No Down Payment® course gives Alabama investors “what they needed.”

As investor Sophia D. was approaching retirement from her job as a training officer for the fire department, she worried about her future. Then one night she and her son, Roger, who is in construction, were up late and watched Carleton’s No Down Payment® infomercial on TV.

“Seize the moment”
“We looked at each other and decided it might be just what we needed,” she says. They ordered the course and soon bought their first property, listening to the CDs as they rehabbed the house. Today they own and rent out 29 properties single-family homes and duplexes which give them a net worth of $464,720 and a positive cash flow of $50,562 a year. And Sophia retired in style several years ago. “All I do now is work on houses,” she laughs.

Wheelin’ and dealin’
One of the deals Sophia is the most proud of is purchasing eight houses and one duplex all on one mortgage with no money down. She used the $3,000 cash back at closing to pay closing costs and insurance. The properties were part of a settlement. “The guy wanted to sell everything,” she shares, “and we got them at a really great price.”
“The bank would go 75 or 80 percent of the appraised value, and the buyer was willing to sell it that low. I was able to get it because the money that I borrowed was based on the property’s appraised value.”

Building relationships
Sophia learned very early on to cultivate good relationships. She has two favorite banks and also works closely with a real estate agent. “A lot of people are into this business now just grabbing up properties,” she explains, “so it’s harder to find distressed properties. But with a Realtor helping us, we find them. Most of my properties have come through my Realtor.”

Next step
Once they’ve purchased a distressed property, Sophia and Roger start working sometimes finding hardwood floors beneath old carpets. “I do most of the cleaning and some of the other work; the things I can’t do, he does. Then we turn them back over to a real estate agent,” she points out. “I don’t rent or manage my own properties,” she adds. “They handle everything.”

Rewards and goals
Rewards for Sophia have been a secure retirement, “work” she loves, and being her own boss. “It’s a lot different pushing yourself to get something done when it’s yours,” she says. She is more relaxed and takes more vacations. In the future, she wants to buy apartment buildings and eventually to build an apartment complex.