Chris & John
- Oct 9, 2019
- 2 min read

EP 01: How an Aussie Conquered Real Estate Investing in the US

Updated: Oct 11, 2019

Our guest today is Reed Goossens who is the founder of RSN Property Group. Coming from Australia, he faced a unique set of challenges when he first started out with real estate in New York. For him, it’s all about getting off the fence and being aware that, while you may lose some here and there, it’s important to get your foot in the door as soon as possible. It’s about actually doing it and putting your money where your mouth is – whether it means taking your own money and investing it or investing passively in someone else’s deal. We talk about the importance of having a mentor and accepting that there is no silver bullet or magic formula when it comes to this industry.

It takes time and perseverance and going at it even when you’ve had a negative experience. While there are instances where people have been lucky when first starting out, it’s a slow and steady process for the most part. We get into a conversation about finding partners, recognizing that you cannot forever rely only on your own finances and how you should approach the business of underwriting deals. Reed offers listeners some great insight, so be sure to tune in!

Key Points from This Episode:

Reed’s journey of relocating from Australia to the United States and finding his first job.
Adjusting to the American networking culture and the fast pace of New York.
Investing in his first property six months after moving to the US.
Why you should get into real estate as soon as possible and what you need to get started.
The big learning experience with his first deal and having problems with tenant profiles.
Owning three properties in upstate New York and flipping a house in Philadelphia.
How a talk with a friend made him realize that he needed other people’s money to scale.
Creating a niche in educating and serving international investors.
The challenges for new investors in the current market.
How single-family flipping can turn into multifamily syndication or multifamily investing.
Being in a paid job while learning the ropes around the lifestyle of real estate investing.
Learning that it takes time and perseverance to succeed.
The significance of having a mentor and knowing when to look for a partner.
Some great advice for underwriting deals.
And much more!

Tweetables:

“So, to anyone who is listening to this thinking, ‘I’m on the fence’, get off the fence because even now you can still get started with less than 50k and at least just get your feet wet.” — @reedgoossens [0:06:48]

“Being an investor, it is a lifestyle change. You want to live and breathe it – it’s got to be that you’re in it for the long haul. Anything worth doing is going to take a long period of time to do.” — @reedgoossens [0:25:27]