76 Inn investors bragged that motel is a ‘cash cow’ that ‘farts out dollar bills’
According to a video posted on Facebook about five months
ago, investors in Branson's 76 Inn considered the extended-stay motel
to be a "cash cow" that "farts out dollar bills."
"If anyone wants to be a partner in this deal and wants to make an incredible return on your cash, we will cut you in," self-described "luxury real estate guru" Marco Kozlowski said in the video.
The gassy cash cow is now at risk of losing its business license, according to city officials, due to several health, fire and building code violations. More than 50 people were living at the 76 Inn when the electricity was shut off briefly Monday due to an overdue bill and other issues.
When the News-Leader visited the 76 Inn on Tuesday, a
family with a two-month-old baby was waiting outside their room in the
rain while their room was being treated for bedbugs yet again.
The young couple both had jobs and were paying more than $600 a month in rent. But with no car, they relied on the 76 Inn's central location to be able to walk to work.
Located on the strip in Branson, the 76 Inn is home to many people who don't have vehicles but work at Branson's tourist attractions and restaurants.
Cassie Cunningham, a spokesperson for White River Electric Company, said Monday that the company had been working with the new owners since early February regarding some "necessary requirements" that have not been met.
More: Some hope closing of extended-stay motel in Branson will give them fresh start
More: Branson featured by Washington Post, HLN channel for 'Hispanics 101' class
The company had planned to shut off electricity again Friday if those requirements were not met, but according to Cunningham, those plans changed on Thursday.
"Electric service will be ran to the location unless activities aren't followed as promised," she said, declining to give specifics. "That doesn't mean to say the facility will not be closed due to other issues they are having."
Kozlowski told the News-Leader in an email that he only learned of the issues with the electric company Thursday.
"The second I found out about the issue, (I) paid the bill and am working with the city to deal with any outstanding issues," he said.
Throughout the week, representatives from the city and
county and Salvation Army have been assisting residents who wanted to
relocate.
Kozlowski, who offers real estate mentoring programs to foreign investors who want to buy property in the U.S., told the News-Leader in an email that he is a "minority investor" in the property, and it is primarily owned by his real estate investment students.
Kozlowski said the Palms Inn, another extended-stay motel located across the street from White Water, is also owned by his students. The Palms Inn closed a few weeks ago.
Two residents from the 76 Inn, who worked at the Palms
Inn before it was closed, said they saw Kozlowski at the Palms Inn and
thought he was the owner.
"Not much I can tell you other than students of mine have purchased (the 76 Inn and Palms Inn) and I help them when needed," Kozlowski said in the email to the News-Leader.
According to MarcoKozlowski.com, Kozlowski is "well known as one of the world’s leading experts in real estate investing."
Multiple news stories in the U.S., Canadian and British media paint another picture.
According to a 2016 article in the Montreal Gazette, Kozlowski "sells the promise of how to buy U.S. real estate on the cheap," but former students accuse him of using false testimonials in marketing videos and said Kozlowski's program does not provide the promised financial windfall.
One former student told the Gazette that students are encouraged to invest up to $100,000 in Kozlowski's program with the promise of receiving funding to complete real estate deals in the U.S.
In 2016, the British news outlet The Mirror called Kozlowski a "get rich quick merchant who is trying to flog American homes to the British."
The Canadian Broadcast Corporation in 2015 reported that "some investors who paid tens of thousands of dollars for Kozlowski's real estate mentoring program say he failed to deliver on a promise to finance 100 percent of their investments in U.S. property."
Asked about his real estate program, Kozlowski said in an
email: "I educate people on how to find properties, buy them and use
professional management companies to run them."
According to the Taney County Assessor's Office, the 76 Inn is owned by George & Jr LLC.
Asked who specifically city officials are working with to resolve the code violations at the 76 Inn, Branson spokeswoman Melody Pettit said, "The City is currently working with several different groups who are claiming ownership of the property. We are in the process to determine who the legal property owner is. We can tell you all individuals involved have stated their commitment to fulfilling all code requirements."
In the video — one of dozens posted to his Facebook page — Kozlowski slowly drives around the 76 Inn while filming himself and another man, Mark Chornohus, bragging about the smart investment.
"What is cool about this property other than it makes just s*** loads of cash and it keeps farting out dollar bills ...," Kozlowski says, before the sentence is finished by Chornohus.
"It's right in the center of Branson, right on the strip where all the shows and action is," Chornohus says. "This is very exciting."
"(It's) by the busiest Walmart in the United States. Period," Kozlowski says.
In the video, the two men talk about putting $350,000 down on the motel and netting $150,000.
"They (tenants) are paying $140 a week and the going rate is $180 a week," Kozlowski says in the video. "We can actually increase our rents about 30 percent, meaning our money is going to be even better."
Chornohus used the calculator on his iPhone to estimate profits, as Kozlowski suggests an equation.
"Right now it's at $140. Let's do $160. Let's raise the rents slightly," Kozlowski says. "$160 times 50 rooms ... 49 weeks a year ... Our gross on that will be $392 (thousand). Our expense is around 55 percent."
Throughout the video, Kozlowski congratulates Chornohus for investing in the motel. Kozlowski asks Chornohus how he, as a Canadian, is able to buy property in Branson.
"Following Marco's system and making phone calls and getting deals done," Chornohus replies.
Kozlowski asks Chornohus if he attended Kozlowski's "Success Reflex" program.
"Yes," Chornohus responds. "It was a great experience. I learned so much."
In the description of the video, Kozlowski called the 76 Inn a "cash cow" and wrote, "When we up rents... it’s stupid returns."
A message sent to Chornohus via social media has not yet been returned.
In a 2017 YouTube video, Kozlowski discussed purchasing an RV park and motel in Branson. He does not say the location or name of the properties, though he shows photos of the motel; it does not appear to be the 76 Inn or the Palms Inn. It is not clear if Kozlowski or his students purchased either of these properties.
Source: https://eu.news-leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2018/03/30/76-inn-investors-bragged-motel-cash-cow-farts-out-dollar-bills/469680002/
"If anyone wants to be a partner in this deal and wants to make an incredible return on your cash, we will cut you in," self-described "luxury real estate guru" Marco Kozlowski said in the video.
The gassy cash cow is now at risk of losing its business license, according to city officials, due to several health, fire and building code violations. More than 50 people were living at the 76 Inn when the electricity was shut off briefly Monday due to an overdue bill and other issues.
The young couple both had jobs and were paying more than $600 a month in rent. But with no car, they relied on the 76 Inn's central location to be able to walk to work.
Located on the strip in Branson, the 76 Inn is home to many people who don't have vehicles but work at Branson's tourist attractions and restaurants.
Cassie Cunningham, a spokesperson for White River Electric Company, said Monday that the company had been working with the new owners since early February regarding some "necessary requirements" that have not been met.
More: Some hope closing of extended-stay motel in Branson will give them fresh start
More: Branson featured by Washington Post, HLN channel for 'Hispanics 101' class
The company had planned to shut off electricity again Friday if those requirements were not met, but according to Cunningham, those plans changed on Thursday.
"Electric service will be ran to the location unless activities aren't followed as promised," she said, declining to give specifics. "That doesn't mean to say the facility will not be closed due to other issues they are having."
Kozlowski told the News-Leader in an email that he only learned of the issues with the electric company Thursday.
"The second I found out about the issue, (I) paid the bill and am working with the city to deal with any outstanding issues," he said.
Kozlowski, who offers real estate mentoring programs to foreign investors who want to buy property in the U.S., told the News-Leader in an email that he is a "minority investor" in the property, and it is primarily owned by his real estate investment students.
Kozlowski said the Palms Inn, another extended-stay motel located across the street from White Water, is also owned by his students. The Palms Inn closed a few weeks ago.
"Not much I can tell you other than students of mine have purchased (the 76 Inn and Palms Inn) and I help them when needed," Kozlowski said in the email to the News-Leader.
According to MarcoKozlowski.com, Kozlowski is "well known as one of the world’s leading experts in real estate investing."
Multiple news stories in the U.S., Canadian and British media paint another picture.
According to a 2016 article in the Montreal Gazette, Kozlowski "sells the promise of how to buy U.S. real estate on the cheap," but former students accuse him of using false testimonials in marketing videos and said Kozlowski's program does not provide the promised financial windfall.
One former student told the Gazette that students are encouraged to invest up to $100,000 in Kozlowski's program with the promise of receiving funding to complete real estate deals in the U.S.
In 2016, the British news outlet The Mirror called Kozlowski a "get rich quick merchant who is trying to flog American homes to the British."
The Canadian Broadcast Corporation in 2015 reported that "some investors who paid tens of thousands of dollars for Kozlowski's real estate mentoring program say he failed to deliver on a promise to finance 100 percent of their investments in U.S. property."
According to the Taney County Assessor's Office, the 76 Inn is owned by George & Jr LLC.
Asked who specifically city officials are working with to resolve the code violations at the 76 Inn, Branson spokeswoman Melody Pettit said, "The City is currently working with several different groups who are claiming ownership of the property. We are in the process to determine who the legal property owner is. We can tell you all individuals involved have stated their commitment to fulfilling all code requirements."
In the video — one of dozens posted to his Facebook page — Kozlowski slowly drives around the 76 Inn while filming himself and another man, Mark Chornohus, bragging about the smart investment.
"What is cool about this property other than it makes just s*** loads of cash and it keeps farting out dollar bills ...," Kozlowski says, before the sentence is finished by Chornohus.
"It's right in the center of Branson, right on the strip where all the shows and action is," Chornohus says. "This is very exciting."
"(It's) by the busiest Walmart in the United States. Period," Kozlowski says.
In the video, the two men talk about putting $350,000 down on the motel and netting $150,000.
"They (tenants) are paying $140 a week and the going rate is $180 a week," Kozlowski says in the video. "We can actually increase our rents about 30 percent, meaning our money is going to be even better."
Chornohus used the calculator on his iPhone to estimate profits, as Kozlowski suggests an equation.
"Right now it's at $140. Let's do $160. Let's raise the rents slightly," Kozlowski says. "$160 times 50 rooms ... 49 weeks a year ... Our gross on that will be $392 (thousand). Our expense is around 55 percent."
Throughout the video, Kozlowski congratulates Chornohus for investing in the motel. Kozlowski asks Chornohus how he, as a Canadian, is able to buy property in Branson.
"Following Marco's system and making phone calls and getting deals done," Chornohus replies.
Kozlowski asks Chornohus if he attended Kozlowski's "Success Reflex" program.
"Yes," Chornohus responds. "It was a great experience. I learned so much."
A message sent to Chornohus via social media has not yet been returned.
In a 2017 YouTube video, Kozlowski discussed purchasing an RV park and motel in Branson. He does not say the location or name of the properties, though he shows photos of the motel; it does not appear to be the 76 Inn or the Palms Inn. It is not clear if Kozlowski or his students purchased either of these properties.
Source: https://eu.news-leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2018/03/30/76-inn-investors-bragged-motel-cash-cow-farts-out-dollar-bills/469680002/
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