Investing Outside of Wall Street – Cameron’s Program Rocks!

When I was entrenched in Corporate America, earning good income and diligently saving much of it every month, I was all set financially for an eventual, comfortable retirement through my 401(k) account.  Or so I thought.

Then in 2000, the technology-stock bubble burst.  That was one of the two defining moments in how I began to think and behave about money.  (The first one was during my childhood.)  Talk about being shaken to the core!  I knew I had no choice but to start on a journey to recover from the huge losses sustained on Wall Street.  No more blindly stashing my hard-earned money into funds being managed by those whom I had never met.  Before long, I gravitated toward investing in real estate.

Since then, I have been exposed to a number of investment-training providers and their programs.  They all appeal to your hopes and dreams, using real-estate investing as a vehicle to reach your financial goals.  And they all want your video testimonials during a rah-rah event when you are at the height of being convinced that their program is going to be the one that helps you get out of your financial rut.  Not all real-estate-investment programs are created equal, however.  There are good, bad, and ugly ones out there.

• By ugly, I mean those who have not tested, let alone proven, a likely outcome of a particular investment to themselves, bringing unsuspecting newbies along for the ride by charging them exorbitant fees up front and, even worse, making them lose their life savings on actual investments as a result.
• By bad, I mean those who have done a few deals, gained just enough experience, and decided that teaching is easier and far more lucrative than continuing to do actual deals. I have even seen some who teach materials that are at least a decade old and, therefore, no longer relevant.  Yet, they are such great salespeople that they continue to sell outdated materials to unsuspecting newbies.
• By good, I mean those who have plenty of experience and good intentions to help do-it-yourself investors succeed. But, for the most part, good intentions alone are not good enough to help even the most-highly-motivated investors succeed.  And, in most cases, their pricing structure makes it such that, you are likely to have to come up with additional thousands of dollars, up front, once again, just to stay in their coaching program for another six months.  If you no longer have any funds left to keep going, you are sunk.

Over the years, in my unwavering determination to remain financially independent without ever having to rely on anyone, I have personally been exposed to all three types of investment-training providers.  Consequently, several years ago, I chose NOT to give testimonials for any training providers until and unless they actually help me produce solid results.

Fast forward to August 2013, certain events led me to Cameron Dunlap and his programs.  I had never heard of him before.  Yet, from the very beginning, the way he carried himself was a breath of fresh air in stark contrast to almost anyone else in the industry.  (There are a handful of people in the industry whom I hold in high regard.)  Signing up for his program meant that we would continue to carry credit-card debts longer and at a higher balance, about which neither David nor I felt comfortable.  I knew, however, that it was a risk worth taking.

Fast forward once again to June 2015, David and I re-attended a three-day event called, “Vacant House and Foreclosure Summit” by Cam, which concluded just three days ago in Chicago.  Leading up to this event, I knew I wanted to give a heart-felt testimonial because, since we started working with his organization, David and I closed eight deals.

I had forgotten how we began sending out direct-mail letters to potential sellers every single week.  And, yes, it was because of the marketing plan that we were asked to complete and, more importantly, IMPLEMENT, back in March 2014.  It is interesting how things start to happen when we follow the lead of those who are already successful as real-estate investors.

Based on our experience with Cam and his organization, another category – excellent – needs to be added, in addition to good, bad, and ugly.

• By excellent, I mean the following, just to name a few:
  1. The person teaching the program is actively investing successfully.
  2. The program is focused more on training and less on selling additional programs.
  3. From Day 1 of returning home from a real-estate-training event, students have the tools to begin implementing what they just learned.
  4. There is an existing, easy-to-use electronic system that enables students to not only manage real-estate transactions from start to finish but also follow up on all remaining leads at a later date.
  5. Once you sign up as a mentoring student, on-going coaching is  available until and unless you decide that you no longer need it.
  6. Above all, they consistently under promise and over deliver.

Cam’s program is all of the above and a whole lot more.  His integrity manifests itself in everything he does.  I feel very fortunate to have found him and his company.

Happy investing!