Sarah: So Tony, how did you get into real estate? 

Tony: I got into real estate due to being around a lot of people that were in real estate. I worked corporate for about 12 years and during that time I ended up meeting a lot of older people who were close to retirement that were supplementing their income with rental properties. So I did get an interest in real estate due to that and also the fact that being a real estate entrepreneur there's no income cap to what you can make. So that was very appealing as well. 

And just started reading a few books and really got into it and took the lead. 

S: Very cool! What were you doing before working in real estate? 

T: Before working in real estate I worked for a local electric company, American Electric Power, as a system operator. It was basically a position where we maintain and monitor the electrical grid in the AEP service territory. So it was a very high stress demanding job as well with all kinds of hours, because it's a 24-hour operation, keeping the lights on. So yeah, I did that for quite a while. 

S: Did you jump fully into real estate or did you just start working your way into it? 

T: Yes, I actually did a flip while I was working. Put a lot of sweat equity in it. 

S: Wow!

T:  Yeah. Learned a lot about construction and you know rehabbing at home and it was, it was you know after work I'll be up to 02:00 in the morning you know painting just doing everything so that was my first experience I was still working and after that I've learned to use a contractor! So I actually did another flip, however I had a general contractor on that one which you know worked out really good as far as my time then I spent so much time on it. And while that was getting done, I actually started real estate license classes. I got my real estate license. I sold that, that was my first sale that I was in the midst of flipping. 

So I sold that and I took about another about 8 to 10 months before I jumped in full-time. So I was doing a little bit of both coming into the office, learning, meeting the guys, cold calling, and just kind of doing both for a while there. 

S: What is your favorite part of doing real estate so far? 

T: Favorite part is, you know, there's always a new challenge. There's always new things to learn. There's always a new challenge to try to overcome. And that kind of keeps you on your toes, keeps you going, keeps you motivated, keeps you pushing. So I do like that part of it and just continually learning. There's so many different things you can learn, so many different strategies, so many different things people are out there doing in real estate that I had no clue about before I jumped in. So just the, you know, diversity of ideas and new challenges. 

S: Absolutely! So do you have any advice that you'd give your younger self? 

T: Yeah, I would have done it a lot sooner. I would have definitely put myself out there a lot more. Hit every networking event you can. Talk to as many people as you can and don't hesitate. People are more likely willing to help than not. So, you know, don't have any fear talking to new people and putting yourself out there. 

S: Yeah, rejection is hard, but you can get used to it when it comes to that kind of thing. 

T: Yeah, absolutely. 

S: And then I think my last question will be what are you passionate about?

T: I am passionate about helping others. That's always been a thing of mine. I'm heavy into sports. So I like helping younger people through sports. I coached little league teams. I coached baseball, little league baseball. I coached youth basketball, coached for my little brother. So that's something I'm very passionate about. And once I decide to hang it up or retire or you know just kind of take a step back that is something I would love to get back into full-time. 

S: That's amazing! Thank you for taking time to talk with me. I appreciate it!

T: No problem!