge traditional banking norms and offers insights into successful investment strategies. Mark also shares personal stories and his passion for helping others navigate the real estate market.
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Investor Fuel Show Transcript:
Mark Canfora (00:00)
I think what’s missing is the banking industry, and it’s huge, and the real estate industry, okay the NAR, which I’m a member of, but I have to be because I’m a realtor and a real estate agent in Florida, but they have brainwashed people all their lives. We did a study that said, how do you buy a two unit, a single family, or a four unit?And the study said 90-some percent of the time, you got to go to the bank.
That’s brainwashing. You got to go to a seller that’s willing to sell.
Michelle Kesil (02:09)
Hey everybody, welcome to the Real Estate Pros podcast. I’m your host, Michelle Kesil. Today I’m joined by someone I’m looking forward to chatting with, Mark Canfora, who is the founder and director of Bank Busters, helping mentor to support investors in starting to buy real estate. So, excited to have you here, Mark.Mark Canfora (02:32)
Thank you.Michelle Kesil (02:33)
Yeah, I think our listeners are going to take something away from how you’re approaching supporting investors through creative financing. So let’s dive in.Mark Canfora (02:43)
Okay, sounds good to me, Michelle.Michelle Kesil (02:45)
Awesome. First off, for those who are not familiar with you and your world, can you share what your main focus is?Mark Canfora (02:51)
Our main focus is locating properties with sellers directly. We don’t go through traditional banking or real estate venues. We may find a real estate agent that knows creative financing, but it’s very rare. So we negotiate directly with sellers. We put a contract together and we get the keys. It’s as simple as that.Michelle Kesil (03:15)
Great. And are you operating nationwide?Mark Canfora (03:18)
Well, through our mentoring program, yes, thanks to social media. we’ve got a website, we’ve got a website, bankbusters.org. We’ve got a YouTube channel, Mark Canforabank busters. You can see testimonials there of successful clients. And it really explains in a one or two minute testimonial what we do.
Michelle Kesil (03:37)
Awesome. How did you get started with Bank Busters?Mark Canfora (03:42)
In the early nineties, about 35 years ago, I fell into the program. I was in between housing in my early thirties. I’m 67 now, and I found a seller that told me he would sell me his four unit without a bank. So I did my own investigation. Back then you went to the library. You didn’t go on the internet in the early nineties. So, I learned about this by just having to come by a seller. And when I bought the 2,500 down.on the four unit, so I didn’t have a lot of capital. He was very nice. He said to me at the end, I always wanted to be the bank. Thank you. So there are reasons why sellers will be the bank. They don’t need capital gains. They want continued payments, but they don’t uh they don’t want to be a landlord anymore. There’s a lot of landlords out there whose children or family is not in the business. They don’t want to be in the business.
They don’t really need the money and they just want a payment. So there’s a big niche and there’s a big market for us. And I have bought, I bought two different properties on the same day. I contacted the seller at nine in the morning, went out to the property at lunchtime. I located it, negotiated it, contract and keys. We call it three and a half easy steps.
to buying real estate without a bank. I located it, made a call, negotiated a little bit on the phone. They were willing to talk. I went out there, had my contract with me, filled in the blanks, and they handed me the keys. So what was their circumstance? They were being transferred to Indiana. They had two mortgages. He didn’t want to leave his wife and kids behind. A lot of reasons why. So we filled a void, and they were happy, and we were happy.
So yeah, same day transactions can take place. They’re rare and I’ve done it twice and I documented it in some of our seminars while I pick up the phone and I’ll negotiate properties on the phone.
That’s kind of rare in the real estate investment industry. Typically you go out, get some quotes, see what it’s all about. And in this case, I try to keep my risk down, very little down payment, and that’s the only risk that we have. So ROI, our risk out of the investment is very low, but the upside is very high. So that’s what we do.
Michelle Kesil (06:58)
Awesome. And are you currently investing still?Mark Canfora (07:02)
Yes, as a matter of fact, if you can see this, I’m in Panama City Beach and I purchased this condo with no money down. This is my little condo on the beach and the seller wanted some down payment and we worked out a transaction where I had nothing down and just basically took it over. So yeah, I’m still active in the business at age 67. As a matter of fact, you know, I teach this andHonestly, I’m one of the better ones at this in the nation. I bought the bank building in my hometown with 6,000 down. I bought an eight unit in the neighboring town with 10,000 down. I bought a lot of single family and duplexes for 2,500 to 5,000 down. Never in my 35 years, and I’m proud of this, have I put more than 10,000 down on any real estate transaction.
I mean, that’s in 35 years. Think about that. Most investors, the banks say, you need 30 % down on this $200,000 property. That’s $60,000. And I say, that’s the traditional brainwashing of the banks. And we say, with $60,000, you can buy six properties. 5,000 down, 5,000 for minor repairs. Six properties for 10,000 each.
Investors should at least look at this. Wouldn’t you agree?
Michelle Kesil (08:30)
Definitely. Can you expand on how you make that possible?Mark Canfora (08:33)
We make it simple. It doesn’t need to be complicated. Locate, okay, we’re locating a property. We talk to the seller, negotiate. Okay, we got a potential. We go to the property or we work it out online. We get it on paper, contract, then we get the keys. That’s it. Now, will all sellers do this? No. Some of them will, some of them won’t. But it’s like anything else. The more you step up to the plate,the better chance you have of hitting a home run. And that’s what we teach, repetition, repetition. So we have the tools, I have an e-course, audio book, e-book, all very simple. I use my testimonials over the last 35 years with real life contracts and deals. So it isn’t like a bunch of you know real estate BS. These are real deals that I have done that people can look up on the internet.
Michelle Kesil (10:06)
Awesome. Can you expand more on how people can get started and have success in the similar way that you did?Mark Canfora (10:15)
Well, what they can do is actually go to our skool, you know that’s called school, S-K-O-O-L. So Bank Busters School, and they can sign up there. It’s free on the membership page, and then we’ll reach out to you about joining.Michelle Kesil (10:30)
Yeah, do you want to share for the audience maybe some tips so they can start?Mark Canfora (10:34)
Yes, ⁓ I would say get a mentor. This is not for the faint of heart. you know, negotiating a $500,000 or $300,000 transaction, okay, that’s just not something you should do alone without instruction. So that’s why they reach out to us for the mentorship. And you can avoid problems and mistakes and, you know, big costly errors. There are so much involved with real estate that you have to be careful.Michelle Kesil (11:00)
Definitely. So what are some of the creative ways that you’ve been able to finance your properties?Mark Canfora (11:07)
Well, let’s put it this way. The eight unit was 10,000 down. He wanted 15. I offered him 10. It was in a little bit disarray, like the tenants were flushing their toilets with the chain and for the units. The father-in-law had passed away who did maintenance. So they wanted out. They were motivated. So I offered him 10 grand down, but no payments for three months. Okay. I used.time and a little bit of money, fixed them all up, got them rented, got my 10,000 back for 90 days, and then made money for another six years. So my ROI on that is 10,000 down, which is the most I’ve ever put down. And that example is on our school. All the details are on the school. You can look at the eight unit and it shows you that it can be done.
So they deferred for 90 days, I got my money back, it was very creative. So there are lot of ways to be creative. We teach that, how to be creative with your offer, how to be creative with your contract. And then of course we have four contract templates we give in our program, two for being a buyer, two for being a seller. So there are different protections involved. So you wanna be protected when you write a contract.
And then at the same time, you always want to get legal advice. You don’t want one mistake, a realtors contract, a seller’s contract that could mess you up, you know? So, but we’re there to guide you and you can go on our school wall, ask questions. do a question and answer every Friday at noon Eastern time. So we’re a good group to be a part of.
Michelle Kesil (12:51)
Yeah, what makes you different from all the other groups out there?Mark Canfora (12:55)
I would say the niche that we’re in, very little or no money down. Never have we put more than 10,000 down. And most real estate investors are tired of putting 20 % down on a 300,000. That’s 60 grand down, a hundred grand down. You know, they don’t have to do that. You can take the same amount of money that you have and invest it in individual properties. Each one’s separate.And that’s how we are different.
Michelle Kesil (13:25)
Amazing. What are you most focusing on now in your business?Mark Canfora (13:30)
I want to grow the group. want more testimonials. I’ve got about 15 powerful ones. Tony was a truck driver, always wanting to get into real estate. He has eight properties now, probably more by now since his testimony. Curtis was homeless, had a new baby eight years ago. He paid his house off in seven years. Okay. Pat was bankrupt. So here’s what traditional lending says. you went bankrupt or you have student loan debt. You can’t buy because of that.Well, that’s a lie from the pit of banking hell because you can go to a seller and buy. You don’t need to rent for five years or seven years. You need to rent with the right to buy. So then you clean up your credit, clean up everything, and then you buy the property instead of wasting money on rent. You might as well take that rent money and throw it in a fireplace and burn it because you have no equity, no rights in the property.
You can write a similar agreement where you have the sole right to buy that property. Seller can’t sell it, and you’re the one that can buy it according to the term.
It’s a good program.
Michelle Kesil (15:24)
Awesome. Is there certain levels of the program?Mark Canfora (15:28)
Yes, there’s just an introductory basic where you get the course and the book and everything. And some people who want to go on their own, that’s fine. I don’t recommend it, but some investors are very sophisticated. They may not need help or they understand what I’m doing. But the real program is the mentorship where you have access to me. You know, you can set up a call. If you’ve got an urgent question on a contract, you can call me. Now we don’t give legal advice. Of course, we’re not allowed to. We’re not attorneys.but we can make suggestions. So you want someone on your team that can do that for you. It’s worth it. mean, think about it. You become a mentee and you have someone with 35 years experience as a real estate broker, agent, investor, I’ve invested all my life, and a mentor. You know it’s like you have someone at your beck and call.
that knows real estate like most 99 % of America don’t know.
Michelle Kesil (16:34)
Yeah, what do you feel that’s missing that people don’t know?Mark Canfora (16:39)
I think what’s missing is the banking industry, and it’s huge, and the real estate industry, okay the NAR, which I’m a member of, but I have to be because I’m a realtor and a real estate agent in Florida, but they have brainwashed people all their lives. We did a study that said, how do you buy a two unit, a single family, or a four unit?And the study said 90-some percent of the time, you got to go to the bank.
That’s brainwashing. You got to go to a seller that’s willing to sell.
Okay, you can go to the bank later on within the first 36 months or 60 months. We set the closing date. We set when we go to the bank. We set when we decide to use a realtor. Okay, we decide that. But there’s a brainwashing that’s going on in America about lending.
that they don’t want you to know. Why would the bank want you to know about owner financing when they can’t make points on the deal? Why would the bank why would the real estate agent want you to know about owner financing when they don’t get a commission? I mean I need answers to those questions. I think anybody would. Now let’s say this, now it’s a buyer’s market in America, the first one, best one in about 25 years. Expired listings are…
8 to 1, to 1 right now. Why are they expired? Because they’re overpriced, covering real estate commissions, covering costs. If a property’s worth $400,000 and you got it listed for $450,000, good luck. Because your $50,000 covers your realtor and your closing costs and all of that. Okay You don’t have to go the traditional way. You can be creative.
Michelle Kesil (18:36)
Yeah, that’s exciting and awesome for people to have those strategies.Mark Canfora (18:41)
Well, what’s exciting too is they have options. If they go the old way, their only option is to go to the bank and the bank says no. Okay, when do you want me to come back? When my bankruptcy is discharged in seven years? Okay, no. You go to a seller and say, listen, I’m paying 2,000 a month rent. I wanna give you that and have part of the rent money going towards me buying it. I’m cleaning up some credit. You be honest with them. I’m cleaning up some credit. I got a great job.I make $80,000 a year, my wife makes $60,000 or $80,000 a year. We make good money, we just can’t go to the bank. That’s the education part, the negotiation part. Then the seller says, yeah, you do have a good job, you’re self-employed. Yeah, you did go bankrupt, but life happens. You need a break. And there are a lot of landlords out there that will give you a break. Trust me, they’ve been doing this system long before I did. The ones that are in their 80s or 90s.
I’m 67, but I’ve been doing it 35 years. Obviously it works. And obviously I like it because I’ve been doing it that long. So yeah, people need to look at this. I like doing the opposite of what the institutions want us to do. They just want us to be like sheep, follow the line and do what they say. No, you can’t buy. Yes, you can buy. You got to qualify. You got to have this credit score or that credit score.
our FHA won’t work, this, well, now you got turned down, sorry. Bull crap. Okay, we do no bull real estate. I like to say that. It’s no bull because we show you how to do it. And it happened for me. The guy says, me 2,500 down. I thought he was gonna rip me off. I went to the library, studied it, looked up the law in Ohio. I mean, my whole story is on our school. It’s beautiful. But the reality is, is I got educated.
Now that’s when the light turned on for me in the early 90s. 35 straight years in my hometown, I bought the bank building, three stories, historic, 6,000 down. I bought the hospital. I bought the nursing home. I bought two units, four units, and eight units, all with owner financing. I properties all over our downtown area, First Street, Second Street, Third Street, you name it.
So the truth of the matter is talk’s cheap. Okay, the reality is what we show. We show these deals. I don’t hold anything back on the school and on YouTube. And I’m proud of it. I’m older, you know, I don’t know how much longer I’ve got as far as my life is concerned, but I wanna share this with the youth and with the people that have been taken advantage of or abused by the system. So that’s why we do what we do.
Michelle Kesil (21:35)
Amazing. What an awesome perspective you have.Mark Canfora (21:39)
Well, I like to be in positive, you know, we have a choice, right? We can be positive or negative. We can love or hate, you know. So I’m a firm believer in love and compassion and serving. I’ve been in the ministry for 30 years, helping the poor, helping people that have lost children. I have a ministry called wevegothope.org and we help people that have lost children. My 18 year old son passed away 20 years ago andMichelle Kesil (21:43)
As you should. Yes. Yes, definitely.Yeah.
Okay.
Mark Canfora (22:09)
He would be 39 now. He was 18. So I knew then I was coming out of street missions into bereavement because it’s such a horrific thing. So I’ve written a book called Alive in Heaven. It’s free. It’s on YouTube, RDO. We’ve got hope. You can Google that and you’ll see what we do. But that’s my real passion. I used to have, yeah, that’s my real passion. Real estate pales in comparison to helping that brokenhearted mom and dad, because it’s devastating.Michelle Kesil (22:16)
Yeah, of course.Amazing.
Yeah, of course,
of course.
Mark Canfora (22:40)
absolutely devastating. So yeah, life has been a tough journey, but I have my faith and I have my family and I have my friends. You know, and that’s all you can’t buy that with money.Michelle Kesil (22:42)
course.Yeah.
Michelle Kesil (22:52)
Awesome, Mark, thank you so much for sharing everything that you do. Before we wrap up here, someone wants to reach out, connect, learn more, where is the best place to find you?Mark Canfora
Yes.Well, I think right now the best place is Bank Busters Skool S-K-O-O-L. It’s a platform where we educate and teach. You can become a member there for free to get more information about the mentorship program and other options.
Michelle Kesil
Perfect. Well, appreciate your time and your perspective. Thank you for being here.Mark Canfora
Thank you so much. You did very well. Very professional. Thank you.Michelle Kesil
of course and for the listeners that are tuningin, if you got value, make sure you’ve subscribed. We’ve got more conversations coming and we’ll see you next time.
Mark Canfora
Thank you.
