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  • Too Good To Be True?

    My boyfriend (well sort-of boyfriend, we're just casual) recently attended a real estate investing seminar, and now he is all excited about becoming a real estate investor. Tired of his 9-5 job, he claims that he is going to start buying and renting out properties, and it will be very easy, with little work needed on his part, so that he'll be able to spend all of his time traveling and stuff.

    While I want to be supportive and encouraging of his dream...I have been nothing but skeptical. I asked where he was going to get the money to start buying properties, and he said he would get a bank loan. Okay - I am not trying to be a smartass, I am serious with this question - would a bank loan tens of thousands of dollars to someone who makes $20,000k a year, has no money at all saved, no assests, and no experience in the business he hopes to start?

    He claims that this company who ran the seminar, whoever they are, are going to help do everything for him - get him the money to start out, find properties for him to buy, etc. He said their fee for all of this is $8,000. I said, what if it doesn't work out?? What if this is a scam? He insists that it isn't.

    After the seminar, he went back for an "interview", and was accepted - that alone seems suspicious to me. They act like there is this tight selection process, and yet decide that someone with no money, no assets, and no experience is the perfect candidate for real estate investing? Huh.

    So I don't know if anyone here knows anything about this sort of stuff, but I figured I'd fish for some opinions. He is SO excited, but I'm thinking he is being scarily naive, and it's gonna be bad for him when this doesn't work out

  • #2
    Sounds iffy along the lines of Herbalife or Kirby. http://www.cockeyed.com/contents.shtml under Citizen has some starting points.
    Last edited by rvdammit; 06-28-2009, 04:47 PM. Reason: typo
    ludo ergo sum

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    • #3
      Be very supportive - so supportive that you look up other investiment firms and make appointments for him to go and consult with them.

      He might get an idea of the real world. Yes, that's too good to be true.

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      • #4
        From what you're saying it sounds like a SCAM SCAM SCAM - it may even be a legal scam.
        Quote Dalesys:
        ... as in "Ifn thet dawg comes at me, Ima gonna shutz ma panz!"

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        • #5
          Generally speaking, if it sounds too good to be true then it is.

          Also, if these people are able to make huge amounts of money in real estate, why aren't they doing it themselves?

          Rapscallion

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          • #6
            Quoth Rapscallion View Post
            Generally speaking, if it sounds too good to be true then it is.

            Also, if these people are able to make huge amounts of money in real estate, why aren't they doing it themselves?
            Rapscallion is right about this. Ask how much the promoter made in real estate--show me the tax returns. If you don't like the answer walk away. Check on stock quotes and annual reports for the company promoting this seminar--a steak dinner says the company (if publically traded) is a penny stock and makes most of its revenues off these seminars.

            BOTTOM LINE: WALK AWAY!!! WALK AWAY!!!
            I'm trying to see things from your point of view, but I can't get my head that far up my keister!

            Who is John Galt?
            -Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged

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            • #7
              By doing some googling I found the website of the guy giving the seminar. To me it sounds very glaringly like your run-of-the-mill get-rich-quick in real estate scheme. There are also articles about how it is a scam. But, he is accredited with the Better Business Bureau.

              I guess it isn't my place to stand in judgement...it is not my life. What bothers me is how he is in denial about how this is such a gamble. The seminar cost nearly HALF of his yearly salary and there is no guarantee that he will succeed. Plus he has this cavalier attitude, claiming that there will be no little to no work actually required...which I think is a little ignorant. I don't think I will mention any of my "research" to him...he already thinks I am being too negative

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              • #8
                Raps makes a good point. He is selling the idea for $8,000 a shot and carrying ZERO risk.

                If this was such a great deal, he would be saving the property listing for himself.
                Life is too short to not eat popcorn.
                Save the Ales!
                Toys for Tots at Rooster's Cafe

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                • #9
                  Quoth Sableonblonde View Post
                  By doing some googling I found the website of the guy giving the seminar. To me it sounds very glaringly like your run-of-the-mill get-rich-quick in real estate scheme. There are also articles about how it is a scam. But, he is accredited with the Better Business Bureau.
                  I usually don't care if someone is listed with the BBB. You pay for a membership. Just because someone is listed, doesn't make them a reputable company.

                  Yes, the real estate investment thing is a scam. I had to talk my dad out of one of those 10 years ago.

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                  • #10
                    They "only" want 8000 bucks, eh?



                    Really.

                    That's a scam. Make sure this guy uses absolutely none of your money and don't let him talk you into using any of yours. Let him burn off his own money.

                    A person cannot invest until they have something TO invest. And your bf won't ever collect enough to invest if this is his idea of a good business decision.

                    If he is dying to invest somewhere, tell him to invest in some stock. Pick a good, strong company and invest in that. Some companies are doing well even in this economy, so buy it while it's low and sit on it till the economy recovers.

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                    • #11
                      Getting into real estate NOW?

                      No offense, but has he read the news? Looked at the stock market, noticed all the yelling and flailing and panicking over the real estate market crash?!!!!

                      Okay, I guess there's something to be said for getting in while the market is down, real estate prices are somewhat cheaper than they used to be. There's no guarantee that things have stabilized though, I've seen some people predicting a second market slip, to bring house prices back in direct line with inflation, which they're still significantly above.

                      Even if this was 100% legitimate and not a scam (and I don't buy that for a minute!) it still might not be a wise decision. I know way too many people right now who were in real estate, and are currently in dept up to their eyeballs, out of work, and out of luck.
                      The best advice is this: Don't take advice and don't give advice. ~Author Unknown

                      Nobody can give you wiser advice than yourself. ~Cicero

                      See the fuzzy - http://bladespark.livejournal.com/

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                      • #12
                        Is this what your bf has gotten into?

                        Edit: Looking worse and worse....

                        Okay, look here, have your bf do a google search of "real estate investment scam +$8000" and see if that doesn't cool his jets. If it doesn't, well, there's no help for him.
                        Last edited by RecoveringKinkoid; 06-30-2009, 08:34 PM.

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                        • #13
                          Oh, TRUST ME, he is not, and will not, be using any of my money. Our finances are in no way joint. If he wants to risk going $8,000 into debt, that is his own issue.

                          It does sound a lot like that John Beck thing, where they supply you with information and lots of encouragement, and supposedly contacts, but really it's hit or miss whether you will actually succeed. Maybe it is not a scam so much as it is desperate people getting preyed on.

                          I had though along the same lines - if there are so many great real estate investment deals out there, why wouldn't these guys just want to snatch them up themselves instead of drawing a bunch of other people in the "share the wealth?" If you found such a great money-making idea wouldn't you want to keep it to yourself? Why would you want to create competition for yourself? Then of course, the seminars and drawing people in seem to be the great money-making idea.

                          A person cannot invest until they have something TO invest.
                          Well, uh, not according to this seminar's website. According to them anyone can succeed in real estate investment, even those with zero dollars to their name. Especially those with zero dollars! It seems like they are actively recruiting broke people, desperate people. Which, makes sense.

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                          • #14
                            Broke people are desperate people, and very often, they are people who have a tendency to make very bad decisions with money. Hence the perpetual brokness.

                            Who was it that had the very true sig that said something to the order of "rich people get richer because they keep doing what made them rich. Ditto the poor."

                            I don't know if that's the quote, but that's the gist of it. And it's true.

                            Your bf is about to seriously screw the pooch.

                            I don't think it's a coincidence that they are asking the exact same amount as the "first time real estate buyer" incentive pays. I mean, this thing just screams "scam" to me.

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                            • #15
                              You know the sad thing, like most scams like these is.... there's a little bit of truth in it. I mean honestly I don't doubt that perhaps with some training some of these people just might pull it off. But the problem is only a small percentage.

                              It's kinda like when I started my first website, long before CS, I spent about $150 to get it up and running within two months I was up to making about $1000 a month off them with just minimal effort. And when I made money on ebay it was like $500 a month no problem, again minimum investment. But you've got to know the market and get into something that not a whole lot are into. But to some extent I consider myself lucky. I mean yeah I've had 2 successful internet businesses, but I've also had flops.

                              The problem is that people "share their secret" look at it as they don't have to worry about the flops anymore. Others will flop.
                              "It takes people like you, to make people like me" Another Night In London - Devildriver

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