Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Marcelo Lara. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Marcelo, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today

If I could go back and start over, I would definitely do a couple of things differently. The first and most important thing would be focusing on networking with like minded people way more frequently. I barely networked when I got into real estate, and because of that my learning curve and path to success was longer than it could have been. The second thing i’d do differently and it’s somewhat tied to the first thing is I would really put a focus on finding a mentor in my field. Having someone you can count on and call or text whenever you need something is huge and I wish I would have put more of an emphasis on this

Marcelo, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I got laid off during the pandemic. I had a great job but I was unhappy and already looking to change industries. Once I got laid off I started thinking about what my next move would be and I decided to finally go all in on real estate. I had always had interest in it, but knew I didn’t want to go the realtor route. I decided to jump into real estate investing and more specifically wholesaling. My business plan is finding off market distressed and undervalued properties to buy and resell in the short term. I always try and focus on solving the homeowner’s issues and only get into a contract with them if I could be of value and help them with whatever it is they have going on. The properties I target are in pre-foreclosure, probate, tax delinquent, evictions, have code violations, liens, etc… I am most proud of being able to help many homeowners get through difficult times and making sure they can sell their homes for cash and not have to be more stressed out than they already are

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

My business has been completely self funded. For many years prior to jumping into real estate, I was extra frugal and would try and save as much money as possible. I have always been entrepreneurial in spirit and knew the day would come when I would need as much cash as possible in order to fund whatever business I decided to start. The cash I had saved up was key in surviving during my first year as it took me quite awhile to start generating revenue and I was just basically living off of reserves

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Being someone of integrity and values. Being of your word. Making sure I was treating everyone involved in a transaction fairly and respectfully. I always make sure to try and do the right thing in each and every situation I am involved in. Some people cut corners ethically to make an extra buck, but I prefer to live by my values and do what’s right. That has served me well in life and has helped me build a solid reputation within my industry and in my markets

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.paradisehousebuyers.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marcelo2988/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MLara2988
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcelo-lara-48b2383a/