One of the previous stars of A&E's hit show "Flip This House" and former football pro Than Merrill is one of the the most popular additions to the growing list of real estate investing gurus with his Fortune Builders course. From flipping footballs to flipping houses - neat! But can he really teach a person to become a successful real estate investor, or is it just another scam? Read on, then decide for yourself (though we will add our opinion).
scam Slang n. "A deception practiced in order to secure unfair or unlawful gain. Any act, expression, omission, or concealment that deceives another to his or her disadvantage"
That is an accurate definition of a scam. The question is: does it apply to Than Merrill or FortuneBuilders? Than's program is among the most expensive. Here are a few facts, and how he stacks up against the least expensive that is both effective and low cost so you can compare "apples to apples". Take a close look...
THE SHORT TAKE
Frankly, this review is not really about Than Merrill - we believe he is an honest, upright man who has "franchised out" his FortuneBuilders real estate course. When we mention Than Merrill, we are actually referencing FortuneBuilders. And it is the crews that run what some call the Fortune Builders scam - that's where we have serious issues. This FortuneBuilders review will hopefully allow you to determine for yourself if it truly is a scam, or just unhappy customers complaining.
Than Merrill's FortuneBuilders gets your attention by offering a "free" seminar. If you make the mistake of believing you can become an expert by attending one of Than Merrill's weekend seminars, or even his second step (boot camp) costing up to $1500 you will be disappointed. To get a comprehensive education in real estate investment. Than's FortuneBuilders Mastery program is what you will need to sign up for. But that will cost you - big time! Upwards of $35,000. Compare that to the lowest cost program, "The Simple Man's Guide to Real Estate" which includes unlimited mentoring by actual investors at a total cost of under $150 and teaches all 24 legitimate methods of real estate investing, providing virtually unlimited opportunities for profit. (FYI: the cost is so low because they operate as a not-for profit and the mentors are professional investors who volunteer their services).
Of the 24 tried and true legitimate methods of real estate investing, Than Merrill and his FortuneBuilders primarily teach only a couple - rehabbing and flipping foreclosures, which has very limited applications, and also requires availability of cash and good credit - two things that most people looking for financial security do not have. Having only one or two methods of investing is not a good plan - markets and economies change. A method that works well in one market type may be a complete bust when the market changes. Compare that to "The Simple Man's Guide to Real Estate", which teaches all 24 methods, in clear detail, 8 of which do not require cash or credit from the student/investor. No matter what the current economic conditions, there are strategies that will make you money. A successful investor starts with a well stocked toolbox which simply is not what FortuneBuilders provides.
Like most "gurus" Than Merrill uses high-pressure sales gimmicks like infomercials and seminars and pay-per-click Google Ads to hawk his program. The fact they have to keep doing infomercials would indicate that his program is not effective enough to create substantial word-of-mouth recommendations and the bulk of his students are not successful enough to result in enough referrals. The comparison program, in this case "The Simple Man's Guide to Real Estate" does not use, or need, such gimmicks. Most of their students come from word-of-mouth referrals by current students.
As a side note, Than's FortuneBuilders ran afoul of the Better business Bureau until he agreed to clean up the misleading hype to reflect something more in tune with reality.
COACHING
Like most real estate gurus, Than Merrill and his FortuneBuilders offer coaching if you join the FortuneBuilders Mastery program at upwards of $35,000. The exorbitant cost of his program can be directly attributed to the cost of the mentors, the costs associated with running infomercials and radio ads, and hosting the "free" seminars. In comparison, "The Simple Man's Guide to Real Estate" has none of those costs - their qualified mentors are volunteers, and they don't run infomercials, advertise on radio or host seminars designed to upsell - they start right out with the training, not with salesmen trying to upsell you to the next level. And because their mentors - professional investors - are volunteers, the mentoring is free, keeping the entire cost to under $100. (find out why their mentoring is free)
As of this writing, the real issue - and it's a big issue - we have with Than Merrill and FortuneBuilders is the "medicine show" seminar structure designed to upsell the audience to much more expensive add-ons, and the exhorbitant cost that is so typical of most gurus. As so aptly stated by FORBES magazine, seminars are for selling, not teaching. Than Merrill and his Fortune Builders entices folks with a "free" seminar, and then will slap them for $1500 for the "follow up" seminar, and upwards of $35,000 or more for the full program. No training in real estate investing is worthy of the prices most of these gurus charge - thousands, and tens of thousands of dollars. Real estate investing is not rocket science - average folks have been doing it successfully for centuries. It does not require a college level education, so it should not cost as if it were. When gurus such as Than Merrill or Armando Montelongo charge anywhere from $5000-$60,000, they are billing their students for the humongous costs incurred for traveling the country, promoting and hosting expensive seminars, and paying for their infomercials and pay-per-click ads. Frankly, if a person has upwards of $35,000 to invest, they likely do not need Than Merrill!
COMMENTS
Most people would expect Than Merrill, himself, to be present at his seminars, considering how much they are paying him. And most people would be wrong. People who have attended his seminars report to the BBB that Mr. Merrill does not even show up at them, instead having high-pressure sales persons handle the seminars, since they are sales pros adept at separating people from their money. Here's the "why" - Than Merrill created FortuneBuilders to be a franchise. Expert salesmen run the seminars and programs. The odds of seeing Than Merrill at one of his seminars is as slim as meeting Colonel Sanders at your local KFC (assuming he were still alive). Frankly, we suspect you would make more money buying into his FortuneBuilders franchise and selling his program than you would make from using it
OK, so the question we started with - whether or not Than Merrill aka FortuneBuilders is a scam...
You can decide that for yourself, but the way we see it, it is not a true scam and does not really fit the definition, but the effect is nearly the same. But our issue is that it is far too expensive for what you get, and for the slim odds that Than can make you wealthy.
A Low Cost, More Effective Choice
If you want to learn all 24 methods of real estate investing , and you think you would like access to a free coach who has at least 20 years field experience in real estate investing, personal one-on-one calls with the author, and if you want to save a ton of money over what Than Merrill would charge, then check out the course that beats them all, combined. With an "A+" rating at the Better Business Bureau, and offered by a non-profit to keep it affordable (under $170), "The Simple Man's Guide to Real Estate" is the most comprehensive and effective of all the courses available today.
It's lot like fixing your car - when it starts to act up, and your mechanic says it could be a $5.00 part, or maybe a $5000 new engine, which would you have him try first?
It doesn't cost anything to look...
