In this episode of Uncontested Investing, Suzanne and I wrap up our two-part series on cultivating strategy by dialing in one of the most important levers in your real estate business: your team. Inspired by our conversation with Tanya Willis, we break down the core partners every real estate investor needs around them to scale and stay in the game long term, including the right real estate agent, lender, contractor, and property manager. 

We talk about how to vet an investor-friendly agent, why you should treat lenders and contractors like true partners instead of one-off vendors, and when it is time to hand the keys to a property manager so you can stop "fixing" and start "building." We dig into responsiveness, negotiation, unit count, renovation comfort zones, funding types, reviews, trial periods, and why every relationship should make your process smoother and your profits stronger.

If you are serious about growing a real estate portfolio that is sustainable and scalable, this episode will help you design a team that supports the strategy you built in Part 1.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

01:10 Process and profit: the two tests for every team member

02:35 What a good investor-focused agent actually does

03:30 How to vet a real estate agent for investing

05:23 Trust goes both ways: being a good client for your agent

06:40 Longevity, commitment, and not burning relationships

08:32 Why you need 1 or 2 go-to funding partners

09:25 Stop scattering deals across 12 lenders

10:31 Being top of the stack: documents, responsiveness, relationship

13:02 Private lenders versus conventional banks

14:35 Contractor as both rehab and maintenance partner

15:25 Setting up the relationship for steady work

16:30 How to structure and vet contractor work

17:23 Why a property manager becomes essential as you scale

18:47 How to vet a property manager

20:24 Reviews, responsiveness, and trial periods

23:25 Strategy plus team equals longevity

Quotables

"You do not want to be a love them and leave them kind of transaction. They want to be there. They want to be the partner. Give them the chance to earn it on the other side."

"If you are stuck fixing, you are not then building."

"A property management company that says no to that is that red flag that you are looking for."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we're kicking off a two-part mini-series on cultivating strategy as a real estate investor. Instead of talking about a specific asset class or loan product, we zoom out and break down the four levers that drive every deal you touch: condition, timeline, motivation, and price.

We walk through how to analyze a property's condition beyond the pretty photos, how to read the neighborhood standard, and why you should never let a seller's urgency shortcut your own due diligence. We also get into red flags like hidden mold, incomplete renovations, and mechanic's liens, the right way to use private lending and flexible timelines to create win–win deals, and how to negotiate price without being a vulture.

If you're trying to get better at deal analysis, negotiation, and seller conversations, this first part will help you ask smarter questions, protect your ROI, and line up more contracts that actually close.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

02:10 The 4 core levers of every real estate deal

03:41 When to tap the brakes: risk, weather, and hidden issues

04:28 Mold, hidden problems, and the flipper mentality

05:16 Reading the neighborhood: matching or beating the standard

06:11 Pricing, concessions, and marrying condition with strategy

07:04 Why distressed properties turn off homeowners but attract investors

09:17 Creative timelines: rent-backs and escalation clauses

10:11 Leverage vs. empathy (don't be a vulture)

11:23 Real-world example: school-year move and deposits

12:01 Seller expectations vs actual market value

13:13 Don't be the serial low-baller

14:01 Ask better questions: open-ended and break-even focused

15:31 Full transparency: water problems, walls, and cost reality

Quotables

"Make sure that you give yourself a timeline to evaluate and see the hidden elements that haven't been divulged yet."

"The bottom line is, does this renovation that's necessary to bring it up to that standard, does it undo your ROI projection?"

"An investor can be a seller's best friend because they're the people that want to come in, get that deal done quickly, make those renovations quickly if they need to, get that property cash flowing at a pretty quick pace."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we sit down in sunny Scottsdale, Arizona with Tonya Willis, Chief Operating Officer at End to End Solutions and American Destiny Real Estate. Tonya has spent more than two decades inside single-family rental, default servicing, and asset management—growing from an $8-an-hour temp to an AVP at a Fortune 500 company, and now running two national platforms that simplify evictions, foreclosures, valuations, and boots-on-the-ground services for SFR operators and lenders. 

Tonya shares how her group approaches eviction and foreclosure work with professionalism and humility, how they adapted during COVID to new SFR challenges, why reviews and client feedback matter so much, and how conferences, networking, and even her Gravitas New York "women in leadership" shirt tie back to empowering people in this business.

If you care about single-family rental operations, vendor management, compliance, and servant leadership, this conversation gives you a real look behind the curtain of the partners who protect your brand in the field.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

00:48 From computer science major to $8/hour temp in real estate

01:46 How a temp job became a career

02:47 COO of two companies: leadership style & complementary teams

03:44 Evictions, foreclosures & human-first field services

04:50 Career turning point: from solo to 57-person department

06:31 The difference between American Destiny Real Estate and End to End Solutions

07:29 Adapting with the SFR industry & less

08:47 Reviews, feedback, and why "everyone is business development"

10:18 Tonya's motto: "Teach and be teachable"

11:08 Gravitas shirt, women in leadership & catalyzing confidence

12:01 Mentors, emotional support & mindset in a tough industry

13:38 Conferences, trade shows & the power of networking

14:25 The impact of great people, great work, and food

Quotables

"I teach my team to approach every situation with professionalism and humility. Professionalism because we're there to do a job for the client, but humility to look at the situation and put themselves in those shoes and see how they would want to be treated in that situation."

"We take every single order from our clients seriously, as if it makes or breaks what we do tomorrow."

"My motto is to teach and be teachable. Know that you need to pass on the knowledge that you have because that's who you are and that's what we're here for."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, Suzanne and I break down one of the most important and most overlooked parts of being a real estate investor: creating an exit plan that maximizes your return on investment. We walk through the major exit strategies investors actually use in today's market like fix and flip, buy and hold, BRRRR, seller financing, lease options, 1031 exchanges, and portfolio sales, and show you how to match the right strategy to your timeline, risk tolerance, capital needs, and market conditions.

We also talk about building your exit plan on day one, why you should always have Plan B (and Plan C) for every property, and how tools like deal analysis software, ROI calculators, CRMs, and portfolio management platforms help you track performance and time your exits for maximum profit.

If you're serious about scaling your portfolio and protecting your returns, this episode will give you a practical framework to design smarter exits on every deal.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

00:37 Fix and Flip for fast capital & short-term ROI

01:19 Buy and Hold for cash flow & long-term wealth

02:46 BRRRR: buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat

03:31 Building and nurturing lender partnerships

05:09 Creative exits: seller financing, lease options & 1031s

07:30 1031 Exchanges: trading up & deferring tax

09:34 Portfolio sales and phased exits

11:20 How to choose the right exit strategy

12:58 Partners as a "soft landing" exit

13:33 Leveraging market analytics and software to guide your timing

14:18 External forces: jobs, population, and future demand

15:23 When should your exit strategy planning begin?

16:06 Building flexibility, creating buffers & having a back-up plan

18:20 Tools & resources to support your exit plan

19:00 The importance of tax planning before buying a property

20:11 CRMs & portfolio management tools

22:32 Action steps for investors planning their exit strategies

Quotables

"Investors that have strategies to scale are the ones that are set up for success. Part of that is creating an exit plan to maximize return on investment."

"Your exit strategy really starts on day one, when you find that property that you actually want to add to your portfolio."

"I can't stress enough to make sure that you have from the time you, before you buy the asset, to have that conversation with your accountant."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we dig into one of the biggest levers for scaling your real estate business: systems and automations. We break down how to move from being the self-employed investor who answers 2 a.m. toilet calls to becoming a true business owner with structure, processes, and the right people in place.

We walk through systemizing lead generation, deal analysis, acquisitions, property management, maintenance, rent collection, investor relations, and team communication, and we share practical ways to integrate tools like CRMs, project management platforms, smart tech, and virtual assistants so you can reduce decision fatigue and focus on higher-value work.

If you're serious about scaling your rental portfolio, fix-and-flip pipeline, or build-to-rent operation without burning out, this episode will help you design systems that actually support the life and business you want.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

01:10 Structure, lanes, and decision fatigue

02:41 Systems that prevent critical mistakes

03:24 Case study call-back: Bruce's multi-state growth

04:29 Lead generation systems

05:15 Deal analysis & underwriting workflows

06:45 Using simple worksheets and calculators for your deals

07:32 Templates for offers & acquisition docs

08:05 Documentation & asset lifecycle tracking

09:03 Owner vs. employee mindset on operations

10:00 Property management systems

11:05 Systems that let you actually sleep at night

12:02 Making sure you don't lose the human touch

13:21 Investor relations systems

14:26 The importance of mastering the tools you're using

15:04 Smart home & asset-protection tech (smart outlets)

16:17 Tech stack for organization & automation

18:06 Hiring people who know the tools better than you

19:34 Hiring, delegating, and automating

21:27 Leveraging associations & events to learn

22:08 Fear of onboarding & training team members

23:29 Leadership: from self-employed to true business owner

24:00 Why over-automating can lose you deals

25:06 The importance of regularly evolving your systems

26:03 Avoiding tools that don't integrate

27:01 Why you should work on one area at a time when building systems

28:01 Auditing and continuous improvement

29:09 Trusting the people you hire & letting them teach you

Quotables

"Your best position is not as the employee; it's as the owner."

"Systems can reduce decision fatigue… it really gives that time and energy back to the investor."

"The best property doesn't always mean the best deal for you."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we break down how to create passive income streams that don't just pay the bills, but actually fund more real estate deals. We walk through long-term rentals, short-term/vacation rentals, notes, private lending, REITs and funds, affiliate income, education products, and real-estate-adjacent businesses, and show you how each one can create steady cash flow, better financing terms, and more buying power as you scale your portfolio.

We also dig into the tactical side: using IRAs and tax strategy, working with specialized CPAs, leveraging passive income to lower borrowing risk, and deciding when to hire VAs, fractional pros, or property management so you can stop trading time for money.

If you're serious about cash flow, wealth building, and scaling your real estate investing business, this episode will help you turn passive income into your engine for long-term growth.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

01:01 Passive income as the key to freedom & less stress

02:19 Flexibility in negotiations, cutting down traditional financing

03:23 Funding options mix: cash, IRA, partners

04:26 Short term vs long term rentals

05:22 Balancing seasons for your rental properties

06:18 Understanding year-round demand in different markets

07:27 Passive income beyond rent: notes & lending

08:22 Investing in REITs and private investment funds

09:36 Income from affiliates and educational products

10:26 Membership organizations & community as a long-term play

12:03 Affiliate partnerships with tools & services

13:52 Owning real-estate-adjacent businesses

15:44 Using IRAs for real estate (and why you must talk to a pro)

17:01 BFG Tax & depreciation strategy

18:34 Subsidizing your own deals & compounding your growth

19:41 Shifting from employee to owner mindset

20:18 Finding your break-even point for hiring help

21:38 Fractional employment: CFOs, CMOs & shared hires

22:15 Tools for success: automation & accounting

23:24 CRM & social media as income engines

Quotables

"Passive income is the key that unlocks that door."

"When you have properties that are working for you and you're earning money while you're sleeping, while you're sitting on the couch watching TV, drinking coffee in the morning… that's when real estate actually works for you."

"There are ways for you to think outside the box. You don't have to go all in on a full-time employee to start building your team."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, Suzanne and I break down one of the biggest unlocks for scaling your real estate portfolio: building a repeatable process that drives consistent growth. We walk through the full lifecycle of a deal, from deal sourcing, underwriting, financing, operations, property management, to exit strategy and show you how to turn each step into a system you can run again and again, in any market. 

We talk about practical tools like CRMs, project management platforms, cost-estimation software, virtual assistants, and outbound call partners, plus the habits and mindset you need to stick to your buy box, remove emotion from decisions, and constantly refine your process.

If you're looking to scale from "doing deals" to running a real real estate investing business, this episode will help you tighten up your systems, build a better team, and create the kind of predictability every investor wants in an unpredictable market.

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

01:41 Dealing with reliability in an unpredictable industry

02:15 Boundaries, buy box & taking emotion out of deals

03:30 Why it's important to document your processes

04:32 Pillar 1: Deal sourcing & building a pipeline

06:24 Leveraging networks to your advantage

07:05 Pillar 2: Due diligence & underwriting

08:01 Checklists and automations

09:10 Pillar 3: Financing strategy & lender relationships

10:21 How to establish credibility with lenders

11:01 Pillar 4: Operations & property management

12:21 Tenant screening tips to keep your properties full

13:28 Vacancy, renewals, reviews & tenant referrals

15:30 Pillar 5: Exit strategy (know it before you enter)

17:29 Tools and technology that support repeatability

18:16 Virtual assistant support for scaling companies

19:33 The impact of nurturing relationships

20:15 Project management tools: Asana & Trello

22:01 Automation for lead generation and follow ups

23:03 Process over outcome: the athlete mindset

23:53 The importance of being intentional

24:12 KPIs, self-review, and the right approach to your mistakes

25:50 Building a team that supports scale

27:06 Culture, communication & continuous training

28:17 Audit your process & start small

29:42 Collaboration over isolation

Quotables

"The market can bounce off the walls… if you can have that tunnel vision on what works for you and block out the rest of the noise, that's where you're going to find success and consistent growth."

"Without numerous properties, you can't build a repeatable process."

"One month of vacancy, you could easily say, is a hundred dollars off the rental rate that you want to get just to not have it vacant."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/

In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we hit pause on deals and dive into something every real estate investor needs to do at least once a year: reflect, reassess, and reset your plan for the new year. We talk through how to review your wins, losses, systems, market strategy, portfolio performance, team, and mindset so you're not just repeating the same year over and over. 

We cover how to celebrate business highlights, identify what actually moved the needle, and cut the processes, platforms, and partnerships that didn't. We also dig into market insights, changing interest rates, new legislation, tenant screening, BRRRR, non-core dispositions, portfolio optimization, alternative capital (IRAs, 1031 exchanges), new markets, hiring, culture, personal habits, and community.

If you're serious about leveling up your real estate investing business in 2026 and beyond, this episode will give you a practical framework to turn this past year's lessons into a better plan, better systems, and better results

Key Talking Points of the Episode

00:00 Introduction

01:16 Why investors should start with the wins before anything else

02:10 Did you stay flexible when the plan broke?

03:13 Owning the good and the bad

04:11 Leading by example and being in the trenches with your team

06:03 Operational lessons: systems that scaled vs. systems that broke

07:25 Deal-level lessons: best vs. worst deals

08:38 The importance of learning from your mistakes

09:11 Team & partnership lessons: hiring, firing, and fit

10:37 Firing is painful… but not firing can be worse

12:00 Mindset lessons: did you actually become the CEO?

13:44 Leveraging market insights for planning for the year

14:15 Interest rates, scarcity & competitiveness

15:22 New legislation & unlawful occupancy (squatting)

16:50 Improving tenant screening processes

18:17 Predictions vs. reality: did you pivot quickly enough?

19:41 Reviewing your portfolio to choose properties to keep, fix, or sell

20:45 Non-core strategy & using BRRRR to recycle equity

21:36 Get your documentation and data ready before you need capital

22:08 Goal-setting that actually sticks

23:07 Strategic focus: new markets, assets, and models

25:26 Team growth, onboarding & culture by design

27:19 Professional & personal development

28:31 Tracking results & embracing automation

29:32 Community: one of the most underused levers

30:03 Competition vs. collaboration

Quotables

"You need to personally acknowledge your strengths and weaknesses… being ready to relinquish control… that's a huge hurdle when you transition from employee to owner."

"Every successful investor that we've had on the show… they've all learned lessons the hard way. But it's about taking those lessons and then turning them into success."

"One of the most important lessons that we hope investors learn throughout the course of any year is that they can't do this by themselves."

Links

RCN Capital

https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast

https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/

info@rcncapital.com

REI INK

https://rei-ink.com/