BiggerPockets Podcast 444: 150 Deals at Age 22 by Putting Relationships Over Profit with Cole Ruud-Johnson

It seems like young real estate investors get more and more impressive every week. Today we talk with Cole Ruud-Johnson, a wholesaler and flipper out of the Seattle area. The impressive part? He’s 22 years old and has done 150+ deals to date! Even at 22, Cole’s journey wasn’t a linear path, he had lots of ups and downs to get him to the level of success he achieves now.

Cole tried to be a real estate agent at 18, but wasn’t getting the hang of it. After failing at a couple of real estate brokerages, he entered into a third and learned how they were creating their own inventory via cold calling. He decided he’d give this a try, and partnered up with his friend to cold call for deals.

After three months, an agent brought them their first off-market deal. This first deal alone netted them $105,000. Yes, you read that right, six-figures on ONE wholesale deal. This wasn’t enough for Cole, he knew he had to get back out there and work on getting his next deal.

Cole’s small business grew to a small empire, but over time this pushed him into a massive burn out. He had to make some BIG changes in his business, many of which even business veterans wouldn’t be comfortable doing.

Now he’s here with us on the podcast, talking through his lean team, his deals, his systems, and how new wholesalers can start getting deals. Cole even throws in the script he uses to get wholesale deals over the phone, so if you’re thinking about getting off-market deals or starting your wholesaling journey, this is the episode for you!