East Coast Mentor

From CaseyPedia

Walter Stephen Cook, Jr. (born August 15, 1970) is a real estate investor from Baltimore,^[1][2] who at one point in late 2006 made an abortive attempt to initiate a mentoring relationship with Casey Serin. He generally goes by the name Steve Cook. For reasons unknown, Serin has refused to mention the man by name on IAFF, only referring to him as the East Coast Mentor.

After his failed deal with the No Limits Leeches, Casey revealed that he was, at the same time, pursuing a mentoring agreement with Cook:

I get contacted by a well-known and highly-respected national real estate guru from the East coast. He saw my flip-flop story in the paper and offers to take me on as a “project”. He would work with me daily over the phone to help me stop foreclosure, sell my houses and mentor me to become a successful real estate investor / rehabber.

On top of that The East Coast Mentor would provide a way for other people to listen-in on my mentorship calls. This was going to be a great educational opportunity for anyone else who is facing foreclosure and/or wants to become a successful real estate investor. I thought this was truly a sweet offer - an answer to prayer (some call it a synchronicity).

I have never met this guy or taken any of his education, but I’ve come across his courses and website many times before. From what I could tell he is a real-world in-the-trenches real estate investor. Not just some seminar promoter [sic] without much real-world experience. Further more, he seems pretty humble about his successes and comes across as a man of integrity and faith. Definitely someone I want to emulate.

In other words, I couldn’t ask for any better opportunity! I get on a 3-way call with The Mentor and his logistical/marketing partner (his “right-hand man” on this project). That’s when they present the opportunity to me. The three of us connect quickly on a personal level because of similar beliefs/faith and approach to investing and life. I feel very grateful for the offer. I tell them “letsdoit!” and we start brainstorming some of the details of the project.^[3]

On receiving the offer from the No Limits Ladies, star-struck by their connection with Robert Kiyosaki, Casey puts Cook "on hold":

I contact East Coast Mentor’s right-hand man right away and tell him to hold on, before they do any more work on the project. I explain that the “Robert Kiyosaki connection” has some kind of a similar offer for me and I need to see what it’s all about. The East Coast Mentor’s man understands my situation and tells me that there are no hard feelings, and to go ahead and investigate. They put a hold on the project until further notice from me.

Casey starts to get cold feet on the No Limits Ladies deal, and Cook is back on again:

With my emotions still raw, I call up The East Coast Mentor’s right-hand man. I tell him the other deal is not going to work out and I’m ready to go full speed ahead. We get on 3-way with The Mentor and get the ball rolling again. I ask to meet with The Mentor in-person to solidify the deal and start our “kick-off” session. The Mentor generously offers to fly me in from Phoenix on Thursday, spend the night at his house and fly me back to Sacramento on Friday. I’m excited.

Casey, salivating over the homoerotic undertones of Cook's offer, flies to Phoenix and meets Robert Kiyosaki. The No Limits Ladies press him for a decision; Casey impulsively burns his bridges with Cook:

Both PrLinkBiz and The Phoenix Investor Lady seem so genuine. They just want to help me! We pretty much worked out our issues over lunch and now they’re waiting for me to stop messing around. What am I waiting for?? So I get on my computer and send the following message to The East Coast Mentor and his right-hand man:

SUBJECT: Turning down the opportunity

I am very sorry to be going back-n-forth like this, but I am choosing to turn down this opportunity to work with you. I was offered a [great opportunity] and they have a very good real estate mentorship package as part of the deal. There was some miscommunication originally about that but today we got all that straightened out. I am also extending my stay here until the weekend.

Again, thank you SO much for offering your help and [the] opportunity. At the end of the day, I’m only turning it down because of a business decision. I wish we can maybe work together in the future, because I really like both of your guy’s approach to business and life. I will call SouthWest and have them refund the money back to your credit card.

Thanks again guys! Feel free to call me anytime for any reason.

I get the following response from the right-hand man:

I am admittedly a little frustrated, having spent the lion’s share of my day today working on this. Anyway, my best to you moving forward.

Man, I feel really bad for leading people on and then changing my mind. It affects people more then I realize...

Casey signs the deal with the No Limits Ladies but suffers immediate "Shit! I didn't consult Galina!" buyer's remorse. The No Limits Ladies refuse to void the contract. Casey then makes a desperate, unanswered attempt to re-establish contact with Cook:

I consider calling The East Coast Mentor and begging him to work with me again (I already sent off a quick email to him from my PDA during the ride to the hotel. In the email I ask if he would still work with me. No response.)

"Screw you guys," thinks Casey, "I'm going home."

I decide: “NO MENTORS! I can do it on my own! I already know what to do anyway. I just need to focus.” [...] So I get on my laptop and type out the following message to the ladies. And the same exact message to The Mentor and his man:

SUBJECT: Final decision - no mentors.

Sorry guys for all the inconvenience I have put you through in the last couple of days. I feel VERY bad for it. I feel like I stepped on your toes by going forward then pulling back then going forward again. I feel embarrassed and I’m truly sorry. I need to learn not to be so impulsive. You probably don’t want to work with me anyway, because I can’t seem to commit 100% right now. I’m deciding to turn down all the mentoring opportunities and do this thing on my own. I have plenty of knowledge already. I just need to focus and go for it. So thanks for your offer and all your time and all your support. Maybe we can work again in the future, or not. Either case, may God bless you in all that you do.

(We can talk on the phone about this tomorrow if you’d like. I’m out for the night.)

Casey is utterly shocked to find that Cook has taken him up on his offer of a refund and has cancelled his flight home:

I call Southwest to reschedule my flight. I am told that the flight has been cancelled. I remember, I asked the East Coast Mentor to pay for my extended itinerary to visit him on Thursday. Well, after getting my “no deal” email, he must have gone ahead and cancelled the entire itinerary in order to get a refund. So I am now stuck with no a return flight!

Arriving home, a regretful Casey reflects on his actions:

In hindsight, The East Coast Mentor might have been a better opportunity because it seemed like there was going to be an actual plan. I sure wish it would have worked out. I think I lost both opportunities. Self-sabotage. Man, that sucks!

Casey shortly afterwards loses his first house to foreclosure. While he says that he doesn't blame Cook, he nevertheless makes excuses for delaying returning a vital contract to the lender, including blaming Cook:

I had a chance to do it last Monday before the Phoenix trip. I waited. That’s because I was talking to the East Coast Mentor at that time and he recommended I wait until we can start recording our mentoring calls. He was going to give me some advice about it. He said, that I can always overnight it to the lender. And then I went to Phoenix and had the fallout. I don’t blame the East Coast Mentor though. I should have sent that deed in right away no matter what.^[4]

Before Cook's identity was outed by Serin himself on Marty Stewart's MP3 files, some Haterz™ speculated that "The East Coast Mentor" may have been Duane LeGate, speculation roundly rebuffed by LeGate when he appeared on Exurban Nation to tell his story: "I AM NOT THE EAST COAST MENTOR."^[5]

[edit] References

1. ↑ Flipping Out, Cook's full name mentioned
2. ↑ http://www.stevecook.com/, Steve Cook's Homepage
3. ↑ What Really Happened in Phoenix, November 6th 2006
4. ↑ Have You Been Foreclosed Upon?, November 8th 2006
5. ↑ Duane LeGate Part 0, comment at 5:35PM May 16th 2007