A Family That Invests Together

Just when I was about to give up on the idea of a successful and healthy relationship involving family and money I found Meghna and Malhar Bhagat, a sister and brother team and founders of M2REST. M2 stands for Meghna and Malhar Real Estate Solutions Team. Located on opposite coasts, Meghna in Oregon and Malhar in New Jersey, this dynamic duo are full time real estate investors in several states. I was curious as to the dynamics of their relationship and how they make it work. I recently spoke with Meghna and Malhar for a heart to heart and discovered what makes them so successful. At the end of the day, it’s all about communication and respect.

Golda: Prior to real estate investing, what was your occupation?

Meghna: I had several part time jobs. I taught for the Princeton review as well as the Institute for Reading Development.

Malhar: Prior to real estate investing, I worked with my father in his jewelry shop.

Golda: Why did you decide to form this partnership?

Meghna: The most important thing, to me, is my relationship with family. I was hesitant about forming a partnership with my brother because I didn’t want money to damage our relationship. However, after some contemplation and some persuasion from Malhar, I decided to go for it. I realized that the things I want to accomplish require money and real estate is a way for us to accomplish those goals. One of our top goals is to retire our parents and allow them to live the lives that they would like to live. We want to see each other succeed and no matter what happens, we will be able to build income and wealth through real estate.

Malhar: The jewelry business was very stressful. I had been interested in real estate for a few years and seriously began exploring it as a business about a year and a half ago. I attended a Robert Allen seminar and made the decision to enroll in his Mastery program. My sister and I have similar goals so it was a natural fit. It has also allowed us to get closer than we have ever been.

Golda: What is it about real estate that excites you?

Meghna: Everything. There are two things that come to mind. First, every time we make money every one makes money…. the Realtor, the contractor, our lender investors, and all others involved in the project. The second is that this is a business that can happen anytime, and in any market. There’s always money to be made in real estate. It’s a fantastic people business and an opportunity to create a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Malhar: I think Meghna and I are thinking one word…Everything! (laughing). There’s so much opportunity. What real estate is enabling us to do is replace our income. Even people who don’t know anything about real estate understand that it’s a great opportunity, especially in this market. There are a lot of great deals available.

Golda: How do you separate the personal and business lives?

Meghna: It’s funny because we don’t have much personal time these days. When I am feeling anxious or stressed I can call and talk with Malhar and we don’t always talk about real estate. It really is seamless, it doesn’t feel like there needs to be a giant separation. I do carve out time to spend with friends. The reason our relationship works is because it’s personal. I love and respect my brother very much.

Malhar: We’ve become a lot closer since working together. I have no problem speaking my mind and though we don’t always agree, that’s all right because I feel very comfortable speaking with her. I also have a very active social life.

Golda: Could you explain how you are improving the communities where you invest?

Malhar: We recently placed a property under in Kansas City. It was located in a lower middle class urban neighborhood. We discovered that a prostitution ring was being run out of the home. The neighbors thanked us when they discovered we had purchased the property and were going to rehab the home. We were moving an undesirable element out of the neighborhood and (more importantly) bringing in a nice family in addition to potentially increasing the property values. We have been investing in areas populated with foreclosures. We go into these areas and clean them up. We give families a place to call home and raise their families at an affordable price.

Golda: You currently do business in Kansas City, Atlanta, Charlotte, and Indianapolis. What are your plans for expansion?

Meghna: This year the focus will be on strengthening our teams. We want to make sure we are all on the same page and we would like our teammates to feel ownership in what we are doing. For the time being we anticipate going into more markets if we need to.

Malhar: I see commercial properties following the same fate of residential real estate, so we are beginning to look at multi-units. With the current recession many small businesses are not going to be able to keep their doors open, thereby creating more opportunities for smart investors. What our business is enabling us to do is replace our income and increase our cash flow to a couple thousands of dollars per month.

Golda: Where do you see M2REST in 5 years?

Meghna: In the time that we have been working together, we have developed many systems. We have been discussing the idea of a franchise system. That way we don’t have to keep doing it all, it would be a true win-win situation. One key to success in this business is being flexible. I love the challenge of a new deal, and the new ways of pursing real estate. I want to stay on the cutting edge of what is possible in real estate while maintain a fair and profitable situation for everyone involved.

Malhar: I see the business continuing to grow. We want to leave a legacy of doing quality work with a personal touch. We also want to continue to help our investors achieve their goals and create passive income. In addition, we’d like to help build better communities and neighborhoods.

Golda: What have you learned about yourselves as a result of working so closely together?

Meghna: I’m always a big sister at heart. I still feel like I want to look out for him and make sure he’s taken care of. I am very grateful and aware of how much my parents and brother mean to me. I love my brother for his willingness to invite me to partner with him. My brother had his back against the wall and took a leap of faith into the unknown. When Malhar gets hold of something, he doesn’t let go. He wrote 150 offers before he got his first deal. I learned that sometimes you just have to go into the unknown. One of my mentors said “persistence + failure= success.”

Malhar: With Meghna’s help, I have learned to slow down and not sweat the small stuff. When I focus on the trivial things I can’t think rationally and Meghna helps me to evaluate all the options. Patience is something that I have been able to work on, both in business and life in general. I don’t need to stress out. Life happens and you just need to take a look at it and see why what is happening is happening. I also learned not to let anyone tell discourage you with their limited thinking.

You may contact Meghna or Malhar at www.M2REST.com.

By Golda Smith