Meet Lauren Hardy of Virtual Investing Mastery in Orange County

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Hardy.

Lauren, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I started flipping houses in Orange County after having my first child and being tired of the corporate grind. My kid only saw me 2 hours a day, the rest of her time was spent at daycare. I intended on doing a couple deals a year, just enough to replace my salary minus what I was paying in child care.

After a couple of years of flipping houses locally in Orange County, the deals started to dry up. I couldn’t find anything I could make a real profit on without taking on considerable risk. I realized I needed to go to an out of state market where property values were more stable. I didn’t know anyone flipping houses “virtually” out of state but I didn’t have any other option but to figure it out.

What I had originally considered my “Achilles Heel,” with not being able to live in my market territory eventually lead to my second business venture. As time went on, I realized more people had the same problem I had. There are a lot of people who want to invest in real estate, but they live in an area that makes it impossible. It took me four years to figure out systems to managing deals virtually. I realized people would actually pay me to teach them what I know. So I put a course together online and started talking about it with some of my other friends in the business. A larger real estate education company heard about my course, and they made me an offer to partner with them in selling it.

I had no idea eight years ago when I was a struggling mom just trying to have more work-life balance that I’d be trading 50+ houses a year, out of state, coaching others in the business and hosting one of the largest podcasts in my industry.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
No, not at all. I’ve had my back against the wall more times than I can count. I’ve had years my company has broken even. I’ve paid my employees before I’ve paid myself. All the experiences you face running a business only makes you stronger. It actually takes a lot to ruffle my feathers now. Things that used to freak me out years ago barely take up any room in my thoughts throughout the day today.

I think the biggest struggle was consistently keeping my company in the green month after month. My industry is very competitive so I have to constantly stay on top of the cutting edge of marketing and sales so we are better than our competition. It can be exhausting but it’s necessary for survival.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Virtual Investing Mastery – what should we know?
I teach other people who they can invest in real estate without having to live where they invest. I like to say “live anywhere, invest where you want.” Most of these people want to flip houses or buy rental properties but they live in areas where prices are too expensive. Think Southern California, New York, Miami. These are areas that are virtually impossible for the average investor get it into.

My coaching program teaches you how to pick less competitive markets that will still give you desirable returns, and I show you how you manage this virtually so you don’t have to physically be there.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My mentors have been the key to my success. One in particular came in when I was particularly frustrated, his name is Tag Thompson. He was doing well as a virtual investor so I approached him to start mentoring me. He accepted the challenge and worked with me for years. Today we are now business partners in a software we are developing.

If it wasn’t for my coaches and mentors, I would still be working some corporate job while my kids sit in after school daycare. It wasn’t always easy, when things got hard I looked for mentors to help push me through it. Sometimes it’s just getting a second eye on your business that can be really helpful.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.virtualinvestingmastery.com
• Instagram: thismomflips

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