And in the middle of all the traveling, speaking, business obligations, and deals I’ve been putting together, somewhere along the way I caught a really nasty bug. I lost my voice, and even had to miss an event, something I never do.

Man oh man did it knock me out, and that’s not the worst of it.

Here’s what happened…

The past few days, between work and a terrible cough I haven’t been able to sleep. So the other day I went to see my doctor and he told me to get some rest, and prescribed me this super-strong cough syrup.

Thinking I’m Superman I didn’t listen to the doctor’s advice and kept pushing through.

Well yesterday I had to catch an early morning flight to an event.  I rushed out the door and caught my ride at 4:30 AM to the airport. In my hurry, instead of taking the recommended tablespoon or two of the cough medicine I chugged a huge swig right out of the bottle.

Big mistake!

On the way to the airport I got so dizzy I had my driver turn back and changed my flight for later that day.

Attempt two… made it to the airport, got there… and PASSED OUT! I almost died right there and then on the ground at my gate. I was revived… and of course they wouldn’t let me on the plane. Well I guess I’m not superman after all.

But here’s the thing.

In that brief moment I realized a few things that I’d like to share with you.

1. Life is precious… if you don’t have your health what do you have? And the biggest deal I do doesn’t mean a thing if I can’t be around to enjoy the rewards.
2. I need to be more strategic with my time and my team. 20 hours days shouldn’t be the norm, especially when I have a talented team around me. When you delegate, plan ahead, and think strategically you can work less and make more… and take as many vacations as you want without coming back to the mess of work like I created for myself. (I already knew this but sometimes I need a jolt to remind myself these things.)
3. It’s important to relax and recharge. Even my European vacation wasn’t really a vacation – I was doing deals overseas. But taking day to relax and sharpen the axe goes a long way for health, clarity, and sanity.
4. Listen to the experts. My mentors have told me time and time again everything I just listed out above…sometimes I need to listen. (And I should have paid close attention to the good ole’ doc when he said relax and take the correct dose.)

Anyway I’m here to live another day and help you succeed. Live through my mistakes and all the lessons you learn from others. And together we all win.

Speaking of listening to the experts, this weekend I have business icon and Donald Trump’s right hand man, George Ross, on my radio show. If you’re in the listening area be sure to keep an ear out.

Also, George Ross and several other business leaders will be joining me for a very special event I’m hosting next month for world leading entrepreneurs, real estate investors, and business leaders. I’m sending out personal invitations tomorrow to a select few so you may want to keep an eye out on your email box.

So for now, I’m off to live another day.

I hope you make today and everyday your very best. (We only live once.)

Regards,

J.T. Foxx

Last weekend’s interview was amazing. My ratings for the show were the highest all weekend and Kevin O’Leary sure did not disappoint. Kevin is the guy on the hit ABC show Shark Tank. He is the Simon Cowell of the business world, direct to the point and no BS. He is worth 800 million dollars and sold his company to Matel for 3.2 billion!!!

If you want to listen to that one segment of Kevin O’Leary click here: http://www.jtfoxxshow.com/upload/20100502_Kevin_OLeary_US.mp3

For more information about my show and if you want to listen to some of my past shows go to www.jtfoxxshow.com.

Reach for the stars,

J.T. Foxx

P.S. Check a list of upcoming free events at www.FreeJtEvents.com

I love real estate, I love entrepreneurialism, and I love everything that comes with it. You know you were destined to do this journey when you have little butterflies running wild inside your belly every morning you wake up. My mentor once told me that passion is something you can’t put inside of you and you can’t take out of you. You either have it or not. I have gone from broke to where I am today on a lot of persistence and learning from my mistakes but one thing is for sure; the game of real estate has drastically changed since I first started 5 years.

I never understood why real estate investors are vilified as sharks, bottom feeders and people who prey on the misfortune of others. Instead we should be looked upon as people who

1. Improve neighborhoods and improve home values
2. Provide affordable housing
3. Provide green housing
4. Put American’s and Canadians to work by providing jobs
5. Help distressed owners when no one else can or would

Instead of seeing the good in investors, the nay-sayers count our money instead. That’s the reality, investors are hated because how much we make, as 90% of millionaires have become wealthy through real estate and the other 10% use real estate to secure it. I remember the first time I got sued, I had allegedly taken advantage of a distressed couple, apparently they didn’t know they were selling their home to me and they thought were getting a mortgage instead. Well I guess the 23 checks they wrote to me with the word rent would suggest otherwise, wouldn’t you think? Only after they stopped paying rent to me is when I became the bad guy. I ended winning in the end when a judge ruled in my favor but only after over $100K in legal fees it didn’t matter anymore. I have realized in the eyes of the law it’s not about who is right or wrong, it’s about who has more money to outlast the other party and when the other party is getting free legal services it’s hard to commit.

Yes, there are real estate scam artists out there and there are scam artists in every business but it doesn’t mean that all investors are bad. You don’t shut down the orchard when you have a few bad apples. What lawmakers don’t understand is that they are killing the real estate market with the draconian laws instead of making it flourish and getting the economy back on track.

So my advice to you is to, trust but verify. There is no greater business than real estate but you have to be careful because one minute you are the hero and the next you’re the bad guy when the homeowners fail to take responsibility and blames you instead. The dreamers are out of the business and now we are left with the real estate investors. Keep your head up because I know how hard it is to succeed and I can assure you I will always fight for our rights to invest freely because if we don’t fight they won’t be free for long. Once you do make it, there is no greater feeling in the world. There is a lot of room at the top; it’s the bottom that’s crowded.

Together the difference in your success

Reach for the stars

J.T. Foxx

There has been a lot of waiting and talking about whether or not the first-time home buyer tax credit would be extended, and it seems as though the wait is over.  A tentative deal was reached among the Senate negotiators agreeing to extend the it!  Although this time around, first-time home buyers may not be the only ones with the ability to cash in.  They are looking to add an additional new credit for those who have been in their current home for a consecutive 5 year period (within the past 8 years).  Although this tax credit is not quite the $8,000 many first timers are receiving, $6,500 sure looks better than $0!  This is a positive note, especially considering what we wrote about last week, people who tried to take advantage of the tax credit by less by less than honest measures.  We have been seeing signs of recovery in the housing market, could it be because of this tax credit?  If they extend the offer to current home owners, might we see an even bigger boost in the market?  If so, we can’t rely on tax credits forever, and this could all turn into one huge band-aid fix, and come time to pull it off, we might not be feeling so hot.  Nonetheless, it is nice to see some life being brought into the mainstream of this market.  Senate lawmakers are still arguing over how this new program will be brought to the senate floor.  And with the IRS currently examining the program for fraud, we will just have to wait for finalization.  But it’s looking really good for those of you hoping to take advantage of the first time, or what would be, current home buyer credit.  Don’t forget, those of you who are first-time home buyers still have until the end of this month to utilize the program, no matter what, so don’t wait!

Motorola Inc. and Verizon Wireless are aiming to give the iPhone a run for it’s money.  On Wednesday they introduced their newest venture, the Droid phone.  This device is the first to run Google Inc. software and promises to amaze.  It’s about time that Verizon put up a little competition.  The iPhone and AT&T  have been dominating the cellphone and provider markets leaving Verizon to suffer a loss of almost half their subscriber numbers.  The Droid does have many new features that the iPhone does not provide.  For example, It will have a slide-out keyboard and the ability to run multiple applications at once.  Will the partnership of Google and Verizon prove to be a worthy one?  It is a major partnership.  We will have to wait and see if The Droid can combat the iPhone when it hits stores November 6th.  Will you be going to check out or pick up the Droid?

I am so excited to be in Toronto this weekend train during my FREE no fluff all content event.  Now that the Bank of Canada has declared the recession as over, it’s your time to shine!  I will personally be there to invest in your future success, and all you have to invest is your time!  Some subject we will cover include:

•    Starting and growing a business in today’s post recession market.
•    How to evaluate Canadian and US real estate deals in less than 3 minutes.
•    How to brand yourself and your business.
•    Lean how to network like and with multi-millionaires.
•    Lean how I bought and sold and over 500 properties without using any of my own money.
•    Learn how to use social networking (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Myspace and Google) to get more deals, exposure and larger profits.
•    Learn also how Apple computer became one of the best businesses in the world and see how you can apply it to your business and life.
•    Learn how to find real estate partners to fund your deals and how private money does not work.

You REALLY do not want to miss out on this opportunity!  The event falls on
Halloween, but don’t worry, we will have some treats for you!  Just for attending you will
get free gifts and if you bring guests, you are in for an even bigger treat.  Anyone who
brings more than two guests will have a sit down meal WITH ME at the event.  Anyone
who brings more than 5 guests will automatically be eligible to be a part of my new
Canadian Mastermind group.  Membership is valued at $15,000, but in reality, it is
priceless when it comes to you and your success.  SO DON’T MISS OUT!!  Make sure
to register right now.  I guarantee you a great time and information crucial to your success!
Can’t get any better than that, right?

REGISTER HERE

Commercial real estate in the United States is just not what it used to be.  Obviously, it has been greatly affected by the economy and foreign investors are making some smart business moves and taking advantage of this.  History repeats itself, and this happened almost 30 years ago when U.S. commercial real estate was beginning to get back on it’s feet.  While foreign investment in U.S. property is not ideal in the eyes of many Americans, it may help the struggling economy.   Not many of us are investing in commercial real estate today which is resulting in bargains for these investors.  Foreign investments are projected to reach up to $5 billion by the end of this year.  While this may be nothing compared to the 2007 property boom, it is certainly still a huge number that can help put commercial real estate back on the map.   It’s all about making deals, and making them consistently!

Click here to read a great article on the subject

Fast food giant McDonald’s seems to be one of the few big guys not feeling the economic crunch.  In fact, McDonald’s seems to actually be doing better.  It seems pretty obvious that quick and cheap food would prevail in an economy where people have less time and even less money.  But this generalization cannot be applied everywhere.  Iceland, which is home to three franchises, is closing down all McDonald’s locations next weekend.  The collapse of the Icelandic Krona has caused the restaurant’s profits to plummet showing that the chain is not invincible throughout the world.  Franchise owners were having a very difficult time keeping the food accessible because of high import tariffs on imported goods.  The price of a Big Mac was already pretty pricey at 650 krona, which is about $5.30.  But now, in order to create any sort of profit, the price would have to be raised at least 20% resulting in a 780 krona ($6.36) Big Mac.  Currently, the most expensive version of the sandwich is in Norway where it costs $5.75.  This really shows that no business is globally indestructible, because if any were, it would be McDonald’s.  The same structure simply cannot work in every country.  Iceland is really facing difficult times, after the credit crisis tore apart their banking system, resulting in a severely damaged economy.  Unlike Americans, icelanders will not be able to bury their economic woes in the dollar menu.

The first-time homebuyer tax credit has literally opened many doors for people across America during this tough economic time.  It is clearly a great opportunity that not everyone can take advantage of, but there are some people who are not first-time homebuyers that are trying anyway.  The applications for the credit are a little too trustworthy for this day and time.  For example, there is no minimum age requirement for the applicants.  This has resulted in “applicants” as young as 4 years old.  In fact, there have been over 500 applicants under the age of 18.  And that’s just the beginning!  Treasury oversight officials say they have found 74,000 claims where they now have evidence of previous ownership, these credits were valued at $500 million.  They even reported at least 19,000 filers, which clocks in at $139 million, that hadn’t even bought a home!  Something is seriously wrong here.  As sad as it might be, the reality is, we need stricter rules when dealing with our government’s money.  Hundreds of thousands of citizens should not be able to even find a way to fraudulently take advantage the stimulus plan.  It is really too bad that it has come to this because the tax credit is not a bad idea.  You have to wonder if this new information will hurt the chances of the tax credit being extended.  As of right now, it ends on November 30, but there has been heavy talk about an extension.  I expect there will be a complete overhaul of the application process, if there is an extension.

Check out this article to find out more

That is if you hold an oil partner co-branded MasterCard.  Several of these card holders are suddenly finding their cards to be unexpectedly declined.  An undisclosed amount of cards, issued by Citibank, have been closed.  The bank issued a statement simply saying that they “decided to close a limited number of oil partner co-branded MasterCard accounts.”  They are still accepting applications for cards, promising rewards, so they have not completely shut down the idea of the cards; unlike the move they made with Home Depot.  Citibank shut down the chosen cards on Wednesday, but did not send out letters until Monday, leaving many card users confused and stranded.  Unfortunately, there is no law that prevents banks from closing down credit accounts unannounced, and card holders can do nothing about this because closing at their discretion is stated in the fine print on the agreements.  It is no secret that Citi is having problems in this economy, these card closures are a reflection of that.  This is an unfortunate situation for the bank and card holders, and unfortunately these people will now have a closed credit card on their credit report.

So I’m sure by now almost everyone has heard about the “balloon boy” story. If not, last week a homemade balloon was “accidentally” released into the sky.  Sounds pretty innocent right?  Well the twist was that the family’s 6 year-old son was believed to have snuck inside before it was released. All of the major media outlets fixated their cameras on the skies over Fort Collins, Colorado.  This went on for quite some time with the balloon reaching up thousands of feet, and everyone’s heart sinking just thinking about such a young boy up there all by himself.  Once the balloon finally came down, there was no boy inside.  People speculated that he had fallen out, so a huge search was under way.  To make an even longer story short, they found the boy was hiding in the attic of their family home.  Accusations started accumulating towards the family on whether or not this was actually real.  The family appeared on the reality show “Wife Swap” a while back, and it was revealed that the father has been wanting his own reality show for quite some time.  So it became obvious that this family was media hungry.  The suspicions kept growing, and just yesterday it was admitted that the whole thing was a HOAX.  It was recently discovered that the father of the boy, Richard Heene, has been planning this media stunt for weeks. It was all an effort to create national awareness of the Heene family in hopes that their pitched reality T.V. show would be picked up.  Right now, it does not seem as though a reality show will be in their near future. Instead, this family is now faces multiple charges.  This story is so bizarre, and to think that even Denver International Airport was temporarily shut down while the balloon was up in the air, you can only imagine what other damage this caused the city and major media outlets.  I can’t stress enough, please be wise and honorable with your business plan.

Read more on this story HERE

This week J.T. will be hosting an amazing 2 hour workshop FOR FREE!  Are you a real estate investor, entrepreneur, network marketer, or maybe even an executive?Have you been wondering how people find money and partners in today’s rough economic times?  Banks are not lending so, many people write it off and believe that finding these things is impossible in this market, but they are wrong!  You can make these economic times the most profitable time for you!  J.T. Foxx has created a 2 hour workshop specifically geared toward making this happen for you.  It will help you fill in that missing link you have been searching for in your business.

Some things J.T. will cover:
1) Where do you find money partners in real estate or business
2) How to network like and with multi-millionaires
3) How to brand you or your company to get noticed more
4) How to develop a powerful 29 second presentation to get people to invest and believe in whatever you are trying to do.
5) How to persuade and influence people and have them chase you instead of the other way around
6) Learn to make a super great first impression no matter who you meet.
7) Learn what kind of business can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars in potential business. 
8) Learn on how to dominate the mind Google.
This is a RARE opportunity that you CANNOT miss out on!  Take control of your business life, don’t let these economic times take control of you.

Don’t wait, register TODAY.  The event will be held in Oakbrook on Wednesday October 21st from 12:30 p.m.- 2:30 p.m.  Can’t make it during those hours?  We will also be holding the workshop from 7 p.m.- 9 pm.  No excuses!  Let’s make this happen for you!
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Read more HERE

Popular fast food chain Burger King will soon be getting a fresh new make-over.  Burger King Corp. says that they are done with the generic fast-food look and plan to turn to a more friendly and inviting environment, with the hopes that diners will chose to sit down rather than drive through.  The look in itself will be much more ‘futuristic” and modern.  Renovations are already under way in Miami, and every franchise owner is obligated under contract to eventually change their restaurant’s design to this new format.  The renovations will set franchisees back between $300K-600K.  But don’t get too excited, Burger King Corp. expects it to take years before every store is changed, so your local Burger King may not be one of the lucky ones!  At least not very soon.  The Restaurants that have already been remodeled have proven themselves with sales climbing up to 15%.  Restaurants that were closed down and completely rebuilt say an even higher rise in sales at up to 30%!  It will be interesting to see how this plays out with consumers across the nation.  Burger King is such a familiar brand to so many Americans, it seems as though customers in other areas, except maybe,  Miami could potentially be intimidated by the change.  Prices will most likely go up with the atmosphere and with their goal being a comparison to restaurants like Panera and Chipotle, well, that’s a little bit of a different crowd.  It’s definitely new and exciting, and so far, looks like a great business plan for the corporation.  We will have to wait to see how it appeals to the public, or if McDonald’s will continue to reign supreme in the world of fast food.

With the loonie up, the dollar down, and Canada recovering from their recession, Canadian retailers are getting nervous.  The Canadian economy is in recovery mode right now, they have to be very careful because the economy is very fragile while it’s being built back up.  The quickly accelerating rate of the loonie is not necessarily the best thing for their economy right now, and is actually posing a serious risk.  With about one third of the country’s economy being in exports, there is no competition as the loonie rises.  Retailers have been looking forward to the holiday season in hopes that shoppers would help them back on their feet.  But with the rising value of the loonie and with Canadians still being extremely careful with their money, many fear that shoppers will go south to do their damage.  Canadians are more careful with their money than ever, bargain stores like Wal-Mart and Zellers are the ones thriving right now.  With all of the U.S.’ retail blowout sales, Canadian retailers may be forced to lower their prices even though they really can’t afford it.  They are, sort of, in a lose lose situation.  They can lower their prices in order to keep shoppers and have a short term  solution, but it will not help them at all in the long run.  Or they can keep their prices as they are, and risk losing customers.

It was recently reported that apartment vacancies have hit their highest point in 23 years.  The rate has soared to 7.8%, and it is expected to keep climbing during the fall and winter.  This is causing apartment buildings to lower their rent, and even become more lenient in order to keep their tenants.  Many landlords are even becoming more involved in the upkeep of each individual property going as far as cleaning and painting the apartments before tenants move in.  The renters seem to be gaining the power.  This is all a reflection of our current employment market.  With the majority of apartment renters being in their 20s and early 30s, when something goes financially wrong, they are more likely to have the ability to stay with family or friends, which is not good for apartment leases.  Most likely, when job losses stop, leasing will begin to rise again.  While apartment vacancies rise, the recent $8,000 tax credit offered to first-time homebuyers has helped to show signs of stabilization in the housing sales market.  It seems as though all good news comes with bad news these days, but soon enough, if we all hang in there, everything will balance out.  Stabilization is in the future.

If you want to learn how to THRIVE in this, or any, market, click HERE.  Make sure to register for a FREE event near you!

Recent drug wars have made Mexico an unsafe place to visit in the eyes of many tourists.  For Californian’s, weekend trips to Mexico have turned into weekend trips to Vegas.  The violence going on is undeniable, but Mexico is determined to keep and/or bring back the tourists.  They will do whatever it takes because the country realizes that their $13 billion travel industry is crucial to their economy, in fact, Americans alone make up 80% of that figure.  The major focus is Mexico’s “Baja California”.   This region includes Tijuana, Rosarito, and Ensenada, which are easy driving distances from the States.  Some plans to create a more comfortable environment for tourists include training a new task force, bilingual officers, and an extreme increase in police presence.  Mexico will be making a huge step in the right direction if they pull this off.  They know that they can really capitalize on tourism, and that is where they need to focus their energy.  It brings an influx of money to the country, creating stability, and hope for economic recovery.

Click Here to read an article on the topic.

Love to hear news about successful Canadians, and this particular piece of news is huge.  Willard Boyle, along with two other men, has earned himself the 2009 Nobel Prize in physics!  Boyle, a born and raised Canadian, is the man behind the CCD (charge-coupled device).  Not familiar?  You might be surprised.  The CCD is what transforms light into a larger number of digitized image points, or pixels, in a split second.  The CCD makes digital photography possible.  Today, CCD is used in almost all digital cameras and camcorders.  It is even used in the Hubble Space Telescope.  What this man created has been incredibly influential to our generation around the world.  Remember the days where everyone had to use film?  Now it is so simple to deal with photography.  You can take a photo and have it uploaded onto your computer ready to send to the world in minutes.  The days of using film cameras made this process much more difficult, with the added component of a scanner if you wanted the picture on your computer.  So, when you whip out your digital camera today, know that we ultimately have a Canadian to thank for it!

Way to represent Canada Willard Boyle!  Click here to read more

This December, American fast food giant McDonald’s plans to move within walking distance of France’s famous Louvre museum.  Something here seems a bit off, mixing iconic art with fast food.  Sure, McDonald’s might be iconic in it’s own right, but there is a huge difference.  McDonald’s is probably one of the world’s most accessible products, while the Louvre is a place that many people can only dream of going.  It seems as though putting the fast food chain next door would lessen the museum’s uniqueness because it’s surroundings would now be more familiar to it’s visitors.  Many are arguing that the pairing would serve interest of both because the Louvre is the world’s most visited museum and France is McDonald’s top market outside of the US.  Furthermore, another renowned venue, the Champs-Elysees Avenue inhabits a McDonald’s and it is the most profitable in the world.  It’s always about the business and McDonald’s knows that better than almost anyone.  If the area is famously popular, stick a Mcdonald’s there, and people will come.  There are always opposing views, and this subject is certainly no exception.  So many are opposing this new arrival, even louvrerepoutous.fr, a website that provides visitors information.  They went on to post, “Rendezvous in December for a Mona Lisa Extra Value Menu”.  The fast food chain would specifically reside at the Carrousel du Louvre, which is attached to the museum.  There has been no official opening date released, but it certainly will mark the end of an era.  Do you think that this is right, or does it even matter?

Check out more info on the move in HERE

Unfortunately it is undeniable.  A recent Federal Reserve report on home mortgage data showed that blacks and Hispanic whites are increasingly more likely than non-Hispanic whites to be denied when applying to refinance.  In fact, one in three borrowers who applied for a mortgage last year were denied.  Lenders are keeping their standards incredibly tight because of the accelerating mortgage crisis.  The denial rate for overall home loans was around 30% last year, which is a rise from previous years.  But what does this rise actually mean for Black and Hispanic citizens?  The rate is now twice as high as the rate for white borrowers.  The report is a collection of more than 8,000 mortgage lenders around the nation under the HMDA.  Most people have their opinions for why this happens the way it does.  Of course the officials in the mortgage industry are saying that lenders are not discriminated by race but by the individuals track record.  This may or may not be true, but this study would definitely challenge the statement.  What do you think?

You have to check out some video of the event!