Timestamps:
1:07 | Building a Property Portfolio
4:35 | Making the Switch
5:57 | Investing into Commercial Space
10:13 | Be Well Researched
13:43 | Finding a Mentor
16:38 | Reflecting on the Past

Resources and Links:

[16:48] Property definitely helped to be able to give you that opportunity to take a step back and just enjoy that time. Because you don't get those moments back when you're working five [to] six days a week and 12 hours a day.

 

This is Property Investory where we talk to successful property investors to find out more about their stories, mindset and strategies.

 

I’m Tyrone Shum and in this episode, we’re back with acquisition manager Liam Carmody. He shares the details of his property investment strategy — building up a strong asset base. As well as this, learn how he was able to make the switch from engineer to buyer’s agent, what resources he used to jump into the market and what role luck played in his career.

 

 **END INTRO MUSIC**

 

 

 

In our last episode with Carmody, we learned that he has built up a portfolio of five properties. Let’s take a look at how he accomplished this.

 

[10:16] I just wanted to build a, like a decent asset base for in residential to start with and then just sort of have that as a long term buy and hold, to then use that as leverage to then get into more active investing later on. I know people do it but like trying to get into developing early days was a bit too risky for me. I'd rather sort of have the asset base behind me to then use that to the leverage off to then be more active or even with commercial assets, just trying to get some other passive ones on the way through. So, it was more just about building that asset base to then leverage off to be able to do more like what I'm interested in too.

 

[10:57] Whether it be developing or to create more passive income later on, once I'm at the point where I might want to take a step back from working as hard as I do now. Or, like any other career I was previously sort of building the portfolio that I have now allowed me to sort of make that choice and I wasn't sort of stuck in that lane to have a massive [and] negatively geared portfolio where I couldn't afford to leave that job that I was in. It does pay quite well in construction but that's the challenge. Trying to build a portfolio safely on the way through that you're not a slave to and it's producing the outcomes that you want.

 

After working in civil engineering for almost a decade, this portfolio gave him the chance to change careers.

 

[12:34] It had always been a personal interest of mine and probably just an opportunity, really. So, we went to the UK last year. My wife and I took some time off and for three months and went over there and some things changed while I was over there with my role, with the current job I was on. And just trying to have that security and with a young family too, just we spent that sort of three months together with my wife's family and just watching my son grow.

 

[13:06] Even that three months he was, I think he was 12 months when we left and like 15 months when we come back. And just like they change like young kids, as you probably know yourself, they change so quickly in that timeframe too, you know. And I've seen people in construction that I've known for years that have been away from their families and it's very hard on your partner and kids too, not being able to see you. So, I sort of decided that some things [needed to] change and decided to get into that property space. And earlier this year, I made the jump over.

 

[13:41] I started as a buyer's agent in commercial and residential real estate. So, that's been a really good change for me. It's only a small sort of quiet, I'm going quite well at the moment. There's quite a few clients we're working with now and it has been a really good learning curve for me as well. The people in the business too, their ex engineers too which helps.

 

[14:06] So, [we have] very similar backgrounds and they're like, very, very analytical. So, we're quite similar and I think it's a good trait to have when you're looking at property as well. You're taking all emotion out of it and you're looking purely at the investment itself and that's one of the key things I find as well.

 

 

When making the jump from engineering to becoming a buyer’s agent, Carmody’s connections became helpful.

 

[14:49] I've known the person that runs the business for quite a while now. Just sort of loosely, just through being involved in property really and investing and then just happened just by chance to speak with him about where he was at with running the business and just from a timing point of view. I was, some things changed in my personal experience with both families obviously and with the role I was in. So, I reached out and said, 'Look, I'm looking for a change'.

 

[15:18] And he was looking for someone to help out in the business and me having no experience whatsoever in property other than what I've done myself. And knowing himself too, he's done the exact same thing himself where he's worked as an engineer for a number of years and built a decent portfolio during that time and then made the changes.

[15:36] Well, that was sort of where that connection [was] there and it was just sort of a just a timing thing, really. Where I was just sort of, it's quite lucky how, yeah, he was at the point where he was looking to grow the business further and I'm quite self-motivated to and just was able to click straight away really that it both worked for us. And yeah, now we're, here we are now and it's going really well.

Now that Carmody has an established property portfolio and is succeeding as a buyer’s agent, he is exploring the possibility of investing into commercial spaces.

 

[18:36] I'm looking to leverage into commercial now. But just because of my circumstances with having our son and my wife being off work, and then with the career change now, it's sort of just taken a bit of a backseat. But I think I'll be getting into commercial; it is what I'm into more to be honest. Whether I try and leverage the equity. I've gotten the portfolio now to try and get into commercial now. And then have that passive income coming in, or whether I like [to]  get into developing.

 

[19:05] So, I'm in two minds to be honest, whether I, which way I go. So, [I'm] just trying to probably see how the next three to six months go, really. And then to sort of focus on the business now and just get like this new career, just get that that well, that good foundation and helping out our clients and sourcing the great properties that I've got in my portfolio and then just moving on from there to, whether it be commercial or development down the track. We'll wait and see.

 

Investing into commercial properties could be a great opportunity for Carmody. So, what is holding him back?

 

[19:50] I mean, what goes through my head now is commercial is obviously great for passive income but I'm only in my early 30s. So, do I need the passive income? I'm still enjoying what I'm doing [and] I'm still active in property. I don't necessarily need the passive income right now, either. 

So, I'm sort of like, do I leverage into developing, which is what I want to do longer term as a, probably as another side career and get more active. And then create more money that way because I'm young enough to take on more and enjoy that process more because it's not a quick turnaround by any means in developing.

 

[20:31] So, you want to sort of get in early and reap the benefits in two or three years. And then beyond that, like once you've built more income and more of a base from there to then later on get into commercial potentially. So, that's what is sort of just in my mind right now. Whether I even just from a servicing point of view, is it better off to have the commercial in the portfolio now to then assist with a cash flow during the projects? So, I was just trying to weigh all those things up in my head now.

 

 

Coming up after the break, we learn about what resources Carmody used at the start of his property investing journey…

 

[22:39] There used to be a show that Margaret Lomas used to host called 'Your Money, Your Call'.

 

He shares the value of having a mentor, even if you don’t know them personally…

 

[26:51] There's another one actually, Tom Panos is another one that I don't know personally, but he is quite big in the real estate space.

 

We’ll hear what Carmody would tell himself ten years ago…

 

[28:53] Probably say, don't take your eyes off your goal and don't let life get in the way of what you want.

And that’s next. I’m Tyrone Shum and you’re listening to Property Investory.

 

 

 

It’s important to be well researched at the beginning of your property investment journey. Let’s hear about what resources Carmody used to break into the market.

 

[22:34] It's another resource that's now gone. But there used to be a show that Margaret Lomas used to host called 'Your Money, Your Call'. I used to watch that every week, which was, that was great because there was a lot of experts that would come on each week, and you'd sort of be able to see each person's perspective and they all had different attitudes and areas they invested in. So, that was one I used to watch every week.

 

[22:56] I used to, I had a little book which I still got now that I used to write notes in every single week about areas I was looking at or just different structuring things and like tax experts on there or depreciation experts and I got quite a lot out of that. [I would] just listen to people talk every day about or every week about the investment space.

 

[23:17] But [for] other books, I have read every property book you can probably imagine. All of Margaret's books and there are plenty of other property books. I've read recently as well, the one I've just finished is Atomic Habits, which is another great book. That's a great one for mindset I found and just trying to like to use your body's natural instincts on how habits are formed and trying to use them to transform your life and mainly using your time more effectively. So, that was a really good book I found too.

 

[23:57] That's what I just finished. Even on YouTube, I watch quite a lot of YouTube. Going to the gym too. I used to watch quite a lot of the old Arnold Schwarzenegger videos and stuff he does. There's some really good just clips of him. Whether it's in his bodybuilding days and or in his politician days, he just had an incredible career across so many different sections.

 

[24:29] Another one, even Conor McGregor, probably a controversial one but he's quite good for like mindset and motivation I find. I quite like the martial arts in that USE. So, he is another one that's, yeah, is really good. And then another one in the real estate space that I quite like. So, a guy called Ryan Serhant. I'm not sure if you've heard of him but he's a US based real estate agent. There used to be on the show on TV. It's called Million Dollar Listing and he's quite divisive again. Some of the things he does but he's written a few books too.

 

[25:06] One of them, it's called Big Money energy, which is a really good book. It's all about his life really, and how he disobeyed his career and just little things he does in structuring his day. And even just like how he dresses himself each day, and just like a really mindset based book about how he's developed, he's made his own real estate brokerage in New York now and is doing some really crazy things with social media. And like in some of the tech space and in the virtual reality space now too. So, it's just [that] he has done some really cool things in his career and he's only probably in his late 30s now. But he's another, even on YouTube. He's got some great motivational videos on YouTube.

 

As well as these resources, Carmody has also had help from different mentors.

 

[26:12] I've got some people like even in construction. One of my old directors [was] a Greek guy but one of the Greeks that got a quite substantial property portfolio and just do quite well for themselves. And he's another one that I've worked with a lot in the past on different projects and kept in touch with. And he's built quite a big portfolio himself. But he's been really good just for, you know, whether it be property or just personal stuff. I've always just reached out to him, and I chatted about just certain things on the way through.

 

[26:51] And there's another one actually, Tom Panos is another one that I don't know personally, but he is quite big in the real estate space. And he does quite a lot of good things to I find. Just on social media and just motivational type stuff. I remember, there was one story he was telling, I watched a video in quite recently, where I think he was saying he had cancer a while back. And he was sitting there getting chemo and happened to be sitting next to a guy who was a property developer.

 

[27:21] [He was] quite successful and had millions and millions of dollars. And the guy was, I think in his late 40s [or] early 50s maybe. And Tom was asking him because the guy was, he had terminal cancer apparently and didn't have long to live. And Tom was asking [him] what are his main regrets are, and he said that his main regret was [that] he spent all these times, 20 [to] 30 years building up this portfolio and doing those developing, and he's never actually got time to enjoy all of the things that he built.

 

[27:53] So, he had amazing bottles of wine that he had in his wine cellar, and he never drank them. Because he was holding on to them just for a later day when I could enjoy them. But the poor guy, now died of cancer and never got to enjoy it. So, the key thing was for that story, just to on the way through, don't forget to enjoy it. Enjoy the process and just little things. Like, whether it be as simple as drinking a nice bottle of wine, drink it now. Don't wait 10 years to drink it, like you might not be here in 10 [to] 20 years.

 

Carmody’s mentors have shared priceless advice with him, but he also has some advice of his own.

 

[28:54] Don't take your eyes off your goal and don't let life get in the way of what you want. So, I had a vision quite clearly back then and I've got a similar vision, it might have sort of changed slightly since then. But just to keep working hard and to make [it] a reality because nothing's going to happen for you if you're sitting still. Keep motivated and just keep active.

 

Reflecting on his journey, Carmody is excited to use the knowledge he’s developed in the future.

[29:47] I think probably the first thing is just to use my knowledge or develop now just to help other people. To achieve some great results in property investing and then just for me personally, probably to get more active, moving forward investing. Whether it be to get into developing or just to further diversify into commercial, and then just like, now I've got a good solid foundation to work off, to take some more risks, to then be able to reap the benefits later on and to live a better lifestyle with our family and go travelling and all those sorts of things.

 

[30:24] Liam, you've shared so many great things. You've had a very successful journey. Your career has now stepped into more of that buyer's agency and potentially looking into property development commercial. How much do you think of your success has been due to luck? Sorry, how much of his success has been due to hard work skill and intelligence? And how much of it is due to luck?

 

[30:59] I think for a lot of us that it is hard work and just putting yourself out there as well. But one of my favourite quotes is, "luck is when preparation meets opportunity". It's one of Conor McGregor [who] said it a few times and I'm sure others have too. But if you're not ready and the opportunity doesn't come up, then you're never going to have the luck anyway.

 

[31:22] So, like with this buyer's agent career I've taken on now, like I've in my mind have been preparing for a good job in real estate for probably close to 10, if not more years. And then the chance come up, and it's just sort of just worked. Yeah, I think another one, another quote that's probably good that I find is another one [of] your guest, Ken McClellan. "Property is like a bad haircut, time fixes everything". People try and make money from day one in property, but it doesn't happen. Like, you've got to be there for the long term.

 

 

Thank you to Liam Carmody, our guest on this episode of Property Investory.