Tony Alvarez is a well-heeled, seasoned, knowledgeable and successful Real Estate Investor, licensed Broker, Developer and Certified General Appraiser; and has lived and worked in the real estate business since 1981. Tony has built, purchased, rehabbed, rented and sold hundreds of properties from vacant land to condos, single family residences, apartments and commercial properties and is well-versed in the risks and requirements for success inherent in different types of real estate investments. Tony is also a sought-after speaker and has previously spoken at The Norris Group’s Multi-Millionaire Maker in 2005 and 2006, as well as other Real Estate Investment Clubs and events throughout Southern California and Nevada.
In this episode:
The Norris Group originates and services loans in California and Florida under California DRE License 01219911, Florida Mortgage Lender License 1577, and NMLS License 1623669. For more information on hard money lending, go www.thenorrisgroup.com and click the Hard Money tab.
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Tony Alvarez is a well-heeled, seasoned, knowledgeable and successful Real Estate Investor, licensed Broker, Developer and Certified General Appraiser; and has lived and worked in the real estate business since 1981. Tony has built, purchased, rehabbed, rented and sold hundreds of properties from vacant land to condos, single family residences, apartments and commercial properties and is well-versed in the risks and requirements for success inherent in different types of real estate investments. Tony is also a sought-after speaker and has previously spoken at The Norris Group’s Multi-Millionaire Maker in 2005 and 2006, as well as other Real Estate Investment Clubs and events throughout Southern California and Nevada.
In this episode:
The Norris Group originates and services loans in California and Florida under California DRE License 01219911, Florida Mortgage Lender License 1577, and NMLS License 1623669. For more information on hard money lending, go www.thenorrisgroup.com and click the Hard Money tab.
Video Link
Radio Show
Welcome to The Norris Group real estate podcast, a show committed to bringing you insights from thought leaders shaping the real estate industry. In each episode, we'll dive into conversations with industry experts and local insiders, all aimed at helping you thrive in an ever-changing real estate market. continuing the legacy that Bruce Norris created, sharing valuable knowledge, and empowering you on your real estate journey. Whether you're a seasoned pro or a newcomer, this is your go-to source for insider tips, market trends and success strategies. Here's your host, Craig Evans.
Craig Evans:Okay, everybody, I am super excited. We are back for part two, from last week with Tony Alvarez. It is going to be great. So, let me ask you this. So what do you think is your biggest success, but what do you think is your biggest hurdle that you've ever had to overcome, right?
Tony Alvarez:You want to know the biggest thing that I had to overcome in my life? I my life has been a series of overcoming obstacles and overcoming unwanted situations that most people would perceive them. But we were for whatever the reason, I don't know if it's culturally or whether it's in my family, I tend to think it's a little bit of both and a lot of it culturally because Cuban, you know, we live on an island, Cuba is an island, okay, which has experienced revolutions as often as it does tornadoes, you know, I mean, hurricanes. Hurricanes, so, so give me a break, you know, I mean, you do develop a resilience, it's in the attitude of the people, you know what they used to do in Cuba, whenever there was a notice of a hurricane coming. Everyone would run to the grocery store and load up. But we're not talking about toilet paper here. We're talking about beer, pork, pork chops or whatever. Why? Because they're going to have a hurricane party, okay? They're not at the local Home Depot working up their windows, they're going to have a party, because they know there's no way to get away from the hurricane, so you might as well party right into it. Okay, so my biggest hurdle honest to god, I will tell you, the biggest thing I've ever had to contend with was going under the knife at a stage in my life, where I had already succeeded, financially, and I've got to go now. And I had because of the condition that I had, it was a very, it's called a bentall procedure. If anybody else ever wants to go check it out, it is not open heart surgery for a blockage or whatever, which they do nowadays, like you get a feeling, right. It was my chances of recovering, of getting through that surgery without having some other issue or death was 50%, 50%. That's from the surgeon who did it at Cedars Sinai. And now I gotta I have to agree to the surgery. I didn't like, I had some event that landed me in emergency room. I have to agree. I have to say, 'Sure. I'm on board with this. 'Because what's one of my options, right? I mean, I didn't want to do it, to be honest, I didn't want to go through that. And then I gotta prepare everything for my family in case I don't come home, right? This is this is really, you know, it's, these are moments in your life where real estate, becoming successful in real estate, comparatively speaking, is a pimple, okay? If you're out there worried about succeeding in real estate, the level of commitment and the level of desire required to become successful not only at real estate, but at anything, it pales in comparison to the level of surrender that you have to reach to give yourself over to something that could take your life in that decision. I hope, I hope I'm explaining this to you guys correctly, because I don't want you to miss it, you know. So that to me was that really was the biggest thing. But if, you know, I could say, well, coming from Cuba, I was five years old. You know, I'm with my parents and I'm feeling good. You know, we're adding, and why am I feeling good? Because I look at my parents when we land in Miami and they're happy. My dad's in some channeling place. And but he's happy in and he's happy for us and he's working at some restaurant. First day my dad went to work the washing he didn't even know how to, he had never done manual labor. He burned his hands with the dishwasher. You know the thing you open that you put the racking, he went to grab the dishes he's so dumb, you know, he burned his hands he had to tape them up with and then put them in gloves so that they will let him go to work the next day because if they knew he burned his hands, he couldn't go to work and need the money to feed us. So, you know, I mean is, if we're Looking for what does Tony consider to be his greatest success? I don't know that I could actually slice my life up into little pieces like that and say, Oh, I think this was the greatest success. Probably the greatest accomplishment that I ever have had, has been having a son. That's bigger than anything else, you know, my son represents something to me. I can't even put into words. I have a I have a daughter, who's probably the only person that can get me to do stuff. But my son was first. The first child I had, but but my daughter can get me my wife still says, 'I don't understand. I asked you to go to this place with me. You say nope, not doing it, never will.' Loreena comes up here, she says,'Hey, Dad, can we go to, I say any anything you want, honey, what do you want?' And then they tricked me because I said, she said that to me. I said, that's a lie. I don't do that. I know what I'm talking about. So my daughter comes up to me one day, and she says 'Dad and we go through that...' I said, 'Honey, whatever you want to do, it's fine.' And they started laughing at me. Her and they're all laughing in the kitchen. I was in the kitchen. I said, 'what the hell's going on?' She goes,'we just played you, okay, you just told us that you told me you never do that Lorena just asked you to go to that place. And I asked you before and you're there.' And it was true. So, you know, those are the things and by the way...
Craig Evans:If you've seen me with my daughter...
Tony Alvarez:Daughters can do that today. Yeah. So and to this day, you know, if I have a thought of my daughter in my head, I call her up. And she says, I text her. She goes, 'I was just thinking about your dad. I was recording' I said,'you know, what's, what's going on?' And she's an it'll be something that she's thinking about or something, you know, so we're connected, like that, you know, so those are the, you know, obstacles in my life, since early on have been expected.
Craig Evans:Yeah.
Tony Alvarez:So, the level of problem. I mean, you're talking to somebody who's been through bankruptcy twice.
Craig Evans:Wow.
Tony Alvarez:That is how dumb Tony can be. It took me two times to perfect it. Okay, I had to go back a second time, but...
Craig Evans:You got a PhD in that then?
Tony Alvarez:Yeah, but I also learn. And this is the point that I knew I didn't need to do that either time. In all honesty, had I been more savvy about business at the time, which I wasn't I didn't have the education, the formal education. So I, I just want you to know, I was a high school dropout, right, I went back to school to become an appraiser, because I realized I needed those skills, and I loved it, I loved school, then I went back with a passion, I must have a master's degree, or a doctorate in real estate, because I don't know, I just took the classes, I took every class under the sun, and I would go in there and I would tell the teacher I said, I'm gonna be your best student, I'm sitting up front, not that I sit in the back thing, you know, that I used to do as a kid. No, I'm up front, I want to know him. I want to know everything and typically, people that taught real estate, were actually brokers or people in the real estate, business, real estate attorney, stuff like that. So I want to get to be friends with those people. I drove them nuts, okay. Some of them would even say, you know, Tony, okay, I'm here to do the class, and I got a regular job. Don't just leave me the hell alone. But I will follow them around, you know.
Craig Evans:Again, I think so often, people are looking for this big aha moment. And then Tony, I'm sitting here listening to you talk about life, and everything that you've gone through. And I know there's a little bit of bait to the question of saying, What's your biggest hurdle? But I mean, part of that sometimes just life in general. I appreciate the answers. And that's why I love talking with you on that. So, but I've got a question I want to push through because I know sometimes people are gonna say, and I want to hear there's really two questions I want to get answered for you. Before we have to check out of here, you know, the greats in this business of real estate and investment and really in any business, right, but especially in what we're doing, they have what we all want to call the 'It factor,' right? We always know there's that, but the reality is, Tony, you and I both I mean, I own five businesses, right? We always know there are people behind the scenes that give us the support, when the things get harder that make what we do easier, right? That make us look good with who we are. I guess my question is so many people see Tony Alvarez, right, yeah. Who's the people in your background? Who's the people that in your life that make it easier and that are there to support you and prop you up?
Tony Alvarez:All right, well, look, you know, now you hit uh, it's... We don't we don't have enough time.
Craig Evans:Wow, take your time.
Tony Alvarez:Yeah. Well, if you, if you're gonna tell the truth about something, you're gonna, I am committed to being honest with you so because I do that for myself to be quite honest with you, quite frankly, it is, there's no other reason for it. But um it's, Tony is just a, he's just the beneficiary of, of a lot of people's love and affection and caring over the years since he came into being, basically and you can trace this back, you know, in business, probably the greatest moment ever in my life was as far as a person that I hit close to me was Sabrina Gonzo who she came, she came into my life as a child, an 18, 19 year old who didn't know a thing about real estate. And, and I hired her to do all the things I didn't want to do. I was getting to the point where I had rentals, and I want somebody to answer the phone and deal with the nonsense. And she, and I went and I pushed her. I pushed her to do things she quite frankly, didn't want to do. She doesn't want a job, you know? And I made him become a notary and I pushed her. She made me crazy doing that and then made it get a real estate. And then I taught her to buy in, and replace me. Honestly, I was never afraid to do that. And I know a lot of people have challenges with that kind of stuff. But I was very fortunate I couldn't after, I said to Sabrina one day, but you don't need to be you can do this on your own. And then she goes,'No, I can't. Yeah', I sat with her. And I said, I had to trick her into it. I said you can leave, you know, you can do this stuff. And she said, 'No, I can't.' And I said, you know, I took her out to lunch one day, I said, 'Hey, you know, I've just had a couple of questions. I said, this deal that we bought, you know, in this place out there. And you know what last time we, you know, we bought this and how much we make' she goes, 'we made 70 grand on that. And you we didn't have to fix it. And by the way, you didn't buy anything you said to me when I took you to that house that you saw was a structure. It wasn't even a house and you didn't want to buy it. And I went ahead and bought it without your permission. And you get all upset. We paid $35,000 for that house because nobody wanted it. But I had studied the market and I knew that that part of the market in the Antelope Valley was coming back strong. And we bought that house.' It was true, right. So I said, 'Oh, yeah, okay. I'm sorry'. I said 'so, Okay, so what about this address? And I pulled the trigger on that one.' 'Oh no you didn't pull the trigger on that. I found that deal'. And so by the time we get to like about the fifth one, right? She goes,'No, you didn't you didn't do' and she stops and I'm just staring at her. And she goes and she welds up with tears, right. So she's 'okay, okay, I get it.' I said 'That's right.' From 2000. Okay, Tony is responsible up to 2005 that's when you know, we had the crash. And I and Bruce Norris. If it wasn't for Bruce, Tony would have been in bankruptcy a third time, okay, or I should even say I would have probably quit a whole lot sooner than I need Bruce held my feet to the fire. I went to see him and I said, Hey, I'm ready to bail and stuff like that. But Sabrina from 2000, we got out in 2005, I got out with you know, millions of dollars, millions of dollars, which I never anticipated that my goal originally was to get to $1 million in equity and have$10,000 a month income from you know, 10 rental houses. That's all I wanted. I swear to you, that's all I wanted, I didn't want anything else. And if I would accomplish that, that would have been huge for me. So but what happens is, you know, you get busy doing your business and you get good at it and then you start rolling like and then it's like you're rolling down a hill right? You just keep going and you speed up you know, and you're just making all these decisions and all these people are coming into your life. Don Anderson, Don Anderson is probably responsible for, you know, 70% of the properties that I bought in the San Fernando I mean in the Antelope Valley. And the first time I went to visit him I mean I called him several times I couldn't even get through to him. He was a you know Fannie Mae broker. Who was really busy and he's not gonna take my call, you know and stuff like that Alvarez. That's his gardener. He doesn't want to talk to me so these are people that over like Rocky Valentine was my my CPA, Bruce Norris again my life in business and real estate, all the major decisions that I made at one point or another. They're all linked in some way to The Norris Group for Bruce Norris specifically, okay, Bruce Norris specifically, because at that point, Aaron Norris, who came in afterwards and helped us a tremendous amount, wasn't even in the game at that time. This is how Fargo, we're going. We're going back. I ended up in Bentonville, Arkansas. I didn't even know that place existed, okay. I mean, I knew I knew about Walmart, but I didn't know about Bentonville, Arkansas. Bruce says to me, I said, 'What are we going to do? We gotta bail. I gotta go to some and everybody's everything's going down'. He said, 'Not everywhere.' I said, 'What do you mean that not everywhere?''There's a little place called Bentonville, Arkansas. There's Walmart corporate does that this, this place is very unique. It's going through some changes right now. We can put our money there.' And he went on and told everyone I told him I even said to him, I said, 'can you keep this between us until I get my own stuff out there. And then you can tell everybody' 'No, sorry, I gotta go.' So he goes on. He has a class and he tells everyone, right? I'm on a plane to some place called Bentonville, Arkansas. And I was surprised that they had nonstop flights from LAX to Bentonville to this little one horse town, right? And you get up in Bentonville and right away this guy. I never had this experience. 'Welcome to Bentonville. So nice to see ya.' But I felt like I was talking to Clinton, you know, and I get in, and I go and Bruce had built some houses there. And I went and found a different contractor found some lots exactly where he told me to go. I didn't want to interrupt his flow. He already had most of his houses built anyways, I went and built I've got many houses, I built 10 plus houses or something. I build all these houses. We wrote it out. The market didn't crash. It didn't go up huge amounts but didn't crash either. It was the best play while I am there. I get to meet this young guy is taking me around wants to introduce me to some big developer guy who when I went and met with him, I wasn't impressed. And when we're leaving, I'm complaining when the elevator and I'm complaining. I said I got so many 1031 exchanges man, I gotta find someplace to put this money. And he said to me, 'Oh, you need to meet Rocky Valentine.' I said 'Rocky Val-who the hell sounds like a mobster.' And he says no, he's a CPA and he specializes in 1031s. That man and I we met I actually introduced him to that bigger guy who he wanted to meet and you know, the bigger developer guy could never get into his place. I met him but I also warned him I said I met the guy I don't think he's what he portrays himself to be so but him and I become fast friends. He takes over my taxes and my accounting stuff. He just retired because Rocky had a heart attack and and then he had a stroke after that. And I forced him to stay with me even though he had a heart attack. I made him stay with me for a while. Honest to goodness, because I'm terrible about, and I said 'you're not leaving you can't leave me you're not leaving to your drop dead. You're not getting out of here alive.' Anyways, like, but he's responsible. Rocky was was I have never been audited. Rocky did all my stuff. We did a ton of 1031 exchanges and some other creative things. And he was my good friend and my and just wrote them a letter just the other day and we spoke on the phone. Bruce Norris, if I would have never talked to Bruce, I would have never gone to Bentonville and I never gone to Bentonville, I would have never met the guy who became my CPA and best friend and saved my butt through all these years in, I'm making all this money and he he guided me and protected me. I never had an issue. I never had a problem. If you go back and you start sewing these things up one by one by one who do I thank, who do who's most important to me. So people like Sabrina, Sabrina has probably Sabrina's you know her focus you know when she told me she says I know my focus is make Tony look good. How was the banner in front of her head because she knows I'm gonna disaster you know, but I've never been able to get rid of her. She's she could read it doesn't need to be around me. She knows how to pull from 2005, we got out we didn't get back in the market again until 2008 and we got in with a vengeance in 2008 The market was still declining, but I had done the numbers and we figured we can still, we can buy we can start buying now as the market was still dipping down but the rents were going up okay. So we have this kind of an effect right? I mean like this so, we start buying up. But I said to her, you gotta take over the buying because I want to kind of get pulled back a little bit. It's from 2008 on until I came up to Oregon in 2015. Sabrina was the buyer for my company for Evergreen Properties was the buyer was the person responsible for pulling the trigger on every time, every once in a while I would do a deal, you know, because people will call me that I've known for forever. But Sabrina was known as the person that runs the show. Now who do I owe, Sabrina, Bruce, Norris, Rocky, all of these people interconnected. They're all entwined all of these folks, you know, and I tried to explain this to people one time I said, Listen, when you enter this life, it's you, the only thing you have to do is say, I'm open to what's going to happen, or you're going to shut yourself up. That's the only decision you're going to make. Because it's a web of contacts and connections, a web of contacts and connections, you enter into that web. And it's just you right in. You know, I mean?
Craig Evans:So, let me ask you this. So, in that you mentioned Bruce. Yep. So let me let me...
Tony Alvarez:Millions of dollars, okay, millions, of all you people out there. And anytime I get a chance, you know, Bruce would do a class or something, I would go on Facebook and say, 'Are you people? Are you insane? You claim to be in real estate in Southern California. And you're not showing up for this class? Like, what do you have to do that's more important. This guy gave me 10 words of advice one time and he changed my life to the tune of 3 million bucks, within a couple of years. And I didn't have to do anything, but not do anything. Because Tony is big on doing stuff. Right? So I was about to do something that would have lost me that would have pulled out $3 million right out of my hands. Bruce said, do nothing, you move into quick, just sit still go buy some other stuff if you want. But I didn't have to buy that $3 million came to me as a result of just listening to 10 words of advice. And it was like like, your area just sits, you know, don't sell your area isn't done yet. It was like 10 words I counted on it was like $300,000 a word.' So I remember that. And so then when Bruce, I would go to Bruce all the time, I will go on my spreadsheets, I never, there's people that I have had come into my life that I quickly learned. I don't move. I don't make a decision. Unless I'm clearing it with them. Now I granted I don't consider myself to be the brightest bulb in the room, still. But I You know, I've learned a few things. But one of the most important things I learned is, I don't know everything. And I won't really want to know everything. I don't want to be that guy. I don't want to be you know, I don't want to be Bruce with the thing with looking up stuff. I don't know. I want to have go have lunch with somebody go have breakfast with somebody you know, and I ended up in the lunch thing was never a big thing for me when I was working. I want you to know for those of you that are out there, I made time to meet with people stuff like that. But I never ,when I was in the in the trenches starting out. I didn't have lunch with a lot of people stuff like that. And I think to a certain extent, you know, I may have lost a lot of business because of that, but that was I needed to hyperfocus you know, but...
Craig Evans:Well, with Bruce, you know, he's retired this year...
Tony Alvarez:Yes.
Craig Evans:You know, in real estate is one of those things that you can literally do forever, right? Not everyone wants to, right? Bruce saying'hey, I'm ready to start retiring.' So which one are you?
Tony Alvarez:You know, it's interesting that you're very astute that you land on this question, because I happen to be sitting by myself last night you know, one of the things that I love coffee like good coffees, you know bold, not necessarily heavy caffeine because my heart can't handle it anymore. But I love going I got to love in $100 coffee machine I treated myself to after I came back from Australia by the way Australia has the best coffee in the world. And it was influenced by Italians, you know that in their history. But anyways, so one of my customs is I have this double insulated glass cup and stuff and I'll sit and make myself a cup of espresso or something similar to that they call it Expresso lungo or something, and I'll sit and I like it sweet and black and sweet. And I'll sit now. And last night I was doing that. And I was thinking about this interview. And I was thinking to myself, you know Jesus so many people out there you know for you to interview. Bruce has touched the lives of so many The Norris Group you know not only Bruce but Aaron as well Aaron really had an impact towards the end in many different ways that I never even thought about. And I think you know, I'm 68 years old I don't feel anywhere, I don't feel like there's retirement around the corner, right? And the truth of the matter is this. I tried a couple of times to "retire," right to get out of it and not do whatever. And nowadays, I guess you could. I'm not, I don't even like that word retirement, to be honest with you. I don't like it. I'm retired from what? I mean. Yes. Okay. So you can say, I'm just going to do things differently. But let's get that word and just pull it right the hell off the table. Because it doesn't mean anything to me whatsoever. Now, what I have done over the years, which is really the fact of my life, is that things change, right? So So you today you're doing this and you're making your money in real estate doing this. This is the wonderful thing about real estate. I did a presentation by the way. I was again, Aaron Norris. It was a I got a call from this guy, one day I'm naked, getting into the shower, and I want to why I answer my phone at that moment, right? So Tony's naked about to get in the shower, my cell phone goes off, I pick it up. And it's this guy. And he says 'Hi, is this Tony Alvarez?' 'Yeah, I need you to I need you to help us do a presentation for...''Who the hell is this?' And it turns out to be this guy that started BiggerPockets or whatever the heck it is. Now, here's the thing. I had sent him three articles to put in their thing. All three got got got rejected. And now this guy's on the phone to me. So I'm like, Are you kidding me? You're asking me to do it? So, he says'Yes, we need you to do a presentation by the way. Aaron Norris gave me your phone number. He said, We have to have you there. And Bruce Norris is going to be there during the presentation. But we want you to open the thing'. And I said,'Well, what do you want me to talk about? I'm thinking REOs, because that's what you know, foreclosures and stuff.' 'It's not enough. We want you to do with the introduction to real estate, we want you to cover all the ways of investing in real estate, all the methods of financing real estate, and we want you' and 'I said well, how much time you got?' 'You got an hour'. I said 'you know, it's obvious that you're new to this business. I had all day, I couldn't do that.' He says'Well, that's all you got. You got an hour, Tony, are you willing to do it?' Now I told you about my mom's frog. What do I say to that guy? And in my mind, I'm thinking to myself, this is an impossibility. I can't do this. I said my mouth open and 'I said no problem, bye'. right?, I hang up the phone, I get off immediately my brain goes, are you insane, you can't do this. And my brain starts telling me excuses as to how I can get out from under this. Just tell him you're sick with it. When it comes you don't. Jesus, just back out of it just to go, but that's not going to happen. So I did that presentation. I did it in an hour. And I started with a picture of an elephant. And I said, 'Here's your real estate business. I have a tough job today because it's basically a miracle you're going to watch on this stage. I'm going to cover everything about real estate in one hour. But how do you eat an elephant?' And I show the next slide was a bite taken out of his back I said 'you do it one bite at a time right' and that started the presentation. So Tony will never be, will never stop participating in the real estate business never to one extent or another because why? because it's an integral part of something that I love. It's just like I have fruit trees all over my property I'll never stop doing certain things in my life. They're sort of the fiber of who Tony is right? I love fruit trees I love, I can't wait to get my place in Florida so I can have different fruits you realize all the tropical fruits I can get in Florida I can't get those fruits up here, right? I have the best of both worlds. I'll spend six months there six months here and I got different fruits all the time. But this little thing right so you think proves 'What's this guy talking about?' To me real estate businesses like that. It gives me something I love it. And I keep and I'm always learning new new things. I went from doing rehabs to doing this to doing that to property management to doing all of this each part of those things in real estate I adore, I love the people I work with up here. I didn't know anybody when I got up here. I know everybody I have really good friends up here now. people that I've met as a result, okay, The Norris Group again, I'm getting interviewed like this with Bruce Norris. Once I'm in Los Angeles, some gentleman hears that recorded thing he calls and he speaks with Aaron and says 'Hey, I heard Tony speaking on the you know getting interviewed. He mentioned he lives in Oregon now could you please give us his contact information'. Aaron calls me would you liked it give me your contact information. I said I never would have said 'hey, do it'. That man turns out to be his father owned over 500 units of your all free and clear. He started in business many years ago, he heard me speak and he heard some of my political views and he, you know, well simpatico with him. He says, if he's up here, we want to meet him. They invited me to speak at a real estate club up here. They invited me to speak very conservative men, and they're wonderful people. One day calls me up because I went looking for loan. So I'm always looking, I'm interviewing banks all the time, all the time, all the time, regional banks, I'm always going around meeting everybody introducing myself, I went to this place, I said, 'Hey, I'm looking for a bank. And you know, and here's my spreadsheets would have. 'Oh, but you're with your other bank here in town.''Yeah. Evergreen bank.' I said,'Yes.' 'This is why we can't touch your deal. This is, yeah, this is we can't touch it.' I said, Okay, that's fine. At least I got to meet you stuff in that and he's friends with the guy, the other bank. And within a few days, I got an email that says, 'Tony, how you doing? I hope everything's gonna go.' And it's from this gentleman from this gentleman that heard me on the radio, he says, 'We I'd like as a personal favor. If I heard you went to people's bank, would you please visit People's Bank again, as a personal favor of me and see if they can help you out?' So I'm like, I'm reading this and I'm going, this is a small town. But this is crazy. How the hell does this guy know that I went, right? So I immediately call him up. I said,'How do you, Craig? How do you know', his name happens to be Craig also, by the way, I said,'Craig, how do you?' And he goes, 'Well, you know, it doesn't matter.' But this is a fine person, I want you to know, okay, just a very, very fine man. I got to meet his father, him. They're wonderful people. And I felt his dad and I read the same the first two books, Thinking Grow Rich, and How to Make Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, his first two books, I read the same, but we're like 30 years apart in age, okay. And yet we read the same two books, okay? Because he wanted to get into real estate and all that stuff. So he says to me, would you do as a person fair, would you go back to the to the, I said, I said, 'What? What do you care? If I go to?' He said, Tony, look, okay. 'My dad was one of the guys that started that bank. And I'm on the board of directors. So would you please go back to the bank and see if they can help you.' So I'm in shock. Now, you know, because up and he's never seen anything like he's very easy. He's a very fine person, he would never throw that kind of stuff on the table, you know, and impress anybody or anything like that. So I go back to the bank. And I'm like, beside myself, I walk in, I said, 'I'm supposed to come see you, because...' he says, 'yep.' He says, 'Come on in, sit down.' The guy closes the door. He goes, I'm supposed to ask your question. I said,'Well, what do you want?' I said, 'What?' 'What do you want?'I said, 'What do I want? Yeah,''Don't complicate this. Just tell me what you want. You want it financing? Can you just tell me what it is you want?' 'No, I didn't want anything extravagant. To be very honest with you, I really wanted to get a similar deal. But I was looking for a new bank to work with.' And I wrote down my stuff, you know, this is construction loans, that's going to convert to a permanent financing and stuff. So I wrote down my my interest rate, how much of a fee I wanted to pay. And I turned around, I hand it to him. And I said, 'Okay, this is it.' And he goes, 'Okay, you can you leave, I'll get back to you.' Now, he had my number and everything else I leave, I drove probably the equivalent of maybe five miles. My phone gets a ping on it. And he says, 'You got your deal.' Now, I want you to know, I did, keep in mind, I didn't ask for anything that was all that extravagant or anything like that. They were a little bit less than what I was getting. And the structure of the deal was what I wanted to get. But, you know, I was very appreciative of that. Now, what are the odds, you tell you you live a life like, well live? What are the odds that I'm being interviewed like this? Somebody hears it up here in Oregon, they call, we become friends. And the next thing I know, I go to this bank, I don't know that it's, I don't know that have anything to do with that bank? Then they're calling me sending me an email. So let me go. And then that develops a relationship with me, by the way, they have done all my construction deals because I now build, you know, I've been building small things, you know, up to like 11 lots, and they're individual lots and that duplexes, and they're for elderly i i built for over 55, 65 know, most of them are in their 70s and 80s of the folks that rent from us. That's one thing and to answer your question, you know, directly, I'm never going to retire from real estate. I'm never going to retire from anything just like I don't want to retire from, to me it's like when you're going to retire from life, when they call me back back when they say, okay, hey, your, we want you back, I went through that operation, which was the biggest hurdle in my life, you know, as far as, on a personal level, on a business level, the only hurdles I have ever had in my life on a business level is adding something new to my business model that I had no experience in at that particular time, something, you know, going in a different direction. When I added rentals, right, I had to go through the learning curve, I went, there was a point where I had 100%, Section 8 rentals. 100% in the in the Antelope Valley, some people thought I was nuts. And then I started getting calls from people that wanted me to show them and I trained other investors, I help them out. I never say no to that kind of stuff. I helped this other guy that had over 300 rentals, you know, 300 houses in my market, he, you will consider them a competitor. I always look at it as cooperating, I cooperate with all other investors just like up here, I got a guy that owns 2000 units. I sold him some rentals this year, he paid me 795,000 for them fourplexes that I had paid$300,000 or $327,000 a couple of years before so. It's this is for me is it's just life. You know, it's I'm not gonna retire from anything that I love. Why would I do that? And I and I've been in it all these years because I love it and it loves me back. You know.
Craig Evans:I will tell you as I'm wrapping up here, I'm gonna tell you I think one of the most interesting things I have learned today is that you're willing to take Brandon Turner's phone call in the nude. About going...
Tony Alvarez:Is that his name? I wouldn't I can never remember his name. But I want you to know the first thing I said to him is'You got a lot of gal calling me up. You turn downstream.' 'I know. He says I know. I apologize. We got we thought you were' some what he said to me. He was very honest. He said, 'We thought you were some some real estate guru type,' you know that I say 'Guru Type?' I say 'Aaron tell you that?' 'No, no, Aaron's don't want to straighten us out. Because we told him that we had done to you know that we didn't want to deal with you and stuff like that.' And he said, 'Oh, man, you made a mistake you that's the guy you need.' And yeah, but it goes to show a web of contacts and connections. It's a web of contacts and you better be nice to everybody you meet out there. If you're starting out in this business, you bet a lot, Learn to love your business associates. That's the way I've explained it over the years, learn to care about the success of other people as much as your own. Because if you miss that boat, you've missed you've missed life period.
Craig Evans:So as you as you take your frogs with you. Where to folks find you coming up? Where do we follow Tony Alvarez?
Tony Alvarez:Okay, so, here's the deal. I've been very, you know, I've been very quiet I speak every once in a while I always do this stuff, kind of stuff for the Norris group. And for very good reasons have already explained. But I'm very particular about where I go otherwise, you know, speaking in public, for anybody or anything like that, because it's a stamp of approval, so to speak, right? I mean, whenever we speak for, you know, they see you and they go, okay, hey, if they think Tony's being honest about his stuff, then they're going to, that gives them credibility. So I have I've been invited to speak for a wonderful group. And it's, there, actually, it's actually coming up in February. It's Saturday, February 24. It's in San Diego, California. I can't wait because I love going to California. And it's a group that teaches veterans and first responders how to Invest starting with nothing, right? Starting from zero. And Bruce Norris is going to be there. And there's, some other guys that are going to be there as well. And this is run by Buddy Rushing in his wife. Yes. And they have the, but but here's the kicker? Okay. So I was speaking with them yesterday. And I'm just getting prepared because I have some, I have some things I'm going to be giving away because I just I just I just got through telling you that I came to this country, you know, basically for freedom, right? Yes. As I get a call that says would you mind speaking in front of a group of veterans as like, for me personally, I have no greater honor than that, right? I get to go before a group of men and women that it's something I'm really looking forward to. I'm working really hard on that presentation. Because I'm gonna I'm gonna have to keep my emotions in check the whole time from the minute I get on that stage, right. So I gotta take some kind of, I got to take some kind of meditation course or something before I get no deep breathing or something. But this is a fabulous event and they have a deal with a, they work with with they, they're going to help you succeed. I mean, that's just there, and you're ready for this. We're talking about it and I said, Well, you know, what do you guys, you know, that was the cost for this, maybe I can sponsor some tickets or whatever she says, Well, you know, we pretty reasonably charged 75 bucks, I had just filled up the tank in my truck, right? It cost me $75, exactly. And I remember thinking, and I even said it to her, I said, I can't believe for all the stuff that you guys are providing. It's the same as a cost of a tank of gas. I mean, that's just beyond my understanding. But she went even further than that and said, well, we don't leave anybody behind. So if somebody's even having trouble with that, they need to contact us. But 75 bucks, I'm really looking forward to this to this event. Besides that, you know, we're talking about a lot of other things I'm trying to get do a little bit more speaking and stuff like that, because I want to do that. But like I said, I dealt with these questions. I was thinking about this last night, Tony is never going to quit real estate, I'm going to do more speaking, I'm going to make myself more available to for folks that that are interested in getting into the business. But I want you to know, keep in mind when Tony got started in this business, there were no cell phones, no computers, no internet. So if I wanted to do a deal, I had to come to you personally, if I want to talk to you face to face, you know, or I had to go home and go dial phone and hope it wasn't busy. You know...
Craig Evans:Was it the rotary phone?
Tony Alvarez:Well, I think we still had some rotary phones, but only because we were too cheap to change them. But it's just a magnificent time for me because I'm feeling great and everything is everything is I mean, I couldn't be in a better position. And I'm still, you know, what I tried to do is find interesting things to do. Right? It's not just about having another 100 section 8 rentals or something like that. That's not where Tony's interest is anymore. And it's in the real estate business. It's always a series of just like in life, you know, levels and scales, levels and scales and right. So, as you develop you, you start doing things we just bought a lot. I've never done an RV, anything every RV spaces or anything like that. We just bought a lot here in an area that has a lot of RV, you know, RV parking spots and stuff like that, you know? So we're it's got a house in the front, and we're developing. I'm working with the same engineer that has done the the elderly housing thing for us on those duplexes. And when I say elderly housing, it's just, we designed those duplexes, one bedrooms and two bedrooms, to cater to folks that don't want stairs, right? You know, they only have one car, they don't need a two car garage, and they don't want, right. So they want to be close to stuff we just bought another lot. We're going to do four of them. Zero parking. It's right downtown, in grants fast you can walk everywhere, and the people that were renting, we already have a waiting list. They have no automobiles, they walk everywhere. And they take the bus, they got the bus thing they got, you know, they got the bus thing that tells them all the buses and drivers. I mean, they come in to fill out an application and they're sharing all this information with Sabrina, you know, because she still handles all the management for it. So interesting things. There's not, there's if you're getting bored in the real estate business, you're doing something wrong.
Craig Evans:Guys for everybody. Listen, ladies and gentlemen, it has been an honor to have Tony Alvarez with us today. Make sure and catch up with him. If you're in San Diego, please go check Buddy and his event out it is a great event. Tony again, thank you so much for everybody listening. Thank you so much. Have a great day.
Tony Alvarez:Thank you very much for having me. I sincerely appreciate it.
Narrator:For more information on hard money loans, trust deed investing, and upcoming events with The Norris group. Check out thenorrisgroup.com. For more information on passive investing through the DBL Capital Real Estate Investment Fund, please visit dblapital.com.
Joey Romero:The Norris group originates and services loans in California and Florida under California DRE license 01219911. Florida mortgage lender license 1577 and NMLS license 1623669. For more information on hard money lending go to thenorrisgroup.com and click the hard money tab.