October 21, 2025 • 23 mins
Will Radosvich was feeling burned out at work and desperate to retire early. The problem? Most of his money was tied up in a 401(k) that he couldn’t touch for years.
Instead of waiting, he decided to create his own path to financial freedom. Will started buying rental properties that produced cash flow, even if it was just a little at first.
His second property only made $50 a month, but it taught him the power of steady progress and the importance of learning as he went.
In this episode, Will shares how he got started with house hacking, how each property brought him closer to his goal, and how his patience and persistence eventually allowed him to walk away from his job for good. His story proves that sometimes, the slow and steady approach really can lead to early retirement.
Thanks To Our Sponsors:
Ridge Lending Group - Making investment Mortgage process simple and stress-free.
MidSouth HomeBuyers – Turnkey Rentals In Memphis & Little Rock. Instant Cash Flow On Day One. (Priced between $100,000 to low $200's)
Rental Accounting Software Made Easy. Free 30 Day Trial.
Instead of waiting, he decided to create his own path to financial freedom. Will started buying rental properties that produced cash flow, even if it was just a little at first.
His second property only made $50 a month, but it taught him the power of steady progress and the importance of learning as he went.
In this episode, Will shares how he got started with house hacking, how each property brought him closer to his goal, and how his patience and persistence eventually allowed him to walk away from his job for good. His story proves that sometimes, the slow and steady approach really can lead to early retirement.
Thanks To Our Sponsors:
Ridge Lending Group - Making investment Mortgage process simple and stress-free.
MidSouth HomeBuyers – Turnkey Rentals In Memphis & Little Rock. Instant Cash Flow On Day One. (Priced between $100,000 to low $200's)
Rental Accounting Software Made Easy. Free 30 Day Trial.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Inspiring interviews with Today is Top Landlords, this is the
Rental Income Podcast, and now.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Damnly Well, one day you came up with a plan
to buy some rental properties and then retire early. Tell
me more.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Yeah, So our plan was, you know, I was working
in the tech industry and was getting a little burned out.
We had saved enough money in our four one ks
and iras to retire, but I wasn't yet fifty nine
and a half and not able to tap into those funds,
and so we were looking for an opportunity to retire
(00:40):
at fifty and to support our lifestyle from age fifty
to sixty, and real estate looked like an opportunity for
us to do that. So we have purchased a number
of properties to basically, you know, provide for that until
sixty when we can tap into our four own ks
(01:01):
and iras.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
On today's episode, Will is going to share with us
how he took the slow and steady approach to build
wealth with rental properties in his twenties and thirties. We'll
focused on saving money. He bought a couple of rental properties,
but not a lot. By the time he was in
his forties, he had enough money saved and the experience
to buy a handful of properties, and those properties produced
(01:26):
enough cash flow for him to retire by the time
he was fifty. On today's episode, we're going to walk
through his story and figure out how he did it.
Joining us on the podcast today from Winchester, Virginia is
wilfrid Asovich. We'll take a quick break to Banker's sponsors.
We'll come right back and we'll talk to Will. Are
you thinking about investing in rental properties? But maybe you
(01:49):
don't know where to start. My friends at mid South
Home Buyers make it simple. For over twenty three years,
they've been selling fully renovated, turnkey rental property parties in
Memphis and Little Rock. We're talking new roofs, plumbing, electric, kitchens, bathrooms.
Everything is brand new and done right. And here's the
(02:10):
best part. Every property comes with a well qualified tenant
in place before you close. That means you get cash
flow from day one. Plus Midsouth continues to professionally manage
the property for you after the sale, and they back
it up with two powerful guarantees. You get a one
year total maintenance warranty and a lifetime occupancy guarantee. Personally.
(02:35):
I've bought five properties from them and I couldn't be happier.
If you want to talk to someone that's been through
the process, feel free to reach out to me. I'm
happy to answer any questions. Or if you're ready to
get started, just go to midsouthhome Buyers dot com. That's
midsouthhome Buyers dot com. It's a lot of work to
find a really good rental property, and when you actually
(02:56):
find that property, you want to make sure you're working
with a lender that can get the loan closed. The
lender that I recommend is jay Lee Ridge from Ridge
Lending Group. She's a nationwide lender and her specialty is
helping investors finance rental properties. She has a ton of
loan programs and she can find something customized to you
for your situation. If you want to find out more
(03:19):
or you're ready to get started today, just go to
Ridge Lendinggroup dot com. That's our Idge Lendinggroup dot com
n MLS four two zero five six. Well, so you
put together a plan to retire at fifty. Did it
work out? Were you actually able to leave your job
at fifty?
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Yes? I was able to leave our job at my
job at fifty and in retrospect, I probably could have
left a few years earlier.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
And how old are you now?
Speaker 1 (03:50):
Fifty six?
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Okay, so you've been doing this for a few years
and everything is working out right.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
That's right? Yeah, all right?
Speaker 2 (03:58):
So you came up with this plan at forty three
and were you just not happy with your job, like
you just wanted to take it out of working.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Yeah. I'd been working in you know, corporate into corporate life,
working twelve to fourteen hours a day, six days a week,
and so it was, you know, it was a pretty
heavy load, and I was looking for an opportunity to
skill back on the hours and to start you know,
living living a decent life.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
And so walk me through how the plan came together.
So did you decide, Okay, I need X amount of money,
I'm going to need to buy X amount of properties?
Like how how did you actually come up with the plan?
Speaker 1 (04:43):
Yeah, so I think so, I, you know, just to
use some rough numbers. These aren't the actual numbers, but
just let's say I needed one hundred thousand dollars to
uh replace you know, my current income and to you know,
live the life that I'm living. We looked at we're
paying cash for all of these properties, and so we
(05:04):
assume that we'd be making twelve to fifteen thousand dollars
a year profit on each of those each of those properties.
And so we determined that we would need x x
number of properties, and that's what we set out to do.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
And as far as paying cash, Like, how did you
save that money? Was it just putting money aside from
your day job?
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Yeah, that's right, that's what we did.
Speaker 2 (05:29):
Okay, awesome, all right, Well, let's let's talk about your
portfolio and kind of walk through how you did this.
So tell me about your portfolio today.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
Yeah, so today we have nine town homes and one duplex.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
All right, and all right, so let's kind of take
a step back and figure out how you got to
where you are. How old were you when you bought
your first property?
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Yeah? Well, I bought my first home that I lived
in at the age of twenty four, and I actually
rented out my two two vacant bedrooms, and so that's
sort of how I started in the rental business by
renting out bedrooms in my own home. Okay, I did that.
I did that for you know, six or seven years,
(06:22):
and decided you know, in my early thirties at thirty one,
to buy my first rental condo.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Okay, so when when you were house hacking, you bought
that that first property, what was your Well, this is
way before you actually came up with a plan that
It almost sounds like this is just something you thought
would be a good idea to help you cover the mortgage.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Yeah, that's right. So for my personal home, it was
primarily to help me cover my mortgage and that worked
out well. And then in my you know, in my
early thirties, at thirty one, I bought my first condo.
In my objective was really to put a little bit
of money down and purchase the property and put a
(07:06):
tenant in the property and have the tenant pay off
that mortgage over the next thirty years. So when I retired,
you know, I had I had an extra asset, and
so I bought a town home or a condo at
thirty one, and I bought a townhouse at age thirty
four with the same the same thought in mind.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
So you weren't thinking about cash flow at this point.
It was just you're going to buy a property, You're
going to rent it out, that the rent is going
to pay the mortgage and in thirty years you'll have
an asset that's going to produce cash flow.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
Then yeah, that's right. I think I was hoping to
maybe make fifty to one hundred dollars a month, just
cover any unexpected expenses. But yeah, my primary, my primary
objective at that time was to put a little bit
of money down and to have a tenant payoff that
asset for me, so i'd have it there when I
retired at sixty.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Now, a long time went by between buying that first
property and then buying your first rental about six years.
It seems like what in that period when you were
doing the House Act, did you think about buying more
properties or like what made you wait six years?
Speaker 1 (08:16):
Yeah, I mean I actually thought about it, but I
was so busy with work I really didn't have time
to act on it. And so that's primarily why it
took so long to purchase the first real rental property.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
And everything worked out with that first property. The tenants
paid rant. You didn't have any big problems.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
No, no big problems. It worked out just as plan.
Made sure I had you know, qualified tenants in there,
and it worked out very well for us.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
All right, and then when did you buy your next property?
Speaker 1 (08:53):
The second property was at age thirty four, and you
know that was that was the same philosophy, was to
purchase that and have a tenant paid off by the
time I retired.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
Okay, So I mean I don't think that's a bad strategy.
I mean, today, looking back at it, are you glad
you did that? You know, because it's like today it
seems like we're focused on a lot of investors are
focused on cash flow, and your properties didn't necessarily cash flow,
(09:30):
but it got you in the game. Like, do you
feel like that was a good move or a bad move?
Or would you do that again today if you were
doing this over again.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
Yeah, I think that's a good move. And you know,
if I if I look at it, you know, if
I had just purchased those just those two properties and
did nothing else, I would be in a much better
place when I retired. I'd have to paid off properties.
They'd be both cash flowing. You know, maybe additional money
(10:03):
is coming in every month for me. So even if
I just did those two rentals, I think it would
be a good thing. In retrospect, I wish I had
done more of that. Back in my early thirties.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
Just because the properties have appreciated and everything has worked out.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Yeah, that's right. Copies of appreciated rents have gone up.
You know, it would have been great investments.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Do you still have those properties today?
Speaker 1 (10:29):
I have one of them. I sold the condo. I
did a ten thirty one exchange. I entered into a
new geographic area, and primarily because I could purchase a
property at a lower price and get more cash flows.
So essentially I doubled the cash flow by selling that
rental condo and buying two town homes in a different
(10:51):
geographic area.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Okay, so you took that appreciation and you moved it
to an asset that was just producing more cash.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
That's right, two different apps. That's that's right.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
Okay. So all right, so you you had two rentals
at this point. Did you buy any more rentals that
were following this strategy? Or was that it?
Speaker 1 (11:14):
That was it?
Speaker 2 (11:14):
Okay?
Speaker 1 (11:15):
That was it? And it wasn't until you know, I
was in my early to mid forties that and when
I was considering retiring early, we decided to, you know,
take some of the cash that we have saved up
from our jobs, and we purchased you know, five more
town homes, a duplex, and an orient apartment building. You know,
(11:35):
over over a three year period of time.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Wow, Okay, that that's a lot. And so did did
that seem? I guess like what changed? Like what made
you want to buy so many properties in such a
short period of time where it seems like up until
this point a long time had passed between buying properties.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Yeah. I think there are two things that change changed. One,
you know, one was our our decision and desire to
retire early, and the second was the timing of the market.
We purchased, you know, these additional properties after the two
thousand and eight financial crisis, So around the twenty eleven
(12:19):
twenty thirteen time frame, we we purchased these properties and
they were distressed, they were for closures, and so we
purchased them for a fairly cheap amount of money between
fifteen seventy thousand dollars, and my wife and I we
fixed them up ourselves family in about a six week
timeframe and we rented them out.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
Now, I think what's interesting here is at this point
when you when the financial crisis came along, prices were
on sale. This is now twenty years after you bought
that first property, So it's like you had twenty years
of experience managing properties and knowing the numbers and figuring
(13:03):
things out. Do you feel like that those early days
really prepared you so that when opportunities were coming around,
you were ready to go.
Speaker 1 (13:15):
Yeah. I think that's exactly right. I you know, we
we had had a lot of time to understand what
it meant to be a landlord, and we felt comfortable
being landlords, and we had seen a lot, you know,
both good times and bad times, and so I think
(13:37):
when the opportunity presented itself after the you know, two
thousand and eight time frame, we were in a really
good position. We understood the business, we had some financial
resources to purchase properties for cash, and we were able to, uh,
we were able to put offers in on properties that
we desired.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Now. I know, back then there were a ton of foreclosures.
So is that what you were buying?
Speaker 1 (14:01):
That's pretty much what we were buying for closures, and
I think we had one or two short sales that
we purchased.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Did the properties need a lot of work?
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Most of them did. Yes, it didn't require some work,
so it helped also that we you know, we had
done quite a bit of work on our own home
and on the two rentals that we had, and so
we were comfortable doing that type of work ourselves.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
Okay, so you didn't have any contractors, like I guess
on the weekends you would just work on work on
these properties.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
Yep, that's right.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
So now was it scary at all? Because you know,
it's like, thinking back to two thousand and eight, the
world almost felt like it was ending, that there was
there was just a lot of uncertainty in the world
back then. Did you feel any of that, Like, were
you scared to make so many purchases when you don't
(14:58):
know if unemployment is going to be fifty percent and
you're gonna have a hard time renting these Like what
was that a thought that crossed your mind?
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Yeah? I think it was a little scary back then.
And we didn't just go buy all of those properties
all at once. We you know, we bought one townhouse
first in this area, this new area for us and
fix it up, and we surprisingly had about fifty applications
coming and I think that showed us that there was
(15:31):
still a there was still a market for rentals, and
so that coupled with the fact that we really focused
on the question of the downside. You know, what would
happen if if the property we purchased was vacant for
a year, could we you know, could we fund that?
And so we're fortunate to find properties in areas where
(15:54):
they had low taxes, you know, very minimal HOA f
insurance was reasonable and so our total carrying costs on
these properties were probably about fifteen hundred dollars a year
and that was something we felt we could manage if
we weren't able to place tenants in the properties and
hope that the good times would come back.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
And they obviously did, and yeah, everything everything worked out.
So now, so you were in your early forties, about
like forty three forty four when you were buying these properties,
and then you didn't retire till fifties, So like what
changed between when you bought the properties and when you
(16:34):
actually retired.
Speaker 1 (16:37):
Well, I guess, you know, the economy got a lot better,
it was more stable, and so the appreciation of the
properties was pretty significant. You know. At the same time,
the rents went up. So we went from two thousand
and eight financial crisis to twenty nineteen COVID pre COVID
(17:01):
area era COVID era, and rents at least in our
area nearly doubled, and so and so those were good
things for us in terms of our net worth and
also the cash flow that we were receiving from these properties.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
Okay, so the cash flow when you bought it wasn't
enough money to leave your job, but then over time,
with the rents going up, that's what got you there.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
That's right, Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 2 (17:28):
So then when you did you just look one day,
look at your portfolio and say, Okay, we've got X
amount of rents coming in. We need X amount of
money to live. I think we can do this. Like
was it as simple as the numbers just kind of
worked at that point or did it take a lot
of thought? Meaning because like, leaving your job is a
(17:51):
pretty big commitment, Like what was it? Was it easy
to do?
Speaker 1 (17:56):
No? It was not easy. It was actually pretty scary.
I had to run the numbers myself, and they looked good.
I didn't trust myself because I'm not a financial advisor,
and so I ran a number of calculators, using financial
calculators on the internet. They all said the same thing.
(18:17):
That by calculations said, I still wasn't satisfied, and so
I hired a financial advisor. I don't recall what I
paid at May even five hundred dollars, seven hundred and
fifty dollars, and they ran the numbers for me. It
wasn't until you know, I had a professional helme that
we were financially independent and we could actually retire that
(18:40):
we made that decision to retire early.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
Now, what about healthcare? I mean, so you're getting health
insurance through your job, and now that you're going to
be self employed, you're not going to get health care anymore.
So what are you doing for that?
Speaker 1 (18:54):
Yeah, that's a great question. That's actually our largest single
expense in retirement run COBRA from my employer after we're retired.
So that's something good, I think for eighteen months. And
so at this point, we're on the Affordable Care Act
plan and it's actually pretty expensive. Just for my wife
(19:14):
and myself, it's about fifteen hundred dollars a month. Wow,
And that's our single largest expense. And so I would
caution anyone to think about retiring early to really consider
that expense and whether they can afford. Yeah, that's what
we're doing at this point.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Yeah, that is Yeah, that is a really big thing
to consider because, yeah, I mean, health insurance is expensive
and you definitely need it. So that's good. So how
has everything worked out for you? Like, have there been
any months where maybe you have a couple of vacancies
or a big expense with the rental and maybe things
(19:55):
have been a little tight or has everything gone pretty smoothly?
Speaker 1 (20:00):
Well, financially, everything's gone very smoothly, you know, with we
have had situations where we've had rentals open, you know,
for major repairs, so maybe eight months actually, which is
quite a long time. But because we've had so many rentals,
(20:21):
it's been okay for us. We haven't add any financial issues.
Speaker 2 (20:24):
That's great. Now, what advice would you give to someone
that wants to do what you've done? You know, obviously
the financial crisis definitely helped you out, and you know
that's probably a once in a lifetime thing. I don't
know if something like that would ever happen again. But like,
what advice would you give for someone in today's market
(20:48):
to do what you've done?
Speaker 1 (20:50):
Yeah, that's that's a good question. I think the advice
I would give is to if you're younger, to really
consider real estate within your portfolio, that that time is
your friend, that properties will continue to appreciate over time,
that rents will increase over time, and that that it
(21:13):
is that it is an asset that can help you
retire early. I would warn though, that you have to,
you know, make sure that the numbers work, that that
if you're purchasing a property, you want to see a
little bit of cash flow, I think when you're younger,
and also that you sort of want to know the business.
(21:34):
You want to do the fundamentals. Make sure you buy
a property in a good neighborhood, that you do your
screening of tenants. That's very important to make sure you
have the right tenant in there and they're able to pay.
But that over time that these these are appreciating assets.
And you know, if I was to tell myself, you know,
if I could go back, I I probably would have
you know, purchased more than two of them. In my
(21:56):
you know, my twenties, I may purchase five of them
or ten of them.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
Even even with the numbers not really working, like you
where you weren't really making money, Like looking back on it,
after all these years, you still would have bought more properties.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
I would have. Yeah, I don't think I would have.
You know, I would have made sure there was a
little bit of cash one hundred dollars a month or
something with that tenant, with that tenant paying my mortgage.
I think given the fact that those properties have appreciated
in value and that the rents have gone up significantly
since I purchased him, I think I would have done
(22:35):
more earlier in my life.
Speaker 2 (22:37):
What a great story. It really just illustrates the power
of time with rental property investing, just buying properties, letting
rents go up over time, letting properties appreciate, and it's
really incredible what you can accomplish over a long period
of time with rental properties. Well, if will inspired you
and you're ready to buy your first property where you
(23:00):
want to add to your portfolio, reach out to our sponsor,
Jailey Ridge. She's a nationwide lender. She has a ton
of different loan programs and she can find something that
works for you. And right now she's offering a free
thirty minute strategy session to help you get your rental
property portfolio figured out. If you want to take advantage
(23:22):
of that, just go to Ridgelendinggroup dot com NMLS four
two zero five six. Thank you so much for checking
out the podcast today. Make sure you hit the follow button.
I put out a new interview every single Tuesday, and
if you're following the podcast, you'll get notified when the
next episode comes out. My name is Dan Lane and
(23:45):
this has been the Rental Income Podcast
Inspiring interviews with Today is Top Landlords, this is the
Rental Income Podcast, and now.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Damnly Well, one day you came up with a plan
to buy some rental properties and then retire early. Tell
me more.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Yeah, So our plan was, you know, I was working
in the tech industry and was getting a little burned out.
We had saved enough money in our four one ks
and iras to retire, but I wasn't yet fifty nine
and a half and not able to tap into those funds,
and so we were looking for an opportunity to retire
(00:40):
at fifty and to support our lifestyle from age fifty
to sixty, and real estate looked like an opportunity for
us to do that. So we have purchased a number
of properties to basically, you know, provide for that until
sixty when we can tap into our four own ks
(01:01):
and iras.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
On today's episode, Will is going to share with us
how he took the slow and steady approach to build
wealth with rental properties in his twenties and thirties. We'll
focused on saving money. He bought a couple of rental properties,
but not a lot. By the time he was in
his forties, he had enough money saved and the experience
to buy a handful of properties, and those properties produced
(01:26):
enough cash flow for him to retire by the time
he was fifty. On today's episode, we're going to walk
through his story and figure out how he did it.
Joining us on the podcast today from Winchester, Virginia is
wilfrid Asovich. We'll take a quick break to Banker's sponsors.
We'll come right back and we'll talk to Will. Are
you thinking about investing in rental properties? But maybe you
(01:49):
don't know where to start. My friends at mid South
Home Buyers make it simple. For over twenty three years,
they've been selling fully renovated, turnkey rental property parties in
Memphis and Little Rock. We're talking new roofs, plumbing, electric, kitchens, bathrooms.
Everything is brand new and done right. And here's the
(02:10):
best part. Every property comes with a well qualified tenant
in place before you close. That means you get cash
flow from day one. Plus Midsouth continues to professionally manage
the property for you after the sale, and they back
it up with two powerful guarantees. You get a one
year total maintenance warranty and a lifetime occupancy guarantee. Personally.
(02:35):
I've bought five properties from them and I couldn't be happier.
If you want to talk to someone that's been through
the process, feel free to reach out to me. I'm
happy to answer any questions. Or if you're ready to
get started, just go to midsouthhome Buyers dot com. That's
midsouthhome Buyers dot com. It's a lot of work to
find a really good rental property, and when you actually
(02:56):
find that property, you want to make sure you're working
with a lender that can get the loan closed. The
lender that I recommend is jay Lee Ridge from Ridge
Lending Group. She's a nationwide lender and her specialty is
helping investors finance rental properties. She has a ton of
loan programs and she can find something customized to you
for your situation. If you want to find out more
(03:19):
or you're ready to get started today, just go to
Ridge Lendinggroup dot com. That's our Idge Lendinggroup dot com
n MLS four two zero five six. Well, so you
put together a plan to retire at fifty. Did it
work out? Were you actually able to leave your job
at fifty?
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Yes? I was able to leave our job at my
job at fifty and in retrospect, I probably could have
left a few years earlier.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
And how old are you now?
Speaker 1 (03:50):
Fifty six?
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Okay, so you've been doing this for a few years
and everything is working out right.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
That's right? Yeah, all right?
Speaker 2 (03:58):
So you came up with this plan at forty three
and were you just not happy with your job, like
you just wanted to take it out of working.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Yeah. I'd been working in you know, corporate into corporate life,
working twelve to fourteen hours a day, six days a week,
and so it was, you know, it was a pretty
heavy load, and I was looking for an opportunity to
skill back on the hours and to start you know,
living living a decent life.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
And so walk me through how the plan came together.
So did you decide, Okay, I need X amount of money,
I'm going to need to buy X amount of properties?
Like how how did you actually come up with the plan?
Speaker 1 (04:43):
Yeah, so I think so, I, you know, just to
use some rough numbers. These aren't the actual numbers, but
just let's say I needed one hundred thousand dollars to
uh replace you know, my current income and to you know,
live the life that I'm living. We looked at we're
paying cash for all of these properties, and so we
(05:04):
assume that we'd be making twelve to fifteen thousand dollars
a year profit on each of those each of those properties.
And so we determined that we would need x x
number of properties, and that's what we set out to do.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
And as far as paying cash, Like, how did you
save that money? Was it just putting money aside from
your day job?
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Yeah, that's right, that's what we did.
Speaker 2 (05:29):
Okay, awesome, all right, Well, let's let's talk about your
portfolio and kind of walk through how you did this.
So tell me about your portfolio today.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
Yeah, so today we have nine town homes and one duplex.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
All right, and all right, so let's kind of take
a step back and figure out how you got to
where you are. How old were you when you bought
your first property?
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Yeah? Well, I bought my first home that I lived
in at the age of twenty four, and I actually
rented out my two two vacant bedrooms, and so that's
sort of how I started in the rental business by
renting out bedrooms in my own home. Okay, I did that.
I did that for you know, six or seven years,
(06:22):
and decided you know, in my early thirties at thirty one,
to buy my first rental condo.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Okay, so when when you were house hacking, you bought
that that first property, what was your Well, this is
way before you actually came up with a plan that
It almost sounds like this is just something you thought
would be a good idea to help you cover the mortgage.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Yeah, that's right. So for my personal home, it was
primarily to help me cover my mortgage and that worked
out well. And then in my you know, in my
early thirties, at thirty one, I bought my first condo.
In my objective was really to put a little bit
of money down and purchase the property and put a
(07:06):
tenant in the property and have the tenant pay off
that mortgage over the next thirty years. So when I retired,
you know, I had I had an extra asset, and
so I bought a town home or a condo at
thirty one, and I bought a townhouse at age thirty
four with the same the same thought in mind.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
So you weren't thinking about cash flow at this point.
It was just you're going to buy a property, You're
going to rent it out, that the rent is going
to pay the mortgage and in thirty years you'll have
an asset that's going to produce cash flow.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
Then yeah, that's right. I think I was hoping to
maybe make fifty to one hundred dollars a month, just
cover any unexpected expenses. But yeah, my primary, my primary
objective at that time was to put a little bit
of money down and to have a tenant payoff that
asset for me, so i'd have it there when I
retired at sixty.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Now, a long time went by between buying that first
property and then buying your first rental about six years.
It seems like what in that period when you were
doing the House Act, did you think about buying more
properties or like what made you wait six years?
Speaker 1 (08:16):
Yeah, I mean I actually thought about it, but I
was so busy with work I really didn't have time
to act on it. And so that's primarily why it
took so long to purchase the first real rental property.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
And everything worked out with that first property. The tenants
paid rant. You didn't have any big problems.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
No, no big problems. It worked out just as plan.
Made sure I had you know, qualified tenants in there,
and it worked out very well for us.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
All right, and then when did you buy your next property?
Speaker 1 (08:53):
The second property was at age thirty four, and you
know that was that was the same philosophy, was to
purchase that and have a tenant paid off by the
time I retired.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
Okay, So I mean I don't think that's a bad strategy.
I mean, today, looking back at it, are you glad
you did that? You know, because it's like today it
seems like we're focused on a lot of investors are
focused on cash flow, and your properties didn't necessarily cash flow,
(09:30):
but it got you in the game. Like, do you
feel like that was a good move or a bad move?
Or would you do that again today if you were
doing this over again.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
Yeah, I think that's a good move. And you know,
if I if I look at it, you know, if
I had just purchased those just those two properties and
did nothing else, I would be in a much better
place when I retired. I'd have to paid off properties.
They'd be both cash flowing. You know, maybe additional money
(10:03):
is coming in every month for me. So even if
I just did those two rentals, I think it would
be a good thing. In retrospect, I wish I had
done more of that. Back in my early thirties.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
Just because the properties have appreciated and everything has worked out.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Yeah, that's right. Copies of appreciated rents have gone up.
You know, it would have been great investments.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Do you still have those properties today?
Speaker 1 (10:29):
I have one of them. I sold the condo. I
did a ten thirty one exchange. I entered into a
new geographic area, and primarily because I could purchase a
property at a lower price and get more cash flows.
So essentially I doubled the cash flow by selling that
rental condo and buying two town homes in a different
(10:51):
geographic area.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Okay, so you took that appreciation and you moved it
to an asset that was just producing more cash.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
That's right, two different apps. That's that's right.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
Okay. So all right, so you you had two rentals
at this point. Did you buy any more rentals that
were following this strategy? Or was that it?
Speaker 1 (11:14):
That was it?
Speaker 2 (11:14):
Okay?
Speaker 1 (11:15):
That was it? And it wasn't until you know, I
was in my early to mid forties that and when
I was considering retiring early, we decided to, you know,
take some of the cash that we have saved up
from our jobs, and we purchased you know, five more
town homes, a duplex, and an orient apartment building. You know,
(11:35):
over over a three year period of time.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Wow, Okay, that that's a lot. And so did did
that seem? I guess like what changed? Like what made
you want to buy so many properties in such a
short period of time where it seems like up until
this point a long time had passed between buying properties.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Yeah. I think there are two things that change changed. One,
you know, one was our our decision and desire to
retire early, and the second was the timing of the market.
We purchased, you know, these additional properties after the two
thousand and eight financial crisis, So around the twenty eleven
(12:19):
twenty thirteen time frame, we we purchased these properties and
they were distressed, they were for closures, and so we
purchased them for a fairly cheap amount of money between
fifteen seventy thousand dollars, and my wife and I we
fixed them up ourselves family in about a six week
timeframe and we rented them out.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
Now, I think what's interesting here is at this point
when you when the financial crisis came along, prices were
on sale. This is now twenty years after you bought
that first property, So it's like you had twenty years
of experience managing properties and knowing the numbers and figuring
(13:03):
things out. Do you feel like that those early days
really prepared you so that when opportunities were coming around,
you were ready to go.
Speaker 1 (13:15):
Yeah. I think that's exactly right. I you know, we
we had had a lot of time to understand what
it meant to be a landlord, and we felt comfortable
being landlords, and we had seen a lot, you know,
both good times and bad times, and so I think
(13:37):
when the opportunity presented itself after the you know, two
thousand and eight time frame, we were in a really
good position. We understood the business, we had some financial
resources to purchase properties for cash, and we were able to, uh,
we were able to put offers in on properties that
we desired.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Now. I know, back then there were a ton of foreclosures.
So is that what you were buying?
Speaker 1 (14:01):
That's pretty much what we were buying for closures, and
I think we had one or two short sales that
we purchased.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Did the properties need a lot of work?
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Most of them did. Yes, it didn't require some work,
so it helped also that we you know, we had
done quite a bit of work on our own home
and on the two rentals that we had, and so
we were comfortable doing that type of work ourselves.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
Okay, so you didn't have any contractors, like I guess
on the weekends you would just work on work on
these properties.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
Yep, that's right.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
So now was it scary at all? Because you know,
it's like, thinking back to two thousand and eight, the
world almost felt like it was ending, that there was
there was just a lot of uncertainty in the world
back then. Did you feel any of that, Like, were
you scared to make so many purchases when you don't
(14:58):
know if unemployment is going to be fifty percent and
you're gonna have a hard time renting these Like what
was that a thought that crossed your mind?
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Yeah? I think it was a little scary back then.
And we didn't just go buy all of those properties
all at once. We you know, we bought one townhouse
first in this area, this new area for us and
fix it up, and we surprisingly had about fifty applications
coming and I think that showed us that there was
(15:31):
still a there was still a market for rentals, and
so that coupled with the fact that we really focused
on the question of the downside. You know, what would
happen if if the property we purchased was vacant for
a year, could we you know, could we fund that?
And so we're fortunate to find properties in areas where
(15:54):
they had low taxes, you know, very minimal HOA f
insurance was reasonable and so our total carrying costs on
these properties were probably about fifteen hundred dollars a year
and that was something we felt we could manage if
we weren't able to place tenants in the properties and
hope that the good times would come back.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
And they obviously did, and yeah, everything everything worked out.
So now, so you were in your early forties, about
like forty three forty four when you were buying these properties,
and then you didn't retire till fifties, So like what
changed between when you bought the properties and when you
(16:34):
actually retired.
Speaker 1 (16:37):
Well, I guess, you know, the economy got a lot better,
it was more stable, and so the appreciation of the
properties was pretty significant. You know. At the same time,
the rents went up. So we went from two thousand
and eight financial crisis to twenty nineteen COVID pre COVID
(17:01):
area era COVID era, and rents at least in our
area nearly doubled, and so and so those were good
things for us in terms of our net worth and
also the cash flow that we were receiving from these properties.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
Okay, so the cash flow when you bought it wasn't
enough money to leave your job, but then over time,
with the rents going up, that's what got you there.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
That's right, Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 2 (17:28):
So then when you did you just look one day,
look at your portfolio and say, Okay, we've got X
amount of rents coming in. We need X amount of
money to live. I think we can do this. Like
was it as simple as the numbers just kind of
worked at that point or did it take a lot
of thought? Meaning because like, leaving your job is a
(17:51):
pretty big commitment, Like what was it? Was it easy
to do?
Speaker 1 (17:56):
No? It was not easy. It was actually pretty scary.
I had to run the numbers myself, and they looked good.
I didn't trust myself because I'm not a financial advisor,
and so I ran a number of calculators, using financial
calculators on the internet. They all said the same thing.
(18:17):
That by calculations said, I still wasn't satisfied, and so
I hired a financial advisor. I don't recall what I
paid at May even five hundred dollars, seven hundred and
fifty dollars, and they ran the numbers for me. It
wasn't until you know, I had a professional helme that
we were financially independent and we could actually retire that
(18:40):
we made that decision to retire early.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
Now, what about healthcare? I mean, so you're getting health
insurance through your job, and now that you're going to
be self employed, you're not going to get health care anymore.
So what are you doing for that?
Speaker 1 (18:54):
Yeah, that's a great question. That's actually our largest single
expense in retirement run COBRA from my employer after we're retired.
So that's something good, I think for eighteen months. And
so at this point, we're on the Affordable Care Act
plan and it's actually pretty expensive. Just for my wife
(19:14):
and myself, it's about fifteen hundred dollars a month. Wow,
And that's our single largest expense. And so I would
caution anyone to think about retiring early to really consider
that expense and whether they can afford. Yeah, that's what
we're doing at this point.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Yeah, that is Yeah, that is a really big thing
to consider because, yeah, I mean, health insurance is expensive
and you definitely need it. So that's good. So how
has everything worked out for you? Like, have there been
any months where maybe you have a couple of vacancies
or a big expense with the rental and maybe things
(19:55):
have been a little tight or has everything gone pretty smoothly?
Speaker 1 (20:00):
Well, financially, everything's gone very smoothly, you know, with we
have had situations where we've had rentals open, you know,
for major repairs, so maybe eight months actually, which is
quite a long time. But because we've had so many rentals,
(20:21):
it's been okay for us. We haven't add any financial issues.
Speaker 2 (20:24):
That's great. Now, what advice would you give to someone
that wants to do what you've done? You know, obviously
the financial crisis definitely helped you out, and you know
that's probably a once in a lifetime thing. I don't
know if something like that would ever happen again. But like,
what advice would you give for someone in today's market
(20:48):
to do what you've done?
Speaker 1 (20:50):
Yeah, that's that's a good question. I think the advice
I would give is to if you're younger, to really
consider real estate within your portfolio, that that time is
your friend, that properties will continue to appreciate over time,
that rents will increase over time, and that that it
(21:13):
is that it is an asset that can help you
retire early. I would warn though, that you have to,
you know, make sure that the numbers work, that that
if you're purchasing a property, you want to see a
little bit of cash flow, I think when you're younger,
and also that you sort of want to know the business.
(21:34):
You want to do the fundamentals. Make sure you buy
a property in a good neighborhood, that you do your
screening of tenants. That's very important to make sure you
have the right tenant in there and they're able to pay.
But that over time that these these are appreciating assets.
And you know, if I was to tell myself, you know,
if I could go back, I I probably would have
you know, purchased more than two of them. In my
(21:56):
you know, my twenties, I may purchase five of them
or ten of them.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
Even even with the numbers not really working, like you
where you weren't really making money, Like looking back on it,
after all these years, you still would have bought more properties.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
I would have. Yeah, I don't think I would have.
You know, I would have made sure there was a
little bit of cash one hundred dollars a month or
something with that tenant, with that tenant paying my mortgage.
I think given the fact that those properties have appreciated
in value and that the rents have gone up significantly
since I purchased him, I think I would have done
(22:35):
more earlier in my life.
Speaker 2 (22:37):
What a great story. It really just illustrates the power
of time with rental property investing, just buying properties, letting
rents go up over time, letting properties appreciate, and it's
really incredible what you can accomplish over a long period
of time with rental properties. Well, if will inspired you
and you're ready to buy your first property where you
(23:00):
want to add to your portfolio, reach out to our sponsor,
Jailey Ridge. She's a nationwide lender. She has a ton
of different loan programs and she can find something that
works for you. And right now she's offering a free
thirty minute strategy session to help you get your rental
property portfolio figured out. If you want to take advantage
(23:22):
of that, just go to Ridgelendinggroup dot com NMLS four
two zero five six. Thank you so much for checking
out the podcast today. Make sure you hit the follow button.
I put out a new interview every single Tuesday, and
if you're following the podcast, you'll get notified when the
next episode comes out. My name is Dan Lane and
(23:45):
this has been the Rental Income Podcast
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