Today we’d like to introduce you to Tresa Todd.
Hi Tresa, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Years ago, I was working in the medical industry, living a comfortable life, and was pretty content with my financial situation. On a day that I’ll never forget, my son Kelton, who recently reviewed my retirement plans, told me that my 401K and savings wouldn’t be enough to last me throughout retirement. I found this news to be quite riveting. Since I had been working hard for many years, feeling like I was on the right path, my heart sank.
At the same time, Kelton and my two other sons Justin and Tanner were heavily involved in real estate investing (REI). They had spent the past few years learning from some of the top mentors in the business including Grant Cardone, Vanilla Ice, George Ross, and Hugh Hilton. During their first two years alone, they closed over 100 REI deals.
Kelton suggested that I move to Dallas to join their REI business (which meant leaving behind my comfortable career, beloved friends, and ministry, and my home in Tyler, Texas). I have to admit, I was pretty hesitant at first. The thought of stepping into something completely different, in a new city, was frightening to me. All I knew was my current life. When faced with this circumstance, I decided to do what I always do when I’m facing unclear waters: I turned to prayer.
Next, I planned a week-long trip to Dallas to observe what REI was all about. I watched them closely, soaking up how they worked and what they were doing. I was so fascinated. A few days into that trip, I knew in my heart that this was the right choice for me.
That very weekend I had put my home up for sale, quit my job and said some tough goodbyes. The time had come to move to Dallas and embark on this new venture.
I’ll be honest, at first, I wasn’t sure if I was cut out for this. I spent week after week trying to get my first REI deal. After hearing “no” after “no” for 40 days, I finally heard my first “yes” – and it felt incredible. From there, things became easier. There were still challenges of course but once you’ve gotten started you can build momentum and deals start to flow a little more consistently as long as you keep putting in the work.
As I got more heavily involved in the industry, one thing stood out to me most: the lack of women. In fact, I remember hearing statistics in the beginning that over 97% of real estate investors were men. I wanted more women in the room. I wanted more women to be able to enjoy the fruits of their labor: vacations they’d always dreamed of the freedom that comes with being debt-free, the ability to pay off their kids’ college loans and so much more.
I decided to start a networking event for women to come together and learn. I was nervous that nobody would show up. What if nobody had started this already because there wasn’t a demand for it? To my surprise, 40 women attended my first event. It blew me away! This was the driving force that led to creation of the Women’s Real Estate Investors Network (WREIN). As of 2023, we’ve had over 300K women join us for our masterclass events. I am so proud of what we have accomplished and of the changes we have been able to make in the lives of the women we’ve been able to support. This is such an incredible gift, and I look forward to helping even more women achieve financial freedom in the future!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t always been a smooth road. Like with any career or business, there are always challenges that arise. Oftentimes, God provides you with some of the biggest breakthroughs when you overcome those challenges. As Romans 8:28 points out, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” This rings so true.
A big obstacle I faced began in 2020 when COVID hit. Before then, we had been hosting in-person local meetings all over the DFW and Houston metroplex. In January 2020, I remember seeing an ad pop up about an online challenge to start the new year going through the book of Proverbs, I thought to myself, “what a fantastic way to start the new year!” The challenge was wonderful and when it concluded, the instructor was offering to teach people to host their own online challenges.
At the time, I had no intention of changing the format for our meetings for the WREIN but my gut was telling me to attend this event. I didn’t know why, I just felt it deep inside that I had to learn this information about hosting online challenges. I went for it and attended the session in Nashville. I absorbed every bit of information I could, filling up an entire notebook with his wisdom.
After the seminar ended, I threw the notebook into a cabinet and forgot about it. 40 days later, COVID shut down the world.
I will never forget watching people losing their jobs and being fearful of what they were going to do to weather the unknown storm we were all bracing for. In spite of this, I knew that my specialized knowledge as a real estate investor would help them to get out of debt, create wealth, and create a life they love. Suddenly, I remembered what I had learned just two months ago about hosting online challenges and my mind exploded with joy when I realized I could help these women and their families.
With that notebook in hand, I ran to my team and said, “let’s take our meetings online,”. Taking on such a challenge was no easy task. There were learning curves with implementing new technology. Our team was required to learn new communication methods while we hosted meetings in a completely virtual environment. We learned a lot and had both successes and setbacks throughout that experience.
It paid off in the end. Now, instead of only serving women locally as we had originally been on track to do, we’ve been able to serve women in all 50 U.S. states!
In spite of this being one of the most difficult challenges we’ve faced, we learned so much from it, and the business completely changed because of it. As a result, we were able to provide knowledge to over 300K women, which is an incredible number of ladies we might not otherwise have been able to serve.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
The WREIN is the largest learning and networking community for women real estate investors in the nation. Our organization diligently serves women who are looking to become financially confident, build multi-generational wealth, and design a life they love.
We are known for teaching women specialized knowledge in all areas of REI so they can have the tools needed to be a successful, well-rounded investor. Whether they want to learn how to wholesale properties, become an Airbnb host, or do a buy-and-hold strategy, we’re here to assist them so they can begin on the right path and later adjust their strategy as they see fit to their lifestyle.
I believe there are a few things that set us apart. For one, we’re a faith-based organization. We have intentionally weaved our faith into the company from the very beginning. Faith has always shaped the decisions I make in my life and business.
Other companies help people learn about REI, but none of them are as tailored to helping women as WREIN. When it comes to REI, a lot of times women are overlooked – that’s exactly why we decided to cater to them specifically. Many women are interested in learning this information but lack the necessary industry knowledge and support. This needed to change, and we wanted to assist them in thriving in this field.
Another thing that makes us different, as I stated above, is that we educate our network of women on all facets of REI. Why? There may be times when l want to start out doing one thing and then move onto something else later on. Maybe you start out flipping houses or hosting short-term vacation rentals. This is a more active REI strategy. Some people may decide later on in their journey that they want a more passive strategy, and switch to long-term rentals managed by a property management company. Whatever you’re looking for in your REI journey, we are sharing the specialized knowledge to help you make it happen.
What I am most proud of is the lives we’ve been able to change! I’ve seen so many women be able to do the things they’d once only dreamed of. Book that dream vacation, pay off their mortgage or credit card debt, send their kids to college without loans. The incredible transformations women have had not only financially but mentally and spiritually as well. It makes everything that we do at the WREIN worth it!
Don’t be discouraged by how male-dominated REI is. Women have so many opportunities and when we follow our calling to pursue what we want, wonderful things can happen. If you’re at all interested in REI, I encourage you to check out our masterclass where we teach you how to get started with strategies such as wholesaling, flipping, rental properties and so much more!
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
My favorite childhood memories are the shopping sprees I would go on with my mom. I will always cherish those days we spent together. In spite of the fact that we were shopping on a budget, we loved to shop and bonded over our common interests. We would laugh, cut up and we always stopped for dessert afterward. My mom is my hero. She overcame so much and always had so much joy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://womensrein.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womensrein
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WomensRealEstateInvestorsNetwork/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tresa-lugten-speaker
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/WomensREIN
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@womensrein
