Everyone knows PayPal as a checkout button for online payments, but now you can use your PayPal debit card online and tap to pay in-store.The PayPal debit card is your ultimate pal in paying smart.Everywhere.
And now it earns you 5% cashback on a monthly category of your choosing.Restaurants, apparel, groceries, health and beauty, and gas.On up to $1,000 of monthly purchases.So let's do this.After the podcast.
Start earning 5% cash back with the PayPal debit card today.Don't just pay, PayPal.Terms apply.See PayPal app.This card is issued by the Bancorp Bank N.A.pursuant to license by MasterCard International Inc.
Sell my car in Carvana.It's just not quite the right time.
Crazy coincidence.I just sold my car to Carvana.
What?I told you about it two days ago.
When you know, you know.You know, I'm even dropping it off at one of those sweet car vending machines and getting paid today.
Oh, great deal.Come on.What's your heart saying?
You're right.When you know, you know.Sold.
Whether you're looking to sell your car right now or just whenever feels right, go to Carvana.com and sell your car the convenient way.Terms and conditions apply.
Welcome to the Rich Dad Real Estate Show, where we talk about the good news and bad news.Real estate hosted by yours truly, Jaren Sustar.Today, I've got an awesome guest, AJ Osborne with us.
He's a renowned entrepreneur, investor, and essentially the king of self-storage.Cool story about AJ.Well, not actually not a cool story.An impactful, terrible story that changed your life.
I was going to read it in the intro, AJ, and I've never done this on this show before.
I actually just want to shut up and I actually want to start this episode by you telling your story because I've heard it probably four times now and it's unbelievably powerful.So I don't even want to still thunder.
I want to hand it over to you and let you take it from here and let the listeners know what you've been through and where you are today.
You got it.So I think it's a lot of people know me from this because I started telling my story a little while ago.But the reason why real estate investing and passive income are so powerful to me, I started investing in real estate pretty early on.
And I sold insurance, medical benefits brokerage.And so I was a sales guy and I, I was paid a lot of money.The company that, um, I worked for, uh, they were really good to us.They, they paid us at golden handcuffs.
So I was building real estate while keeping that.And one day out of the blue, um, I'm 30 at the time I was 32, I think.And I, we just had our fourth child. He was at the time, I think three months, maybe just a little infant, uh, and so cute.
And my legs stopped working out of the blue.Um, literally I was totally fine.They started hurting.I went to get the bathtub because they were just killing me.And when I went to get out, they didn't work well.
My wife pulled me out, rushed me to the hospital. And within days, not even saying goodbye to my kids, them not seeing me in the hospital, I was put on life support because my entire body had become paralyzed and it stopped working.
I could not breathe.It couldn't sustain itself.And I was put on life support.Now, We, this happened on a Friday.So even at work, everything, nobody really knew where I was.I just disappeared essentially.
It wasn't like I'd gotten in a car accident, anything else.It just, my body stopped working.
And, uh, I went on life support and I stayed there for months, not knowing if I would ever even get off and not knowing where, how this would even work from there.I, um, was let go of my job. Because, uh, obviously there was no checkout date.
I was sent to an LTAC to live until I could sustain myself.And then after that, I became able to breathe.They were able to take me after months off life support.And I was sent to live after a while longer in the LTAC.
I was sent to live in a rehab facility where they were going to teach me how to redo everything.Um, I was going to try to learn how to. use my hands, strengthen my muscles.I had speech therapy, occupational therapy, the work.
And I tried to learn how to live again.And with no idea, there was no prognosis.There was no anything.It wasn't, I'd ask while lying in the bed, will I ever walk again?Will I ever move again?And the answer was, we don't know.
We have no idea if you ever will again. And then in rehab, I, my insurance cut me out and went home paralyzed, uh, in bed, but I'd luckily been able to get in a wheelchair.
And my brother moved in with me and my wife and our four children or baby infant to help take care of me.And, uh, that became my new life.I was at home being taken care of paralyzed with four kids at the age of 32, maybe 33.Um.
Now, after having this incredibly successful career, um, and it was kind of living at the top of my game and it was all taken away from me.In an instant, literally like we didn't, I didn't even know it was happening.
We didn't bring my kids and even see me for a month because we were trying to wait to know if I was going, if they were gonna have to make a decision to pull the plug or not.
Or if I was even going to make it, there was no answers, didn't know what to tell the kids.And two, we were afraid how scarred they would be coming in and seeing their dad attached to all these tubes, unable to move.
Um, and so we waited until I got to a point where we couldn't wait anymore.We didn't have answers, anything else.So they just said we had to bring them in.
And that was probably the hardest single moment of my entire life was seeing my kids walk in and look at me and
I don't know exactly what they were expecting to see, but it wasn't me like that attached to a hospital bed on tubes, not able to move, just looking at them, not able to speak, not able to do anything.
And they came next to my bed and I'd turn and I'd look at them.There's actually a video of it.And when my son came, I was trying to get away.I'd move my head to the side and look over to the side.Cause I was, I was so upset over it.
I didn't want him to see me like that. And there was literally nothing I could obviously do.I couldn't even communicate to them.I communicated through blinking.And we would look at sheets of paper that were see-through, where they'd have things.
I was in immense amount of pain, unfathomable amount of pain, because my entire nervous system had been destroyed.So it had been shredded.And so my body, as far as it was concerned, had been blown to bits and burned apart.
It was so much pain, they couldn't stop it with the pain meds. It didn't matter how much they gave me, they could never stop the pain.
The first month, I would only sleep when I would pass out, when my body couldn't take it anymore, and I would pass out.And that was what it was like being such a quadriplegic on life support for months.
And when I was in the rehab facility, I was going to go home.When I went in, I was planting trees. When I was in the rehab facility and they said, you're going to go home, the insurance company's kicking you out and go home.
I was looking out the window of the hospital and it was snowing because it was Christmas Eve.And the next morning I was going to do, sorry, not go home, home, but do a hospital assisted visit.They were going to give me three, four hours there.
They were going to take me and then bring me back home so I could see my kids.First time though, that I'd been home since I went into the hospital and I was so excited. And I would knew my kids were going to get spoiled.
I was like, oh, I don't even know what they're getting, but I'm sure my wife's going to spoil them.And I was going to be in my own home.I was going to see my babies.I was going to see my wife.
And I realized at that moment, I was not scared that my kids weren't going to receive Christmas presents.I was not scared that we wouldn't have a home.
I wasn't worried because my wife had to leave me and the children to get a job, to try to cover bills. And I had been laid off.And not only was I not able to work, we didn't know whether I would be able to do anything again at all.
And at that moment, I realized how important investing is, how important passive real estate is and what it did for me and my family.It saved my family's financial life.
And it is probably one of the reasons that I had such a good recovery was because we were able to focus on that and it gave me purpose.And so that moment I made a promise and that promise was two things.I was going to share with others.
I was going to teach others.And then the second thing was we would allow other people to invest with us if they wanted, because we'd never done anything like that.And that was going to be my new purpose.
Cause I didn't know what I was going to do when I got out.I didn't know who I was going to be. I had that AJ that went into the hospital out of the blue, right out planning.I was, you know, very active guy.I was a big guy.
I was big backpacker, everything else like that, you know, and, um, boom, gone.That guy was gone and he was never coming back. That, that was clear.And so I knew whoever was going to go home to see my kids, there was going to be two people.
It was going to be AJ in this wheelchair, or it was going to be somebody else.And by AJ in the wheelchair, I don't mean that I thought that I'd get out of it.That's not what I meant.I meant mentally AJ, this new person sitting here or somebody else.
And I had to promise myself that whoever that was going to be, which I don't know, it was not going to be that guy.
And, um, that started my new passion or drive to try to teach people about what saved me and help my family and, uh, try to allow people to get financial freedom.You got to remember I was, I was in my prime.I was 33.
You know, my, my thirties were gone.And, uh, my, as far as we were concerned, the rest of my life is we knew it was gone.
I can now walk my lower legs still don't function like they should, but I got out of leg braces and don't have to have assistance walking, which I was told in rehab years later, that was never going to happen.
They're like, you can keep coming AJ, but you've been coming here for years.And, you know, we made huge progress that with walking assistance and braces on my legs, I could walk on my own. But that was the epitome.
And they were like, you can keep coming, but you have to accept this reality.I never went back to rehab after that.And I stayed home with my kids, and my kids helped me.
And I got out of the leg braces, and I got out of my walking gear, and I was able to walk on my own, which that was That was everything we could have ever hoped for more.We didn't ever, you know, I can't run, I can't do the things we used to do.
That doesn't matter.That was everything that we could have hoped for.
And that is largely, I do believe, because of the position that I was in and the financial security that we had, that we could focus on the future and on our family and on getting better.
How long did this go on?So you went in when you were 32.What did this journey look like for you?
Yeah, so I think actually it was 33.The journey has been rough.So the pain never went away.The pain is still here today.I'm in pain 24-7.So I live in constant pain.
Never had a morning, you know, you know, it's weird to be thinking about normal things now.Like people wake up because they are done sleeping.They stretch out and they're like, oh, I had a great night's sleep.Right.
I haven't, that hasn't happened to me in over seven years.Every day I wake up because of pain. My eyes shoot open and I can't sleep anymore due to the pain.I am on meds 24-7 as we try to keep it under control.I have to think every time I take a step.
I can't just walk.That's not – if I try – if I get too distracted, I actually fall. Um, so my life has changed dramatically and a lot of people would think of those as the bad ways.Right.Um, but it has also changed dramatically for the good.
I don't think for some reason, I don't think I could have made the changes that I need to make.There was something holding me back.And, uh, uh, since then I started three companies out of my wheelchair.We've grown our assets to over 400 million.
I have multiple companies now.I've, I think, um, And, uh, I, um, make an impact, which is really what's important to me in ways I'd never made before.We never allowed and done, and we had never done, I never have been on a podcast before.
I never, before this happened, right.I didn't go out and speak.I didn't talk about any of this stuff.We were just trying to make money and I was just trying to do what I could.And I'd never planned on, I was never on social media.
I didn't, you know, I didn't do that stuff.And, uh, after this, that's what changed.Yeah. And said, I have to talk about this.
I have to get over, you know, I think these fears that I have, which was really easy the first, you know, four years afterwards, because my pride was gone.I mean, you got to remember, I was lying naked in a bed and I couldn't move.
I couldn't go to the bathroom, nothing, everything in there.People would roll me over and scrub me down with rags to bathe me.
And I would just lie there as they flopped me over naked, rubbing me down with rags to try to bathe me, which was immensely painful, like mind-blowingly painful.And so I had, my pride was gone, right?It was like out the window, just gone.
I'm like, I don't got any pride left.So all of a sudden that freed me in a way that I could never have been free before. And it's hard to describe that.And it's hard to describe what that gave to me.And it's even harder to remember it.
We're now over seven years afterwards.And I found the last two years that I've become way more self-conscious.And I'm starting to get back in that thing where I think, what do other people think?And I have to remind me of the story.
I have to remind me of why I'm here, what I'm doing. And I have to remind myself of the things that I've overcome, because it's amazing how life just creeps back in, and it does.
And I don't want to lose the freedom that I received from that, because that was one of the most important gifts I've ever received.We'll be right back with AJ Osborne.
We all know what it feels like when your Mac starts to lag.It always seems to happen just when the deadline is approaching or your boss is asking for your creative pitch, or maybe you're just trying to get through your day.
But nothing is more aggravating than a computer that can't keep up.That's where CleanMyMac 10 comes in.
CleanMyMac 10 safely identifies unnecessary files, including cache files, so you don't have to worry about accidentally deleting something important.Heavy RAM usage?Too many processes running at the same time?
If you think you have to buy an external hard drive because of all your storage, think again.CleanMyMac 10 helps you find and remove large, unnecessary files, freeing up storage space so you don't need those external solutions.
CleanMyMac 10 frees up RAM and manages processes to keep your Mac running smoothly.Think of it as a major tune-up.It optimizes your system, only it won't take hours to do.There's just one button for those of us who are pressed for time.
One-click smart scan cleans up junk, boosts performance, and protects against malware, ensuring your Mac is secure and your private data stays safe, all in one click.It takes about two minutes to polish up even a slow Mac.
With CleanMyMac 10, you won't need to buy a new computer.CleanMyMac 10 helps revive your existing Mac, improving performance and maintaining its efficiency. so you don't have to worry about your files.Give CleanMyMac 10 a try with a 7-day free trial.
To save 20% on your annual license, use the promo code RICHDAD.Don't miss out on optimizing your Mac for better performance.
Are you worried about your financial stability in these unprecedented times?If you are, the next minute could profoundly impact your financial security.
Imagine waking up to find the economy has plunged and your portfolio has dropped 40-45%, while the banks are in turmoil, holding your money hostage while waiting for the FDIC intervention.Where would you turn?
Gold is a no matter what store of wealth that you need.That's why Robert has been such an advocate of gold and he trusts Allegiance Gold.
Allegiance Gold's team is ready to help you incorporate physical gold as part of your portfolio and protect it against economic uncertainty.
Visit protectwithrobert.com today to learn how you qualify for up to $5,000 in free silver with a qualified investment.Or give them a call at 844-FREE-ROBERT. Remember to mention Robert and Kim sent you when you contact Allegiance Gold.
Secure your IRA or 401k today with Allegiance Gold.Visit ProtectWithRobert.com or call 844-3-ROBERT.
Welcome back to the Rich Dad Real Estate Show, where we talk about the good news and bad news about real estate.I am here with AJ Osborne.AJ, you've been telling your story.It's one of the most powerful stories I personally have ever heard.
Throughout the journey, you talk about while all this was going on, you actually attribute it to your recovery, is you didn't have to worry about your finances while you're going through the largest battle that you're ever going through.
You've got four kids at home, you've got a wife, and you can focus on getting yourself better, finding a way to get back to them, but knowing that financially they're going to be okay until that day comes. And so you've done it.
I was talking with you at a conference we were at last week or whenever it was, and you talk about self-storage a lot.I was like, what else do you invest in, AJ?What else have you done?You're like, no, dude, I only do self-storage.
I'm like, oh, come on, there's got to be more.He's like, no, I invest only in self-storage.And so you were able to build this financial freedom through self-storage.And so you were able to tell your story I think it needs to be told everywhere.
It's so powerful.Take us back to before that happened.And then also I want to progress to after the situation and how self-storage has impacted not only your life and your family's life, but then now you're able to impact others throughout the world.
Absolutely.So prior, you know, one of the best things about being in sales was you really learn quickly how your income, uh, is not only not consistent, it is not predictable.
And so the effect that has on your mentality around finances is very interesting.First of all, you have this idea that there's so much potential because you can earn it, but at the same time, you realize you have to, or it doesn't happen.
You always have to, meaning it doesn't end.And this is something that I called the treadmill and me and my father, I go, we're on a treadmill here.We have to sell to keep up.And I go, what happens when your treadmill thinking of my father's stops?
I'm like, how am I going to take care of you?Because your clients are here for you.And that's just all we have.So it's, when you look at it, it was very much like a W2, except I had lots of bosses and I had really no protection over my income.
So it wasn't so that I could just show up to work and go do, because how those cells work and everything, you're basically fired for all intents and purposes all the time.That income goes away.
And when you look at what that did on us, it changed the way I viewed how to plan for the future. because there wasn't this idea that we have a pension.There wasn't an idea of 401k as savings or that I'll just always have this job.
Every morning I woke up knowing that that money was gonna go away.So when you look at that, we started trying to find things to offset it, to create a stabilizing force.The other thing was we were taxed at the highest rate possible.
It's an all cash-based thing, right?So we were taxed at like 50%.It was just, so you're working all this way, you lose half of your money. And then if I wanted to invest in it, the math was simple.
In order for me to just get to even, I had to double my return.My return had to be 2x.I had to double my money just to get what I started with.That's how I start.That's how in that position you start investing.
Now, everybody does this because they're taxed at 40%, 35%, 40%, maybe 45%, depending on who you are in your tax bracket.Your dollar now, you've already got a 60% loss.
So you, you know, or a 40% loss, you have to start by doubling that just to get to where you went.It is the, it, it is, I viewed it.I'm like, I don't know how to win here.I don't even know how to get a house wins.Yeah.The house wins.
And so it's like, I can, it's like impossible, like mathematically looking at the stock market or anything else.I'm like, how many years is it going to take me just to get back what I earned?Like what I actually made.Yeah.
that is something everybody forgets about they could think about like oh i stick a hundred dollars in the stock market and it's gonna make a seven percent average return over ten years and i'm like but it was two dollars you lost it you actually worked for that two dollars you actually earned it it's not a fake two dollars
just because maybe you didn't see it in your bank account or something like that doesn't mean that wasn't part of your pay.So when I looked at that, I'm like, geez, real estate answered both of those questions.
Real estate gave us tax benefits, and it also gave us stabilized income.The problem was I actually didn't like real estate.And the reason why I didn't like real estate is because I didn't understand it.
And the amount of money that you had to put into it to what you were getting back, to me, because I didn't understand it,
it didn't make sense because i get i knew i could go out and buy businesses i could go by caspation businesses at like two x two x multiple one look at it like Real estate, and it's like a 20X multiple.I'm like, what?
So not including appreciation, all that kind of stuff.Well, storage, that's where that came in.I got depreciation.We got cash flow.But it was more like a business.And I could start small.
I can go out and buy storage facilities that are cheaper than duplexes in most markets in the United States.And a lot of people don't realize that.They think commercial is just big and scary.Yet, we're talking about a couple hundred thousand dollars.
Yet I get with that couple hundred thousand dollars instead of one door or two doors, which trying to find two doors at a couple hundred thousand dollars, I don't know where you're at somewhere in the Midwest, but that's like not possible.
Or South Carolina, AJ, don't leave us off the map.Yeah.Okay.So I'll go, there you go.But like, that is really hard to find.Right.And so when you, but storage with that, all of a sudden I get 80 doors.
What that meant was my ability to affect the income of the asset was much higher because rental rate increases, for an example, if I wanted to give a 20% rental rate increase to somebody in two years or even one year on rent for a home, that's astronomical.
But on a storage unit, that may be the cost of a McDonald's meal. But over those 80 doors, it's still a 20% income raise.So the duplex or the storage at the same price, one, I can actually get a 20% increase on rents.
And in the people that own it, it means very little.Most of them don't even know it's happening because it's not that much. In a home or family, I think most laws would bar you from doing it.I don't even think that's possible.I had no toilets.
I didn't have to deal with people at all.It's just their junk.I can kick them out at any time that I want.No major CapEx, nothing's flooding.Right.And I can change prices anytime month to month contract.So I want to track new prices, uh, new tenants.
I give a discount. Then I focus on occupancy.I have a lot of occupancy.I focus on weights, move it up.I can do things like we self fund tenant insurance where I get 80% of the premium back.
We do all these add-ons and services because you're increasing that net income line.And when you increase that net income line, then you increase the value.That's how you get value.
So if I had a facility that had 15% delinquencies, let's say it's a $500,000 facility, a hundred doors, 15% delinquencies where 15% of the people aren't paying the rent, I clean that up.
And then I get a 15% increase in overall rents because some people aren't paying what they should be because they didn't have rent increases or whatever.And then I simply make a website and I make sure occupancy stays high.
Just there alone, you know, you're talking about a 30% increase.Well, if your margin is 30%, that means you just doubled the value of the asset.It's now a million dollars.And the tenants were hardly even hit at all.
And this exists all over the United States.And that was our entire business model.It was make sure people pay the rents, answer the phone, if they call, right.And then let people know we were there.
And we were taking these small facilities, turning around and we were essentially every four to six years, we were over doubling our money and we were not selling the asset.We were still keeping it, still cashflow for us.
And so we just compounded our capital over and over and over again.We could affect the net income.It wasn't just left up to hopefully the market goes up.I don't play that game because that's gambling.
So it's the lowest defaulting asset and the highest return of all commercial real estate.And it has one of the lowest barriers of entry, if not the lowest of any commercial asset.So the risk is the lowest bar none.
I mean, when you compare it to other assets, not only is it the lowest, it's a fraction of it, right?Yeah.It's returns are the highest. And there's less CapEx associated with it.It's much more plannable and they're everywhere.
These are in cities all over the United States.Mom and pops, 50% of the entire industry, 50 to 60% single operator owned mom and pops.Apartments, that's 80 to 90% institutionalized. And that's big money, big problems, laws, regulation.
So we, that's what we did.We started buying these little things.And nobody at the time knew anything about storage.Nobody talked about it.Right.My dad bought this small storage facility in Eastern Idaho, and I was trying to buy four plexes.
And he's like, no, look at this.And at the time we're talking about pre 2008 here. When I was looking at four plexes and trying to find duplexes, cause that was all the rage.
Um, I couldn't find anything that cash flowed, but yet everybody was buying it and becoming rich off it.I didn't understand it.My dad's like, let's buy, let's do this.And I'm like, storage units never even been in one.
I literally went to see it and I, and I like went and looked at it and I'm like, okay, it just didn't, I'd never heard of it.I didn't do anything.But then he showed me the PNL of this little storage facility in a small town in Idaho.And I was like,
Now, you compare that to all these other assets I'm looking at, and he'd bought that one with a partner, and he said, hey, let's go buy these, and let's mean you do it.
And so we would sell insurance, and we would take our money, and we would buy these little storage facilities.We'd turn them around.We'd get all of the tax benefits.
We'd refinance them, get all our money plus profits tax-free, buy another one, still owning that one. And we just compounded it to $150 million portfolio in 10 years, not without any investors.
You were just burr in your way, baby.
Burr is the self-storage burr.We call it the burred.Because you buy, you increase the net income, then you reduce risk.Because in commercial real estate, we can refinance and it's non-recourse. And then we do it again.It's the bird, baby.I love it.
The birds, first time I've heard that.I love it.I absolutely love it.I love all the points you make.The thing I relate with the most is looking at it as a business, because I do a lot of traditional real estate.
And so take commercial out, just if we're looking at residential, to your point, if we're looking at finding what that property is worth, I can only increase rent so much.
And so it's going to be worth what the market of other comparables around it says it's worth.Bingo.
Where to your point, when you're looking at storage, you can go in and you can increase the number of people that are paying, increase the occupancy rate, do all the things, optimize, and now you increase the value substantially.
Because when an appraiser goes to look at a self-storage unit, they're not looking at what's the one you know, a mile down the road sold for.It's not like a residential property where they're plentiful.It's net income.
You got two facilities right next to each other that are the exact same, identical.And one could easily be worth 1 million and the other one could be worth 2.That is normal.That happens all the time.
And it's only because one person is doing a better job at rents, Optimizing right all of those kind of things that's it and yet they can double the value of the exact same thing in the exact same location because market rents don't dictate.
Right and we look at it and i and you know i started talking about this after two thousand eight where my whole thing was this uh uh self storage is a business not a real estate asset and it's actually what i wrote my. best-selling book.
The first one that I wrote was on self-storage, was Growing Wealth and Self-Storage, and it was turn a real estate asset into a thriving business.So my whole mantra, and when I said this, people were like, what are you talking about?
Storage is a business.Because nobody acted like that.All they did was try to get tenants in, and they got cash flow off of it.And so all we were doing was buying these assets, because different units are totally different.
Like you have 10 different types of units, right?I call those products.You have 10 different types of tenants.I call those customers.But it's not even 10 different types.
The variation in why people use storage, how they use it, and the products that you have means supply, demand, and everything in between is wildly different.
What a business needs to use the same unit for as someone that's just like moving their house, it's totally different.So you can price them differently. because you have different utilization of it.
So all of a sudden, there's so much opportunity because you have all these different products that are priced not by simply what the market says.That is wildly advantageous.And I can change immediately, month to month, as markets change.
So during inflation, you can just keep up with it. All of a sudden, you have hard times and occupancy starts to drop.You lower your discount rates on the streets or it's to get people in.
You can affect occupancy and revenue unlike any asset I've ever seen in real estate.
That is very interesting.So somebody is listening today and they're like, OK, I want to get into this, AJ.They're not raising capital.They've got good income coming in.They want to deploy it.
What is the bread and butter buy box they should be looking for?
All right, there's two ways you can do this, okay?There's three, but REITs, but I don't count that because REITs are just buying a stock.
We're talking about direct ownership and participation, because you want the cashflow, you want the depreciation, you want the tax benefits and all of it.So you can always invest with somebody else, right?
So you can still syndicate, like investing in apartments, everything else like that, so you can get participation.
Now, if you're like, I wanna do it myself, because I wanna build a portfolio, everything else, well then I would suggest, unless you have lots and lots of money,
You go to second tier, third tier markets where there's mom and pops, and you look at a smaller facility, 10,000, 15,000 square feet.That's how we judge facility sizes.We don't do it by doors because that actually doesn't make sense.
You can have an 80,000 square foot facility that has 300 doors and an 80,000 square foot facility that has a thousand doors because it depends on the size of the doors. So we judge it by square foot.
Now, if you look at it, 10, 15,000 square feet, you're talking like two 150,000, depending on your market to, I mean, probably a million at the most.
Um, and you're going to have a bunch of doors and you go and all you do is you look for those ones that mom and pop owns that aren't doing marketing.Right.And they're just not doing the simple things, the three things that I mentioned, right.
They're not making people pay their bills and it's shocking how Delinquencies are so high.This is normal, right?And then the rates are different for everybody because they're not increasing rates.They're not on top of it, right?
And so they're not doing any of those things.The people can't find them.They can't let them know.
All you do, you buy that, you make people pay their bills, you make sure that rates are in line and that if there's demand, you increase rates so you can have supply to supply the market. right?Basic stuff here.
And then you let people know where you are.You set up a website, you do some SEO, and maybe you run some ads.Now, this stuff too, you can farm out.You can get call centers, third parties, everything else to do.
You target that so you can affect that income and it's low risk because it's already a cash flowing asset because you're paying based upon the cash flow. And that's exactly how I would start.
And I, this is like, I wrote exactly step-by-step how to do this in my book, everything else.Cause it's how we did it, all of it where I'm like, this is that you're not kicking, you know, single mothers and their kids out.
You're not dealing with toilets.You're not doing any of this stuff.A lot of people are like, oh, that seems more complicated.It's only more complicated because you're not as familiar with it.
But I'm like, how complicated is it when you have a family living in a rental property and you have all this regulation over it. And you have all of these problems that can go on and all these lives that are being affected.Mine's a metal box.
And if you don't pay, I kick you out.Like, it's not complicated.Like, that's it, right?But it's just not as familiar to people, so they think that it's more complex.But as far as impact goes, it's actually not.
Do you guys only do indoor storage or do you guys also do exterior?We do all of it.We do climate controlled indoor.I've converted bankrupt super K-marts.I've converted office buildings, turned them into storage facilities.
We do multi-story climate controlled and big markets.I do small markets, only drive up, RV storage, the works, all of it.Some of our storage facilities have conference rooms in them.
We do like lower, uh, and we have business storage, contractor storage.Um, so we do it all and we basically just do whatever the market needs.
If somebody saying, dude, I want to invest with you.How can I do that?How can we make that happen?
We, we try to make it really easy and, uh, you know, our partners and our investors, they can go on and see what we have.We do different projects.
So we do developments conversions, but the bread and butter, what we do is we buy underperforming assets and turn them around.So you like Cedar Creek capital.That's the name of my company.
That's the syndication company, everything else you go on there, there's an investor box.You email us or go straight into the investor portal, and then you immediately get access to see what we're doing. And then you can see everything about us.
If you want to just learn about storage, self-storage, income, or once again, AJL is for self-storage.You'll find all of it, self-storage, income.We tell everything for free.We're not hiding back secrets.I'm not like, oh, no.
My latest book is 430 pages.
It's a textbook.That's a fantasy novel or something like that.
It's crazy, man.It's case studies.We go off to trends.I show you, we bought this.Here's exactly how to do it.All the secrets for free on the podcast, which is the largest podcast in our industry by far.We give it away all for free.
I'm just telling people exactly what to do.It's part of my promise and my mission, and we're sticking to it.
I love it.You can go get AJ's new book at www.selfstorageincome.com backslash book.If you want to invest with AJ and company, head over to Cedar Creek Capital.AJ, I want to thank you for being on today, man.Your story is a powerful, powerful story.
And then what you're doing in the self-storage space is truly inspiring, giving all the knowledge out and actually doing the dang thing. Like you're going out and you guys are still doing it today.
We were talking recently and you're raising capital like crazy because so many people are wanting to be able to invest and get the deals with you because you know what you're doing.
And so thank you for spending time today with the Rich Dad crew and sharing your knowledge. Thanks for having me on, man.I really appreciate it.
And it's good to see you as always.Good to see you.Thanks, AJ.
Thank you for tuning in to this week's episode of the Rich Dad Real Estate Show, where we talked to AJ Osborne, the king of self-storage, heard his powerful story and how self-storage has completely changed his life.
Hey, if you haven't yet, go down, like this video, like this podcast, subscribe to the channel, leave us a review.Thank you guys for listening.
Go check out the ebook also, if you haven't grabbed it, linker in the show notes, and we'll see you next week.
This podcast is a presentation of Rich Dad Media Network.
People are driven by the search for better.But when it comes to hiring, the best way to search for a candidate isn't to search at all.Don't search.Match with Indeed.The hiring process can be slow and overwhelming.Simplify hiring with Indeed.
Indeed is your matching and hiring platform, with over 350 million global monthly visitors according to Indeed data, and a matching engine that helps you find quality candidates fast. Ditch the busy work.
Use Indeed for scheduling, screening, and messaging, so you can connect with candidates faster.Join more than 3.5 million businesses worldwide that use Indeed to hire great talent fast.
Listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your job's more visibility at indeed.com slash k-o-d-k-a-t-z 13. That's indeed.com slash p-o-d-k-a-t-z 13.Terms and conditions apply.