Jobless to 25 Units in 5 Years (My Exact Strategy)

16 snips

Jun 2, 2025

Jared Hottle, a real estate investor who transitioned from being a college football coach, shares his journey to acquiring 25 rental units in just five years. He emphasizes the importance of offline networking, urging listeners to pick up the phone and form local connections. Jared reveals his effective 'driving for dollars' strategy to find off-market deals and discusses the value of estoppel agreements when managing existing tenants. His insights on partnerships and adapting strategies highlight that success in real estate can start without a large online presence.

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ANECDOTE

Jared's Coach-to-Investor Journey

Jared transitioned from a college football coach to a real estate investor after his program was cut and he was introduced to BiggerPockets.
His family's rental background and hands-on experience helped jumpstart his investing journey.

ADVICE

Build Network via Local Meetups

Start a local real estate meetup even if it feels small or unofficial.
This builds your network and personal brand without needing social media presence.

ADVICE

Consistency Grows Meetups' Success

Use local meetups to connect with investors and build your reputation.
Consistency in hosting these events is key to maintaining momentum and relationships.

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You DON’T need a huge network, online presence, or social media following to invest in real estate. This small-town investor got started the old-fashioned way—picking up the phone and pounding the pavement—which helped him scale his real estate portfolio to 25 rental units in just five years. Want his personal playbook? Then stay tuned!

Welcome back to the Real Estate Rookie podcast! When the University of Minnesota Crookston dropped its football program, former offensive coordinator Jared Hottle didn’t know where to turn. After moving back to his home state of Iowa in search of his next career move, a friend introduced him to BiggerPockets. Jared caught the real estate bug, became a licensed agent, and started driving for dollars. It wasn’t long before he had closed on not one but two duplexes—in the same week!

Since then, Jared has scaled to 25 rental units in just a few years. What’s more? He’s done it without a big personal brand, social media presence, or podcast, and prefers to hustle offline and host his own local meetups. In this episode, he’ll share why real estate investing is a “contact sport,” how to use partnerships to grow your portfolio faster, and when to pivot to another investing strategy!

In This Episode We Cover

How Jared built a real estate portfolio with 25 rental units in just FIVE years

How to find off-market deals using the driving for dollars strategy

Estoppel agreements explained (and why you NEED one when inheriting tenants)

How to build your investing network without a strong online presence

The secret to a successful real estate partnership (and how to structure one!)

And So Much More!

Check out more resources from this show on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BiggerPockets.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/rookie-569

Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠advertise@biggerpockets.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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