Category Archives: Entrepreneur

Lessons Learned Making the Transition from Full Time Employment



Scott lives in Georgetown, Ontario, with his wife and two daughters. He has been working in corporate, full time, for large technology companies since 1993, with experience ranging from sales and business development to marketing and product management. He also has a passion for investing in real estate as a vehicle for creating wealth and freedom.

Guest: Scott Zandbergen, Real Estate Investor & Entrepreneur

Scott lives in Georgetown, Ontario, with his wife and two daughters. He has been working in corporate, full time, for large technology companies since 1993, with experience ranging from sales and business development to marketing and product management. He also has a passion for investing in real estate as a vehicle for creating wealth and freedom.

Scott started his side hustle in real estate around 5 years ago as he became frustrated with his poor-performing investment portfolio of mutual funds and ETFs from his employer contribution RRSPs. He realized that the only growth was the money being put in every month and nothing was happening from a market perspective. The light bulb went off and Scott decided to educate himself by attending courses and networking groups to diversify into self-managed real estate investing. 

Originally interested in Rent-to-Owns but after a few interesting experiences, Scott decided to shift his focus to buying single-family homes and converting them to legal duplexes by adding a secondary suite in the basement. This strategy is a proven method of raising property value in a short period of time while maximizing monthly cash flow. Currently, he works part-time at his corporate job in order to have more time to focus on managing his many properties. 

In this episode learn about:
– Property legalization costs and financing tips
– Mortgage plus improvements
– Project processes and how it works
– Ideal Duplex Conversion 
– Choosing contractors
– Finding the right person for your team

To get in touch with Scott: 
Website:
https://scottzandbergen.com/
Email: szandbergen@gmail.com
Instagram: szandbergen
Twitter: https://twitter.com/szandbergen
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/szandbergen


Successfully Leaving Secure Employment by Investing in Yourself



Life was good by most people’s standards but something was missing for Maria. She loved her family and had a great government job but was restless and feeling unfulfilled. Spending 15 years in this unfulfilled life she made the decision to leave her husband and start a new life with her two girls.

Guest: Maria Esposito, Real Estate Investor and Entrepreneur 

Life was good by most people’s standards but something was missing for Maria. She loved her family and had a great government job but was restless and feeling unfulfilled. Spending 15 years in this unfulfilled life she made the decision to leave her husband and start a new life with her two girls. 

In 2015 she left the security of that government job and pension, liquidated all of her assets and re­invested her life’s savings in the personal development of herself. Having been born and raised in St. Catharines and having such a passion for the region, it made total sense for her to focus her real estate investing business in the area. 

Maria is now the CEO of Elite Property Investments Inc. a real estate investment company that she founded together with her partner Carlo Cocozza. Managed by Maria, who has spent time building local government and supplier relationships, the company has quickly built a reputation as St. Catharines market specialists with a laser focus on the downtown core in the multi­family arena.  Elite has two main avenues available for real estate investors, one an active focus in off­-market opportunities and then secondly a more hands-off passive opportunity.

In this episode learn about:
– tips on having a multi-family focus and the benefits of that strategy
– how to find good deals and the fundamentals to look for when buying properties
– benefits of relationship building with local government and suppliers
– the importance of investing in your personal development

To get in touch with Maria: 
Websites: 
 elitepropertyinv.com 
Email: info@elitepropertyinv.com
Facebook Page:https://www.facebook.com/elitepropertyinv/