Investing in real estate has made life more comfortable.

Wisconsin residents John and Jessica’s finances were causing a high level of frustration. “When working in construction especially up north three months of the year there’s not a lot you can do. We were always playing catch up,” John laments.

The “right step”
Investing in real estate seemed like a natural step to help to get their finances in order.
“John has been a brick mason for about 18 years,” Jessica says. “We had been around real estate. The program seemed like it would make a nice springboard.” So they bought Carleton’s course and got involved in the Coaching program. John and Jessica already owned their home, and from there they purchased three properties totaling seven units and have now expanded into vacant land. Because they live in a rural area, their properties are a good 20 minutes from their home.

Uses land contracts
“It works to approach people with a land contract,” Jessica states. “Usually it’s not more than a 12-month balloon on a land contract.” On other occasions, they offer cash and then will refinance the properties and receive cash back. Or they take a couple of months to rehab the property and pull cash out. “Whatever you put down initially will end up coming back to you,” she confides.

Buys below market
“My criteria for properties is that they are below market,” Jessica shares. Her favorite property is a duplex that they bought for $40,000. “The upstairs apartment was finished and also rented, but the owner never finished the downstairs. We put $500 down and said we would like him to hold a note with a 12-month balloon,” she relates.
“Within two months, we had rehabbed the downstairs and got a renter. And then we refinanced and pulled out $17,000 covering all the rehab expenses and putting $9,000 in our pocket.

Turning point
“That was one of the turning points for us. A number of people had told us during our rehab process how impressed they were with how that building had cleaned up.”
Currently, their positive cash flow is just over $1,500 per month, and their net worth is $768,500. John and Jessica have enjoyed sharing their success with their children, and are advising them to start investing in real estate.

A brighter day!
“It has really brightened everything up. Now there’s hope. We can actually realize a retirement. And before our retirement, we can realize a more comfortable way of life!”