New to KREIA? Here's Your Guide to Who We Are and What We Do

• What are the benefits of joining KREIA?
• What's the deal with monthly meetings?
• Joining KREIA: Membership levels and fees
• Contacting KREIA: The best ways to get hold of leadership
• Who are the members of KREIA?
• Want to volunteer with KREIA?

If you've been dreaming about reaching financial freedom, turn your dreams into reality and take action. Join KREIA — the Kentuckiana Real Estate Investors Association — and find out how you can make quick piles of cash by wholesaling or flipping houses — and how to build lifelong cashflow and financial freedom by becoming a landlord and owning rental property. Right here in Louisville, Kentucky, Southern Indiana and surrounding counties.

Real estate is the path by which most folks achieve wealth, and KREIA is full of local real estate investors who are working at different stages on the path. Some are taking baby steps toward their first deal. Others have tucked hundreds of rentals in their portfolio. Are you just looking to be financially free? It doesn't take many rental houses to enable you to quit your job and maintain your current lifestyle — probably less than you think. There are some shortcuts — and thorns — along the way, and we can help you on your journey.

Our goal is to help ordinary guys and gals get ahead — because that's who we are and what we're doing too. We like to meet, we like to eat, and we love to talk about real estate. If that is something you like, come to KREIA! Everyone is welcome.

KREIA's Benefits

KREIA is a networking and real estate investing club that helps investors at every level by offering:

• Monthly meetings. This is the main event, headlined by one or more experts who spend about two hours speaking to members, educating and updating them on a specific aspect of investing. Questions from the audience are encouraged! A buffet meal is provided. There is also an "early meeting," during the half-hour or so before the buffet line opens, where we invite another expert to hold a quick seminar that's often related to the main meeting topic.
• The L.O.T.S. Program, where we Learn On The Site. L.O.T.S. is like a cross between an open house and a house-flipping mini-workshop. On the Tuesday following the main meeting, one of our active investors will host us at his or her current rehab/flip project and talk about how the deal was acquired, describe what all went into the rehab, offer a breakdown of expenses, and share how much profit is expected. You get to tour the house and inspect everything: It's like going behind the scenes of your favorite house-flipping TV show. L.O.T.S. events are for active members only, and a free lunch is provided courtesy of KREIA Platinum Sponsor Believe Investment Group.
• Workshops. Sometimes we follow up Thursday's main meeting with a day-long workshop on Saturday. This allows presenters to dig deep into the investing topic they're teaching about, and it gives attendees a chance to get more of their questions answered. The wholesaling, landlording and rehabbing workshops we hold usually fill up fast.
• Discounts and cost-saving opportunities. KREIA is part of a national group of real estate associations that has negotiated discounts with companies such as HomeDepot, Avis, Constant Contact, OfficeDepot and more. The savings you can get by being a KREIA member could pay for your membership many times over. Check out our affiliate partners. And being a member of course gives you a discount from what nonmembers pay to attend monthly meetings. And you also get a discount on Saturday workshops!
• Newsletters. Once a month you'll be mailed a newsletter containing educational articles, a preview of upcoming events, and advertisements from companies that offer products and services especially for real estate investors. Ask about KREIA discounts, because many of our advertisers offer them! You can gain access to back issues of our newsletters — going back to 2012 — on our members-only Newsletter & Archives page.
• Member Directory. Get contact info for other KREIA members in our printed directory and resource guide. (The most recent publication is 2022/2023.) Resources include government websites investors need to know about — plus recommendations on informational websites, books to read, and podcasts to listen to. There's also an opt-in Yellow Pages where members can advertise businesses and side gigs that offer services to other investors. If you're a new member looking to pick up your copy, ask at the check-in desk on main meeting night.
• Private Facebook group. Got a question you need answered right now and can't wait until the next meeting? Ask it in our members-only Facebook group. Folks in KREIA are very responsive — often you'll find several answers to your question within minutes of you posting it. Many members use the Facebook group to get recommendations on plumbers, electricians, drafting services, etc. Some use it to post their wholesale deals. If you're an active KREIA member who's not taking part in the Facebook group, you're missing out! (To join, active KREIA members who are already on Facebook can go here and click the Join button. Your active membership status must be verified before you're given access.)
• Video Replays. On our members-only Videos page, you'll find recordings from our main meetings, L.O.T.S., Lunch & Learn and Tool Tip Tuesday events. It's an education waiting for you! You can only binge-watch so much Netflix — why not binge-watch video that'll propel you toward financial freedom?
• Networking opportunities. Every time two or more investors meet, there's a discussion of who has which properties for sale and who is looking for more houses. Contractor recommendations are exchanged. Many successful folks at KREIA found and sold their first deals by networking with other investors here in the group. Many have formed lifelong friendships here. If you are a brand new real estate investor and are approached to partner on a deal, we recommend you seek guidance from longtime members or board members.
• Personal web page at kreia.com. If you set up your free web presence on kreia.com, you can post classified ads and advertise your properties for sale -- and your deals get picked up and included in regular emails that are sent to our members.
• More monthly events! KREIA endorses these regular events for active members to meet up, share a meal, socialize, network and learn from each other:
       » KREIA WIRE (Women Investing in Real Estate)
       » KREIA Happy Hour — nonmembers and guests are invited too
       » L.O.T.S. (Learning On The Site)
       » Lunch & Learn
       » Tool Tip Tuesday with Tamara West (online via Zoom)
       » KREIA CASHFLOW Game Night — nonmembers and guests are invited too

KREIA's Monthly Main Meetings

KREIA's main meetings are held on the fourth Thursday of the month, January to October, at Woodhaven Country Club off Watterson Trail: 7200 Woodhaven Rd, Louisville, KY 40291 (view map). It's about half a mile from the Bardstown Road-Watterson Trail intersection.

Here is a timetable for what you can expect at main meetings:

5 p.m. — Doors open
5:30 p.m. — The Early Meeting beings in the small meeting room
6 p.m. — New Member Orientation begins in the small meeting room
6 p.m. - 6:15 p.m. — The buffet line opens
6:20 p.m. — There is a call to the microphone for members with properties to sell and advertisers with businesses to pitch
7 p.m. — The main presentation begins

Because the buffet line winds through the vendor area, you'll have chances to talk with some advertisers — who sell goods and services geared especially to real estate investors — as you're moving forward to fill up your plate.

Be sure to introduce yourself to your table-mates — you can make valuable contacts over dinner and at the bar.

The topics we've addressed at main meetings before (and plan to again) include: landlording and property management; house flipping/rehabbing; wholesaling; marketing (finding leads); creative financing; lease options; how to get deals funded (traditional bank loans, hard money, private money); investing tax-free using retirement accounts (IRAs, 401(k)s, HSAs and CESAs); foreclosures, auctions and REOs; insurance; contract law; note buying and selling; best hiring practices with contractors; Fair Housing rules; dealing with government agencies (HUD, Section 8, code enforcement); negotiation techniques; short-term rentals (Airbnb); mid-term rentals (traveling nurses, executives, etc.); and 1031 exchanges.

Some months we bring in national speakers to headline our main meetings. Other months we call successful local investors to the stage and get the hometown view.

No matter who is speaking, you'll want to stick around after the official presentation is over, because much of the serious deal-making happens at the bar after the meeting. This is a good time to pass out more business cards, ask for advice, and let people know what type of investment you're looking for. Folks have been known to network at the bar until 9:30 p.m.  — Woodhaven's staff is very patient with us — and then often head out to "afterparty" events.

And be sure to check out the "Deal Table," located at the back of the room. This is where members who have properties to sell leave their property information sheets, stacks of flyers and business cards. You might find a deal that fits your criteria there.

We do charge a fee to attend our monthly main meetings, because we have overhead to cover. All of our other regular monthly events are free for members to attend, however. (We do have to charge for online and in-person workshops, though.)

Membership Levels and Fees

Want to join KREIA? Use that big JOIN link at the top of the page! Or click or tap here.

KREIA's annual membership fee is $125 per person.

If you have a business or side gig that benefits investors and would like to join as an advertiser (or upgrade for a prorated amount), we offer tiered vendor membership levels starting at $199. As an advertiser, you get all the privileges of individual membership, plus:

• Your ad published in every issue of our newsletter (and we can help you build an ad if you don't have one already)
• An invitation to the microphone to pitch your business at the main meetings before the featured presentation starts.
• Your ad included in our early meeting slideshow loop
• Your ad included in our Advertisers web page

To join as an advertiser and read about all the benefits you'll enjoy, click or tap here. If investors are your customers, we think we're the best ad buy in town.

There is a $20 admission fee, or door fee, per member at the main meetings: this pays for our networking event and toward our use of Woodhaven's meeting hall and the staff they employ. A buffet meal is provided as a bonus, and the admission fee is required even if you do not plan to eat with us. Guests are welcome to attend our main meetings to try us out a few times and see if we're a fit before joining. The admission fee for guests and all non-members is $30 per person. For advertisers who are members at the half-page level (starting at $499/year), the door fee is waived.

How to Contact KREIA Leadership

Want to contact us? The best way is by sending email to support@kreia.com. Got a problem with the website or your account? If you cannot log in, are not getting your KREIA email notices or are having a technical difficulty, please also send email to support@kreia.com.

Are you on Facebook? You can also send us a message from our public page on Facebook.

Snail mail can be directed to P.O. Box 91225, Louisville, KY 40291.

Who Are KREIA Members?

We are made up of full-time investors and also people who invest part-time while keeping their day jobs. There are quiet millionaires in our midst and also people who live paycheck-to-paycheck, looking to real estate to climb out of the rat race.

In our group you'll find mechanics, handymen, accountants, contractors, attorneys, real estate agents, property managers, engineers, doctors, nurses, students, teachers, government employees, police officers, fire fighters, social media consultants, writers, photographers, stained-glass craftsmen, active military officers, veterans, bus drivers, housewives, salespeople, fast-food workers, landscapers, corporate managers, waiters, business owners, and comic book illustrators. There are more than 800 of us, and we range in age from young 20-somethings to octogenarians.

KREIA has been bringing Louisville investors together since 1978, and we are fortunate to have Rue McFarland, one of KREIA's co-founders, active in the group. Rue sits on KREIA's board, and "government affairs" is his beat. Want to know what the local and state governments are cooking up that could affect your real-estate business? Rue can tell you.

We are also lucky to have two nationally known real-estate speakers and coaches in our group as active members: Mike Butler and Sharon Vornholt.

Mike Butler, a KREIA Past President, wrote the best-selling book Landlording on Autopilot — just recently out in its second edition, where it hit #1 in its category on Amazon.com. And he offers free education via "Power Lunch" webinars. You can sign up to attend these weekly classes by visiting MikeButler.com. He also speaks to investors in his 5 Hour Real Estate Week podcast.

Sharon Vornholt, who specializes in probate leads and is a noted expert on marketing, branding and wholesaling, writes about all things real estate at her website, The Louisville Gals Real Estate Blog. Sharon also interviews other prominent investors on her podcast — and she is a frequent guest on other Internet radio shows. If you want a crash course in marketing to motivated sellers, you'll find one by reading through her site.

Want to Volunteer with KREIA?

KREIA is a nonprofit organization that's run completely by volunteers. Want to help? We'd love some more help! Please inquire at the door on main meeting night or send email to support@kreia.com