Quick Facts:

• Profit Strategy: Buy & hold
• Number of Units: 12
• Personal Money Invested: $30k
• Amount Earned: $16k monthly cash flow
• Prior Experience: Todd played in the NFL from ’91-’99 then transitioned into real estate, starting with building and flipping homes then investing in small apartments.

Todd’s Call to Adventure

“Not For Long.” That’s what NFL is short for, according to former NFL player Todd Scott. 

From 1991 to 1999, Todd was a professional athlete. He played for the Vikings, the Buccaneers, and the Chiefs. He was smart, though; he knew his pro career wouldn’t last forever. 

Todd explains that 80% of NFL players are broke and/or divorced within 2 years of retiring. Fortunately, that wasn’t his situation. He credits good mentors with giving him proper direction and guidance. He saved a lot of money during the years he played. When his career was over, he was pretty liquid. He had also forged many relationships with local banks, putting him in a good position for investing. He was always preparing for his transition out of the NFL. 

For him, the biggest obstacle was getting started. “The fear of the unknown and of not knowing how to do something can stimy you.” He didn’t have a real estate license — and he still doesn’t. He didn’t have construction experience. His solution? He sought mentors. 

An early mentor was another NFL teammate. He owes his friend for guiding him to transition to real estate. Todd started with building homes, then moved on to flipping homes. Next, he bought Class C multi-family homes and renovated them. “That is where I landed.” 

(Note: A Class C property is typically 30 or more years old, in fair to poor condition, and not as well-located as a Class A or Class B building. However, Class C tenants are usually long-term renters, offering outstanding cash flow. These properties provide excellent potential returns because they are often the first to appreciate in a rising market (especially if you can find a Class C property in a Class B neighborhood.))

Todd’s Quest

He focused on flipping properties for ten years. But flipping requires you to work to find suitable properties constantly. Unfortunately, he reached a point where he didn’t see as many good opportunities. 

Research on different real estate profit strategies led him to Lance’s Bootcamp. Lance’s approach of investing in small apartments instead of single-family homes made great sense because all the units would be in the same place. “When you own a bunch of single-family homes (and I do — I still have 20), they are all in different locations. Whereas with small apartments, you have properties all located within a small area.” This realization caused Todd to shift gears. 

Lance helped him understand the cash flow benefits of small apartment investing. He wasn’t interested in acquiring 100 units — “but I can still self-manage with 10, 15, 20. That’s how I got started.” Through Lance’s training, he acquired a 12-unit apartment building in Galveston, TX — his hometown.

He purchased the property for $300K and put $30K of his own money down. He proudly shares that it has an “ARV of $1.5 million.” (ARV is short for After Repair Value.)

Todd found renters for all the units by working with Galveston Housing Authority as a Section 8 landlord. The housing authority pays a premium for rent. Each unit rents for $1400. “Do the math, he says proudly.” That’s about $16K per month.

While income is necessary, he lives by the motto, “Bring the Good to the Hood.” Most of his properties are in prime locations near schools and the beach, where Section 8 apartments wouldn’t historically be. Section 8 housing is very stigmatized. He explains that his goal is to “de-stigmatize Section 8 housing, one unit at a time.” In fact, he is the third largest provider of Section 8 housing in Galveston.

His Dream

Todd is focused on building generational wealth. He wants to help his kids learn the advantages of real estate. “There hasn’t been an investment category that performs at the level found in real estate over decades and centuries.”

When his son graduated from college, Todd gifted him his first investment. It was a 5-unit property. They bought it for $320K and sold it for $1.2m four days later. 

Todd’s other kids understand the importance of real estate as well. His younger son works in real estate, and his daughter just graduated from the University of Houston in finance. She is striving to acquire her first property.

Todd loves that small apartment investing offers the freedom of time. “You can’t quantify what ‘freedom of time’ equals in dollars.” He recommends pursuing freedom. “Can you make a lot of money — yes, if you do it right. Can you have a lot of fun — yes, if you do it right.” He’s encouraged this path for his children.

Once Coached, Now a Coach

He credits his mentors and his own coachability with his success. “A lot of my strengths are tied to my sports background. I’m fearless, an excellent communicator, and a team player. I’m not a do-it-yourselfer. I’m always looking for someone I can partner with to be more successful. I’m very coachable. I have paid for a lot of coaching over the years, which has helped me be even more successful. A coach saves me time because I don’t have to repeat others’ mistakes. I can use their hindsight as my foresight.”

“The most significant hurdle I had to overcome was what I didn’t know. We think we know things we really don’t. It is so much better to learn from what others have done and take their advice and apply it. By doing this, you will avoid making the same mistakes they made. Why wouldn’t I use Lance’s program to do that?”

He adds, “If you want to be successful, it will cost you. What are you willing to pay? I’m willing to pay everything.”

His desire now is to help others build legacies. So far, he has assisted at least 17 family and friends to get started on the same path. 

He explains his mission. “I love helping people. I’m a natural coach, and I’ve been coached by greats. It’s always good when you have something you can give back. With real estate investing, you can give someone a legacy. That’s not something you can usually offer to others to change their lives.”

Drilling down on his ultimate goal, he adds, “I’d like to stop buying property and start coaching, in particular former NFL players, to teach them how to transition out of sports.”

He also wants to be able to loan money to other investors so they can get started. He says this follows his mentor Joe Murphy’s advice: “before you leave the game, become the bank.” 

His 5-year goal is to no longer be an active owner-operator. “I will coach from the sidelines. But I’ve loved my time as a player-coach. Because I’ve been here doing it so long, you can’t pull much over my eyes easily. I’m not the “guy you want to try.” 

Todd’s Advice

His advice is simple: get into real estate. But don’t necessarily follow his path. “I thought you have to move systemically. I started with wholesaling, flipping, purchasing duplexes, and then 4-plexes. But if you can go right to 6- or 8- or  10- or 20-plexes, go right to it. It’s the same effort doing a single-family home as doing a 10-unit. So don’t start small. Start in small apartment units, don’t start as I did.”

And finally, “seek help. Attend Lance’s Bootcamp. Watch Lance’s videos on YouTube. Get a coach. Find a mentor.”

ASK. FOR. HELP. GET. A. MENTOR.