Building Trust Through Performance as a Young Real Estate Investor with David Toupin

Trust is a muscle you have to build, especially in the shady world of real estate investing. There’s no doubt it’s a tough space to navigate but when you have the numbers and you’ve built up your reputation, it's much easier for people to trust you and invest their money with you.

David Toupin is a real estate investor and serial entrepreneur who bought his first deal, a 12-unit multifamily, at 20 years old. In six years, he acquired over $100 million in multifamily real estate assets. David shares his wisdom on how to build trust through performance, especially for young or new real estate investors. 

1. Stick to the fundamentals of the deal itself

Focus on the facts. Stay true to the numbers and the logic when selling your deals. Understand the numbers in any property you buy, know the financial position, and model it out to see if it makes sense.

2. Create a good pitch deck.

Create a nice-looking professional pitch deck that's not too long. Keep it at around 10 to 15 pages, and make it easy for people to get on board. Although once you’ve built that trust, many of them won’t even bother to look through everything because they trust you.

3. Just put yourself out there.

There are so many investors that own multiple properties that when you're doing mailers, you may hit on one that turns up a goldmine. There are a lot of people who want to help other investors because they have assets to spare. 

4. Buy and sell when the numbers are right. 

If you're doing it for the long term, it doesn't matter what you buy. People can get emotionally attached to their houses, especially personal residences. But it’s a gift when you can learn to detach, knowing that you can always make your next house just as nice or even nicer. Then sell it again when the numbers are right.

5. If you want to 10x your goal, consider changing the types of properties you invest in.

Again, it’s important to not become emotionally invested in your properties so you become more flexible with and adaptable to switching up your portfolio.

6. Be ethical.

Real estate investing is shady and it's no wonder why people think there are bad flippers and bad investors because there are. And so, it’s critical to do the right thing and always live by that. 

7. Focus on the quality of the deal.

There are so many people that go boom and bust because they grew too quickly. Again, think long term and be safe with what you're doing. It doesn't mean that more units are better. If you're just starting off, go with 12 units, for example, and gradually work your way up. 

Relationships are everything. In order for you to build relationships, you’ve got to develop trust and strengthen that muscle, enough that someone is willing to wire you money before they even see an operating agreement. 

If you want to learn more about building trust through performance as a young or new real estate investor, check out www.trustgreene.com/podcast/zen/028.