Zach Beach’s Unconventional Success Story of Breaking the Mold of Traditional Real Estate Investing with Creative Financing Strategies

Pamela Bardhi: Hello, everyone, and welcome to, the Underdog podcast. Today I have an incredible guest here with me, Zach. How are you? My friend?

Zachary Beach: Pam, I’m excited to spend some time with you on this podcast. because we got to spend a ton of time together. so I think we’ll be able to dive even further, know my story, creative financing. I think we’re going to have some fun here.

Pamela Bardhi: Absolutely. Zach. Oh, my gosh. So excited to have you, man. Honored to have you as a friend. and honored to have created so much content in this entire creative financing masterclass with you. I’m just like, man, I’ve learned so much from Zach. 

He is the OG. And I can’t wait for all of you guys to meet Zach. He is brilliant at what he does. He’s wicked smart. You’ll get that a little bit later. But it’s so incredible to meet someone so down to earth.

Who’s doing some incredible things in the world. And today, we actually get to dive into your story. So I get to hear all about Zach.

Zachary Beach: I’m pumped. Appreciate the kind words. I’m grinded and trying to figure out how to take the next step. and get to the next level, as I’m m sure many of your listeners. being part of the Underdog podcast. 

I mean, I have my own underdog story in itself. and my story is just still developing. I mean, I’m 33 years old. so I got plenty of things, plenty of canvas to go ahead and paint over the next many years. as well as I’m just getting started.

Pamela Bardhi: I absolutely love that. The energy is beautiful, my friend.

Zach is the owner of multiple real estate companies

Pamela Bardhi: So I’m just excited, I guess we got to start here. What inspired you on your journey to where you are, Zach?

Zachary Beach: Yeah, well, so I know you’re a local Massachusetts person. so I actually grew up right outside of Worcester, Massachusetts. I grew up with a single mother. My dad wasn’t around too know. I eventually spent more time with him towards the end of his life. but he wasn’t really around too often. So I grew up with a single mother. when I was quite young and my parents broke up. we moved to, Shoesbury, Massachusetts, is what it’s. 

And so I grew up as a, poor kid in a rich town. so I had a huge chip on my shoulder my entire life. and I don’t think it has left. I don’t know if it’s going to leave, whether that’s healthy or not. it’s definitely been driving force for me. especially at the beginning of my career and getting involved in entrepreneurial activities. I’ve always kind of had that. I’m just trying to prove everyone wrong type mentality is. I was one of the kids that was always in trouble in school. In high school.

 I think the only reason why I actually made it through high school was two reasons. One, I had this amazing special ed teacher, Miss McSweeney, and football. Those are the only two things that kept me, coming to school each day. And when I was trying to figure out what I was going to do next. I mean, the only reason why I went to college is. because my teachers told me I couldn’t. So I figured out a way to get in there. And that kind of leads you to a path, though. where you’re not really clear about what you want to do. 

You’re just consistently trying to prove people wrong. So by the time I got out of college, I had zero idea what I wanted to do. So I did what everybody in their right mind would do, is I became a bartender. I started bartending in, Newport, Rhode Island. Did that for about four years while I was bartending. I was always ambitious, so I started picking up personal training. working really late nights and then wake, them really early in the morning.

 And then I needed some more things to do. So then I started working in the, network marketing space. MLM companies, and I was doing some nutritional supplement stuff. And eventually I just got super burnt out. what really brought me into real estate investing was, my father in law. who’s my business partner and has been for almost nine years now.

And he was, revamping his business. He got crushed in 2008 and he was doing this thing called creative financing. or what they called it back then before all the cool kids started getting involved. in this space was terms buying and selling on terms. I approached him and said, I don’t know if I’m going to like real estate investing. Heck, M, I don’t know if I’m going to be good at it, but I’m willing to try it.

So I started at the beginning where everybody else does. at least in my world, which is started by getting a list of people. also known as expired listings, and started just making phone calls and failing forward consistently. And that’s where my real estate journey started. And, nine years later, here I am owner of multiple real estate companies right now. been able to teach people how to do this creative financing thing. which has been a lot of fun.

Pamela Bardhi: I absolutely love that. Zach, thank you so much for that.

You talk about growing up with a chip on your shoulder about language

Pamela Bardhi: My goodness, I love so many different elements of your story. Know, you talk about growing up with, like a chip on your shoulder. That was kind of the same thing for me. Growing, know, coming to the US and literally getting thrown into first grade.

because English is my third language, so I literally couldn’t understand the damn thing. That was like, I didn’t know the alphabet, I didn’t know anything. And I always kind of, growing up, almost felt like the outcast, kind of growing up. And it was a similar situation with me in my city. 

I was the one who always stuck out compared to everybody else. And so you always have this determination. to prove yourself at a higher level than ever before when it comes to that.

As a kid, Zach always wanted to be a sports agent

Pamela Bardhi: But I’m curious, as a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up, though? What was your dream?

Zachary Beach: Yeah, what was interesting was, I didn’t have any entrepreneurs in my family. I mean, my dad would always have side. He was never employed, but he always had something to do. So I don’t know if that kind of where it came from. So when I was actually in, when I was really young. I lived on a golf course in the town called Rochdale, Massachusetts. 

So it’s this golf course, it’s this old Milltown. and at the top of the street called Watch street. there was, I think it was like the 7th green or the 7th tee. So what I would do is I used to go around and collect golf balls on the tall grass. and sell golf balls for four for a dollar. And now that I realize that I golf, I’m like, I was giving some people some major discounts there. because you can’t get anything for less than 1015, $20 for golf balls. 

And, I was getting in the tall grass doing that for them. And I think that’s where my journey kind of began. But as far as when I wanted to be, when I grow up. I always thought I was going to be a sports agent, I was obsessed with, sports. had been since I was a kid. I used to fall asleep to the top 100 touchdowns on this old cassette tape. The old VHS tapes. used to have one of those screens, or the TVs had the built in VHS tape. I’m starting to sound old. 

so I used to fall into that all the time. And then I played football baseball, basketball, you named it. To this day, I still love sports. So, I always thought I was going to be a sports agent. I actually went to go to apply for one of the schools, in New York. but just things didn’t work out and I ended up finding myself maybe not working with agents. but in the sports world, but I found myself buying and selling something. that’s where I ended up.

Pamela Bardhi: Now, I absolutely love that. I love that, Zach. And throughout your journey, kind of walking through high school into college. you said you didn’t really participate in that, which is fine. because it’s like college is not for everybody, I say that to everyone. I’m like, listen, the ROI, if you don’t know what you’re doing, you might as well not go. because it’s just going to be a whole waste of life. I have friends that are quarter million in debt.

Zachary Beach: Oh, yeah, me too. That’s why I went to, the closest state school in Massachusetts I could get. to where my wife at the time, or my wife now. she, was my girlfriend at the time, lives who we grew up in Central Mass. but her parents moved down to Newport, Rhode island. and then she went to the University of went. So I went to the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. because it was the closest school to Newport, Rhode Island. she just went because I needed to get out the heck out of Worcester at the time. and out of where I currently was at. 

I went through my own battles, know, had my battles with addiction and things of that sort. And the people around me were not going to the place I wanted to go. So really my cause was the escape out. so I didn’t really care what I was going to do and where I was going. but ended up down in, U. S. Dartmouth, got a degree in marketing and a minor in finance. And I think maybe I use it now. But certainly if I knew that real estate was as powerful as I do know now. I probably just wouldn’t have went to college and just started investing in real estate. Heck, I would have been ten years ahead of where I currently am now.

Pamela Bardhi: I know I always say I’m pissed off at my 2009 self who was graduating high school. that I didn’t buy real estate at that time. So I’m still bullshit that I didn’t buy real estate in 2000. We always wish we could have started sooner. but I love and appreciate that you mentioned that and that life obstacles that actually happen. because this is something that a lot of people don’t talk. You know, we would look at you now, Zach. 

And we’re like, holy shit, he’s got it all together, he’s got this, he’s got that. But then knowing that you’ve been through your struggles. and this is what people don’t understand, is the toughest people that you’ve ever met in your life. the most successful, have been through the most stuff, than anybody else, right? Like I always say, I’m like, my failures far exceed my successes. 

And I openly say that all the time. I was always afraid to be vulnerable because I was the kid. just like you with the chip on the shoulder. So you don’t want to be like, I’m not weak. What do you mean? But this showcases that, like, hey, we’re real people too. and we have struggled and we have made it through certain things. 

And this is how, and I know that there’s a lot of people right now. that are listening that either are struggling with addiction themselves. or they have a loved one or a friend or they know of someone. Right? So through your experience, Zach, what would be some pieces of advice to help navigate those waters?

Zachary Beach: Yeah, that’s a great question, and I’m glad you said that you got it all together. I don’t get it all together, I got little kids and multiple businesses. and trying to figure out my way through life just like everyone else. I might not have the same problems as I used to have. but I certainly still have problems, when it comes to I grew up in an era. and I know it sounded like you graduated a year older than me. so I’m just saying. 

No, I lied. I’m a year older than you. I graduated 2008. I grew up in a time where it was normal to be hooked on things. and to, be experimental and, especially in the realm in which I got connected with primarily. like pain pills and things like that, I had many football injuries. and back then, I mean, the doctors didn’t care. They just sent you home with stuff, right? So a lot of people got messed up in that world. Some of my best friends have passed away at one point in time.

I used to hated hearing from one of my best friends at home. because he would call me and be like, hey, did you hear about so and so? And I’d be like, just stop calling me, please. Because it was a tough time, but it certainly has made me into who I am today. And I wouldn’t change a, single thing. I always get that question on these podcasts. If you could go back in time. what would you tell yourself or would you change anything? 

I always say no because I wouldn’t be me, who I am today, right. If people are struggling with that right nOw. the main things that were super helpful for me. and I think I caught it a lot earlier, I didn’t fall as deep into what others did and when. I’ll share with you guys the book. I actually wrote about this in our first Amazon bestselling book. When it was revised, we’ll make sure everyone gets a copy of it.

Zach  says changing your inner circle is key to personal growth

Zachary Beach: But the number one things that I did was I just changed my inner circle. And that could be related to having battles with drug addiction. or that could be you having battles with, your confidence. or trying to get out of the current situation, you’re in. I know this is completely overplayed. but they usually say that you’re the sum of the five people you hang out with. And it’s extremely true. 

you look around, most of your friends probably all have relatively the same jobs. or the same amount of income and think about the same things and do the same things. They determine kind of how you act. So the biggest thing I did was I changed where I was hanging out. I cut off basically everyone that I knew was not helpful for me at that time. It doesn’t mean forever, because everyone evolves. I mean, I was young, I was in my late teens, early 20s when that happened. 

So I was young and so weren’t everyone around me. But I just knew that if I wanted to be someplace different or if I wanted to be somebody different. that I had to change my current environment. So that was part of why I went off to college and things like that. as well as I need to get away from my current environment. So, that’d be the number one thing I would say. And then, kind of how I handled things was when you’re going through challenges like that.

you deal with a lot of self confidence issues. because really what’s happening is your inner, dialogue is different from your outer dialogue. Like you’re trying to pretend to be somebody else while you’re thinking about something different. So what really happened was I ended up getting panic attacks. And because I was completely different internally than I was externaLly. the biggest things I started doing was I just started evaluating two different things. 

One was I needed to get my confidence back. So I always relied on working out. I played sports. It made sense to me. So I began the process of, I would say detoxing. but really it was just I started working out again, and slowly but surely. And while I was doing that, instead of listening to music. because, I didn’t know much about personal development back then. I just started listening to YouTube videos of, like, Bob Proctor and Tony Robbins and Les Brown. and that would be my music, because, I needed somebody else to tell me that I was more worthy. 

And I need to increase my self confidence. So I worked on my body first, and then I worked on my mind. Once I started discovering that. as those two steps kind of came together. that’s when things started to evolve and really change. because my internal world started projecting to my new external world. then from there, I just continue to build upon it. Focus consistently every single year on development and being more and more clear about what I want. each and every year, I continue to shed the things that are no longer fit for where I’m trying to go. and add the things that I know I need to add in order to get to where I want to be.

Pamela Bardhi: I love that, Zach. Thank you so much for those tips, man. I mean, you are so right. You are the sum of, the five people that you hang out with. And really protecting your energy is definitely incredibly key in changing your. Actually. Are you into Dr. Bruce Lipton, who talks about epigenetics?

Zachary Beach: I am not. I’m writing that down. Bruce Lipton. Got it.

Pamela Bardhi: Oh, man. You’re going to love him, what he says. because what you’re saying is resonating completely with what his research has. Years and decades of research proves that when we put ourselves in a different environment. our actual DNA can shift and change.

Zachary Beach: Interesting.

Pamela Bardhi: Which is really interesting. So it’s like, if you’re placed in an environment, like, for example, if you’re growing up in the project, it’s very hard to get outside of that, because your genetics are in a certain way, so you’re programmed a certain way.

Zachary Beach: Right.

Pamela Bardhi: If you break out of that, then it turns into a different story. Which was the case for you, is you shifting, leaving Worcester. and going down to UMass myth, of course, being as close to Newport, Rhode island as possible. But that makes a huge difference. because that pulls you out of whatever energetic realm that you were in there that you were struggling with. and brought you into a whole different world. which I think is really important for anybody who’s listening has a loved one.

 It’s like, who are they hanging out with? Because it is true. I have, a very close, very close friends of mine, very close friends of mine who have passed from this. I continue to see it with young people left and right. And also my brother in law passed away as well at 31 last year from overdose. So, it’s been really hard, and I’ve seen loved ones struggle through it and all that. 

It is, like, the hardest thing in the world to be right here. as somebody who loves and cares for this person and not be able to get them out. Because they’re so stuck into their internal world. And how do you help them and lift them up? Well, the key is their environment. because what I’ve realized is who they surround themselves with. The minute that shifts, everything changes.

Zachary Beach: Yeah, that’s the way it is, just in general. There’s this idea of, there’s like the, 32nd friends, the minute friends, like the five minute friends. I forget exactly who said it, but when you go hang out with the friends you grew up with. it’s automatically like, you go back to, you have the same stupid jokes that you had. when you were first hanging out with them. but then there’s the people that you see your future with. or, you’re looking to build upon, or you’re trying to build a network around. and you act a little bit different, right? 

And it’s not to say that you’re acting, out of the ordinary. You’re not acting as yourself, but there’s many different, versions of yourself when it comes to it. as we’re all different people, right? We’re all fathers, sons, business owners, grandson, you name it. We have all these different identities that we kind of work with. So I think when you’re trying to reach something much bigger than where you originally came from. that you have to change your identity to a certain extent. because you have to change how you act, behave. process things in order to go ahead and move to that next level. 

Even though, yeah, the core person in general. it’s the people that we surround ourselves with in the environment. that eventually helps us reach where we’re trying to go. I was always told it’s not necessarily the goal that’s the end result. It’s who you have to become in order to reach that goal. And that transformation, I think, is what we’re all really aiming for at the end of the day. 

And certainly something that we focus on at, wicked smart and smart real estate coach. And that is that transformational process to go from. here’s who I currently am and who’s who I want to be. once I’m able to reach who I want to be. then the things in which I was hoping to have. or the feelings that I’m supposed to have, tend to come to fruition once you get there.

Pamela Bardhi: Amen. Exactly.

You were a bartender before you got into real estate investing

Pamela Bardhi: And that was your transition from bartending to real estate investing, too, with your father in law getting into this creative finance space. which is, like I always like to say, the hottest topic in real estate investing right now. especially in a high interest rate environment.

Zachary Beach: Right?

Pamela Bardhi: This is like the golden ticket, the Willy Wonka. I kept saying, lister, in our master class. like the Willy Wonka of, real estate investing. if you can learn how to grasp it and really learn how to execute it. Because imagine buying real estate with no banks or no credit. and just, like, structuring deals, which is exactly what you do. And another observation that I love a lot, though.  because you were a bartender in the past, and then you got into real estate investing. 

And I’m always a big advocate for having restaurants be a prerequisite to getting into real estate. because it’s like, if you can learn to manage fires in the restaurant or bar world. you’re going to be so fine when it comes to real estate. you’ll be like, oh, it’s just another day. It’s just another day. Whereas some people would have an absolute freaking meltdown.

Zachary Beach: I couldn’t agree with you more. My wife and I used to always joke around. and said that how most countries make you, go into the military before you enter into the working world. we always said that you should have to go into the restaurant industry or the industry. It changes the entire dynamic of how you treat people. Because every single person that walks in. and I was in Newport island. so I had people that had zero money. 

There were some locals, even some people that were semi homeless. that would come into my bar up until the person that popped off the, half a billion dollar yacht. And the idea is you forgot a way to treat everybody exactly the same. because the end of the day, you’re trying to create an experience with those people at your bar. to make sure that everybody’s having fun. because that’s really, at the end of the day, why everybody would come to Newport is for vacation. 

So, be able to do that. But, yeah. And in addition to that, being able to put out fires. or I would say the even harder part is being able to constantly establish communication and connection. with every single person that walks into that place, which is exactly what real estate investing is. I always tell people, like, real estate investing is a relationship and a people business. We just happen to sell real estate as an asset that just happens to be the way we make money. 

But the only way, in my opinion, that you can actually get real estate deals done is. if you can understand and solve people’s problems. And then you get to do the fun real estate part. which is structuring the deals and then putting it all together. But if you can’t get somebody at the table, meaning they feel understoo.  and they feel as though you have a solution. then you’re never going to be able to structure a deal. So that’s always the main point. So, yeah, I could see that, being a prerequisite for real estate investing certainly, would be in my book.

Pamela Bardhi: We have to launch a restaurant. That’s called prerequisite, and then just have it be. That’s part of all the, real estate investing education. You got to go there, you got to pass the test before you go anywhere else. But you’re absolutely right. You learn to put out fires. You learn to improvise. You learn this certain social cues. and get an understanding of how people respond to certain things that you say. and just like rapport building, communication styles. you name it, like the restaurant world, that covers all of that.

So you transitioning into real estate investing after your father in law experienced 2008

Pamela Bardhi: So you transitioning into real estate investing, especially after this time. where your father in law experienced 2008. because he was wickedly successful before that, and then things.

Zachary Beach: Just went downhill because 23 projects he was doing, condo conversions in Boston. I mean, in Providence, Rhode island, in Massachusetts, 23 projects he had going. When, 2008 hit, it went to a third. The amount of real estate, the, value of the real estate went down to a third. So, pretty wild.

Pamela Bardhi: Yeah, I would have passed out, I’m sure.

Zachary Beach: Yeah. He has many stories. It’s probably worth bringing him on sometime here soon. and, maybe get him to come to one of your meetups. He certainly’s got some great.

Pamela Bardhi: Oh, totally, totally. But transitioning into the space of creative finance. And for those who are listening that have absolutely no idea what this is. Zach, what’s the high level? Because we talk about, you don’t have to use a bank, no credit, and then people think it’s a legit scam. And no, it is not. It is a legitimate way we structure deals. It’s just instead of a bank, it’s a pErson.

Zachary Beach: Yeah. At the end of this. That’s one good way to put it. So, with the foundation of it’s all about solving people’s problems.  It’s understanding what their current motivation is, and that could be good or bad. Let me talk two extremes. One is you have somebody that’s super financially set, debt free house, no mortgage on their property. That’s what we would consider a real estate problem. They maybe inherited the property, or it’s a second home. but at this point in time, they don’t have a use for the property. 

They’re thinking as more of a liability. Like, I got to pay taxes, I got to keep up the property. I got to keep the lawn mowed, all that good stuff. Maybe the property is all the way across the country. and they just don’t have to worry about it anymore. So that’s a real estate problem. So we structure a lot of deals with people just like that. because now they have the benefit of receiving cash flow on the property. 

They have the benefit of somebody like myself. who has real estate experience to be taking care of the property versus dealing with tenants. there’s a lot of estate and tax planning purposes. especially if we’re paying their trust for long term wealth for them and their family. For example, we bought our commercial building. It was a mixed use building right outside of Newport, Rhode Island. 

The seller was literally asking for. He had a sign on the road where it is, and he was asking for owner financing. And the whole reason was because he didn’t want to have to take care of the property anymore. but he would like to have received cash flow on the property. This is a debt free house. He ended up being sick, he ended up passing away. 

But we still, to this day, are making payments to his trust. So his family has been benefiting from us making payments. And of course, we were able to structure a really good deal with it. And we’ll say that for another time, well structured, a really good deal with it. So we were able to benefit. isn’t he?

You’ve got people affected from COVID or rising interest rates

Zachary Beach: And then let’s talk about the complete opposite side. which is you got people, still to this day, affected from COVID or still to this day. affected from rising interest rates, or even, the transition of increased taxes. When people bought properties during COVID they were buying the interest rate. for example, they didn’t care about the price of the house. So what happens is they were putting the least amount down, getting the low interest rate. 

What then happened was the dramatic increase in the purchase or the value of the home. Eventually they had the tax reassessed, and now, all of a sudden, they have a much bigger monthly. or, ah, quarterly tax bill, and now they can’t afford things like that. Or they got caught in the position where they couldn’t make the monthly payments. So, now, you have that extreme. and we can certainly step in, catch people up. and then make monthly payments and have that debt relief.

So, if I’m looking at two completely different extremes. we work with those that are not in good financial standings, there’d be financial challenges. And then people that are in really good financial standings, there’ll be real estate challenges. And because we can solve those challenges.  we’re able to structure deals that are advantageous for us. Meaning everyone always thinks like, all right, no money down, it’s a scam. Well, no, because I can solve that person’s problem. 

Their priority is not to have money in their pocket. Their priority may be to make sure that their payment gets paid every month. or their priority may be that they don’t want to have to take care of the property from a long distance. or their priority may be that they’re relocating and they don’t want to leave a house vacant. So having money in their pockets, down payment is just part of the circumstances. of course, that’s a benefit to us. And so things like that, or 0% interest rates. we get them all the time with properties that are debt free. And again, their priority is not to have interest.

Most people that you buy Real estate from are not real estate investors

Zachary Beach: Most people that you buy Real estate from are not real estate investors. One of the number one things that we see for challenges for people that are brand new real estate investors. are they assume that people, like, they make assumptions for other people instead of asking questions. 

And the assumptions lead to deals that they don’t end up getting under agreement. because they’re making assumptions, and then they’re assuming that people won’t accept their offers. instead of just solving a problem and making an offer. So those things happen all the time. So if I boil down what creative financing is, really. it just means that you’re not buying properties with banks involving banks. 

You’re not typically putting down large down payments. especially in comparison to the traditional market. Doesn’t mean you never do, but in comparison to the traditional market. and you’re never personally guaranteeing debt. so you’re not going to go out and get a bank loan or personally guarantee the debt. You’re going to be buying everything in your LLCs. which is extremely risk averse for you as a real estate investor.

Pamela Bardhi: Absolutely. And it’s such a beautiful way to capture properties with the least amount of.

Zachary Beach: Risk, if you will.

Pamela Bardhi: And I mean 0% interest. That part I love so much. because looking at disclosures where you’re like, by the end of this loan, you’re actually going to be paying double. than what you paid for the property from day one. And that is, like, horrifying. You’re like, okay, so you buy a $500,000 house, and you look at then on the closing disclosure. which nobody does.

So please, if you guys are buying something, look at the closing disclosure and see what you’re going to get. At the end of the day, what you’re actually going to be paying out with that interest and amortization. after 30 years, it’s like over a million, right? And so when you guys secure deals, it’s 0% financing. so you’re actually paying 500,000 for them.

Zachary Beach: Of course that’s part of it, right? And I’ve done both. So let me be honest here and clear. As a real estate investor, my primary focus is to buy through credit financing. That does not mean that if I went to go get a personal residence. that I wouldn’t use traditional bank financing I have. I don’t mind personally guaranteeing the debt of my personal house. I’m living there. But I also don’t want to be over leveraged with lots and lots of bank loans out there. But trust me, there’s a time and a place for it all. What I’m sharing with you is how you can actually get involved in real estate investing. 

Buy your first deal or start adding this onto your current portfolio. So that way you can eliminate the traditional barriers of, real estate investing. because I always break it down like this. So when the traditional way of buying real estate. and this is what most people know. because we’ve been taught this since we were kids. and it’s been taught by this for hundreds of years now.

Because the banks are the ones that provide all this information. and that is, you work really hard, right? You kind of follow the path that I was going on, which is like, you get to college. and then when you get to college, instead of being a bartender, you go get a normal job. you go get a normal job, and you save up, and you save 20% to 25%. then you either go buy your own personal residence. or if you’re trying to even real estate and you’re even trying to build a portfolio.you’re still trying to accumulate more, down payments to then go get bank financing. 

And it’s just eventually you start to run out of down payments. So then your next route could be, I got to go raise private capital. And I just know that there’s a lot of people out there that that is a very big gap. That’s a big jump to go from, I’m going to invest my own money to. I’m going to go use other people’s money. And if you’re not confident there, then what’s your alternative? Your alternative is your portfolio slows to a crawl.

You now only can buy so many properties every once in a while. or you’re limited to a very selectivE, like, you got to go buy in the Midwest. and you have to buy about $150,000 properties because you only got $15,000 to put down. and you want to do that consistently. So what I’m suggesting here is we just open up the floodgates and say. all right, well, now let’s start thinking about alternative ways to buy real estate. 

To continue to allow you to either go full time in real estate investing. get enough income in order to make it there. or two is to build a portfolio on the side. so that way you can continue to create a different lifestyle than maybe you were around originally. So creative finance is just the alternative routes, a new perspective, a new way of thinking. to go ahead and solve people’s problems by utilizing different techniques. instead of getting caught in the traditional rat race. 

And like I said, there’s a time and a place for that. but that should be your absolute last resort when it comes to buying real estate. is to going ahead and going to get a traditional bank loan. there’s many other ways that you can go about it before you have to go that route. And that’s exactly what we focus on and have chose to out of necessity at first. 2008 crash happens. 

How do I get back involved in real estate investing? Well, I don’t have credit. I don’t have money. My father in law says, so I got to use creative financing. But now it’s a choice. Now it’s all right. How do I best leverage the resources. and the skill sets that I have in order to create the most amount of wealth. most amount of cash flow? And that’s through creative finds.

Pamela Bardhi: Yes. I love that, Zach. It’s like, this is the option one before you get into option two. which is the banks. This is the least riskiest way in getting involved there, and it also doesn’t limit you at all. And you can structure deals. I mean, you guys are a proven example of the fact that, yes, people are open to this. And I think you mentioned something. Around one third of properties, across the US are debt free. It’s a huge market.

Zachary Beach: Yeah. And I believe it’s even bigger to our friends of the north in Canada. About a third, of the properties are debt free in the United States. So, that’s a huge market. And I know this has been a lot of talk recently. which is about Baby Boomer generation. and there’s a big hype around buying businesses creatively. Actually, I have a good friend of mine, and that’s exactly what he does. 

If those same baby boomers are selling off their businesses for little to no money down. then best believe that they’re selling off their houses on creative financing as well. and that’s where a lot of that debt free houses are coming from. that’s because they were taught as baby boomers to live in the same house. and pay down their mortgage after 30 years, and then they’re debt free. then they were going to retire. 

So now they have a debt free house and they have a business that they can’t sell. So now USA creative financing real estate investor can go ahead and help them with that problem. And then I always like to tell people this, too, like, creative financing is not something new. This has been around for hundreds of years. 

The ability to do creative financing also extends to many other places. like businesses like boats, like planes, like cars, you name it. Once the creative financing skill set and model are there mentally now. you ask different questions and you structure things differently.

Pamela Bardhi: Totally. Well, it’s just this additional tool in the toolbox, right? You’ve got your drill. but now you’ve got screwdriver, pliers, all the things that will get the job done. Tim Allen, shout out to Home Depot. They really should be sponsoring at this point.

Zachary Beach: That’s right, sponsored by Home Depot. Love it. Yes, it’s exactly it.

When we start teaching somebody creative financing, we make assumptions first

Zachary Beach: Because it’s, always funny is first thing that happens when we start teaching somebody creative financing. And I’ll tell you, this happens even more often with somebody that has real estate experience. In my opinion, that’s sometimes the most challenging thing. is to take somebody that was a real estate. let’s say a real estate agent or broker or a wholesaler or fix and flip. And then you’re like, hey, there’s a new way of doing it. 

And you’re like, that doesn’t make sense. versus somebody like myself that was brand new, had zero. I’m going to use the word baggage. but I had zero concept to build off of. I didn’t have to fit this thing into the current model that my brain knew about real estate. So I could just say, all right, here’s the script. 

Here’s what I ask people. And I just assume that this is a normal thing, and it’s becoming normal now. but nine years ago, it wasn’t. So when I do that, especially someone that’s brand new or somebody that has real estate experience. it’s always just trying to share with them a new way of looking at things and asking questions. 

Like, if I get on the phone call, when I’m talking with someone, like, all right. so I can assume that if I can get you, your price, that you don’t need any money now. Or I can assume that we can just leave your mortgage in place and I’ll start making payments. or I can assume that you’ll just take monthly payments. that go towards the original balance of your loan, 0% interest. And it’s just like, people are just like, how do you even ask that question? Because those are the questions you ask when you’re in creative financing.

Pamela Bardhi: Right.

Zachary Beach: We do our best not to make assumptions.  like, this person is going to need interest or this person is going to need a down payment. I know I’m going off on a tangent, but one of the number one things is when people start. especially those that are sending maybe referral deals to me or one of our new students is looking at. they always will be like, well, I offered them a down payment. 

I’m like, why’d you do that? Now we have to overcome that. Instead, just assume they don’t need money down and let them come to you and ask you for money down. Because now that’s part of the negotiation. Because now if they ask you, you can get that down payment way down, or make it contingent. Meaning, that you don’t have to make that payment until you have, either a buyer. if you’re exiting the property. or you have the renters in place where you already have cash flow or things like that. 

So it’s just the assumptive understands, you just know that everything is a clean slate. And then you just ask questions to determine where that current seller is. as far as what their understanding of what they need. where they want to go, where they want to go by. when and what exactly they order to get there. and once you understand that, then you start structuring the deals. Now we start looking at how do we pull on different levers. in order to really solve that problem.

Pamela Bardhi: I absolutely love that, Zach. Yeah. I mean, there’s so many creative ways to do it, man. Like, so many different ways to structure the deals. And you can’t assume, can’t make assumptions on sellers. because sometimes this could be their way out that they’re super excited about. because they have less capital gains or whatever their goal is, right. 

Tax planning purposes, whatever. But for anybody who’s listening, who’s a, real estate investor looking to buy their first deal or whatever. and they say, hey, Zach, how can I buy my first property using creative finance? What would be kind of the step by step?

Zachary Beach: I would just bring you. I’d walk you through the exact same steps that we walk every single one of our students through. And that is, first and foremost, we have to ensure that you have a source of people to communicate with. What I mean by that is, like, so we tend, to really communicate with expired listings. so people that need time in order to qualify for loans. because I love it for two reasons, and we have a lot of success with two reasons. 

And one is because they’ve already tried the. And the second one is they’re interested. Find a solution. The second thing would be, so find a lead source, or we’ll show you exactly how to find motivated sellers. Two would be how to be able to structure and communicate these deals with people. So, really being able to master, communication through scripts. we provide all of our scripts in our course. 

As you begin mastering the ability to communicate, with people. now, that’s the easy part, which is, once you understand and ask the right questions. now it’s just pulling the pieces together in order to finding the right structure for that person. It may seem, from afar that, creative financing can seem complicated. but the interesting thing is there’s actually a lot less moving pieces. than even most wholesale deals or even other real estate transactions.

because there’s less people involved, there’s less people involved, there’s less paperwork. But most people think, okay, it’s complicated, and that’s because there’s more options. So, just understanding, number one, where the seller is at. and then you can provide the solution. So it all just starts with, really building that skill set of communication.

Pamela Bardhi: Yeah. Building that rapport with them and then seeing what their motivation is. And then from there, structure the deal accordingly. And then get into, instead of. It’d still be like an offer, just like any other offer that you would offer. except for the payment terms are just a little bit different, right?

Zachary Beach: 100%. Yeah. It tends to be about five different terms in the agreement. It’s like, down payment is down payment, yes or no? What’s the purchase price? Is there an interest rate, yes or no? What’s the monthly payment, which will be a breakdown if there’s taxes, insurance. or it’s, with, a mortgage or not. And then the length of time. So is there a full amortization schedule or is there a balloon? 

And those are really five things that we’re really working through consistently. when it comes to the actual structure of the deal. And then the other different terms will come into play depending upon how fast the seller wants to move.  if there’s debt on the property or if they’re behind on payments or there’s any liens. So there’s many different ways in order to kind of navigate that. I would say read our book. 

That’d be a good place to start. Go to wickedsmartbooks.com underdog. That will really allow you to kind of mind map this out. Like, starting from scratch, from the stories where we came from. to how we got involved in creative financing to the different techniques. Creative financing be a great place to, at least get a baseline knowledge. and then if you decide to go further in that.then let’s connect and show you how to get into your first deal.

Pamela Bardhi: Love that, Zach. Love that. Thank you so much for that.

What would your older self tell you based on what you know now

Pamela Bardhi: And question for you. This is my favorite question, and I always the best for last. What would your older self tell your younger self based on what you know now can be business, personal, whatever.

Zachary Beach: It’s a great question. I probably tell myself a lot. but I also don’t want to disrupt the path I was on, by any means. Probably just tell myself that I was worthy of making this journey. I think that’s been a tough internal thing that I’ve worked through for many years. and I don’t know where the heck it comes from. I’ll have to seek a, psychiatrist here soon. 

Just knowing that you’re worthy for the journey. worthy, for the goals in which I set out to do. Because there’s not many people that I tell people my goals. and they’re like, oh, I can relate to that. Usually it’s like, oh, this kid’s off his rocker. So you’re worthy about making this journey. And, once you get everything, then you’re certainly worthy of having it.

Pamela Bardhi: Amen. It’s a process for everyone. That’s why it’s so important, too, like in family mastermind. which is where we met, to be surrounded by that type of group. Because when you mentioned those goals, everybody who’s sitting at the table has either similar goals. or higher and then that motivates you to be like, oh, my gosh.

 But I think it has to do a little something with the chip on the shoulder growing up. because I would tell myself the same thing. It’s one of those underdog, traits that kind of follows us until we heal it. So it’s just part of our journey.

Zachary Beach: I hope all your listeners feel the same way, meaning for themselves. if you listen to the Underdog podcast, my guess is that you’re either an underdog. or you’re trying to accomplish something very big. Most likely people told you couldn’t. So I encourage you to think outside the box. Most importantly, to continue to work towards your goals. Doesn’t matter how hard it is. 

There’s going to be certain times that are absolutely freaking terrible. and then there’s going to be. Sometimes you have some really big highs. but at the end of the day, if you’re accomplishing your goals and most importantly. experiencing life the way you want to, it’s certainly all worth it.

Pamela Bardhi: Amen, Zach. I love that, man. I love that.

Timing couldn’t be better when it comes to creative financing

Pamela Bardhi: And in your world, what’s up in the next couple of months?

Zachary Beach: Yeah. Ah. we have our event, QLS Live 2023. This will be the 9th year we’ve hosted it. Now, timing couldn’t be better when, it comes to creative financing, and there’s no better time. And I’ve spoken to some people that have been around in real estate investing. like my father in law, for 30 plus years. and they’re like, you guys are way ahead of the curve right now. 

And trust me, that wasn’t always the case. I used to have to convince people to even listen to me when it came to financing. And everybody wants to know, what the heck? How would it actually use it? So there’s no better time right now. Rising interest rates, properties being on the market significantly longer to. people still being affected, from the economy to the transition in politics, you name it. 

When there’s uncertainty economically, politically, creative financing is a major way to be able to leverage yourself. And I’m telling you, people that are showing up to this event. people that are sticking to creative financing and working the business. they’re, the ones that are going to see decades. two decades worth of wealth over the next three to five years. You can find all that information@qlslive.com that’s qlslive.com.

Pamela Bardhi: I, absolutely love that. Zach, man.  it’s an exciting time for you guys in the market. I mean, everyone’s wanting to learn creative finance at this point. And millionaires will be created throughout this time period. because fast forward five years from now. what that cash flow is going to bring, man, it’s insane. 

And Zach and his team are absolutely show. You even showed me through the master class that we did on YouTube. like, three different ways you get paid on one deal. Excuse me. That is the coolest thing ever on planet Earth. So it’s incredible the work that you guys are doing and how you’re training others to do the same thing. and how you’re actively in the market doing deals yourself, which is remarkable. It’s only going to grow from here on out.

Zachary Beach: Could agree more. I’m thankful and grateful for you to have me on, your podcast here on the underdog. and certainly hope that we were able to impact your audience here today.

Pamela Bardhi: Absolutely, Zach. And drop those links one more time for us. because everyone’s going to want to know where to find you and your awesomeness after they listen to this podcast.

Zachary Beach: Absolutely. Well, first thing is you should go to Pam, YouTube. and walk through the Master’s class videos that we, produced. And we’ll be continuing to drop here. but, you can go grab our first Amazon bestselling book at, ah, wickedsmartbooks.com Underdog. we’ll also make sure if you grab that book, we’ll actually send you a ticket.

Pamela Bardhi: Love it. Zach, thank you so much for being here today, sharing your story. your masterful creative finance techniques, and all the things, my friend. So grateful to have you in my circle and just excited to see for what you do next.

Zachary Beach: Appreciate you

Pamela Bardhi: Thank you.

Underdog. Underdog. All we know is over time barking like I’m underdog

Pamela Bardhi: So that’s it for today’s episode of Underdog. Catch us next week. Always dropping on Thursdays. And remember, if you’re interested in real estate or want to learn how to create more money and magic in your life. check out Meetwithpamla.com and let’s chat. Sending you so, so much love.