About

HOW I FOUND REAL ESTATE by Gerald Lucas, Founder

I stumbled onto real estate accidentally in 2000 with a little help from my Mom. After I finished grad school, my mother, who is an accountant, told me I should buy a home to take advantage of the tax benefits that property owners enjoy. I thought it was a good idea but I was traveling a lot for work at the time and couldn’t ‘find the time’ to hunt for real estate. Luckily, Mom persisted, visited me on her week off from work and found a local real estate agent who found me some properties for sale in my very limited price range. I had no savings, but made an offer to buy one of the few places I could afford–a small tenant-occupied condo. When my offer was accepted, I had to use a credit card cash advance to come up with the down payment and closing costs.

While I waited for my tenant’s lease to expire so I could move in, I noticed that similar apartments in the neighborhood were renting for significantly more money per month than my tenant had been paying. If I became a landlord and increased my tenant’s rent to the average rent in the area, his new monthly rent payment would cover my mortgage payment, condo fees and leave me with some extra money at the end of each month. At that moment, a light bulb went off in my head and everything changed…

Real estate became my passion–I immediately tried to learn everything I could by reading, studying and implementing a Carlton Sheets real estate course I found and by seeking the advice of experienced real estate investors in my area. I began building a small portfolio of properties by partnering with people who had money to invest–I did all the leg work, used their capital and we split the profits.

Mom thought I was crazy, but in 2002, I took the plunge and became a full time real estate professional. Since then, I’ve developed a half dozen condominium complexes, bought and sold hundreds of properties and launched and operated two real estate funds. Many of the people I’ve coached and mentored over the years have found success investing in real estate, earning income buying and selling property for immediate profit and building wealth over time with rental properties.

Now that I control my time, thanks to real estate, I am able to indulge my three biggest passions: music, travel and serving my community. I play music on a regular basis, I’ve traveled to every continent on earth and to all 50 US states. In 2019, I founded Youth Passion For Music whose proceeds fund musical instruments, instrument repair and music lessons for Jersey City kids and I am a long-time volunteer and supporter of Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Founder’s Real Estate Fund Experience:

Performance Property’s founder, Gerald Lucas accurately identified the local real estate market price bottom in early 2011, then partnered with a pension fund to form a REIT where he developed the initial investment strategy, served as Chief Investment Officer, hired the initial team of employees, raised over $100 million of investment capital and oversaw the first $20 million of all property acquisitions. In 2017, Gerald co-founded NNG Capital Fund, a groundbreaking real estate fund that provides protection against market uncertainty by combining residential real estate and mortgage notes. See Gerald’s full bio at www.geraldlucas.com/biography

Testimonials

“Thanks for sharing your knowledge and for your good advice. We were able to work things out with our lender and get our mortgage loan caught up and current.”

Vaughn | Westfield, New Jersey

“Good afternoon, Gerald, I appreciate you for staying consistent and helping me with my mortgage lender for the last few months. The free guide you gave me helped us figure out the right path to take. I finally got all the money to make my loan current by the end of the week.”

Stephen Brunson | Plainfield, New Jersey

“Sir Gerald Lucas..my Knight who rescued me from the prison of Rushmore. At last I feel freedom to stop worrying about keeping myself financially afloat. You came into my life and gave me peace of mind. I will always remember your kindness and generous spirit. You are daily in my thoughts and prayers. May your gratuitous services to me be The Blessing it was,and may you be rewarded with many Blessings in return. I prayed to God for help and He sent YOU. Much love.”

Mary Elizabeth Robinson | Wilmington, Delaware

“Hi Gerald I just want to take this moment to thank you and express my gratitude for a job well done. When I thought that everything was lost you appeared and delivered hopes. Your professionalism and endurance are out of this world. Thank you thank you. I will always be grateful.”

Berkis Castro | Clifton, New Jersey

“Thank you so much for helping me. My property was haunting me for quite sometime. We tried for so long to sell but couldn’t. My family and I never thought we would resolve this problem so easily, but you facilitated the whole process and made it swift and painless. We can’t thank you enough for this.”

Sal Rizzo-Cascio | Jersey City, NJ

“Thank you so much for all your work, effort and time you put in helping me. I think things went really smoothly, way better than I’d hoped for! I’m sure it’s because of you. I really appreciate all of your help!”

Bridget Hieronymus | Jersey City, New Jersey

“I was not able to pay my mortgage and the Bank started the Foreclosure proceedings against me. I spoke with Performance Property about their process and they gave me hope. They were very diligent and did all the negotiations on my behalf. They were very professional, sincere and hardworking. I would recommend Performance Property’s services to anyone.”

Samuel Manoharan | North Bergen, New Jersey

“My family and I want to thank you so much for helping us. You did an outstanding job negotiating with our bank and keeping us informed. Thanks to your help, I now have more money to pay down bills and repair my credit.”

Marko Shafik | Bayonne, New Jersey

“If you find yourself in my situation, I highly recommend Performance Property. Always attentive, thoughtful and understanding, Performance Property will keep you informed every step of the way and will not rest until the job is done.”

Sean Daughtry | Jersey City, New Jersey

“As I began my morning today, I came to the conclusion that it was the dawn of a brand new start for my family. The burden is finally behind us. I have you to thank for that. You stuck by us, slogged through the swamp that is Chase Bank, put up with my constant questions and anxieties. I wondered if this day would come and lo and behold, it has. If good karma is to be had, I think you hit it big today. I am profoundly grateful for your hard work that has truly made a difference in our lives. We can now move forward with rebuilding our lives focusing upon a renewed perspective of what the important things in life are. Thank you again for your time and dedication.”

Melinda | Bayonne, New Jersey

“Thank you so much for all your help. I feel a huge weight has been lifted. The experience and knowledge that Performance Property provides is invaluable. In every step of the process, you were extremely courteous and professional. Thank you again.”

Gita Gorji | Hoboken, New Jersey

“Our loan modification was finalized. Got all the documents. Even got legal documents stating that foreclosure proceedings were cancelled. Our rate went from a 4.75 to a 3.4 and our mortgage payment went down almost $200 a month. So all is good. Thank you so much.”

Crystal | Totowa, New Jersey

“Finally the bank called me and said that my loan modification was approved! I thank you so much for your help it really meant a lot to me...I really appreciate you. Thank you Thank you Thank you”

Camille Perry | Newark, New Jersey

“Hey Gerald wanted to give you a heads up that they offered me a loan modification. Thanks for all your help!"

Robert Evans | North Arlington, New Jersey

“I appreciate everything you were able to do with my lender, I am immensely grateful to you."

Carol Cunningham| West Orange, New Jersey

“Thank you so much for your help, Gerald. I feel like a huge weight has been taken off me."

Iradys Rivero| North Bergen, New Jersey

“At this point, Gerald, you are the only person I can trust. I appreciate all your efforts to assist me."

Deborah Dowe| Plainfield, New Jersey

“I want to thank you for helping me to get the courage to work on this problem because I didn't want to face it. Your help with the phone call to the mortgage company & other assistance was so appreciated. Thank you so much."

Evelyn Rudnicki | Rochelle Park, New Jersey

“I'm not trying to be a pain in the neck but I would like to thank you for your advice. I think things are going to work out for me. I did exactly what you told me and I think the mortgage company is going to work with me. I appreciate your advice. You are a Godsend. The world needs more people like you. Thank you and God bless you."

Jimmy Armstead | Roselle, New Jersey

“My mortgage problem is resolved. God bless you for all your help. You are a very good man, Gerald."

Virgilio Rodriguez | Paterson, New Jersey

“I followed the instructions Gerald from Performance Property gave me and I proved to my lender that I can pay back my mortgage.”

John Nikoe | Linden, New Jersey

“God bless you.”

Ravinder Thota | Jersey City, New Jersey

“My bank gave me a permanent loan modification. Thank you very much!!”

Jim Armstead | Roselle, New Jersey

“You helped me a lot more than the lawyer I hired. I should have gone to you in the first place. You were very kind. Thank you so much.”

Aileen Collucci | Little Falls, New Jersey

“After speaking with you I feel like I can wipe the sweat from my brow.”

Barbara Herbert | Union, New Jersey

“You have been my saving grace. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”

Amoy Frost | South Orange, New Jersey

“Thank you very much. I appreciate all your help.”

Sabur Abdul-Wahid | Budd Lake, New Jersey

“You helped me get money and get rid of my nightmare tenant! Thank you so much for all your help.”

Dion Lowe | Rahway, New Jersey

“Thank you so much. You’ve been so helpful! I really appreciate it.”

Melody Melendez | Elizabeth, New Jersey

“You have been my saving grace. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”

Amoy Frost | South Orange, NJ

“I appreciate all your help from the beginning and throughout the process. Thanks to you I was able to refinance and keep my house.”

David Brown | Rahway, New Jersey

“Thanks Gerald...I appreciate the time and effort you put in to this. You never gave up on it and I get my life back. I am grateful for everything. Thanks again.”