This blog has covered a lot on property trainer and investor Samuel Leeds. From his online training programme Samuel365 to his appearance on Joe Lycett’s Got Your Back, to his disagreement with Lord Sugar and Shaf Rasul this blog has covered it all.
So when Samuel Leeds offered me the opportunity to interview him, it seemed like a great chance to get his view on things. In this interview I will ask Samuel about his opinion on his critics, his top bit of advice, about the future of his company and much more.
Hi Samuel, thank you for agreeing to do this interview! Much appreciated. As a property investor and educator you have inspired so many people to get into property. What inspires you most about property?
The thing that inspires me most about property is that it is bricks and mortar, you can see it and touch it. I love being able to make a living whilst providing homes for people.
You have made hundreds of videos, written books and have put on countless training courses. If you could teach only one lesson to people about property what would it be and why?
If I could teach one lesson about property it would be to invest with your formulas and not your feelings. Property is a business and it is so important to know how to calculate the numbers and not get wrapped up in the emotion of the houses.
Who is your role model in business and what have you learnt from them?
I have many role models in business but one of the most influential mentors in my life was Jim Rohn. I never had the honour of meeting him before he died but have listened to thousands of hours of his seminars and talks.
Can anyone do well in property or are there personality types it is not suited to?
Anybody can do well in property if they really choose to, but the reality is that not everybody will. Becoming successful in anything takes hard work, commitment and patience.
Some people say that ‘no money down’ deals are impossible. Is this true? Can you give some examples of ‘no money down’ deals you have done?
“No Money Down” deals are deals where you personally put none of your own money into the deal. All deals require some money somewhere, but it absolutely doesn’t have to be the buyer.
An example of this would be that when I bought my castle using a combination of bridging finance and other peoples money. I myself didn’t pay a penny to purchase that castle and the profits will pay back the investors and the bridging company. Most of my property transactions have been no money down deals.
You have given out so much advice and information to people freely, there must be very little you haven’t shared before. However, is there any advice that you would like to give people that you haven’t said publicly yet?
I hold very little back when teaching what I know, namely, property investing. I rarely talk about auction properties because I fear encouraging people to bid at an auction and buying a dud property, of which there are many! The rules are very different from buying at auction so I only teach my advanced students usually. If I had to offer a piece of advice I would say make sure you pay for a survey before you bid and never resent the money spent even if you lose the bid.
Clearly, you are passionate about property and education, but if you weren’t doing that what would you do?
If I wasn’t doing property and education I would most likely work full time within the church because I love helping people and my faith is very important to me.
Recently, you have been dealing with a lot of criticism both from social media and mainstream media. You have replied to it all and explained your case. Do you think any of the criticism has been justified? What do you think motivates the criticism?
I don’t try to understand why people say the things they do or even think the way they do. My job is to deliver a top quality service to my customers, provide good accommodation to my tenants and be a good husband and dad to my family. I believe I do a good job of that.
If you could speak to one of your critics face-to-face who would it be and what would you say to them?
I would have very little to say apart from continue to let my actions speak for themselves. Everybody is entitled to their opinion and free to believe what will serve them best in their life. I am not here to convince anybody of anything, but to train those in property that want to be trained.
What are your plans for the future of your business? Anything coming up that you haven’t yet spoken about?
I am very excited about some online software and property tech that we are building. Most recently I have partnered with “Deal Sourcr” which is an app that streamlines the best property deals from the internet and calculates the return on investment automatically.
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this interview. Is there anything more you would like to add before I let you get on with your busy day?
Property is the second best investment, the best is yourself. Thanks for the great questions and thank you for your excellent contribution to the property community.
In conclusion…
I very much appreciate Samuel’s willingness to share his time and provide the community with his insights. You can find more info about Samuel Leeds on his website here.
In the future I intend to interview various people in the property industry including deal sourcers, rent to rent experts, property investors, landlords, new arrivals to the property industry and more. If you would like to be interviewed for this blog, please do get in touch with some details about yourself.