Property coaches have increased in numbers and popularity in recent years. They can offer investors a way to fast-track success and having a seasoned investor guiding you through the property maze can be invaluable.

But what is a property coach? We discovered that “property coach” isn’t a one-size-fits-all term; it traverses a range of strategies. What they do have in common is experience and industry know-how and the passion for sharing their knowledge with others.

Property coaching services differ in the services they offer and strategies they teach. A common coaching approach focuses on the buy, renovate, rent, refinance, repeat strategy (BRRRR). It’s employed by the likes of Ronovationz, Opes Accelerate and Property Apprentice.

Michael Burge is a new property coach, specialising in BRRRR. He runs Straight Up Property Investing. As a former personal trainer, he says he “naturally loves helping people”.

Check out online reviews from people who have used the coach you are interested in.

Education The Key

Burge used the BRRRR model himself to amass 17 properties in under five years, holding all the homes and renting them to social housing providers. And, as he explains, his property journey was underpinned by years of education.

“I spent two years doing research before I started investing,” he says. “And put my knowledge into practice when I started buying property.”

This course consists of modules, including goal-setting, real estate fundamentals, BRRRR and negotiating. They are presented via 60 videos, one-on-one consultations and a “life-long” support service for investors who sign up.

Workshops

By way of comparison, Property Apprentice (owned and operated by Paul and Debbie Roberts) offers in-classroom teaching and personalised coaching. There is the option of a 10-week or a three-day intensive workshop.

The 10-week course is based in Auckland, but the three-week intensives are held in various locations around the country. From this starting point, Property Apprentice offers ongoing coaching, which is also “for life”.

BRRRR requires finding properties that need renovation, then renovating and adding value. One of the keys is finding properties that are significantly under value and working with an experienced coach can help mitigate teething problems. Although not a property coaching firm per se, iFindProperty also offers a property finding service, dedicated to those working with BRRRR strategies.

A different strategy underpins the coaching provided by AssetLab. Run by long-term property investors Arn Mehta and Phil Thompson, AssetLab offers coaching in the art of property “flipping” – finding well-priced houses, renovating and selling for profit. AssetLab has online webinars, a Master Class plus coaching programme and ART: an advanced coaching programme that includes “in the field” training where students work with experienced investors to help them find properties and negotiate deals.

Property coaches’ services aren’t cheap. At $3,999, Burge’s course is the least expensive of those surveyed (they can be up to $20,000-plus). It’s important to do your research before spending your hard-earned cash.

Online reviews are useful: hunt around for people who have used the services of the coach you are interested in and check their Facebook or Instagram pages. If you find the right fit, a property coach may rocket-fuel your success.

From Student To Coach

Jason Tan started investing in his 20s, and amassed three properties over nine years. He says he was doing OK and felt he didn’t need property coaching to improve his portfolio.

Interestingly, Tan’s mother was friends with well-known coach Ron Hoy Fong’s wife. She encouraged his mum (who had purchased an investment property with Fong’s help 10 years prior) to become more active in her investment journey. And one night she invited Tan to join her at a Ronovationz members’ classroom.

“After dinner she drove us [Tan, plus his brother and sister] to a Ronovationz member’s classroom.

“There was a lot of sharing, people talking about how they had successfully bought properties in central Auckland.

“And although some of the people in the group had the same amount of properties as me, I realised they had purchased them within two or three years, whereas I had been an investor for nine years at the time.”

Working alongside Tan and his family, Ron Hoy Fong helped them buy 14 properties in just seven months.

“We were known as the ‘Tan Clan’,” he laughs. “With Ron and the power of the network we quickly gained the confidence and knew how to really run with it.”

This investment was life-changing. “It allowed me to exit the fast-paced corporate world and live my passion of property every day.”

Tan was working in the marketing industry when he was approached by Ron Hoy Fong in 2015. “He told me that his company had grown too big and he wanted to know if I would like to become involved in coaching,” he says.

Ron taught him his coaching methodology, being generous with his knowledge, skills and experience.

Tan, alongside five other coaches in Ronovationz, now works with property investors to maximise their property investment potential.

Starting with a catch up and assessment of where the students are at, they identify appropriate strategies for investors, based on their stages of life and investment.

Membership provides one-on-one coaching for 24 months, alongside monthly classes, webinars, access to the power team, member discounts, HNZ and flood zone mapping tools, Saturday coaching sessions and field trips as a group to prospective properties.

They can also help with auctions, negotiations and guiding members through renovations. And once signed up, members are engaged with the programme for life.

Every member of the Ronovationz programme will have different criteria for buying (which their coach helps them identify) and Tan says they are all at different stages of their journey. And this can accelerate the process for the students.

“Our property coaching really brings property investment to life for people,” he says. “It helps being in a group of like-minded people who are taking action.”