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Show Summary
In this conversation, Blake Hawkins shares his insights on real estate investing, focusing on the importance of foundational processes, understanding off-market acquisitions, and navigating complex seller situations. He emphasizes the need for effective lead generation and sales processes, as well as the importance of being an expert in the field. Blake also discusses his current projects in single-family and commercial real estate, highlighting the challenges and opportunities in the market.
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Investor Fuel Show Transcript:
Blake Hawkins (00:00)
I always tell my team, you know, value is not created until the deal is closed. We’re not in the, the feel good business. We’re in the closed deal business. And some of the, some of the challenges and the complexities with these deals.is you can get distracted with their circumstances. And I’ve been ⁓ vulnerable to this where they got a lot going on there. Maybe there’s family distress issues. There’s, you know, there whatever may be happening in their life. It can get really easy, get caught up in that stuff and where we’re just trying to kind of like, hey, you know, how do we, you know, getting to focus on those objects versus how do I help move this person forward? And to be able to do that, you got to really understand their situation.
Dylan Silver (02:16)
Hey folks, welcome back to the show. Today’s guest, Blake Hawkins is a single family and commercial investor out of Houston who’s done deals all over the country in 20 plus states. He’s built the reputation for creating proven proprietary acquisition systems and high performance sales processes that have streamlined how real estate professionals buy and scale. You can find him on social media, specifically Instagram at the real Blake.Ryan Hawkins. Blake, thanks for taking the time today.
Blake Hawkins (02:50)
Absolutely, man. It’s a pleasure. I’m glad to be here.Dylan Silver (02:53)
I was reading the Instagram and I saw you got the Ryan in the middle there. When folks are finding you, did they ever find a different Blake Hawkins? Are they trying to put a different name in there sometimes?Blake Hawkins (02:58)
What?Yeah.
Yeah, I had another Instagram account in 2022. got hijacked. So I had to get creative with my name to make it work. So yeah, it’s a long-winded Instagram handle for sure.
Dylan Silver (03:22)
I’ve had actually had that happen to me very recently where for my personal real estate brand for as a realtor.And you know, one of the things people don’t think about when you’re building a brand is that some of this can can kind of be taken away for seemingly no reason. As someone who’s scaled the business in single family and in the commercial space, I’d like to talk today about really what good looks like when it comes to processes, teams.
Blake Hawkins (03:38)
Right.Dylan Silver (03:51)
starting a business, but then also scaling in the first couple of years. If we could start off at the top, right, for folks who may be looking to, let’s say, get into single family investing in Texas specifically, where we’re both based out of, what are some like basic foundational processes that you would advise folks start or that may, they may not be doing? And you’ve seen this as a common mistake.Blake Hawkins (04:15)
Yeah. So I think, I think whenever you’re, doing an investment real estate, everything’s going to start with, start with your marketing and your lead source, you know, so you gotta, you have to really get super clear on how are you going to generate opportunities for off market investments, right? Because it’s these deals don’t just fall out of the sky and land in your lap. Sometimes they do. As you start getting momentum, you can get referrals from your network and things of that nature.But I think the very first thing you have to do is you got to figure out, where’s, where’s my lead source at? Whether it is I’m going to pay for outbound marketing, or I’m going to pay for, you know, digital marketing where leads are coming to me, or I’m going to connect with certain people in the marketplace to drive opportunities, you know, to myself. So I think getting super clear on, you know, what your lead sources is going to be number
And then number two is going to be the sales aspect of, you know,
acquisition and acquiring those opportunities and putting them under contract so you can either close on them yourself, fix and flip them, have them as rentals, or maybe you assign them and you wholesale them off, or maybe it even becomes a listing if you’re a real estate agent or something of that nature. But the sales part of it, what I’ve seen is, you know, got to be super consistent. And I think in this business, it’s easy to kind of go deal to deal and sort of just be a deal junkie.
⁓ and what happens is, is people don’t go deep enough on opportunities, ⁓ to be able to acquire and, and, you know, close those deals. So I think it’s the first thing would be just, you know, marketing and lead source. Where am I going to get my leads and how am I going to generate opportunities? And then the second piece is the sales process. And I think, ⁓ I know for me, when I first started, I underestimated what it took.
to really ⁓ acquire an off-market real estate deal. ⁓ I would stay too much on the surface. I wanna go deep enough on the person’s motivation and kind of the different complexities that they may have going on. So the sales piece is huge, but if you don’t have opportunities, ⁓ there is no deal. So I would say you gotta start with, know, lead gen.
Dylan Silver (07:20)
When people talk specifically about off market acquisition, this is the space that I really cut my teeth in. This is how I got started in real estate. One of the more challenging aspects of this is that there’s so many ways to go about it. You could also have have analysis process, right? So, you know, you’ve got folks who may be in probate, you’ve got, you know, death and divorce. ⁓ You’ve got folks who may be going through foreclosure or pre foreclosure.You’ve also got folks who may be moving for whatever reason. And then you’ve got so many other situations that I didn’t touch on there. But what is really unique about all of them and what they share in common to an extent is that if you’re going to be involved in these areas, part of your job almost feels like a emergency triage coordinator. I’m sure you felt that, like when you’re walking into someone’s home and,
Blake Hawkins (08:13)
Enough.Dylan Silver (08:16)
It could be heavily distressed. could be, family issues and you’re really piecing, you know, the puzzle together, not just from a real estate standpoint, but also almost like picking the pieces up of their lives to some degree to help them move to the next step. Whether that’s getting to a new location or helping them avoid a foreclosure or what have you.Blake Hawkins (08:38)
Absolutely. No, you’re, a hundred percent right. I look at, I look at a lot of these deals as like, like exactly what you said, as puzzle pieces where our job is to be able to put all those pieces together, to be able to figure out how do we get this deal closed? Because, you know, I always tell our,always tell my team, you know, value is not created until the deal is closed. We’re not in the, the feel good business. We’re in the closed deal business. And some of the, some of the challenges and the complexities with these deals.
is you can get distracted with their circumstances. And I’ve been ⁓ vulnerable to this where they got a lot going on there. Maybe there’s family distress issues. There’s, you know, there whatever may be happening in their life. It can get really easy, get caught up in that stuff and where we’re just trying to kind of like, hey, you know, how do we, you know, getting to focus on those objects versus how do I help move this person forward? And to be able to do that, you got to really understand
their situation
even better than they do and understand, okay, you know, what does this person need? ⁓ You know, and oftentimes with distressed real estate in a distressed real estate seller, they’re not gonna feel super comfortable, ⁓ you know, just kind of laying all their cards on the table. So it’s our number one job.
Dylan Silver (09:41)
Yeah.Blake Hawkins (10:36)
to be able to understand the situation without making it uncomfortable for them. So I think, ⁓ you know, with experience and just kind of situational awareness, being able to walk into a deal and be able to kind of see the different dynamics of a situation is in my opinion, separates people that have a lot of success in this business and the people that don’t. ⁓ I’ve just seen it even with my little team that we have, you know, a lead can come in, it can go to one person.That person does not see the opportunity at all. They talk with the seller, they skim on the surface. You ask them why they wanna sell, they give you an answer of, well, they just wanna move. Well, yeah, they all do, they all wanna move. ⁓ And then the second person will get the lead and they just see it. They see it, they see the opportunity, they understand, okay, this person inherited the property,
there’s four heirs, they’re back on taxes.
you know, maybe there’s a hoarder situation, like the properties of stress, there’s a hole in the roof, like they go deep and they’re able to see all the dynamics and they close the deal. I just think like that is where the value is created and, and, and, ⁓ being able to really understand them in their situation without making it in my opinion, super confrontational for the seller. You know, you, you want to, I always, you know, say like, let, let people say face, you know, so it’s like, how do we,
How do we help them and serve them and get the deal closed with them still feeling good about the transaction versus like coming in super direct and just saying, well, hey, you you got to move and you know, this is going on or, or using ⁓ fear tactics that happens a lot in our industry with, you know, Hey, you’re going to lose your home when you’re, you know, you’re about to go in foreclosure. They already know that, you know what I mean? So it’s like, how do we, how do we navigate those situations? ⁓
Dylan Silver (12:24)
Yeah, yeah.Blake Hawkins (12:34)
smoothly, but you got to see those opportunities. So I think for me, I think that’s one of the biggest layers that I’ve seen with people that have had, you know, some success where it’s like, it’s just a numbers game and they throw everything at the wall and some deals eventually going to stick versus guys and gals that, man, they just, they just see the deal. what X-ray vision they’re like, Hey, I see all the different ingredients in the deal. This is definitely an opportunity because oftentimes the seller is not going to, they’re not going to justgive you the whole story upfront. So you got to be able to figure out what that is.
Dylan Silver (13:06)
No, and you’re exactly right. And you mentioned earlier that sometimes the seller is not fully aware of the scope of their situation. I know you’ve encountered this. When sellers will say, you know, hey, I’m looking to sell and they don’t own the home. Right. And how often does that happen? It happens all the time. Not only do they not own the home, they’ve been living in the home for years thinking like, hey, you know, I have some right to this home.Blake Hawkins (13:21)
Yes, yes. ⁓all this.
Dylan Silver (13:33)
And meanwhile, they have no right to the home at all. It’s going to someone completely different or there has to be like this chain of events that has to happen for them to even have decision making ability at all. And one of the more I’m sure you can relate to this here too. One of the more frustrating things, especially as a newer ⁓ investor or wholesaler is that you could spend a lot of time thinking that you’re making progress and leeway into a deal only to realize that you’re talking to the wrong person.Blake Hawkins (13:43)
Yes.⁓ 100%. It happens all the time. And I’ve, I remember one of my first deals ⁓ that I, that I was, that I did was in, it was in 2018 and it was in Texas city, which is like a little, a little town south of Houston. And it was exactly what you mentioned. I, ⁓ it was a cold call opportunity. I called the guy. He was like, yeah, I want to sell. He told me his price point.
I was so excited because I’m like, my God, this this this works like this number works. And anyways, we signed a contract. I sent it over to the title company to get everything open. And anyways, title comes back and they’re like, well, the name you have on the contract and the name that’s on title are two different people. And ⁓ long story short, he he in this situation, he actually knew he didn’t own it. I don’t know how he thought he was going to get a closed deal. But you know, people think certain things.
But that was a learning lesson for me. then, and
I’ve encountered a lot of situations too, where people legitimately think they own the property and they don’t. yeah, it’s, I think, you know, think for, for, as investors, you know, we’re not, unless you’re playing a role of a real estate agent, which you’re a fiduciary at that point, you, you know, your job is to make sure like, you got to come in and have that dialogue with your client to serve their needs.
Dylan Silver (15:48)
Yep.Blake Hawkins (16:07)
I think as real estate investors, we serve the seller’s needs by getting a deal closed, but I think you have to really come in and you gotta be the expert. You gotta have your expert hat on. gotta, I think too many times, when I was new, I was just kinda walking into a situation, just kind of hoping that the seller would kind of piece things together or just kinda help me get the deal done. And you gotta go in and you gotta know.You know, you got to look up the property, like who’s the owner. You got to see, are they back on taxes? Are there liens? ⁓ You know, how long have they owned the property? What’s the estimated mortgage balance on the property? ⁓ You know, just all the ingredients in the deal. And I don’t necessarily think that you have to convey that verbally to the seller, because I think that can be awkward, but you have to, you have to know, you have to know, and you have to be the expert to where it’s like, this is how we’re going to get you to A to Z.
And I just, I’ve had too many, I’ve seen too many people ⁓ treat real estate investing and acquisitions sort of as like, well, you know, if it just doesn’t happen perfectly, then it’s not a deal. And it’s like, no, man, like you got to create the opportunity. You got to be the expert, you know? So ⁓ it’s the same thing as a real estate agent, but you know, obviously, mostly when you’re a real estate agent, you’re working with a client that’s a little bit the different situation. Often it’s not distressed and there’s more dialogue.
And with our our distress sellers, there you got to go in and you got to kind of create that dialogue and create that opportunity. So yeah, it’s I’ve seen some I’ve seen some wild some wild transactions for sure.
Dylan Silver (17:47)
I mean,it’s fun. I’m smiling here because I’m an agent in Texas. I’m a realtor in Texas. And when I think about, you know, off market acquisition, which is where I came from, right before being an agent, I know that that’s, you know, it may be a low, a lower barrier to entry and you there may be some more opportunity for more people to get into the space. That doesn’t mean that it’s easier. That does not mean that it’s easier because you’re going to walk into, you know, places that hoarder homes, you’re going to walk into
Blake Hawkins (17:52)
Hmm.Yeah. No.
Dylan Silver (18:16)
places where, you know, there could be, you know, family issues, like I mentioned earlier, and to say that these deals, you’re going to walk in and say, hey, I’m going to make you ⁓ a below market value offer for your property, and you know, you’ll be out of here quickly, and I’ll give you cash. You know, that’s not even taken in. If you’re wholesaling, you got to find the buyer, right? You got to find the buyer for the property at that point, too. So then you’re under the gun while you find the buyer. So there’s so many ways where, as you know, like these deals can getBlake Hawkins (18:28)
No.life. ⁓
Dylan Silver (18:46)
caught up and from you’re talking to the wrong person to title issues that then they don’t want to sell. Then you find the you find the deal under contract. Now you got to find the buyer. Buyer wants to close. Now it’s you know, they have some type of inspection from their lender, you know, two days before it’s chaotic. And so when you’re in the off market space, that’s a lot of the things that you’re dealing with. We are actually coming up on time here though, Blake, any new projects that that you’re working on and then alsoBlake Hawkins (19:02)
⁓ my god, yes, yes.Dylan Silver (19:15)
How can folks reach out to you or your team?Blake Hawkins (19:17)
Yeah. So, um, we have the single family, uh, acquisition business that we’ve been running, um, you know, since 2017. And so we still do that. We do four to five, six closings a month here in the Houston market, um, all the way from Galveston to, uh, North Houston area, like Conroe Woodlands. So we’re always open to a joint venture with other, uh, investors on deals, um, to help them get the deal closed. But,That’s kind of our bread and butter. But I’m also doing ⁓ some multifamily and some commercial opportunities where we’re actually closing on an eight unit ⁓ here in Alvin, Texas. It’s south of Houston here this week. ⁓ Did a seller finance deal with the seller to make it work for everybody, for the buyer as well. But I’m working on 40 to 80 units. We’re working on doing some syndications.
you know, looking for ⁓ LPs, equity partners where they want to put money into a deal and be able to, you know, receive a passive income. We have some really good operators as well that we’re connected with good contractors here in Houston. So that’s kind of my, my, really my, my current focus moving forward ⁓ with a lot of my bandwidth and time is, is really putting together some commercial deals here in the Houston market and just really kind of building out my network. And so I’m always looking to connect with
know, ⁓ lenders, ⁓ private capital, ⁓ and or buyers or operators that want to ⁓ get into new commercial opportunities. So I’m working on that right now currently. So I’m always looking to connect and JV and partner up with people.
Dylan Silver (21:04)
Blake, thank you so much for your time today. Thanks for coming on the show.Blake Hawkins (21:07)
Yeah, absolutely Dylan. Thanks for having me.
