Jumping right into syndications with New Jersey house flippers

You’ve heard it time and time again, real estate is a team sport. Meet Joey Chan and Johnathan Boyle of New Jersey, active real estate “newbies” that have delved into all real estate niches. From wholesaling to flipping houses to syndications, Chan and Boyle have bonded over deals and crazy stories of being landlords (e.g., people smoking crack in the backyard of their property).

The trio closed on their first deal in their very own office in May 2021.

Partnership was formed

Joey Chan and Johnathan Boyle first met towards the end of 2017. Chan, whose background is in construction, was looking into new deals in Belleville, NJ. This also happened to be where Johnathan grew up and had local knowledge of the area.

Meanwhile, Johnathan was also getting his feet wet with his first project and actively posting on Facebook. Newbie tip: post from different angles on social media so that it appears that you have multiple projects simultaneously happening while, in reality, you just have one!

Joey spontaneously asked Johnathan to look into a deal and see if it was worth pursuing. They had no intention of a partnership, and both simply wanted to help and learn. The two meshed well. Thus, a formidable and organic partnership was formed. Skip to the present day, where the trio and their third partner, Mark, have amassed a portfolio of 20 properties all over New Jersey.

The team’s first-ever Newbie Real Estate Investors Meetup and birthday get-together for Johnathan Boyle.

Team sport

Like any sport, each player contributes skills and assets to the team. Joey is the CAPEX guy – he moves the project along from 0-to 100. Given his expertise in construction, he is responsible for visiting the active sites and getting daily status updates from employees.

He is also nimble on social media, taking his followers to construction sites and showcasing the finished renovations! This is another touchpoint with his followers so that they know the endless possibilities in real estate.

Johnathan works on the deal flow while managing the assets – he can analyze deals to determine if it is the highest and best of their time. He strategizes which route to take with pen and paper, whether it is a simple cosmetic work like ‘putting lipstick on a pig’ or holding on to the property for rental income.

Mark specializes in lead generation and works with VAs to turn inquiries into actual deals. The trio collaborated, given their similar personalities and syncretization on closing deals.

Follow Joey and Johnathan’s podcast: Newbie Real Estate Investors

Enter the world of syndications

The team aims to scale by entering the world of syndications. While Joey and Johnathan both learned about syndications long ago, both did not know ‘how to get into the game.’ They had the false impression that they had to ‘graduate into it.’

They closely followed and trusted a sponsor by attending meetups and networking and eventually invested in one of his deals. They realized they could ‘jump right in’ with Joey passively investing in a 75-unit property in Decatur, Georgia. As an LP, Joey gathered insights on which metrics make a deal lucrative for when the team sponsors their very own.  

Chan and Boyle are currently enrolled in a mastermind and are going through the modules on how to analyze and evaluate larger-scale deals. The team is looking into sponsoring their first deal as capital raisers and will leverage their expansive network to find co-general partners.

That one piece of advice 

Joey and Johnathan shared a similar piece of advice – do not give up and keep going. As cliche as it sounds, both have experienced their highs and lows and leaned on each other to preserve. Johnathan also emphasized that every deal needs three things: time, money, and knowledge. He encourages newbies to have at least one of the three to break into the industry.

Lastly is patience – it took Johnathan almost an entire year to make an offer. It also took him another 6 months to a year to get a deal accepted. It took Joey years to build his rental portfolio of which is only now seeing the benefits. Real estate is not a get-rich-quick scheme but rather a long-term, steady plan for financial freedom. Be patient, and you will reap the benefits when you least expect it!  

Connect with Joey Chan and Johnathan Boyle:

Joey Chan IG @njhouse4cash

Johnathan Boyle IG @therealestatejohnboyle

Podcast: Newbie Real Estate Investors