This assistant principal slowly and steadily used home equity to invest, helping him acquire seven properties in just over ten years. These properties have now seen sizable appreciation, and he has hundreds of thousands of dollars in equity, all thanks to taking it slow and making the right moves on the right rental properties. This might be one of the most repeatable paths to wealth out there, and you can copy it to a tee to build wealth, too!

James Likis got his start where many rookie investors do—house hacking. Except it started WAY before he was an adult. James remembers his family house hacking as a kid, which prompted him to buy, not rent, as soon as he started looking for his own place to live. After house hacking for years, he saw his equity grow and later used this one property to buy his dream home, which would help him build even MORE equity.

James has used this equity-recycling strategy to buy over a million dollars worth of real estate, and it all started from ONE house hack. You can do it, too, and like James, you may begin searching for even more affordable housing markets where your dollar can stretch further. Today, he’s sharing how he used his home equity to grow his real estate portfolio, why he decided to invest out of state, and a specific home renovation loan he used to turn his second property into a fully-renovated, high-appreciating family home!

In This Episode We Cover:

Why you DON’T need to rush to build a successful rental property portfolio

Using home equity to invest and cash-out refinances vs. HELOCs

The easiest way to start investing in real estate that rookies should try

Home renovation loans and what you MUST know before using an FHA 203(k) loan

Why focusing on investing for appreciation (not JUST cash flow) will make you wealthy

Long-distance real estate investing and buying in more affordable housing markets

And So Much More!

Links from the Show

Ashley's BiggerPockets Profile

Tony's BiggerPokckets Profile

Join BiggerPockets for FREE

Real Estate Rookie Facebook Group

Invest Out-of-State with “Long-Distance Real Estate Investing”

Property Manager Finder

See Ashley and Tony at BPCON2024 in Cancun!

Home Equity: What It Is, How To Calculate, & How To Use It

Connect with James

Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/rookie-462

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Parental & workplace burnout with Shelley Kemmerer PA-C & Dr. Jaclyn Margolis