Are you ready to be inspired by a story of incredible perseverance and achievement? In this episode of "Exit Strategies Radio Show," we have a guest whose journey will leave you in awe.
Joining us for this week’s episode is Nick Prefontaine. He is a successful real estate investor, speaker, and the co-founder of Smart Real Estate Coach. Nick's story is a testament to the power of unwavering perseverance and the human spirit. He's not just a survivor; he's a thriver. After a life-changing accident at the age of 14, Nick defied all odds and went on to become a successful real estate investor and speaker. He shares his story of unwavering perseverance, the importance of having a mentor, and the secrets to buying and selling real estate on terms.
Whether you're looking for motivation or practical real estate insights, Nick's story will leave you inspired and empowered. Don't miss this powerful episode!
Key Takeaways:
04:27- Nick's accident at 14 and the journey to recovery.
15:05- The importance of having a mentor and saying "yes."
20:36- The essential role of knowledge in real estate investing.
23:24- Nick's advice to his younger self: Slow down and do it correctly.
Contact Nick and Claim the Free Ebook @:
Connect with Corwyn@:
Contact Number: 843-619-3005
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/exitstrategiesradioshow/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxoSuynJd5c4qQ_eDXLJaZA
Email @: corwyn@corwynmelette.com
Shoutout to our Sponsor: ROBYN COLLINS
Do you want something more? More Meaningful Moments opportunities, deeper relationships and memorable experiences? Do you want to make a difference? If you say YES, a career and real estate could be the opportunity you're looking for guiding people to one of the most important decisions they ever made, the purchase or sale of their home can be both rewarding and lucrative.
Exit Realty has a revolutionary compensation model training and technology that provides you with the tools you need to start and build your successful real estate career. Call me today ROBYN COLLINS with REDROBYN HOMES at 843-557-5003. Again that's 843-557-5003 or visit at RedRobynhomes.com/join.exit and make your Exit today.
— Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/corwyn-j-melette/supportCorwyn: [00:00:00]
So good morning, good morning, and great morning guys. Welcome to another fabulous episode of Exit Strategies Radio Show. Hey, I am your host, Corwyn J. Melette, broker and owner of Exit Realty Lowcountry Group in beautiful in North Charleston, [00:01:00] South Carolina. Hey, Hey, if you are listening to this show today for the first time, you sir, ma’am are in for a treat because our mission is very simple here.
That is to empower our community through financial literacy and real estate education. We’re legacy building. That is what we do. Right here on and through this show. So today, we’re going to touch on a number of different things all around legacy and all that stuff and then building and all that jazz.
Right. But I’ve told you, and you have been watching and participating with us as we have. Expanded his show as we have went out and grabbed the best guests that we have on the tarmacs of the airports. We have yelled from the top is the largest buildings. Hey, look, please come and share what you know with those who we love, which are our guests, our audience right here.
And today is no different. Guys, we [00:02:00] have with us, we got a story today, so I want you to pay attention. I want you to sit down. If the flapjack is on the stove, I want you to go ahead and pull it off. We’re going to throw that one away. We’ll make another one because I need you to listen to this story today.
We’re going to share some heartfelt. Some information that should be just in your core. We’re going to talk about mindset and mentality, but we’re going to talk about doing something different and being different and aspiring to be the best version of yourself. We have with us none other today than Nick Prefontaine with Smart Real Estate Coach.
How are you doing today,
Nick:
I’m doing outstanding Corwyn and , I’m just, just as excited as you are, if not a little bit more. So let’s bring it to your audience today. Well, look,
Corwyn:
You have a story. All right. So, behind the scenes, talked gotten familiar with your bio, Nick, you have a story.
So I want to first start by Asking you to introduce yourself. And then, let’s talk about you, what you’ve been [00:03:00] through, come from, and where you are now, where you’re going. So Nick, if you don’t mind for our listeners, please give a brief introduction to yourself.
Nick:
No, I would love to what I do and what I’m actually looking forward to sharing with your audience. So it all goes back to when I was 14 years old, I was at a ski club with my friends. On the way to the mountain, we were getting ready and all my friends and I brought our gear onto the bus so we would get ready.
So we wouldn’t miss a precious moment once we got to the mountain and got ready, I realized that I had forgotten something that I usually brought. I didn’t wear it every time, but I usually brought it to this mountain because it was a little bigger. That was my helmet. I just thought I, I’d be careful.
Nothing’s gonna happen. , nothing ever did happen, so, got to the mountain and the rest of the class migrated inside to get ready, and my friends and I, because we wasted no time, had a right for the chair left. On the way up, we noticed that it was a little [00:04:00] icy Corwyn because it had been raining so people were wiping out everywhere.
However, it really wasn’t our first time, on a snowboard. If you know what I mean, true. Got to the top. We know what we were doing. My friends and so got to the top. Buckled into my snowboard, took a breath of that crisp winter air and confidently charged towards the biggest jump in the train park with all my speed.
And going up to the jump, I caught the edge of my snowboard on the snow going up the jump and that kind of threw me off balance. I was told that landed on my head and I wasn’t wearing a helmet and something else that I learned on there was my goggles were the only protection that my head had.
They told me that. With each subsequent hit after the initial impact, my goggles mysteriously moved to cushion each blow as I rolled down the mountain, and I wore some pretty big goggles with a lot of padding, but never [00:05:00] fathomed that I would need them to brace my fall. The school had to get in touch with my parents and have them meet me at the hospital, so all my parents knew was that I’d been in an accident, and my dad was the one that they were able to reach first.
When he called my mom, he also wasn’t able to get a lot. So we had to leave a message and as soon as they both got to the hospital and saw me and saw how rough of a shape I was in, they were blown away. My head and shoulder where I made the initial impact were bruised beyond comprehension and the doctors had to drill a hole for a shunt to be inserted into my bra pressure and without it, have gone up and I would at this.
On how I was doing with my parents and at the early stages, these updates weren’t more and more positive. They [00:06:00] were, if anything, less and less and more grim every time. And they came into my room even though I was in a coma, to share those updates. My parents stopped them. They said, no, no, not in front of him.
Because Corwyn, they understood that even though I was in a coma, I was still taking information. So I got outside the doctor outside my room in the I. C. U. The doctors told my parents that I probably wouldn’t be able to walk, talk or eat on my own again. And even if I was able to make it out of my coma, there was a good chance that I’d need 24 care for the rest of my life.
They didn’t accept this like patients do in that situation, like a death sentence. They took the information, thanked the doctors, and then allowed me to treat it like any other situation. So this was no different than any other challenge that I’ve faced up to this point in my life. I really didn’t see the difference.
As soon as I was aware of my [00:07:00] surroundings and the work that was left in front of me, I got up, did the best that I could and I kept getting better every day. And then, let me just stop there and take a deep breath. Because you just told me to introduce myself and I went into what happened.
Corwyn:
You just did, Nick, is you just set the stage for what we have yet to talk about. Cause I wanted to make sure our listeners, you know, got that. So, you spent two years in a coma.
Nick:
Oh, no. I spent three weeks, three weeks. Okay. I really don’t remember a month, but because it was a partially induced coma.
It was three weeks. So I’m told.
Corwyn:
Okay. so explain to me. give our listeners insight into that journey after. So, you were 14 years old when this happened. And two years later, you start working with your dad in real estate. Is that correct?
Nick:
Yeah, that’s right. Yup. So, [00:08:00] I came out of the coma and really, as soon as I was aware of my surroundings and the work that was left in front of me because even at the beginning of my recovery, I was transported to the third floor of the rehab hospital, which was reserved for the most critical of cases.
At first, I really wasn’t aware of my surroundings, but as soon as I was aware of my surroundings and the work that was left in front of me, my parents always had a goal for me to make a full recovery. What parent wouldn’t want that for their kid who just got in an accident?
However, I heard in the back of my head that no, you’re going to run out. So then that became our goal. Our common goal was I was going to run out of the hospital. And that’s what we are all working on. That’s what all the therapists, all the doctors, we had weekly meetings. That’s what we are all shooting for.
And when you fast forward a little bit, I got home, I ran out [00:09:00] of the hospital. And then I got home in April towards the end of April. And when I came back, because I had missed so much time for school, I had to work with a tutor, even though I would go to school. I wasn’t with my classmates.
I was working with a tutor to help me get caught up. And then that was in the morning, then I would go to lunch with my classmates. And that was frankly, that was the best part of my whole day. I got to see my classmates and everything. Then after that, I went to outpatient therapy and I had to go to outpatient therapy for another six months along with being tutored all summer long to continue to high school with the rest of my classmates.
Now what you were touching on was only 18 months after that, I was knocking on the doors of some distressed sellers that hadn’t paid their mortgage in months, sometimes years. I mean. Let’s be candid. It was back in 2005, 2006. So
Corwyn:
Yeah, [00:10:00] That was a lot of that.
Nick:
That was what I would do, I get a list of a notice of default, the homeowners that I have received the notice of default and no one Corrine, no one schooled me on this. No one told me this. They just said. Here’s where you go find them. You print out a list and then here’s the lead behind.
There you go. And here’s a script, go knock yourself out. So no one told me this, but to me, what made sense was 16 years old. I just getting your driver’s license. Oh, okay. I’m going to go to the areas where I can hit the most amount of doors in a day. Probably wasn’t the best area to buy property in where they were literally right next to each other.
A lot of the time. Yeah, I would do anywhere from like 50 to 70 doors in a day because I had to go to school during the week. So I had to knock it out on the weekends or holidays and do it when I could. And really this taught me so much because it was so soon after my accident, but it taught [00:11:00] me so much about people and like, when you’re knocking on the door of someone and they answer the door, you have to know real quick how to get them on your side, that you’re there to help them or else they’re not gonna listen to you.
It doesn’t matter how old you are. So I learned real quick what to say and what not to say and the tactics and strategy and everything. And really then, I got out of high school and then I started studying my real estate license and I got my real estate license in drum roll, please. March of 08.
Oh gosh. Great time to be a realtor. So, then I was a successful realtor. And then around 2014, while I was still a realtor, my dad asked me, Hey do you mind helping? He was an investor who was buying homes creatively, non-conventional without signing personally on bank loans, or signing with a private investor [00:12:00] for a lot of money.
And. He said to me, I’m getting all these properties. Can you help me with the marketing? And I was like, no, no, no. I have my own thing going on here. I don’t need your help or anything. And thankfully he asked me more than once. So what’s. knew not to just take no the first time. So he asked three times persistent.
I finally came around to the fact that, okay, I can do this right alongside being a realtor. And then all the calls started coming in from the marketing that I was doing. And he’s like, Hey, can you help me here too, with working with these buyers? And that morphed into working with all the buyers and.
Over the course of, I let my real estate license go in January of 16 to join him full-time time and that over since then, since 2016 and now I’ve been working on bringing the buyers to a very particular process in order to give them the best chances of getting to the end of their rent own agreement and being able to [00:13:00] qualify and get their own loans.
Now that happens with great regularity and I not only do it for our properties, but all of our associates’ properties across the country help coach the buyer to the finish line and get their own loan.
Corwyn:
So, one of the things that really stands out to me, about you is your perseverance.
With that, you guys now, you now coach people on real estate investing, how to purchase property and things on terms. Am I correct?
Nick:
Yep. So the same way that we bought properties creatively and then we’re always selling them on a rent to own now we also have associates all over the country that we help them develop that same business and that same tools, same processes, same systems and everything for them so they can get up and running.
Corwyn: So out of all this, and again, persistence. You were persistent about, not accepting what others [00:14:00] have said, and in turn, realizing the vision that you, in turn, had, if you will for your life and again, as a heck of a testimony in there, my man, but in your advising of other people, let’s talk about why people need or should have an advisor that if nothing else, are persistent like you are.
Nick:
Yeah, because I think if you don’t have, and I don’t, look, we practice what we preach, I don’t say that I have all the answers and come to me sitting on top of my mountain and, I’ll tell you what to do and everything like that.
You can see on my board behind me, I also am a motivational speaker. When I wanted, which is I share my story and also the system that I unknowingly used, which we haven’t talked about yet, but I figured it would come up organically, which it has because there’s system that I unknowingly used to not only make a full recovery, but run out of [00:15:00] the hospital. That’s a step system. STEP is an acronym S-U-P-P-O-R-T, T-R-U-S-T, E-N-E-R-G-Y, and P-E-R-S-I-S-T-E-N-C-E. So I know , you keep saying persistence. So I couldn’t, I had to bring it up. So when I wanted to really focus on this and building a motivational speaking business and starting a company and everything, I didn’t just try to wing it.
And say that, Oh, no, I have all the answers. I can figure this out. I went and sought out a mentor that this is all she does. she works with speakers to help them start their businesses and get on big stages. I did that about two years ago, I reached out to her and I worked on one with her at the beginning of last year.
And I still talk to her. She’s become a great friend. I still talk to her. To this day which is the reason why, where it’s. Even though it’s different than what we’re doing real estate coaching and mentoring, [00:16:00] it’s really the same thing because I made a commitment and a decision in myself. So to work with her initially for a speaker salon was 25, 000.
Then when I was working with her in the speaker salon, this is the fall of 21. She pitched the idea of me, what it would look like working with her one on one. That was another 75, 000. And I just kept saying, yes, and I’ll figure out the funding later. And, that’s exactly what we tell all of our associates, the people that we work with, just keep taking that next step.
And that my whole life is built on that. Just continue to take your next step. So. What I’ve built with her, is amazing and call it a year and a half of really focused work. think looking back on the laundry list of things that I’ve accomplished with her, it’s something that people, a lot of people don’t accomplish in five years.
So that’s the difference of just winging it and working on your [00:17:00] own, and trying to figure it out on your own. And hey, I know someone, that’s a speaker. So I might reach out to them. But if you work with a mentor, who’s going to grab your hand and take you with them The sky’s the limit of what you can
Corwyn:
Accomplish. So, that’s what you guys do with real estate investors or prospective investors. You take them, you nurture them, you coach them up. And then you help them progress through the steps necessary to be successful at buying real estate on terms. So you’ve been doing this now this is a family business for you.
Nick:
Correct. Yeah, absolutely.
Corwyn:
So how long have you been practicing in this arena and this
Nick:
Field? Oh, geez. It’s this particular niche, it’s gotta be going on now for over 10 years. However, I’ve been in real estate all my life. As you heard, my dad who I got on and you said, I had your brother.
I was like, I got it. I have to tell him you’re going to [00:18:00] be his new best friend. I literally, it’s Corwyn. It’s all I’ve ever known. So when I was a toddler, very little, my dad was a builder then he transitioned to being a realtor and an investor and a real like in between those back and forth, so it’s all I’ve ever known is real estate. So, this particular niche, it’s going over, it’s over 10 years now.
Corwyn:
So I have two questions for you because we’re quickly getting towards our stopping point for today’s show. But, Nick, do you think, somebody who’s looking, to invest in real estate, like what is that fundamental thing that they need to be either in possession of, or be able to get In order for them to be successful?
Nick:
So I would say knowledge, and it’s not necessarily funding. So you want to pick a niche, obviously I’m biased. I think our niche is best buying and selling on terms without using banks or your credit or investor funds or anything, but.,[00:19:00] I’m gonna zero in on that.
So pick a niche find someone who you see as a mentor. Now, I’m not naive to think we’re the only mentor out there. So pick one that you’re comfortable with and I guess the right word is vibe with their style and their delivery. And then just keep saying, yes, keep taking your next step.
Corwyn:
Okay. That is good. So make one more thing before you go as
Nick:
many things as you want.
Corwyn:
I love it. So if you don’t mind, this is a perfect place for us to make sure we get your contact information out. For our listeners. Again, you have a dynamic story.
It’s a story of perseverance and overcoming , everything that people have said to you. And you believe higher, you believe greater, and in turn, you achieved it. So how can our listeners get in contact with you?
Nick:
Sure, I’m going to give you a few things. , we actually have a free book. The new rules of real estate investing. So I’ll give you [00:20:00] listeners where they can go to get that and claim that free gift. That’s at WickedSmartBooks. com forward slash exit strategy zero three. So wicked smartbooks. com 4 slash exit strategy zero three. And I know we didn’t talk really in the weeds too much about the actual buying and selling of properties.
However, if there’s anything about what we touched on that interests any of your listeners, they can go to our website, smart real estate coach.com. And if they scroll down, They can get registered for the free master’s class that we have. And in that, they’re going to learn about our trademark three payday system and all about how we buy and sell on terms.
And if, anything, what I said just interest your listeners on what I have going on for my speaking and the step system, [00:21:00] they can check me out athttps://nickprefontaine.com/step/. And that will allow them to download the full STEP system. I didn’t even get to talk about a 10,000-foot view of it, but if they’re interested in any, those four phrases, support, trust, energy, and persistence, I go into detail in the free ebook.
And that they can claim, their free ebook there at nickprefontaine. com forward slash step and then that’ll allow them to take their first step today.
Corwyn:
I got it. I got it. Look, I’m on the site. Listeners guys go to Nick Prefontaine. That’s P R E F. O N T A I N E dot com slash step and let’s download this today.
All right. You need this. All right. You want this. Let’s go get it. So Nick, my final and called this. I might drop question it’s that [00:22:00] thing that, if you could go back, get a magic wand, you can go back and do this thing here all over. If there was something that if you’d have known this years and years and years ago, that you could have either implemented or something you could have done at that particular time, that would have completely changed.
The trajectory of your life and in turn, have you catapulted far beyond where you are now? What would that one thing be?
Nick:
So the honest answer? The honest answer is I wouldn’t change anything because it led me to where I am today and Doing exactly what I’m meant to be doing with my life and evidence of that.
I will answer the question though, but evidence of that is all throughout my life since my accident, I’ve had a voice in the back of my head that’s telling me I have to be helping others. Are going through a trauma or life challenge to get through to the other side and then they can thrive with the rest of their lives.
I’ve always had that voice in the back of my [00:23:00] head since I’ve been following this path with my mentor, Tricia Brooke. There’s no voice. So for the past two years, there hasn’t been a voice and to me, That’s evidence that I’m doing what I meant what I was put on this earth to do So I wouldn’t change anything in that regard.
However, if I could tell myself something when I was younger and you can even go back to when I was 16 knocking on doors and when I was 18 when I first got out of high school and I was starting to get my real estate license, it would be It’s going to be okay. You’ll get there because I was just so much like, I
got to do more and more and more. But the most important thing, Corwyn, is that if I could say, to myself at that age you’re going to get there, just slow down, take a deep breath, just make sure you have everything covered as opposed to just doing more and more and [00:24:00] more. Just slow down and make sure you’re doing it correctly.
Corwyn:
I love that. I love that. So, Nick, we have quickly reached the end of today’s show. Thank you for being on the show with us today. Thank you for that message. Thank you for that inspiration and that encouragement that has been embedded in everything that you share with us on today. So, again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking time out of your busy schedule to be on the show with us.
Nick:
You’re welcome, Quo, and it was a blast.
Corwyn: Thank you. So for our listeners, guys, look, y’all know how I feel. Y’all know what I say. Y’all know I always love to put them two things together and say it to you this way, which is I love you. I love you. I love you. And we’re going to see you guys out there in those streets.
