MB 271: Start with Belief & Build a Multifamily Business – With Timothy Lyons

What does a multifamily investor look like? If you grew up in a working-class family that didn’t talk about money, let alone investing, you may have a hard time seeing yourself as a successful syndicator. But you don’t have to be a Wall Street guy to build a multifamily real estate business. You can raise millions of dollars for deals no matter where you come from… But you’ve got to BELIEVE you can. Timothy Lyons is a 15-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department and Principal and Managing Partner at Cityside Capital. He invested in his first 3-family property at the end of 2019, and today, he has been involved in 5 syndications worth over $100M. Tim is also a contributor to Bringing Value, Solving Problems and Leaving a Legacy, a collection of powerful stories of transformation from thought leaders, entrepreneurs and real estate investors. On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, Tim joins cohost Garrett Lynch and me to discuss the power of belief, explaining how he overcame imposter syndrome to build a portfolio of 720-plus units in 12 months. Tim shares why he was skeptical about investing in a coach and how he realized the value of aligning with a network of people who are successful at what you want to do. Listen in for Tim’s amazing story of going all-in on multifamily at the start of the pandemic and learn to push through YOUR limiting beliefs and achieve financial freedom with real estate! Key Takeaways  Why Tim got into real estate investing Working 90 hours/week as firefighter and ER nurse Missing out on time with wife and 3 kids Tim’s first 3-family property Financed with own money for proof of concept Rehabbed units, achieved cashflow soon after The next steps Tim took to go bigger, faster Invest in education and mentoring Learn as much as possible about money, taxes  How Tim overcame his resistance to investing in a coach Talked to students in different programs Realized value of aligning with network The timeline around Tim’s multifamily education Separated from family (first 7 weeks of pandemic) Crush through material in coaching program How Tim realized the power of multifamily syndication Invited to join coach’s deal, follow process Raised $200K from personal network How Tim overcame limiting beliefs re: raising money Identity shift to see self as investor Share power of investing with network How Tim is raising $2.5M for his fifth syndication Talk about what he’s doing with everyone Build online thought leadership platform Tim’s advice for aspiring multifamily investors Education = antidote to fear Surround self with right people and take action What Tim did to overcome imposter syndrome