Real Estate By Design: From Broke Single Mom to Real Estate Empire with Dwan Bent-Twyford
When Dwan Bent-Twyford built her real estate empire, she wasn’t copying anyone else’s playbook. A single mom seeking financial stability, she had no background in business or real estate. But instead of settling for a low-paying 9 to 5, she pushed herself to find a job with true money-making potential. And in this episode, she shares with Ace how her inexperience actually played into her confidence to get started. Without preconceived notions or limiting beliefs, she dove in headfirst and rose to the top of her industry.
In this episode, Dwan “Dwanderful” Bent-Twyford shares how she became a master in a male-dominated industry. She and Ace discuss:
- how inexperience can be an unexpected asset
- the power of starting where you are right now
- the importance of knowing your “why”
- how following your own instincts can lead to immense growth
- the value of kindness and generosity, no matter the industry
At 30 years old, Dwan “Dwanderful” Bent-Twyford found herself divorced, with a new baby, and feeling backed into a corner financially. She was determined to find a job that would allow her to make money while keeping her eight-month-old daughter out of daycare. After a chance meeting with some house flippers, she figured she had good enough taste to “fix up” houses and resell them. It was only after signing onto her first deal that she discovered “fixing up” didn’t mean redecorating—it meant rehabbing. Instead of being intimidated and backing out as many would have, she took classes and learned new skills. Because she was willing to do everything from painting to tiling to building cabinetry, she turned a solid profit on her very first sale.
After Dwan profited from that first sale, she could have pocketed the money for a rainy day and gone back to a traditional job. But she kept going and entered a second deal — and made double what she’d made on the first. With that trajectory, she was a successful rehabber for a number of years before moving into the wholesale industry, knocking out 75 wholesales in her very first year. She quickly went from being the odd woman out in the real-estate boys club to being the person that people sought out for advice.
With her status upgrade within the industry, Dwan discovered how much she enjoyed giving back to those coming up after her. And after giving out so much advice to her industry community, she became well-known enough that when opportunities arose like article authorship or book deals, others would suggest her name. Without ever setting out to do so, she is now the author of a number of bestselling books in which she teaches her strategies to other investors, as well as to homeowners looking to turn a better profit on their own homes.
About Dwan Bent-Twyford
Dwan Bent-Twyford, America’s Most Sought-After Real Estate InvestorTM, started as a broke, single mom who had been fired from Denny’s. She has personally flipped over 2,000 properties and taught thousands of people how to become financially free.
Dwan is affectionately known as the “Queen of Short Sales”® and is considered to be the Nation’s #1 Expert on Short Sales & Foreclosures. She has written three best sellers, Short Sale Pre- Foreclosure Investing & How to Sell a House When It’s Worth Less Than the Mortgage, her most recent New York Times bestseller was written with Steve Forbes…SuccessOnomics.
She is highly sought after and has been featured on Fox and Friends, MSNBC, Naomi’s Good Morning, Colorado and Company, and many other TV, radio, podcasts, and print medias.
Dwan also has a top-rated podcast called…The Most Dwanderful Real Estate Podcast Ever!