Call with Josef

Frame it Me + Guest

Before Record. Tell him how the call works, get a yes to recording.

• "Josef, quick frame. I have a flow and a lot of questions."
• "Short answers are fine. Keep your questions for the end, I'll park anything and come back."
• "OK if we record and use parts in a video? No company names, none of your numbers."
• Yes → Record. Clap once.

Hook Me + Guest

First 30 seconds on tape. Who he is, what we did in a week, what today is about. Then hand him the mic.

• Josef: PhD industrial engineer. Ran a $160M portfolio and 60 people at a top-ten defence company.
• Joined a week ago. Buying HVAC, plumbing, cleaning or pest control in the US.
• In one week: 350+ listings pulled, every one screened yes/no with a reason, 100 brokers applied to.
• Today: what to expect, who does what, and what these businesses hide in due diligence.
• "Josef, how's it going? Two minutes of background."

1Why he's here Me + Guest

Rapport. Let him talk. Get the goal in one sentence.

• Why leave L3Harris? Why buy instead of build?
• Why the trades? What's the thread between HVAC, plumbing, cleaning, pest?
• 3 years from now: one company or several? What profit? Panama or Dallas?
• Write: "Goal: ___ by ___."

2The money Me + Guest

What he can really put in. His figures are NOT said on tape. Then show how a deal is paid for.

• "I have your numbers from the profile. I won't read them out. Three questions."
• How much cash goes INTO the deal? How much stays as a cushion?
• Retirement money: would you roll it into the business (ROBS), or is that off the table?
• Partner or investor money, or you alone?
• Then draw the deal:

• Point: his $200K salary only works if HE runs it, or the business is bigger.

3Buy box vs deal flow Notes

Expectation setting. Every rule in his buy box removes deals. Sort his rules into must-have and nice-to-have.

• His box: 4 industries · 5 states (TX VA FL MD TN) · max 3.5x · $350K profit minimum.
• Draw the table, tick with him:

• Half the YES deals are outside his 5 states (Georgia, New Jersey, Oregon, New York). In or out?
• 3.5x: good HVAC with a manager sells for 4–5x to private equity now. Is 3.5x a line or a wish?
• Pest control: most listings in his box are online brands selling product, not a truck-and-route business. Which does he mean?
• Fewer deals next week is normal. Wave one is the easy visible stuff. Then the filter bites.

4Show the Sheet Open Sheet ↗ ScreenShare

Proof of work. One minute, tab by tab. Then back to camera.

• Strategy tab: buy box ready 28 Oct, 350+ deals scraped.
• HVAC / Plumbing / Cleaning / Pest tabs: every row YES or NO, and a comment saying why.
• Two Florida plumbers: the price includes a building. We split the property out first.
• Hot Deals tab: every YES, the broker, "Applied thru Form" dates. 100 in two days.
• Analysis and Calls tabs: empty. "Fills when CIMs arrive. Next week, not this week."
• Back to Me + Guest.
• Which row would you call first? Why?

5Who does what Notes

The partnership. "Done for you" means we own the process, not that he never shows up.

• We don't sit on his broker calls. Brokers sell to a person. The buyer who calls back gets the CIM.
• Weekly report, every week. 30-minute review with Edward every two weeks.
• How many broker calls a week can you really do from Panama, in US hours?

6Timeline Notes

Patience. 90-day plan on paper, 6–12 months in real life.

• Most buyers quit in month 3. Month 3 is when the second wave of CIMs lands.
• Brokers answer in days, sometimes weeks. One deal dies, the next is already in the sheet.
• OK with 6 to 12 months? What happens to your plan if it's 12?

7Licensing PDF ↗ Me + Guest

The trap in all four trades. He can own it without a licence, but someone licensed must "qualify" the company. If that person is the seller, the deal has a hole.

• You don't need the licence. The company does.
• Usually the seller IS the licence. He leaves, the licence leaves.
• The one question for every broker:

• Good answer: an employee holds the licence and stays.
• OK answer: seller holds it, but someone else can get approved.
• Bridge: seller stays 6–12 months while you hire a licensed manager.
• No deal: seller leaves, nobody holds it.
• Texas (his state): HVAC needs a full-time licensed person per office. A master plumber can cover ONE company only.
• A new LLC does not inherit the licence. Lawyer confirms what's needed before day one.
• PDF page 2, the small table, 20 seconds. ScreenShare → back.
• Hire a licensed manager, or get licensed yourself in year one?

8Owner involvement Notes

The Panama problem. The owner IS the profit. Replace him and the numbers change. He must pick how he'll run it.

• "Owner works 30 hours" is never true. He quotes jobs, dispatches, hires, holds the licence, answers the 7am call.
• Draw the rebuild:

• He lives in Panama = remote owner from day one. Three ways it works:

• Which one is you? Honestly.
• If "manager runs it": we only chase businesses that already have one, and price the rest down.

9What due diligence finds Me + Guest

Value education. The five things that go wrong in these businesses after the NDA. Pick two or three, don't read the list.

• The profit is inflated. Listing "SDE" is a sales number. We rebuild it from tax returns and bank statements.
• One customer is too big. Cleaning and pest: two contracts can be 40% of revenue. Lose one, lose the deal.
• The people leave. Techs and the licence holder follow the seller. HVAC techs are the hardest to hire in the US.
• Hidden costs. Old trucks, warranty callbacks, chemical storage (pest), new-construction work that dies with one builder (plumbing).
• Real estate in the price. Two of his YES deals bundle a building. We value the business and the building separately.
• Seasonality. HVAC makes half its year in summer. A winter close looks great on paper.
• The bank's rule. SBA loans of $3M+ now REQUIRE a lender-ordered quality-of-earnings report. Budget for it.
• Write: "Listing profit ≠ bank profit"
• Which of those scares you most?

10Seven questions for every broker Notes

Give him a tool. He asks these on his first broker call, no trade knowledge needed.

• The PDF is his after the call. Keep it open on every broker call.

11Temperature check Me + Guest

Two scores. Below 8 on either, fix it now, not in month three.

• 1 to 10: how clear is it that your criteria change your deal flow?
• 1 to 10: how OK are you with YOUR side: the calls, the 48-hour answers, the lender?
• Write: Criteria __/10 · Workload __/10

12Next 14 days Notes

Close with actions. His three, our three. Parked questions. Friday with Edward.

• We introduce an SBA lender this week. A pre-qual letter changes how brokers treat him.
• Which three brokers do you call first? Pick them from Hot Deals now.
• Anything parked? Your questions.
• Edward has him Friday. We film again when the first CIM is in.

After

• Stop Ecamm. Wait for the file.
• Send Josef the licensing PDF + the sheet link.
• Tell Edward the two scores and the 5-state answer.
• Get Josef's filming release.