Having a mentor at the start of your career, regardless of the field you’re working in, will always prove to be a great way to get your foot in the door. Real estate is one of those industries that is so challenging to succeed in yet so lucrative if you do so. 

Thus, having a real estate mentor can help you be one step ahead of every other agent early in your career. Plus, if you want to try real estate investing, a mentor’s expert knowledge will help you make more rational decisions about what properties you should invest in and when to do so.

But how can you find the best real estate mentor for you? Who’s the best person to contact? And is mentoring really worth it, or is it just another one of those guru courses? That’s exactly what we’ll find out in this article!

For now, let’s dive deeper into what real estate mentors are and what they actually do with their mentees.

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What is a Real Estate Mentor?

A real estate mentor is an investor or advisor who’s acquired years of knowledge and is sharing it with up-and-coming investors or agents. They usually mentor a few people at a time and have a more personable approach to their teaching, focusing on building a meaningful relationship rather than just providing insights.

Generally, when discussing mentors, you’d picture someone in their 40s or 50s willing to help the “new generation” with their years-long knowledge. However, this isn’t the case anymore. A real estate mentor can be someone who only has a little bit more experience than you. 

For example, if you’re in your 1st year as a real estate investor, you can be mentored by an agent in their 5th year, as they’ll have a decent number of ins and outs of the business to share. Obviously, a mentor who’s been working as an investor for 20 years will have many more insights and real-life experiences to share and will, most likely, be more available.

So, with that in mind, how about we talk about what real estate mentors really do?

What Does a Real Estate Mentor Do?

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Real estate mentors offer insights into the industry based on their knowledge and experiences. More experienced mentors can inform you about emerging trends and the best ways to take advantage of them. In addition, real estate mentors advise you on how to balance your professional and personal life, especially early on in your career.

In essence, a mentor tries to guide and support you in any way they can through their own experiences in the industry on a personal and professional level. One of the primary ways they can help you is by discussing the mistakes they made in the past, which will help you avoid them.

For example, let’s say you have a mentor who lost out big time when the housing bubble burst in 2008. The insights from this experience that they’ll provide to you will be extremely valuable so that you can avoid making the same mistakes in the case of an upcoming market crash.

Another way mentors can help is with lead generation methods. For instance, if your main lead gen channel is social media, but it isn’t working out, find a mentor who’s killing it online. They’re the ones who have the best understanding of how each platform’s algorithm works as well as the process of getting qualified leads.

And, of course, if you have a mentor who’s been in the game for many years, they’ll have a huge network that you can tap into for more help. You might even find a better mentor through your current one!

However, you have to remember that mentoring is a two-way street. You need to engage with your potential mentor, ask the right questions, and try to truly implement all the advice they give you. And that’s especially true if you’re not an agent but just someone who wants to earn some passive income from real estate.

That said, we need to clearly distinguish between a mentor and a real estate coach, as we’re only focusing on the former.

Differences Between Real Estate Mentors and Coaches

Real estate mentors are typically synonymous with coaches. But, despite their differences being pretty minor on the surface level, they can be pretty significant when you consult either of them.

For starters, let’s discuss real estate mentorships and coaching. Mentorships are usually free of cost and are more of a narration of the mentor’s personal experience, leaving it up to the mentee to absorb and implement all of the mentor’s insights into their own career. 

Coaching is more practical, albeit more general, than mentorships. But coaching costs can be pretty high, especially if you opt for one-on-one coaching, with single sessions potentially costing thousands of dollars.

On another note, real estate mentorships are generally long-term relationship-building partnerships that aim to cover different pathways you can take in real estate investing and help you with networking within the industry. Coaching is more about finding the best short-term investment, smartly navigating the current market, and gaining hands-on knowledge and skills.

Again, we’ll only be talking about mentors below. So, are these mentorships really worth it in the long run?

Is a Real Estate Mentor Worth It?

A real estate mentor is definitely worth it, given the knowledge and industry insights you’ll gain from them. However, there are some limitations to mentoring. Let’s see both the pros and cons of real estate mentorships:

Pros of Real Estate Mentorship

  • Expert Knowledge
    Whether they’re 2 or 20 steps ahead of you in their career, mentors will have some additional knowledge to share. If they've been in the game long enough, they might provide you with insights based on previous market crashes or some support and accountability if they’re just one step ahead.
  • Expand Your Network
    Regardless of how long they’ve been in real estate, most mentors will have large networks of investors and investors alike. This network will now be open to you, giving you even more insights and potential buyers/sellers.
  • Personalized Advice
    Unlike a real estate course, a mentor can give you advice specific to your situation based on their own personal experiences. So, if you’re finding it challenging to flip houses in a particular area, they can give you more in-depth solutions than simply “trust the process”.
  • Personal Support and Accountability: By sharing their personal experiences, you build a deeper connection than just mentor-mentee. In turn, your mentor will offer you support and hold you accountable for your actions.

Cons of Real Estate Mentorship

  • Mentors have limited availability
    Most mentors don’t charge for their mentorships, and thus, they attract a very large crowd of folks who want to get into real estate. This means that it’ll be hard to find a mentor who matches your energy and is available for a full-on mentorship.
  • Mentorships aren’t a one-size-fits-all program
    The same goes for mentors. Your personalities might not fit, or your goals might not align with the mentor’s experience and expertise. So, it’ll take you some time to engage and find the real estate mentor that will fit you best.
  • Finding a mentor will not be easy
    You’ll need to be really ambitious about real estate and stand out from the crowd. Plus, you’ll have to actively engage with your mentor to build rapport, and then you might be able to secure a mentorship.

That’s why we have outlined 8 of the easiest ways to find a real estate mentor below.

Where to Find a Real Estate Mentor – 8 Unique Ways

Finding a real estate mentor can become much easier when you know where to look. So, here are some of the best ways to do so!

Networking Events

Networking events are always a great way to find real estate investors with all kinds of experience. You can find folks to mentor you who might be in a similar situation to yours, with others having tens of years of experience in the market.

Engaging in meaningful conversations is the key to finding a real estate mentor in networking events. This is especially true in free, local networking events, where you’ll speak with many different investors to find the right one to mentor you.

One of the issues with networking events is that you’re not guaranteed to find someone who fits your personality and wants to mentor you. So, you can attend paid conferences, where you’re more likely to find mentors actively looking for mentees.

Your Existing Network

Tapping into your personal and professional network is one of the best ways to find a real estate investor willing to mentor you. Nobody likes a cold call or a cold text. So, when you already have some rapport with someone who knows a mentor, it’ll be much easier to get in touch with them and potentially secure a mentorship.

You don’t really need to go too deep into your network, though. Reach out to folks who know a thing or two about real estate and ask them if they’re offering mentoring or if they know someone who does.

Online Forums

Another great way to get a mentor is through online forums. The first one that comes to mind is BiggerPockets, which is the top forum for real estate investors. But you can also check out subreddits dedicated to REI, like r/realestateinvesting.

Keep in mind that these are pretty big communities, so you’ll need to stand out. To do so, start engaging with posts on the forum or creating your own posts with any questions you have. If you’re actively offering help to other forum members, a real estate mentor will likely approach you to offer that same help back to you.

Social Media

Similar to online forums, social media is a great way to find a real estate investor who wants to mentor you. This is especially true if you use social media as a lead gen channel; you’ll find someone who’s already succeeding in this realm, so you’ll be able to replicate that success with their help.

The key thing to remember with social media is engagement. Most mentors get dozens of messages a day, so you’ll need to stand out. Focus on writing meaningful and memorable comments, actively engaging in a conversation, or building some rapport with them. Then, you should be able to reach out to them and get them to hop on a quick call.

Masterminds

Masterminds aren’t really mentor-backed; since you’ll most likely be paying for these, we should consider them as real estate coaching. Nevertheless, they’re still an incredible way to gain knowledge from tons of experts in your industry and potentially secure a mentorship from one of them.

The great thing about masterminds is that you won’t necessarily find a mentor among the mastermind hosts. You can chat with other attendees, and if one of them is a couple of steps ahead of you, they might be willing to mentor you to reach the same level as them.

Now, paid mentorship programs are always going to be… well, paid. So, we could think of these as coaching sessions with a real estate investor. Or, better yet, these are more similar to real estate courses than one-on-one mentorships.

Getting in on one of these is pretty straightforward; just find one, pay the fee, and you’re onboard. That said, you’ll need to get a good understanding of how these will be formatted. If the entire program is hosted by other coaches instead of the main mentor, you shouldn’t spend the big bucks on it.

Nevertheless, they’re a great way to get some great insights into the real estate market, but they aren’t necessarily the best if you’re looking for a long-term mentorship.

Real Estate Media

You might think that getting real estate media has nothing to do with finding a mentor. And you’d be right. Books and podcasts are basically free value from mentors. But what if you could get a hold of the people behind the books you’ve read? Or, what if you could reach out to that savvy investor you saw on a podcast?

Well, you can! Think of podcasts like the BiggerPockets podcast. Many investors are dishing out free value on these and are often open for a call or two. So, you can just connect with them and ask them a few questions.

You can potentially get a mentorship out of this, as it’s very similar to what you’d do in a local networking event (reach out to a mentor, actively engage with them, and secure a mentorship call).

Groups and Communities

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Communities and groups created by mentors are undoubtedly one of the best ways to find a real estate investor to help you out. For one, these give you direct access to the people who own the communities, who usually have tons of experience within the industry. But you can also reach out to other community members who might be able to help mentor you!

We have plenty of these real estate investing groups right here on Whop. For example, Hold My Hand Wholesale is a REI community with many members who are in a similar situation to yours. Plus, the server owners host hours-long mastermind sessions every single week!

Interested in joining Hold My Hand Wholesale? Have a read at our in-depth review!

What Should I Expect From a Real Estate Mentorship?

So, you know where and how to find a real estate mentor. But what should you expect them to do? What does a real estate mentorship need to have to be fruitful for both parties? Let’s find out.

A Mentor Who’s Been in Your Shoes

Let’s say that you’re just starting out with residential investing and have a very meager budget. The mentor you’ve found might have heaps of experience with commercial REI. They might have started with a huge budget before making their first sale. While they will give you some very valuable insights, they’ve not had the same start in the industry as you.

Thus, they won’t be the right fit. You need to find someone who’s “been there, done that”. An investor who started out in a similar fashion to you and overcame the challenges that came with it. This way, you’ll have a much better understanding of what you’ll need to do to become a successful investor.

Personality and Goal Fit

Besides finding someone who fits your background or journey, you must get a mentor who has a similar personality to you or can help you with your specific goals. If your goal is to have a very small real estate portfolio in the Midwest, there’s no point in trying to engage with someone who has tens of houses on the East Coast.

When it comes to personality, you must think of the mentorship as a more personal relationship. So, find someone with a similar communication style, values, etc.

Knowledge and Connections

Now, this might seem a bit out of place. We’ve said that you don’t really need someone who has years in the industry; you just need someone who’s at least one step ahead. And that’s true. But when you’re looking for a mentor, you have to prioritize finding someone with an extensive network or a good amount of knowledge and experience.

So, you need someone who has at least a few years in the industry. Don’t go out and try to get a mentor who’s yet to sell their first property!

Find a Real Estate Mentor With Whop

Finding a real estate mentor can be very helpful for both agents and beginner investors who want to better understand how the market works. And, there are plenty of ways you can find an experienced investor to help you out, be that through events and conferences, social media, or even your existing network.

But, the absolute best way to find a real estate mentor is through online groups and communities. Most of them will have similar aspirations and personalities to you, hence why you’ll be able to build a great mentor-mentee relationship with them.

At Whop, we have several real estate investing communities owned by vetted investors. These investors are transparent about how their Discord servers work and are always willing to help you out, no matter your level of experience and expertise.

Ready to explore Whop’s real estate groups? Then, check out all the real estate communities on Whop.

Join a Whop Real Estate Group!