We recently connected with Nicole & Marcus Johnson and have shared our conversation below.
Nicole & Marcus, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Risk taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.
When Marcus & I decided that real estate was going to be our path to financial freedom, we promised each other we would be willing to do what it took to make our goals happen. One of our first risks was leaving Cincinnati, OH and moving to Colorado in late 2011. Shortly after that we bought our first flip, even though we had virtually no experience in real estate or house flipping. We did nearly everything wrong! But we learned a lot and kept going. We had so many roadblocks those first several years that almost left us financially ruined. Most people would have given up, but real estate is a high-risk, high-reward business & we were determined to keep going & keep learning. Our next big risk was a few years later when Marcus quit his job to focus on real estate investing full=time. I had built up my residential real estate business enough to be bringing in steady commissions, but it was a huge risk for us to leave behind the security of a 9-5 salaried position and into the unknown and often volatile world of investing with four kids at home to take care of.
In 2018 I decided to take the risk of leaving the small brokerage that I had been hanging my real estate license under to open up my own real estate brokerage, Co Vision Real Estate Group. I felt that in order to serve my clients better & to more cohesively run our investing business, owning my own brokerage was my next step towards our goals.
It has been over seven years since Marcus took the leap of leaving his W2 job behind & nearly 6 years of owning my own brokerage. The rewards from those risks have been life changing! Marcus is enjoying the freedom of time & now primarily focuses on cash flowing real estate investments. I have grown tremendously over the years learning how to become a better agent & business owner for my clients. I genuinely enjoy connecting & serving people looking to buy or sell real estate throughout Northern Colorado.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am a real estate broker/owner of Co Vision Real Estate Group that helps clients buy & sell real estate throughout Northern Colorado. I have always had a love for real estate! I have been happily serving clients since 2014 & ventured to open my own brokerage in 2018 to better serve my clients. My passion is helping people through the home buying & selling process. Whether it’s working with first-time homebuyers, sellers buying their dream home, or investors finding a great deal, I truly love what I do!
Marcus & I have been actively investing in real estate since 2007 & together formed Co Vision Property Investments in 2013. We have experience with creative financing, foreclosures, short sales, rentals, full renovations, & have flipped more than 70 properties in the last few years. Marcus manages the investment side of our business and is now primarily focused on buying mortgage notes & generating passive income.
My experience with investing gives me a unique advantage in the industry because I can see value, potential, & solve complex problems. I focus heavily on digital marketing & utilize the power of social media to get maximum exposure for my listings & use high powered technology to best serve my clients.
I adopted the tag line “Love Where You Live!” because we genuinely love living in Northern Colorado. I believe it’s essential to be in a home & area that fits your needs & helps you find a sense of community, whatever that looks like for you. I am always humbled & grateful when people trust me with their business & I do my best to treat all of my clients like family.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
I have had to make some major pivots in 2023 in order to adapt to the changing real estate market as high fluctuating mortgage rates continue to cause a lot of uncertainty in the market. For many years I relied on word of mouth & steady referrals for my business without having to do a lot of advertising. However, when rates started to skyrocket & buyers & sellers jumped on the fence & out of the market, my business almost completely dried up. The changing market exposed a lot of my weaknesses & I realized that I needed to start implementing some major changes in order to create a more sustainable, systematic business. One of my first major pivots was hiring a virtual assistant from the Philippines named Richard. His main focuses are designing & implementing branding & marketing materials for Co Vision Real Estate Group and managing all of my social media platforms & ad campaigns. Having Richard has been a huge boost to my business & has given me the opportunity to grow & expand in ways I never thought were possible.
I have also invested heavily into utilizing the power of digital marketing & social media to boost brand awareness, educate buyers & sellers, & gain massive exposure to my listings for clients. I am also learning how to embrace A.I. technology to better serve my clients & streamline processes.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Marcus & I have recently read “10x is Easier than 2x” by Dr. Benjamin Hardy & Dan Sullivan. It’s a powerful book for entrepreneurs looking to scale their businesses without becoming twice as busy. He teaches concepts on how to choose the right people to add to your team that can take over the 80% of your business that is filled with remedial tasks & transactions so you can focus on the important 20% of your business that generates growth & development. I highly recommend this book to any business owner who is stuck knee-deep in the daily ins-and outs of their business & who is looking for a better way to do it.
Contact Info:
- Phone Number: 970.682.9153
- Website: https://www.nicolejohnsonproperties.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicolejohnson_realtor
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NicoleJohnsonRealtor
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolejohnsonrealtor/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@nicolejohnson_realtor