REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate Advice

 

The right advice at the right time can change your life. Join your host Monick Halm as she interviews Moneeka Sawyer about the best and worst real estate advice she could give anyone. They dive into the roadmap to real estate investing success. Moneeka is the Blissful Millionaire who helps women rise above challenges and succeed. In this episode, she shares practical tips that you need to remember to achieve financial freedom without unnecessary stress and anxiety. She emphasizes that things don’t have to be complicated because simple things can impact your life. Tune in to hear great advice you need to be confident and empowered enough to conquer your fears!

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The Best (And Worst) Real Estate Advice To Help You Take Your Business To The Next Level With Moneeka Sawyer

I am so excited to have with me again Moneeka Sawyer who is one of the incredible women featured in our upcoming book Invest Like a Goddess: Advice From The Most Successful Women In Real Estate. In this show, I have brought her here to talk about her best advice and some more advice. The right piece of advice at the right time can change your life.

I’m excited to have Moneeka Sawyer with us, who is the Blissful Millionaire. She reached her financial freedom by turning from $10,000 to over $5 million working only 5 to 10 hours per month with very little stress. She is now on a mission to help as many other women as she can to do the same. She’s like me. She has a heart to help women. She’s a TEDx speaker and hosts the top-rated podcast and radio show Real Estate Investing for Women. She interviewed tons of amazing guests. She’s been on tons of different shows on TV, NBC, CBS, and ABC Fox.

Welcome, Moneeka.

I love it. It’s Monick and Moneeka.

I’m so excited because, over the years that I have known her, she’s become my dear friend. I’m thrilled to share her brilliance with you.

Thanks for having me on again, Monick.

Thanks for being here. Before we get going, I have shared your very impressive bio, but I would love it if you would share something that’s not in your bio that few people know about you.

I was telling you in the green room that I am going to Hawaii to teach about belly dancing. I have been a belly dancer for many years. I have been competitive and whatever, and I have moved to try to help women feel empowered, sexy, feminine, and feel like a goddess because that’s what we are all about. Turn us into the goddess that we were meant to be and to have some props that helped with that, and it’s so much fun. I’m going to be teaching in Hawaii for that. The thing that people don’t know is that Moneeka teaches about belly dancing or even that I did belly dance competitively. I have taken first place in California over and over again. It’s awesome. Us women that are into real estate and success, we are not competitive at all.

REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate Advice

Real Estate Advice: Everybody has fear. Everybody has stress and everybody has money problems. But you would want rich people’s money problems instead of poor people’s money problems. With the stress and the fear, you want mentors that can help you through it.

 

There’s more than enough for all of us. We can compete in contests and have fun. It’s fine to show up as our best. I found that out when we were in Austin together. I was like, “It was fascinating. It’s so great to learn little nuggets about people.” Switching gears to advice. What would you say is the best life advice you’ve ever received?

I have to say the people that have given me the best advice in my life are my parents. They are the people with that I am so blessed. I know you are too. We have got these amazing parents that had the very best in mind for us. The best real estate advice, as well as the best life advice that I want to share, is something that my dad said to me before I got into real estate.

I had dug my feet in. I did not want to get into real estate. I had watched him do real estate for years on all the issues that come with that. I was like, “Such a no thank you.” My dad said something to me over the dinner table that changed everything in my life, my career, and the way that I looked at life. What he said was, “Everybody has fear, stress, and money problems. Do you want poor people money problems or rich people money problems?” I was like, “Rich people have money problems.”

We pay less taxes. How do we keep more of what we have?

It was so all-encompassing. Everybody has stress and fear. Sometimes, there are all these successful people even now. I look at you and Peter, and these people that I admire and I think, “Are they like me?” He thinks so many of our readers were probably thinking that. We are stressed and we all have money problems. Some are better than others.

Everyone has problems. It’s just you want better problems.

Start to save as early as you can so you can invest in real estate. Click To Tweet

With the stress and the fear, you want role models and mentors that can help you through it.

How did you take that advice? You said it changed everything. How did it change things for you? What did you start doing differently as a result of hearing that question?

I was digging my feet in, my heels in, and I was like, “No, thank you. I’m not going to do this.” In the meantime, I couldn’t find a job because it was a recession. I made some different decisions. I took the first job that I could get that I would enjoy. It paid very little, and I started to save so I could invest in real estate. I was getting $10 an hour and it was quite saving 10%. I changed the way that I was running my life. It was so interesting about that. I wasn’t making any money. I was living hand to mouth except for the little savings. I did sign up for my 401(k). I had a little bit of savings that I was putting away for real estate, but it completely empowered me.

Suddenly, I felt like I was in control of my life and that nobody could run me over. Nobody could put me down like I had a plan. I was starting to do things that empowered me financially, in my career, and personally to feel safe and I could take care of myself. Up until then, I was like, “A lot of college students, I don’t know how to do this adulting thing,” but that moved me forward to, “I have got a plan now. I have got some strategies.”

My next question is about the best financial advice. Was that the same thing?

I would say it would be the same thing. I have got another one that I love that I use all the time I always remind myself of. I read the book The Richest Man in Babylon. Pay yourself first. Even when I’m tempted, I’m like, “We are making more money now.” You grow our expenses. No. I pay myself first. Always remember to pay yourself first. How I pay myself is I invest in real estate. That’s what I do, and then I take those. The money that I make there and I invest more. The very best advice I ever got is pay yourself first. He recommends 10%. I do more than that now, but I only started with 10%. We all got to start somewhere.

REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate Advice

Real Estate Advice: Somehow we have that impression that if it’s not complicated, it’s not good. But the reality is, the simplest little things have such a huge impact.

 

At least 10%. Every dollars take a dime. If you put that aside, it grows. You get enough of that, then you invest it, and you make that grow. That’s how you build wealth. It’s not that complicated.

The thing is, it’s not that complicated. People are like, “If it’s not complicated, it’s not good.” Somehow, we have that impression. At least that’s what I have seen, but the simplest little things have such a huge impact. It doesn’t need to be complicated.

It’s this compounding that happened to me. I give you that amazing advice. What’s the worst advice you could give someone?

Investing is scary and hard. Don’t invest. Keep your money under the mattress because it’s safe there, which is not.

It’s literally not. I have a friend who did that. He had $40,000 in his house. His house got broken into and there went the money.

Not only that. It loses its value. It’s not even that it doesn’t grow. It loses because of inflation. Every year, you lose 6% of that money at least depending on who you are talking to. Don’t do that.

Pay yourself first no matter how little that may be. We all need to start with something. Click To Tweet

Make your money grow. Get it working for you. Have good friends.

Show it at the party with lots of friends.

That would be terrible advice. Stay scared. That’s your money or, even worse, spend all your money, put on credit cards, and then be in debt.

That’s worse, but I don’t think I could even stomach saying something like that.

I have lots of shoes and purses.

Impress everybody else and then not be able to impress yourself.

REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate Advice

Real Estate Advice: The worst advice you can hear from someone is that investing is scary and hard. Don’t invest and just keep your money under the mattress because it’s safe there which is not true. Your money loses value because of inflation.

 

Look good with all your money and then pay your minimums on your credit cards. I wish I could say I have never done that, but I did. I did not always get the best advice. I wish that.

That’s a good point. We have all done that. I have done that, but I learned early on that’s not what I want for my life. Ladies, if you’ve done that, it’s okay. If you are still doing that, that’s okay, but it’s time to learn and move forward.

If you know better, you do best. Who do you turn to for advice?

I turned to you and my peers. I would say since I have a show myself, Real Estate Investing for Women, I get to meet absolutely amazing people, and because of that, I have been invited into communities where I have access to brilliant minds and we are all good at what we do. I have people that I can bounce ideas off that I respect and trust. When I have a problem, I have somewhere to go.

Everybody has access to the same kinds of people that I do. They have access to their own kinds of people, but what I will say is to find a mastermind of people that you relate to, you resonate with, and you feel that you can be in the conversation with. I will say that often I feel like I’m not good enough to be in the conversation, but I want to be in that conversation anyways. That’s who I turn to. It is the people that I consider my mastermind.

One of the best advices or quotes from you is you were at Real Estate Investor Soulmates conference, you spoke, but one of the things that you said was one of the best nuggets I have ever heard, which you were talking about not feeling maybe you are good enough to be there, feel like a bit an Imposter. You said, “If you don’t feel like an Imposter, you are not dreaming big enough or you are not playing big enough.” That’s a sign that you are in the right place if you are feeling out of your depth. I love that.

Get comfortable with being uncomfortable because that's where the magic happens. Click To Tweet

I’m like, “Mom was talking this and that.” It’s so nice to know when something comes back to me like, “Someone heard me and it was good.”

When I heard that, I was like, “Drop the mic like that.” It’s such a good line. I was like, “Yes. I do not feel Imposter syndrome that I’m not playing a big enough game, which is a good thing because I feel Imposter syndrome all the time.”

People look at the person that they admire, and they say, “I can’t be that.” That person feels the Imposter syndrome. I guarantee. We all feel it. It’s just, “How are we dealing with it?” I love that. I keep reminding myself of that. My games are big enough.

It is such a good reframe. It means you are in the right place. It doesn’t mean that you are in the wrong place if you can’t do it. It’s like, “This is a sign that I’m in the right place. I’m stretching myself enough because I do feel like an Imposter. I feel uncomfortable and out of my comfort zone.” That’s one of the best pieces of advice I have gotten from you. Get yourself uncomfortable and allow yourself to feel like an Imposter. Remember that means you are doing it well.

People have heard this over and over again, but it’s something that I repeat to myself all the time, get comfortable with being uncomfortable because that’s where the magic happens.

Nothing you want is in your comfort zone. You can vacation there for a little bit, but if you live there, it will get uncomfortable in the wrong way. You will be in the smaller box, so you can’t live in your comfort zone.

REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate Advice

Real Estate Advice: If you think working hard is hard, always remember that being broke is harder. We’re not just talking about money. We’re talking about the excitement in our life and feeling successful.

 

I heard someone tell me and this is a great quote that I got, “There it went.”

It will change all your lives. That happens to me, too. I’m like, “I forgot. If I remembered, it would have solved all your problems. It’s your life for good.”

You are going to have to listen to me some other time.

We’re just like, “Sorry.” You have to learn it the hard way.

If you think working hard is hard, being broke is harder. We are not talking about money. We are talking about the excitement in our life, feeling successful, and expanding. All of those things feel like a lack of abundance or a compression. If the expansion is hard, compression is harder.

I have heard it said, too, like, “If you do what’s hard now, your life will be easy. If you do what’s easy now, your life will be harder.” You tighten the belt a little. You put in the effort. You make sure that you get educated and you get out of your comfort zone. You do those hard things and then that’s what leads to a phenomenal life. What’s the best advice you have for a woman investing in real estate, and how did you learn this advice?

Don't wait. One of the big mistakes people make in the real estate market is they wait for the market to correct or they wait for the right time. And the problem is that we can't really time the market. Click To Tweet

Don’t wait. One of the big mistakes people make in the real estate market is they wait for the market to correct and the right time. They are trying to guess the market or time the market. The problem is that we can’t time the market. I know people were saying, “The market is going to crash starting in 2006.” They didn’t invest and the market crashed in 2008, but there were these three years when they were sitting on the sidelines that so many other things could have happened for them.

That crash was horrible. It was a weird crash. Nothing like that is likely to happen again. I don’t have a crystal ball, but knowing the way the markets work in general, we can predict that would probably not happen again. From my perspective, if you wait, you are cheating yourself out of the opportunity. However, I would never say go short-term like you go long-term. Real estate is a long game so you need to give yourself time to be right.

I remember in 2016, a very sophisticated investor. I’m not going to out him, but he’s written one of the top books on real estate investing and apartments. I remember at that time he was saying, “We are at the top of the market. I’m not buying.” This was 2016. He stopped buying apartment buildings. There has been so much growth and then I saw him at a conference. It was 2019, so before COVID. Years later, I said, “Are you still not buying real estate?” He’s like, “We are starting to sell, but we are buying again.” Maybe he stopped in 2015 or before because that January 2016. He was saying he’d stopped buying. There’s been a lot of growth.

For a lot of years where he wasn’t in it because he thought the prices were too crazy and there was no money to be made. Even sophisticated investors will make that mistake and think they can time the market. When you find the deal with the numbers makes sense, and you know that over time it will get better because you can have a fixed rate mortgage and rental increase over time, then you do it. You get in. I was like, “When was the best time to plant a tree several years ago? The next best time is now.” “It’s real estate. It’d be great if we could have bought it several years ago, the next best time is right now because that’s the only time we got.”

That’s all we got. I tell people, I was on TV down in San Diego, and the producer came out and was like, “I wish I had bought real estate several years ago. Isn’t it a bubble now?” I said, “In twenty years, you’ll look back and you’ll say the same thing unless you do it.” Do your research. As you say, “You need to make smart investments, but take action. Don’t keep waiting to time the market.”

There are always opportunities. There are bad deals, though.

REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate Advice

Real Estate Advice: Do your research because you need to make smart investments and you need to actually take action. Don’t keep waiting to time the market.

 

There are, and I have made mistakes too but do your research, get your education, and don’t try to time the market.

I’m going to end with our end of trinity, which is gratitude and desire. What is one thing you are celebrating right now? What’s your brag?

I moved to Sacramento, which I was horrified to have to do from the Bay Area. We, in the Bay Area, have been fairly stuck up about how wonderful our area is. Have I had an eye-opener about that? I’m now living close to my parents. I get to see them every week. I can’t express enough the gratitude that my husband supported me in this move that it was so easy the way the universe handed it to me. I’m getting so much beautiful time with my family.

What’s one thing you are grateful for?

That’s it. It’s the same thing. I’m so grateful.

What’s one desire?

I have never admitted this on air. This is a secret, goddesses. We have transitioned to Sacramento, and there’s some transition energy that has ignited me, and I am in transition. I want this transition to happen in my business as beautifully as it has happened in my personal life through this move.

Thou shall your desire be or so much better than you can imagine under grace and imperfect ways. Thank you for being here and sharing your brilliance and wisdom. One of my brags is that I’m friends with Moneeka. I desire to spend more time with Moneeka. We’ll have to do it soon. Thank you so much, and thank you all for reading. Subscribe and join us next time for another amazing interview.

 

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About Moneeka Sawyer

REIG Moneeka Sawyer | Real Estate AdviceMoneeka Sawyer is the blissful millionaire. She reached her financial freedom by turning $10,000 to over $2,000,000 working only 5-10 hours per MONTH with very little stress. She is now on a mission to help as many other women as she can to do the same. Moneeka hosts the the top rated podcast and radio show Real Estate Investing for Women and has interviewed prestigious guests such as Leeza Gibbons, Dr. Joe Vitale, and Hal Elrod. Moneeka has also been featured on stages with Suzanne Sommers, Martha Stewart, and Ice T & Coco at places like the Nasdaq Marketplace, Harvard, and Carnegie Hall, and on TV on NBC, CBS, ABC, and Fox reaching over 150 million people.
Connect with Moneeka at Blissfulinvestor.com

 

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