Suzy Sevier and Michael Barnhart started Adventurous REI to help others achieve what they believe is the greatest ROI: Return on Impact. They want others to start enjoying life and leave an impact now, not later. I first connected with Michael Barnhart last August, and he inspired me to build a team and start utilizing the BRRRR strategy (Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat) to purchase real estate in Oklahoma City from San Diego.
Michael and Suzy are unique because not only are they business partners in real estate, but they also are married and invest in the United States while living in Europe! Michael and Suzy were kind enough to share their time with me and answer some questions about their business, their legacy, and their fantastic new podcast The Adventures of a Real Estate Investor.
How did you get started in real estate?
Suzy – We got started in real estate because of COVID-19 and the lockdowns. We did not know how long the first lockdown was going to last but we knew we needed to find something to do during this time. We decided to start a mini book club with one another. The first book we read was Slight Edge By Jeff Olsen. We loved it so much that we bought some of the books that were on his recommended reading list. One of those books was, Multiple Streams of Income by Robert Allen. A few chapters in, there is a chapter on real estate, and Michael asked me to skip straight to it. After I read it, he said let’s try this and I said okay! From there we started listening to all the podcasts and reading all the books. We searched as many online forums as we could because we realized that so much of the space had gone virtual. We knew that it was a great opportunity for us to get into real estate because we had all the same opportunities at this point as everything else did from anywhere in the world.
What software or tools do you use in your business that provide significant value to you?
Suzy – The tool that we use in our business that brings significant value is a project management tool called Asana. Everyone in our team has access including the property management staff. This has eliminated the long strings of emails. We can all see the tasks that need to be completed, we can take notes on those tasks, we can add attachments to the tasks such as bids from vendors. It clears up so much miscommunication in regards to when tasks are to be completed because there is a function to add “due dates.” The software has streamlined a lot of our processes.
What do you want your legacy to be?
To create a ripple effect where people have been inspired to positively impact someone in their life at least 1% every day.
How do you balance working together on real estate with being married?
Suzy – Our why and our passions are so intertwined, but the balance is just there. We truly are best friends and so there was no way that it was out of the question that we are going to do this together. We actually think it’s easier to work together because we are married. We still need to communicate effectively as a business partnership would and we still have expectations for one another, as a business partnership should. We have the advantage though because we have created a safe space where being intimate and vulnerable is valued.
How do you balance owning and operating a real estate company while active duty and living on a different continent?
Michael – I don’t sleep. Just kidding. But in addition to the real estate investment firm, we actually own an eCommerce business and a Land Rover Defender import business as well (got to have those additional income streams!). So, we spend the majority of our free time and weekends hustling. We chose not to have a TV because of the distraction it causes. We would rather spend that time working on our businesses or working on personal growth or just spending quality time with each other. We wake up early, at or before 5 am, and knock out our morning routine (read, journal, meditate, and exercise) and then get straight to work on the business. Suzy and I both work the traditional 9 am – 6 pm hours and then when I get home at 6 pm, I jump straight into working on the business again until 10 pm or sometimes even midnight. The great thing about being overseas is that we get to take advantage of the time difference. When I get home from work at 6 pm, it is only 12pm in my market. Therefore, I have 6 more hours to work during their “business day” so I can call brokers, lenders, and other vendors during their normal working hours. Also, the silver lining to COVID is that it has forced a lot of things to go virtual so, being overseas, we were able to take advantage of that. We were able to attend conferences and meetups that would have normally been in person, and we were able to network 1-on-1 with a lot of potential investors. But to wrap up this answer, to create a “balance” we are always working on systematizing our businesses so that we can hire out the $10/hour tasks, which frees up our time to focus on the $10,000/hour task. We currently have two assistants; one that helps us with everyday tasks and one that does all of our video editing. And of course, we are not editing our own podcasts. We are just recording, and our team does all the rest.
How did you put together a team for your Tulsa multifamily projects?
Michael – Networking and having intention going into meetups and conferences. We started posting about our real estate experience on social media and a connection of mine reached out and wanted to chat about my experience thus far. I had known him for 15 years as we went to prep school and the academy together so the know, like, and trust factor had already been established. He became our “boots on the ground,” and because of that, we then had a market to tell others we were in. Once we started going into meetups stating our market, organic introduction occurred and from those introductions, we met our mentor. The other partners on our team were also met through various meetups and mastermind groups.
Just get yourself out there, no one knows what you are doing until you tell your story.
Why did you decide to start a podcast?
The podcast had always been something we wanted to start but “didn’t have enough time for”. Our original goal was to have it started by the end of 2021. But as we started to become guests on others’ podcasts, that exposure from the podcast world was something we were missing. In order to truly have our message be heard, we needed to start our podcast sooner. During our 1:1 calls, we have found that many people are motivated by creating an impact, whether they realized it or not. We wanted to create more exposure about the amazing good that people are doing for themselves and their family while leveraging real estate investing. It has really been a blessing to help others see that they were born to make a difference in this world.
What advice do you have for military members and veterans out there who are interested in real estate investing?
Michael – Just do it! Learn about all the different types of real estate investing and decide which one best fits your personality. Then, learn everything about that niche of investing and start taking consistent action day after day. Even though it may not seem like you are making any headway each day, those actions are compounding on each other, and then one day – boom! – you’ll be exponentially growing! Pro tip: start documenting all the systems and processes from the start so that when you hit that exponential growth you can hire that out immediately so you can continue growing.
For me, I enjoy being a program manager and leading teams to accomplish large goals. Therefore, I really enjoy being the lead sponsor for multimillion-dollar acquisitions. Not to mention the impact that we get to have on a larger number of residents across the apartment communities that we acquire. Our whole focus is on a different ROI – Return On Impact. What impact do you want to make?
How to find them:
All of their info and social links to connect with them can be found here: https://adventurousrei.com/info
Check out their podcast which focuses on a different ROI – Return On Impact: https://adventurousrei.com/podcast
Check out their YouTube Channel that will focus on multifamily real estate education and mindset. It launches 1 July 2021 and will have 2 mini-series ready to view, one on acquiring a multifamily asset and the other on asset management. Check it out here: http://bit.ly/AREI_YouTube