Can your mistakes make you a millionaire? If you’re like Craig Curelop and learn from what went wrong, then yes! Craig is now financially free, with millions of dollars in equity, thousands in monthly cash flow, and a thriving business. But, back when he was starting, he made a few mistakes that cost him a sizable amount of money, took years of time away, and put serious stress on his shoulders while trying to grow his real estate portfolio. Thankfully, you can take his lessons to heart, so YOU don’t have to make them yourself. Today, we’re talking about one of Craig’s real estate deals that went wrong. What was supposed to be a profitable out-of-state BRRRR (buy rehab rent refinance repeat) investment quickly turned into contractor scams, danger, theft, and even…love. Yes, love is part of it, too. Craig lost a significant sum on this deal, but if you follow his advice, you don’t have to repeat the same mistakes. Even though this was a property from hell, Craig still kept investing, eventually reaching financial freedom and living his dream life. Something WILL go wrong when you start investing in real estate—just make sure it wasn’t what Craig went through. In This Episode We Cover: Real estate investing mistakes that lost Craig money on his first out-of-state investment  Interviewing agents and why it isn’t enough to work with someone based on a good feeling The easy way to avoid a contractor taking your money WITHOUT doing work Why a cheap deal doesn’t mean it’s a good deal (be really careful) Cutting your losses early and when you should give up on a project that’s going south Why you MUST check references on everyone you work with on a real estate deal And So Much More! Links from the Show Join BiggerPockets for FREE Let Us Know What You Thought of the Show! Grab Craig’s Book, “The House Hacking Strategy” Find an Investor-Friendly Agent in Your Area See Dave at BPCON2024 in Cancun!  Contractor Nightmares: 5 Red Flags to Watch For and How to Escape a Bad Hire Connect with Craig Connect with Dave (00:00) Intro (02:04) House Hacking 8 Times! (05:28) One Really Bad BRRRR (14:41) Worst Contractor Ever? (25:59) Finally Selling It (27:54) The Good Ending (30:10) Failing Fast (34:45) Should I Fire My Property Manager? Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/real-estate-1019 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email advertise@biggerpockets.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices