Welcome to The Accelerated Investor Podcast with Josh Cantwell, if you love entrepreneurship and investing in real estate then you are in the right place. Josh is the CEO of Freeland Ventures Real Estate Private Equity and has personally invested in well over 500 properties all across the country. He’s also made hundreds of private lender loans and owns over 1,000 units of apartments. Josh is an expert at raising private money for deals and he prides himself on never having had a boss in his entire adult life. Josh and his team also mentor investors and entrepreneurs from all over the world. He doesn’t dream about doing deals, he actually does them and so do his listeners and students. Now sit back, listen, learn, and accelerate your business, your life, and your investing with The Accelerated Investor Podcast.

Josh: So, hey, guys, welcome back to Accelerated Investor. Hey, listen, I’ve got a special treat for you, especially those of you who are single moms, single dads, those of you that have maybe been through a divorce, been through a loss of a loved one. And you’re kind of flying solo right now, even if maybe you’ve gotten remarried but you went through a divorce. This is an unbelievable interview. I’m interviewing a woman who she’s just going to pull at your heartstrings. Her name is Sadhana Sabharwal. She is a single mother and a millionaire. She went through a tragic divorce when she was younger. Kids were 13, 11 and nine years old. Her husband left her, left her with nothing, and she was able to build her own, rebuild her life, put her kids all through college university, send her kids off to medical school, all using real estate as a side hustle. 

Josh: So you talk about somebody who’s been in the absolute depths of depression, anxiety, loss, feeling absolutely betrayed, like somebody trespassed on them and really feeling down in the dumps to the point of completely rebuilding their lives, taking care of themselves, becoming a millionaire in real estate, doing it on the side as a side hustle and putting your kids through medical school as a single mother. That’s exactly what you’re about to learn in this interview. I can’t wait for you to hear this interview. Check it out. 

Josh: So, hey, listen, I am so excited to have you on the Accelerated Investor podcast, thanks so much for joining me today. And why don’t you jump in? I always like to hear from new guests and new friends about things that they’re working on right now, that they’re excited about a deal, that they’re working on a new book, a new course, something that they’re working on right now in the middle of this crazy covid environment. That’s positive. That’s uplifting. So what are you excited about right now in your business? 

Sadhana: Excitement. Yes, I am excited about two things I’m working on right now. Number one, I’m doing an online course, No Money Down Academy. And number two, I just bought a property last month with no money, which is going to be single mom Millionaire’s First Development Project. 

Josh: Oh, so let’s talk about that. So single mom millionaire. Amazing, like Sadhana has built up a portfolio with over thirty-five properties. And we’re going to talk about her method, but it’s done a lot of it with no money down. And she does it as a side hustle, but first time doing a development deal. So let’s talk about that. So unpack that for me a little bit. What does that development deal look like? 

Sadhana: OK, so right now, we just bought the property, it was a burned down house in Hamilton, Ontario. All of my properties have been in Ontario, I’m in Ontario resident. And then so what we did was we got a good candidate which has the zoning where we could do a commercial on the ground floor. And we have we can build up to five units on top. So I partnered up with the construction guy and we did the down payment and we did the regular mortgage, private mortgage, mind you. And neither one of us had to really come up with any money. So it was a no money down. 

Josh: Nice, nice. I love it. Single mom, millionaire, no money down investing. So tell me a little bit more about how you typically are finding your deals and doing deals with no money down? 

Sadhana: I find my deals in many ways. Most of it is word of mouth. Some of them come from MLS. The one that I just mentioned came from MLS. I was actually teaching one of my coaching students how I used to find properties and how I go on MLS and I couldn’t figure out how to get to the properties that I want. And that Hamilton property came from MLS. Now, how I financed them, I have used many different techniques. I’ve done hard money borrowing. I have done lender take backs. I have borrowed money from sellers as a second mortgage were, and they paid for the closing costs and the down payment. And I got a regular mortgage with the bank. So it’s like anything and everything that will help me make it no money down. My mind only thinks, how can I do it? Not if I can do it. How can I do it? 

Josh: I got it. So tell me about another deal that you did with no one wants to do deals, no money down. Right. Whether they have the cash credit, whether it’s a private lender loan, give me an example of another deal. So obviously, getting the seller to sell you the property, getting a traditional bank loan, but the seller giving you enough concessions or closing costs, credits that you get enough that you don’t have to bring any money. That’s one way. What’s another one of your favorite ways? 

Sadhana: Well, I’ve done one where you’re getting the property below market value, for instance. Then, you know, you’re going to be able to go back to the bank after school. I bought that property with closing costs and purchase price for hard money. And within six weeks I was able to go back to the bank. I actually put money in my pocket from that deal and the house is renting and I’m happy camper. 

Josh: Nice, nice, fantastic stuff. So single mom millionaire. Right. There’s got to be some meaning, some passion, some, you know, reasoning behind that. You’re a single mom, your kids are grown. They’re super successful doctors. They went to expensive schools. Yet you’re a single mom. Tell us about that and why your passion is for helping other single moms do what you’re doing. 

Sadhana: OK, so I do have three boys. Two of them are in medicine. One is in management. I love them to death. Of course, all moms do. And those boys were my reason for finding a side hustle because I actually still work, because I enjoy my job. I’m a real estate law clerk. And so at that time I was just basically when my ex-husband left me, I’m looking at these boys and I’m thinking these guys are going to go to university. How am I going to pay for that? And real estate came into my life, basically, and I took off from there. So my why was so strong that I couldn’t think of anything, but how am I going to do it? 

Josh:So you were able to, let me ask a question so this might get a little personal. Would you have been able to afford the schooling that your boys went to and become a millionaire simply as a law clerk? 

Sadhana: Not at all. 

Josh: Right. So it’s sort of a rhetorical question, right? 

Sadhana: Oh, my gosh. I actually tell my boss that sometimes, you know, it’s like, oh, you’re the dad could have done it. And I said, you know what? It became a personal mission for me. I don’t care if he could have done it. He did not help me with a single dime. And I can proudly say I did it. I raised my kids on my own. I didn’t have to look for, oh, my God, the kids need to go for driving school. I need to ask him for money. Oh, my God. The washing machine broke down. I need to go ask him for money. Yeah, all done with that. 

Josh: Good for you. That is awesome way to take charge. So help me understand again, kind of on the personal side. You’re a law clerk. Are you doing anything in the real estate space there? Are you able to use any of that to help you with your real estate investing business? 

Sadhana: OK, so just knowing or having the knowledge helps, because I’ve been a law clerk for a long time. I used to be a title searcher conveyancer in my teenage years. So then it became because I guess I’ve been in real estate all my life, if you want to put it that way. So just having been at the law firm, I think it also gave me that support or that knowledge, knowing that, OK, if something goes wrong, my boss is a lawyer, I can go ask him what or same thing for the accounting thing. Like, you know, we have a chartered accountant for the office, so I can just go and ask him for advice as well. But at the same time, if you do not step outside your comfort zone, nobody can help you. My boss is not going to say go out and look for property or make your life better. No. 

Sadhana: I have to take that first step, and that’s my message, you have to believe in yourself enough to say I can do this and then find a way, because there is always a way, there is always a way to raise those three kids to have the house in your name. And I mean, you know, when my ex-husband left me, thank God he left me with a roof over my head. And the three kids. Yes. But after that, it was nothing, nothing, and I have never gone back to him and said, oh my God, you didn’t do this for me, I’m just grateful that you left me a house and you left me my kids. I’m happy with that. I’m grateful you were part of my journey. Your part in my journey is done. I don’t hate you for anything. I thank you because you gave me this whole experience that I was here for. So all the best to you. 

Josh: Yeah. While it’s great to go through an experience like that, that could be so heartbreaking and at this point, look back and show gratitude and awareness and gratefulness for that being part of your journey instead of the cynical, spiteful attitude that so many other people have when you when it first happened. 

Josh: I want, again, personal question. When it first happened, what was going through your mind when it first happened, when you thought, oh, my God, all of a sudden my husband is leaving me, it’s gone. I’m going to raise these three young kids. How am I going to make this work like that? Today is amazing to look back and say, I did it, I took care of it. I don’t need your help. But I’m guessing when it first happened, that wasn’t what was on your mind. It was probably a little bit more maybe desperation, maybe sadness, anger, some of these other emotions that would come in when a divorce originally happens. 

Sadhana: Yes. So I’ll tell you a story. My husband told me about this other woman on my cousin’s wedding. He goes, come out with me for a smoke and I don’t smoke. So he did at the time. I don’t know if he does now or not. And he’d go, that’s where he told me that, oh, there is somebody else. And honestly, Josh, I don’t remember if I ate that day. I don’t remember if I fed my kids. I have no clue. It was like, you know, where is this coming from? Where is this coming from? I met a wedding at my cousin’s wedding. You were telling me this. So anyhow, so that was the day that changed my life. 

Sadhana: And I’m never going to forget that. That does not mean I did not go through, like, you know, just downward spiral. It took me six months to say enough I can deal with this anymore because I cannot. Wake up and look at myself in the mirror, and I just finally said, this cannot go on like this and he goes to me, I can’t leave her. And I said, OK, then get the bleep out of my house. I’m done with you. Wow. I mean, you know, even it. It takes a lot of courage to do that, but I feel your self-worth is worth so much more. 

Josh: Yeah. Good for you. I am so proud of you. So now, like, OK, now it’s like, OK, I’m done, I’m ready to move on, six months goes by and now you’re probably thinking, OK, now I’m a single mom and I’ve got to I’ve got to take care of my kids financially. It was real estate already part of your journey at that point, or had you done your first property? And if not, how did you migrate now into real estate to do that as a side hustle? And when did you really fall in love with it where you thought, hey, this is actually going to be my path, this is going to be my golden ticket to take care of my boys, to live the life that I want to have all the things that probably my husband, ex-husband could have never even provided me. I’m going to do it for myself because you go through, as we all know, there’s the stages of grief and eventually you get to the point where, OK, now I’m on my own. Now you’re kind of coming out of the darkness, out of the cloud, and you’re like, OK, now I’m going to make this happen. So tell me about that first deal and when you got kind of fell in love with real estate, let’s start with that. 

Sadhana: OK, so once he left, of course, I went through the same shit like everybody else does. And I started off, as I said, because my kids were younger at the time. They were nine, 11 and 13 ish. So their needs were not as big. There you go. So like I always used to think I could make my kids happy with Looney’s and Toonies at the time. But as they got older, it’s like, Mom, I need twenty bucks, mom, I need one hundred dollars and then get to the car and now the university. 

Sadhana:So it was a progression. So as soon as he left, I wasn’t thinking I can’t afford these kids because they’re my kids. Right. And I was OK with doing this on salary. But as their needs became bigger, my brain had to start hurting, like what am I doing? So my initial thing was I started to do second mortgages because I was in the field. Right. So, yes, sometimes clients would come in and then on from there. So what I did was my house at the time, I think we had a line of credit for I can’t remember how much it was. I think fifty-five thousand. I raised it to eighty when he left. He left me with debt like he owed my parents money. I paid that off. So it took me about five, six, maybe eight years to get back on my feet. And then I did a line of credit on my house. 

Sadhana: And I started to I think at the time the rates were about six percent. I would borrow at six percent and then I would lend it out at 12 to 14 percent. Got it. OK, beautiful. That was my beginning. So, you know, I would make an extra maybe even ten thousand dollars a year, eight thousand dollars a year. But anything extra was better than the fifty thousand of a salary cap. Their salary is not a huge thing. Sure. So if I could supplement my income by even five hundred dollars a month, I was happy because now that five hundred took care of my kids expenses. So then one day a client came into the office. She was negotiating a mortgage out of the I think it was Cornwall and her mortgage payment was something like three hundred dollars. And I’m looking at something doesn’t make sense. So I started talking to her and then she invited me because she was opening up her own club, a real estate club, and that’s where my love for real estate began. And then you start even attending events and stuff, during weeks at the time, Dave Debeau, all of those people. And then from there, you fall in love with real estate. And then I always say personal development came as a bonus. 

Josh: Yeah. There you go. Yeah, personal development stuff is fantastic, but kind of finding your niche that you can really be passionate for and love and be excited about when you get up in the morning, then person involvement does become easier when you’re thinking, OK, now I’m going to stack all this goodwill, I’m going to take care of myself and the way I think in the way I lead in my habits stack that on top of a moneymaking strategy that’s actually helping me take care of my kids. Sometimes it’s tough to go through self-development when you’re kind of in the abyss and you’re in the financial abyss, you’re in you know, you’re having a tough time, debt, divorce, distress, things like that. It’s tough to go through like a self-development course when you’re not sure that you know what’s going to put food on the table tomorrow. 

Sadhana: What’s going to take care of your kids in high school or college? I agree. I totally agree with you. But I think if we just remain in our heads, then you won’t be able to do that. Personal development, because I feel personal development is all from the heart. Yes. As soon as you drop your emotion down into your heart, you can lead any which way you want. Now, going back to the first deal, I want to be sharing that part. So I ended up buying 61. So what happened was I went into this small town in northern Ontario town and we got in touch with a realtor. I think he sent me like thirty, forty listings I went through and I made like twelve or thirteen offers. And I found a Six Flags that was listed at, I believe, one oh nine nine. OK, I went and made off with ninety thousand somehow. 

Sadhana: Anyhow, we got to 106 and the guy said, I want twenty five percent down and I’ll give you a VTV for seventy five percent. So I arranged a loan from family for the twenty five percent I came up with the closing costs, which are about three thousand dollars, OK, and I had a mortgage at seven percent. The numbers worked. I was bringing in an extra, I believe, around seven hundred a month after being everything. So that was a positive cash flow. So now I don’t need to be paying on taxes. Remember, taxes are just as important because you’re not just talking about how much money you make. It’s also about what you keep. The interest income is your active income. So you got to pay tax on the full amount. Whereas when you come to this side, it’s like when I saw its capital gains. So you’re paying tax on half. 

Josh: That’s fantastic. So important. So, yeah. So that first deal gets done six plex, which is awesome because you’re thinking so it sounds like your strategy you were really focused on I’m going to buy and hold properties long term instead of wholesaling or flipping. It was get in, get in, no money down and hold long term. Right. 

Sadhana: Correct. Correct. That was the beginning. 

Josh:So you’ve done thirty five of those deals now. And tell me about your favorite one. Your biggest one. Your favorite one, your most profitable one. Which of those do you think really stands out? You’re like shaking, you like dancing in your chair. There’s definitely a favorite I can tell. 

Sadhana: I just want to correct. I bought and sold thirty-five. So my highest number that I owned was 18 properties at one time and I literally just froze. I’m like, why do I need more anyhow? So my favorite one was a power of sale property. It’s a five plex that I bought in Georgetown. I believe it was listed for four forty-five. I was able to negotiate it down to two seventy. Why found a JV partner who brought in the down payment of twenty thousand dollars and he was going to bring in the money for the renovations. And I arranged a private loan for two 50 to 70, 20 and two fifty. And I think we came up with closing cost. It was about six thousand dollars in this case, about three thousand each on that. And then once it’s all renovated and everything, it got appraised at seven twenty-five. 

Sadhana: OK, so from 270 to seven twenty-five because we already bought it below the value and afterwards he goes to me, I want to do more flips. I’m like no this property’s going to make this money every month. And for me I’m all about cash flow because that’s what I needed. Right. I don’t really care about flipping, getting ten thousand dollars or thirty thousand dollars and now I get to go to another kill. Yeah. So then it got appraised at seven twenty five and he goes, well can you find somebody to buy me out because we were fifty fifty. Right. And I said OK if you find somebody great no problem. And so he said no can you buy me out. And they said OK so I went back to my private lender, can you give me another hundred and sixty thousand dollars. He wants out. Surely enough he did, and then I own the property percent now that somebody brings I mean, the gross rents have gone up to over eighty thousand. My cost of running it is maybe twenty thousand, twenty-five thousand at the max. And once it’s paid off, it’s like sixty thousand dollars a year. I don’t need a job. 

Josh: Yeah, nice that one property is going to pay you more than your entire law clerk salary. Fantastic.

Sadhana: And I had a realtor called me about six months ago so I have a person who buys properties in Georgetown. Are you looking to sell? And I’m like, not really, but curiosity, of course. Right. I’m like, well, how much you think it would be? And he goes at a four-point five cap rate, like, you know, and he asked me for my expenses and all the numbers and stats. He goes one point three. 

Josh: And you owe about how much? Four hundred, five hundred on the whole thing? 

Sadhana: Right now, the mortgages, I think around 380. I’ve pulled out money a couple of times. I tell you, Josh, that is like chingchingchingching every month. 

Josh: The gift that keeps on giving out and I love it.  So it sounds like Sadhana, you’re a lot of your success and this is true, I teach this to my members and students and it’s in some of my books that I’ve written, we’ve talked about on the podcast. I say often the business of business is people write. It’s about it’s about the who, about the people, not necessarily the how. It’s about the who. It’s about who is on your team, who can you joint venture with, who can be a private lender to you, who can help you with your education coaching, who can help you close deals, what wholesalers can bring you properties or can refer you deals, word of mouth. These are all things that you’ve mentioned in this very short interview. It sounds like a lot of your success you probably could attribute back to other people. Sounds like you’re a heck of a networker. Sounds like you’re a heck of a communicator. 

Josh:So tell me a little bit more about that. It sounds like you’ve had a lot of success working with others, joint venturing with others, putting deals together with others, private lenders with others. And that is a very major skill in real estate, the ability to communicate, the ability to talk to me, the ability to put deals together with other people. Tell me about that. That probably didn’t necessarily come naturally for you. Maybe it did. Maybe it didn’t. But tell me about how important that’s been to your success and some of your just kind of general techniques and strategies for kind of putting yourself out there and growing your network. 

Sadhana:So for me, if I was to give anybody, I always say even for my course, if I could sum it up, it’s about people and networking and believing in yourself might be money, money, money, money. Because if you can raise money, if you can get deals, that’s all it’s about. Real estate is a people business. And if you don’t open your mouth, you’re not in business hearing. So for me, anybody and everybody I speak to, I tell them what I do. Hey, if you ever hear of anybody who has a property for sale, please let me know. As a matter of fact, one of my contractors gave me his uncle’s house and they were like they bought the house for sixty-three thousand dollars ten years ago. I said, How much do you want? He goes sixty-three thousand. That’s the one I’m telling you about. The hard money lending. It was appraised at ninety thousand five hundred. 

Sadhana: OK, so I got eighty percent of that, which was I think seventy-two thousand eight hundred. I put seven thousand dollars in my pocket on that closing. I would do that all day. Every day. Sure. Right. So networking for me it’s the best thing. And I always say, look, I don’t know how many lunches and drinks and dinners I’ve had because when I meet somebody, it’s like, hey, do you want to go meet up for lunch? Hey, do you want to go for a drink? Because that’s where relationships are built. That’s right. I have great relationships. 

Josh: I had a great lunch meeting yesterday. And he’s a commercial broker, wants to passively invest with us. And it turns out we know a bunch of the same people. And he took me to a Greek restaurant and had the best blackened grouper Reuben sandwich of my life. It was fantastic. 

Josh:So Sadhana, listen, now that you’ve had success, your coaching and mentoring other people, you’re a single mom millionaire, which very few people can say. I mean, very few people can say that they’re a millionaire, but even a single mom kind of fighting through that battle by yourself. And you’ve done this as a side hustle because you like your real day job. You probably learned a lot of lessons. There’s probably some advice that you’d give your younger former self. Your less experienced self. Maybe you’re not as confident self or some messages or some words of advice that you can give to our audience. What are some of the things that you’d like to pass on? 

Sadhana: Very first thing, believe in yourself. Focus on yourself, because the person that left and I come from a place of divorce right now, right. So that person does not define you. You are you with or without him. So if I could tell myself that 20 years ago, my God, I would be a totally different person because I don’t need validation from somebody else. And that’s what I was looking for. When I was married, but now when that piece was gone, once I believed in myself, it was like I could do anything right. I used to think because my husband was more educated than I was. I’ve never gone to university, by the way. So that’s another thing. I always used to think I’m not smart because I didn’t go to university. That was my biggest thing, like a limiting belief. But then one day, my youngest son, he took me and shook me up. It’s like, Mom, you make more money than people who go to university. So it’s like believe in yourself. 

Sadhana: Whatever you do, the conviction you do it with is what’s going to take you and all of that. Like, I wasn’t born this way. I was I did go through depression. I did go through a broken heartedness and stuff. Right. But then you realized. The confidence comes from doing it, so unless I do something, I won’t be able to say I can, I can do this confidently. So my advice to anybody out there would be whatever it is that you want to do, educate yourself on it. Just learn. I didn’t become a real estate star like, you know, I didn’t do thirty-five deals. I know it’s a lot easier to say, oh my God, I had 18 properties at one time. But you have to remember it was one deal at a time, right? I didn’t do 18 overnight. I didn’t do 35 overnight. I still did my first deal for five thousand dollars, I did my second deal with three thousand dollars of closing costs, I did my five plex with nothing, but it was one step at a time. 

Josh: That is fantastic stuff. I tell our audience all the time. The cure, the cure for self-doubt, the cure for low self-esteem is self-care. Self-care and self-care can be a lot of things. It can be drinking less. It could be working out, could be taking care of yourself, going for a walk, could be going a networking meeting with your favorite family member, your favorite friend. Anything that makes you feel good. Right. Falls in the self-care category. And you’ve gone through such a traumatic experience going through a divorce at a young age with young kids. The way that you dig out of that or the way you dig out of a bad business deal, the way you dig out of an addiction or a depression, the answer is always self-care. It’s always getting a little bit more sleep going about a little bit earlier, getting up a little bit earlier, getting some physical exercise, eating healthier and socializing and networking with other people. Right. Because so much of us as humans are built around other people, it all comes down to self-care. 

Josh: This is just been a fantastic interview. Sadhana. I loved getting to know you a little bit better. I know you have a course and you have a program that you teach other people to be a self-made millionaire, whether they’re a single mom or not, just like you’ve done work in my audience. Get access to that or learn more about it. 

Sadhana: OK, well, it’s called the No Money Down Academy dot com slash register. So I’ve got a free training coming up on the twenty sixth of November, 2020. In case this comes before and after, but they canstill go to that website, the NoMoneyDownAcademy.com and they could register for the free training and get in touch with me if they have any questions. If I can help them, I can coach them whatever they like. But also we have a free gift for attending as well. It is the no money down academy dot com slash guide which tells you or which gives you ten ways to buy property with no money down. 

Josh: Fantastic stuff. Listen, it has been amazing just getting to know you a little bit better. I love your story. Thanks for sharing. Thank you for joining me today on Accelerated Investor. Thank you. 

Josh:So there you have it, guys. I hope you enjoyed that interview with our Single Mom Millionaire. It was absolute blast to interview Sadhana. I just can’t even tell you how much fun that is for me to hear somebody just absolutely come back. Sort of the hero’s journey coming back from a tragic event of going through a divorce and then raising three young boys to be men, men of character, going through medical school and management and just really tearing it up. And as you can tell from that interview, having an absolute blast. If you like that interview, please go leave us a five-star rating, a review, take a screenshot, a snapshot of that review, send it to my office. We’ll send you a free Accelerated Investor t-shirt. And don’t forget to check out her program that she mentioned and we’ll leave it in the show notes also connect with her on Facebook. If you enjoyed it, leave us a comment reading review. 

Josh: This is one of my favorite interviews we’ve done recently because it’s so awesome to see people, especially a single mom, take charge of their life, completely rebuild their life. I hope you enjoyed that interview with Sadhana. We’ll talk to you soon. Take care. 

Hey, Josh here. And do you want to win a free Accelerated Investor T-shirt? All you have to do is give Accelerated Investor our podcasta rating and a review on iTunes. OK. Do that now then send us a screenshot on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. What we’re going to do then is every week we’re gonna pick our favorite rating in review and we’re going to send that person a free T-shirt and maybe again, some other cool fun stuff as well from Accelerated Investor. So, again, don’t forget to take a screenshot, leave a rating review, take a screenshot, send it to us so we know exactly who you are. And then once a week, every week on the podcast, we will announce a new winner. Don’t forget to take a screenshot and send it to us so we know exactly who you are. We’ll announce a new winner every week.

You’ve been listening to Josh Cantwell and the Accelerated Investor Podcast. Leave a comment on our iTunes channel and let us know what you want to learn next, or who you’d like Josh to interview. While you’re there, give us some five-star rating and make sure to subscribe so you can be the first to hear new episodes. Follow Josh Cantwell and his companies, the Strategic Real Estate Coach and Freeland Ventures on all social media platforms now and stay up to date on new training and investment opportunities to start your journey toward the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of. Apply for coaching at JoshCantwellCoaching.com.