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27 y/o Female – 50k debt to $1M+ net worth (24 units,50 deals/yr)
Hey BP! Wanted to share a quick story and our progression for anyone who might find it useful.
None of this is intended to brag, as there are many more amazing people than us out there. It’s just here as an example of what is possible in a relatively short time.
TLDR; My progression from $50k in debt to $1M+ net worth in 3 years
Background:
I was born in the Philippines, moved to New Zealand with my parents and siblings in high school, then moved to the US when I married @Chris Lemire
Chris and I started our newlywed life and working career with about 50k of my student loan debt in 2014. Chris was a software developer and I was a speech language pathologist.
The dilemma:
About a year or so into our newlywed life, we realized that my chosen career wouldn’t allow us to spend much time with my side of the family on the other side of the world. We felt trapped and hated the idea that when we had kids, they may not have the opportunity to get to know half of their extended family.
Our progression:
June 2015 -joined Biggerpockets. Started learning about REI. Started going to REIA and taking action
Dec 2015 – closed on our first rental (technically our primary residence but purchased on rental criteria)
Feb 2016 – closed on purchase of 2nd rental (bp post - rental case study) and 1st flip
May 2016 – bought 2nd flip
June 2016 – sold 1st flip (concept proven). Pivoted to flipping houses
October 2016 – went to Flip Hacking Live event in San Diego and joined a mastermind group
- Arianne quit her job to focus on REI business fulltime
Nov-Dec 2016 – bought more flips
2017 – sold 15 flips and 35 wholesales (bp post - flip case study)
July 2018 – limited (passive) partners in 250+ unit apartment complex in Texas
Aug 2018 – closed on local 24 unit multifamily property
- Chris quit his job to focus on REI business fulltime
Projected 2018 – on track to sell 20 flips and 40 wholesales
A closer look at our flipping/wholesaling business
We have a team of 4 (not including Chris and I) that run this business. Right now YTD we are at 18 flips and 25 wholesales. We are on track to finish 2018 with 20 flips and 40 wholesales with a gross profit of more than $1M.
A closer look at the 24-unit deal
This lead came from us mailing local 2-4 Unit owners.
It took 6 months of follow up and relationship building (we even took him out for dinner) before we went under contract.
Purchase Price: $1,335,000
Financing: 6 Conventional loans (1 for ea 4plex). 5.375%, 30 year fixed, 25% down payment
NOI at purchase: $111,000
Plan: Renovate units that haven’t been renovated (8 of them). Raise rents to market $850 (current average is $721)
Thoughts and thanks
If you had asked us if something like this were possible 3 years ago, we’d have thought you were crazy. It wasn’t until we started surrounding ourselves with amazing people doing amazing things that we realized just how low we set our bar.
Thank you Biggerpockets for providing an amazing platform for learning and networking. It put real estate on the radar for us, gave us what we needed to get started, and allowed us to meet great people who helped us grow our business to the next level.
Thank you @William Allen for inviting us to the first Flip Hacking Live event in San Diego.
It was a life-changing event for us. The value we got was priceless. It helped us shatter that self-imposed glass ceiling, resetting our expectations of what was possible and allowing us to shoot for something bigger. Thank you @Justin Williams for putting it together.
We learned that we could turn the active income that is flipping houses into a business that runs on its own. We learned how to do it, but most importantly we met and spent a lot of time with people who were already doing it. And they were normal people like us! It helped us see that we could do this too.
Thank you for reading. I hope someone finds value in this and if you have any questions feel free to ask!
It's been an interesting journey so far, and we've been able to help a lot of people along the way.
I'm looking forward to seeing how much further we can get over the next few years as we dig deeper into multifamily and continue to improve on our flipping business.
We're super grateful for all the support!
#5 Ask About A Real Estate Company Contributor
- Rental Property Investor
- Long Island, NY
- 490
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#5 Ask About A Real Estate Company Contributor
- Rental Property Investor
- Long Island, NY
@Arianne L. and @Chris Lemire, what is the net profit?
@Jason G. Will likely be around 50% of gross profit after all team member compensation, marketing, education expenses, other overhead, etc. in 2018.
Our gross profit #s are taken from net flip/rehab profit (after all interest expenses, realtor expenses, closing costs, rehab costs, etc.), gross wholesale profits, without taking marketing, team member compensation, other overhead out.
Congratulations on your success! very inspiring!
Thanks @Michinori Kaneko wouldn't have gotten here without the help of many amazing people :)
@Account Closed Hey there I'm not sure I know Melanie. But if little introvert me with an interesting accent who came from nothing can do it... I think anyone can! If they have the right attitude, work ethic and they surround themselves with the right people! :)
#3 All Forums Contributor
- Lender
- Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
- 61,368
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#3 All Forums Contributor
- Lender
- Lake Oswego OR Summerlin, NV
well done keep at it.. !! might think about adding be the bank to your repertoire
@Jay Hinrichs Thank you!
By "be the bank" do you mean seller financing or just lending in general? Definitely looking into it. We wholesaled a property recently that I would've been a great buy and we could've seller financed on the sale. Looking into that now!
I wanna be like you one day :). I think a Hero's Home is a great cause. Thank you for thinking of the real heroes we have in this country. One of our longer term goals is to start non profit and create a self-sustainable community for people with special needs :D
@Arianne L. @Chris Lemire I am proud to call you guys friends. You guys are freaking amazing and I love seeing what you are doing. God is good isn't he? Those who are faithful with little will be faithful with much. You guys are great stewards. And although you beat us to the 1mm+ net worth, watch out... We're hot on your heels ;-P lol.
P.S. Congrats on Chris quitting!!! It's about time!! Haha.
Originally posted by @Arianne L.:
@Jason G. Will likely be around 50% of gross profit after all team member compensation, marketing, education expenses, other overhead, etc. in 2018.
Our gross profit #s are taken from net flip/rehab profit (after all interest expenses, realtor expenses, closing costs, rehab costs, etc.), gross wholesale profits, without taking marketing, team member compensation, other overhead out.
50% of over 1 million......hmmm, if anyone deserves the rock-star moniker here on BP, it is you and your husband! I am blown away by what you've accomplished!
Wow! That is incredible!! Congrats on so much success in such a short time. So inspiring. I can't wait to see what else comes about!
@Arianne L. congratulations and thanks for sharing this with us! It’s so inspiring - way to go. Can’t wait to hear what’s next for you annd @Chris Lemire in this journey!
@Arianne L. Thank you for sharing your story. This is truly an inspiration!
That's great! You are way ahead of the game for most people your age. Your story is inspiring.