One Year Later - 10 units and full time investor

One Year Later - 10 units and full time investor

Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes

It was about this time last year that I discovered Bigger Pockets and found what I was looking for - a way to escape the boring, restrictive 9-5 life while doing something enjoyable and generating wealth. I caught the real estate investing bug and started listening to podcasts and reading articles for hours a day.

I kept hearing experienced investors say to jump in, so I did just that a few months later. By August, I had closed on a quad and was officially a real estate investor. Around that time, I partnered with a friend who was also interested in REI. By my 24th birthday at the beginning of this year, we collectively owned 10 units / 4 properties. We've done a house hack condo, a BRRRR triplex, and duplex and quad rentals.

This has given me the freedom to go into real estate investing full time while my business partner is sticking it out at his job to help us qualify for mortgages. This month, we've put a live-in flip and a BRRRR quad under contract, and we have another duplex in verbal negotiations that looks very promising.

It's easy to get frustrated when progress seems slow, but rewarding when I can look back at my first year in real estate and see we made it to double digit doors while earning enough to go into real estate investing full time. I can't thank BP enough for the advice and wealth of information. We are currently looking for connections in Jacksonville, FL, Greenville, SC, and southern Delaware to grow our business if anyone is interested. Thanks BP!

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Jerry W.Pro Member
Moderator
Investor · Thermopolis, WY · Member since 2012 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes
9y

Congratulations @Ethan Lee.  You have done very well.  I have been investing part time for almost 20 years and have not been able to leave the day job yet.

@Sam T., welcome to BP. BRRR is a buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat. it allows you to keep pulling money out to do rehabs over again. House hack means to live in a property while you rehab it. Often it is your primary residence to take advantage of the no capital gains from the sale of your primary residence for 2 of the last 5 years, but not always. you might start reading up in the education section above, it is loaded with tons of great information. Good luck.

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  • Chicago, IL · Member since 2017 · 39 posts · 33 votes
    9y
    I have been in Real Estate Investing for a while and have some newb questions. Don't laugh at me!!!! Whats BRRRR and whats a house hack? I recently discovered this website and its helped me get interested in Investing again.
  • Jerry W.Pro Member
    Moderator
    Investor · Thermopolis, WY · Member since 2012 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    9y

    Congratulations @Ethan Lee.  You have done very well.  I have been investing part time for almost 20 years and have not been able to leave the day job yet.

    @Sam T., welcome to BP. BRRR is a buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat. it allows you to keep pulling money out to do rehabs over again. House hack means to live in a property while you rehab it. Often it is your primary residence to take advantage of the no capital gains from the sale of your primary residence for 2 of the last 5 years, but not always. you might start reading up in the education section above, it is loaded with tons of great information. Good luck.

  • Investor · Wilmington, DE · Member since 2013 · 394 posts · 123 votes
    9y

    congrats @Ethan Lee.  What kind of contact are you looking for in southern Delaware?  

  • Lender · Milpitas, CA · Member since 2016 · 376 posts · 248 votes
    9y

    Congratulations on your amazing journey! I've also recently purchased my first few properties in Jax but haven't been able to leave my day job either. It snowballs from here. Good luck!

  • Investor · Greenville, SC · Member since 2016 · 13 posts · 6 votes
    9y

    @Ethan Lee that's awesome! Hearing success stories like yours is inspiring for any real estate investor that is trying to get started. I'm currently stuck in that restrictive 9-5 lifestyle and looking to get some hands on experience. I'm also trying to crack into the Greenville, SC market and would love to be of assistance to you. Feel free to private message me if there is anything I can do to help. Any experience is better than no experience. Thanks!

  • Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2017 · 18 posts · 7 votes
    9y

    congrats!!

  • Real Estate Broker · Saint Louis, MO · Member since 2015 · 10 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    I love it!! Im a 24 y/o college grad, stepping my foot into the investment world very soon! I do have a solid question for you. Im looking to purchase my first property. Ive been told time and time again from ppl on BP, articles and the like that house hacking a Duplex/Triplex/Quad is a good way to enter into investing. You can house hack and qualify for FHA. However, my dilemma is that my RE broker says he doesnt suggest a multi-family but A Sfr for a first investment, following up with Duplexes/Tris/Quads are hard to get rid of and many ppl get stuck or sell for a loss. Suggestions? Thanks! Keep on inspiring!
  • Real Estate Investor · Miami, FL · Member since 2013 · 474 posts · 214 votes
    9y

    @Ethan Lee Congrats on the move, on being full-time, and the overall success so far! I remember you writing about moving out to PV at some point. Hope all is well...but sounds like it is!

  • Real Estate Lender · Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2014 · 21 posts · 3 votes
    9y

    @Ethan Lee Congrats! That is awesome, keep it going. I am a local Jax investor and would love to connect. If you don't mind me asking, what bank are you using for your BRRRR? Thanks and keep the momentum moving!

  • Durham, NC · Member since 2013 · 502 posts · 215 votes
    9y

    @Ethan Lee

    Congrats, Ethen. Your success story is very exciting. I am curious how you can live of the cash flow of 10 units that you share with a partner.

  • Investor · Saint Louis, MO · Member since 2016 · 970 posts · 1k+ votes
    9y

    Great Stuff Ethan! Keep up the hustle. I too am curious as to what kind of cashflow you're getting to sustain off of it? I'm a year into RE investing as well with 10 units and cashflow 9k/month but still don't feel comfortable leaving my day job

  • Investor · Leander, TX · Member since 2016 · 105 posts · 40 votes
    9y
    Fantastic Ethan Lee. This is he way to go.
  • Real Estate Agent · FL · Member since 2016 · 17 posts · 11 votes
    9y

    Great story! I am going to be moving back to Tallahassee, FL soon and am in a seemingly similar situation as you. I currently have a decent paying job in the military but will be getting out and am looking to start investing full time with a partner who, like yours, will be keeping his job for the foreseeable future. My worry is how much me not having a job will hinder our ability to get financing. It seems that it is working out for you but is this something that you have encountered and how did you overcome? Also I was curious as to how you and your partner divide any income between reinvesting and paying yourselves a salary.

  • Real Estate Broker · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2016 · 569 posts · 351 votes
    9y

    Congrats Mr. Ethan Lee,

    Good and Nice. More Blessings to come.

  • Lender · Falls Church, VA · Member since 2016 · 41 posts · 22 votes
    9y

    Congratulations Ethan! It is stories like yours that keep me motivated to do great things like you. 

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Sam T. Jerry explained the BRRRR and I recommend you look into it here in the forums and blog - it's really powerful for growing a portfolio. Technically a house hack is more along the lines of living in a rental property with other people, whether it be roommates or tenants in an attached unit and having them cover most or all expenses. My business partner is doing this with his condo.

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Jerry W. @Account Closed thank you gentlemen! I appreciate you taking the time to read my story, good luck to you all as well.

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Eric Armstrong thank you! My business partner and I grew up in Seaford and part of our portfolio is there so we have some boots on the ground, but we're looking for private money to fund BRRRRs and any solid deals on rental properties in the area. We haven't really checked out northern Delaware just because we know a lot of people down south.

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Michael Dorosh thanks! My business partner @Zak Parks is currently handling the Greenville area. If you haven't, I would start evaluating MLS deals as often as you can to get practice. Driving for dollars is another good way to both find deals and know your area even better. If you ever find any deals you need help with or don't have the funds to purchase but would like to send our way for a finder's fee, feel free to get in touch with me or Zak!

  • Investor · San Antonio, TX · Member since 2017 · 2 posts · 0 votes
    9y

    @Ethan Lee Congrats, and keep it up!  I love reading success stories like this because they keep you focused on the long term. 

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    Hi @LaMonica Evans, good luck getting started! If I wasn't married, I would absolutely have started with house hacking a multifamily using an FHA loan. I'm a huge fan of the idea for getting several units with a super low down payment.

    While your broker is right about SFR maybe being safer because you can sell to both investors and home owners, multi families have their own strengths. I'm not sure about your market but in areas I've studied, if you want to house hack you can get a SFR for $75-100k and bring in a roommate for $400 a month, or you can find a great deal on a quad for $150-200k and rent out the other three units for $600 each or $1800 a month total while keeping a unit for yourself. With FHA, the down payment on the quad is only going to be a little more, but you've got yourself $1800 in gross rents instead of $400.

    I think it's a great way to get started. The key is to be patient and find a great deal in a decent area. If you can find a great deal, good tenants, and improve the quality of the building or keep it in good shape, you shouldn't struggle to find a seller. The other point worth making is it's good to be safe and think through exit strategies, but I plan on holding my rentals long term, so I am more concerned about strong cash flow than I am about reselling it. This all depends on your strategy though. Research your market, run the numbers, and do your due diligence and I think you'll do well with house hacking a multifamily.

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Maxwell Lee thank you! I look forward to connecting soon - I think I saw that you'll be at a Jax meeting in February that was being planned over the forums? I'm excited to be here and to get plugged in. Do you recommend any local banks that work well with investors? Starting to call around but not having great luck with banks that count recent rental income in the DTI and allow more than 4 mortgages.

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Todd Miller I appreciate it! Would love to connect as well. Our current BRRRR is in South Carolina so we will be using a portfolio lender up there once the 6 month seasoning period is up. I am in the process now of trying to find good investor friendly local banks. Let me know if you hear of anything!

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @Andreas W. Thank you! The easy answer is I live an extremely frugal lifestyle. No kids helps and my wife brings in income as well. We also do wedding photography on the side which helps. I cash flow conservatively/realistically around $2,000 a month, which covers all of our expenses. We saved up a cushion of money which is allowing me to take the risk of flipping house and acquiring rentals full time! It wouldn't be possible without our frugal lifestyle, but I would much rather get out of a 9-5 now and get the finer things in life later on.

  • Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2016 · 76 posts · 130 votes
    9y

    @David Zheng you can read a little more in the above post, but I'm getting around $2,000 in cash flow per month, which covers our expenses. I didn't have a high paying job so taking the risk of doing real estate full time was worth it. Plus I'm kind of trading my job for a job flipping houses as well as the more passive rental investing. 9k a month is awesome in a year, congrats. It all depends on your risk tolerance, how much you're making, and how much you like your job, but unless I was making a lot of money doing something I loved, I would definitely live off the six figure rental income and reinvest at least half of that each year to keep growing the portfolio. I imagine it will be more and more difficult to maintain both a job and that portfolio as you grow.

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