On the show today we talk… Rescue Your Retirement Funds & Take Control with Damion Lupo!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify
Show Links:
- Damion’s website
- Aaron’s My First 3 Deals Podcast
- Damion’s EQRP book QRPbook.com
- Damion’s book Reinvented Life
- Damion’s podcast
- Natalie’s accounting podcast (Tax Season is Here!)
Show notes for Rescue Your Retirement Funds & Take Control with Damion Lupo!
The Vantastic Life is…
– is in Boise ID Starbucks parking lot!
Julie
Welcome Damion, and my 2nd co-host Aaron Royce.
Joe
How/where did you grow up and how did it take you to where you are today?
Damion
I started off in Alaska taking care of oil cans. When I left Alaska I remember going out into 80 below and seeing polar bears, and knowing that if I didn’t see them they would eat me. And I was told that we were broke. I rebelled and burned the whole thing down. I went to college and got kicked out a few times.
Then I watched one of those seminars in FL after reading a Rich Dad Poor Dad.
I had built myself up and was feeling very high on myself until 2008 when I lost 20 million dollars.
That’s what led me to being in Sedona AZ and the opposite of being in Alaska.
Julie
What was the hardest part about starting over?
Damion
I had the pain of the mistakes. I had all the money and the cars, and then was living out of my vehicle because I was starting over. The worst part was acknowledging the truth that I was a total duchebag.
If we are out there and telling ourselves a lie. You need to realize changing your mind vs. exchanging your mind. I talk about this in my book.
Julie
It sounds like your book would be good to read if you need a reset in today’s world.
Damion
Of if you like to watch Breaking Bad, I’ve been told that it’s like an episode of breaking bad.
Julie
The first 3 people that give us a review on the podcast will get a free copy of Damion’s book. Leave the review and then email Joe@seattleinvestorsclub.com.
How did things shift?
Damion
I had a conversation with my dad in Alaska before he passed with cancer. He said there are so many things that I wanted to do but couldn’t because he didn’t have time. He didn’t go deep, he went wide. There was no mastery into anything and he ran out of money. He wasn’t too stupid, he was too late to build his money.
So I wrote the QRP book. It gives people the power. It says FU to Wall Street, and it’s what I talk about on my podcast.
Julie
I’m so afraid of this with my kids. They are 12 years old and can learn something good. We are getting a cat in July so my kids will do a deep dive with full PowerPoint. It’s time that they go deep.
One of my daughters has done a deep dive on block chain and bitcoin. And my other daughter did one on the law of attraction, mindfulness, and meditation.
And I’m totally cool with bribery :-).
Aaron, tell us a little more about your background.
Aaron
Fantastic, my journey is very different. I grew up thinking that corporate world is the only world. I didn’t know what entrepreneurship was. I did have a fun job growing up in southern CA. I could have bought a rental early on, but spent money on toys. I saw my mom with a rental who was always afraid of losing it.
Then I quit my job and went overseas to do some ministry work.
At that time my friend introduced me to Rich Dad Poor Dad, and it was so different than anything that I had done before.
We ended up building a house in South Africa and making $100k. I was like “wow” I should do this on purpose.
Then I got involved with someone that was selling real estate education. Thought I was really smart, but then 2008 came around and I lost a bunch of money, and some friends money, and my dads money.
At that point I was about to move into my parents house in Seattle, but got a call from a job recruiter with Boeing.
It took me about 7 years to get back into the mindset of getting back into investing.
Then I met Damion a couple years ago at a Fixated event, and I was impressed with his humility.
Julie
So you met Damion at the Fixated event. Is there word o that for this year?
Aaron
Not that I know of. They are probably seeing what the vaccine will do.
Julie
How did you get hooked up with Damion?
Aaron
It was the 2019 Big Bad Ass Real Estate Event. I was so stressed with my job. At first I was loving it, but it had gotten so bad. And work was getting in the way of our real estate business.
When I quick it was a couple weeks after the real estate event.
I knew I had about a quarter million dollars in a retirement account. And I knew I wanted to do something with that to help build my future.
This was something that I needed at the moment.
When I met Damion, he took so much time with me. I felt like I could really trust him, and he could help me.
I finally got my retirement account rolled over and started investing with Damion. Some metals and a fund. I have that money fully working and building toward the future.
Julie
Damion tell us about what you do. We’ve heard about self directed IRA’s and all that. People either use it early or late.
Tell us about EQRP.
Damion
IRA’s are a HUGE industry that makes a lot of money. EQRP is a totally different product.
EQRP is… Enhanced Qualified Retirement Plan.
There are some clowns out there that are lying to you about what a EQRP is.
You can do this if you have nothing or 10 or more employees.
You have control, you have a check book. You can pretty much do anything you want. We are totally misled by what you can buy with your retirement account.
Julie
What is the misconception?
Damion
Wall Street wants you to only think you can do stocks, bonds, and mutual funds because that’w where they make their money.
You can have an EQRP and have employees.
It’s very hard to grow a business just by yourself.
Julie
I actually have one of those plans and I get the survey about having employees.
Why wouldn’t they want the best for their clients?
Damion
The reason that it’s not talked about is the EQRP companies are the only ones that build EQRP’s. There was never a middle space.
Julie
Let’s make it clear. We talk about all kinds of topics with things that you should be doing regularly. Like checking in with the real estate doctor… your conventional lender.
We are going to give Damion the title of doctor. We are building a health kit for your retirement and financial life.
You all should check in with Damion. He’s an honest guy, and we want to give you people to help you out.
Do you even know what you can do with your retirement? You need to check in with your CPA, your conventional lender, your hard money lender…. It’s a checkup for your financial health.
You don’t know what you don’t know because nobody is telling you.
Aaron
Can you articulate what the 3 financial product differences are?
Damion
Self direction IRA
Hurt you – Control. It’s a friction point. IF you’re doing real estate or want to buy gold…. You want to do a flip if you use hard money you’ll run into UBIT tax, which is 37% of leveraged product. If you tool 60% debt then 60% of your profits are going to be taxed in an IRA. And EQRP is exempt, solo 401K is exempt.
EQRP
This is the tool to help you have more control.
Solo 401K
You can’t have full time employees, but there was a new law that was passed about not being able to have part time employees.
Julie
The person that is setting things up for you isn’t giving you all the info.
If you give people all of their options, even if they aren’t all you, you’ll build so much rapport with people!
We are going to drop Natalie podcast on accounting.
That’s why we want to build a health kit with people we can trust. We are giving you the information to check you shit!
Anything else that we need to know?
Damion
You need to know that truth, the facts. Get a copy of the EQRP book that I wrote. QRPbook.com
When you see big commercials on TV, do you think they have the best investments… no they have the best marketing.
Julie
I’m a big nerd and want to learn constantly. I send things like this to my financial advisor and attorney and help them learn about these things. Let’s start educating our circle.
Can everyone setup a EQRP plan?
Damion
There are rules around them that determine how we set them up. Anybody can, but most people probably shouldn’t. If you have access to all your money you can do what you want with it. And this can be a bad idea.
We are focused on self responsibility and transparency.
Julie
I can tell you that people are worried about screwing it up.
Damion
If you’re super nervous this is probably not the right thing.
I was working and teaching with Robert Kyosaki and he beat this into us. We are trained to not make mistakes.
These movements that are going on are financial slavery, and nobody is talking about that right now.
Julie
It feels like people are losing and taking back control with things like block chain.
How do people screw it up?
Damion
People are afraid they are going to lose money.
In my first book… Maverick mistakes in real estate investing. I’ve lost all my money 3 different times. But people listen to Warren Buffet who says his first rule is not to lose money.
The greatest thing you can do is to make some mistakes where it’s not going to kill you. Make little mistakes and learn from it.
Julie
What is the exactly… don’t do this..?
Damion
You’re going to do something and you’re going to learn. Then it’s about how much you have to make money, it’s about to create money. We have to be willing to shift.
Losing money is part of the process, learn from it.
Julie
There are people that are exactly like that. You need to take action and learn from the actions that you’ve taken.
Damion
People ask me what to invest in and what to do. And I tell them they are not wanting to make mistakes. Go work for someone even if they won’t pay you, just show up and become invaluable.
Julie
Let’s talk about the economic status. Can we talk about the Cares act?
Damion
If you have an EQRP we can do some conversions. You can now setup an EQRP for the previous year. So you can contribute for last year. This just happened.
Aaron
If you already have an EQRP can you retroactively invest for 2020?
Damion
There are chunks of contributions that you can invest for the previous year. This is why you want to work with a smart person who knows what they are doing.
Julie
What if somebody does a tax return amendment for the previous year?
Damion
Most people are cheap and have bad tax returns done. You should be paying for good work. Your team will make you money if you have the right team. The same as good employees.
Julie
This is Jan but probably dropping in Feb, but you need to take me seriously, go do your check up!
Set yourself up correctly and check in with your high quality advisors. You don’t know what you don’t know.
I want to ask you about kids… how can I use my kids that are helping me and them? They assst me with my videos.
Damion
If you have kids you can pay your kids up to $12,200. You could have your kids do modeling. You have a deduction. They have tax free income. They could use a Roth EQRP. You have the ability to start shifting income around.
Julie
How do you have to document that? My kids work is legit.
Damion
If you have payroll for kids… use that.
If you were going to hire someone, do it the same way. It needs to make sense. Payroll is not complicated, just do it.
People pay too much taxes because they are scared. Who cares. Don’t be afraid of the IRS.
Julie
What about grandparents?
Damion
There’s charity. I like setting up an account and hiring grandparents to be part of the business, then pay them and have them put their money into the kids EQRP. I did this with my dad.
Julie
Good stuff guy!!!
How does anyone get started?
Damion
The next step is to learn. You can get my QRPbook.com to get started.
Julie
What’s the name of your other book.
Damion
Reinvented Life by Damion Lupo.
Julie
Does anyone else want to add anything?
Aaron
Get informed. There are things that can’t be added.
There’s a lot going on in the financial world.
Get around people that are in the know about it.
Julie
We talked about there being some risk in doing this.
What are the risks?
Damion
Here’s the biggest thing that we’ve seen people get tripped up on. You can use the money on the deals that you’re involved in yourself. You can’t do that. All retirement accounts are meant to be passive.
Make sure you talk to people and have your team as part of you decision.
Julie
Maybe I can twist your arm on a Thursday from 11:30am PST to 12:30pm PST for our regular round table discussion.
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