16. Humble, house hacking roots to FI before 30 with a solid pile of cash allowing him to work on what he loves (hint, a new PODCAST!) | Felipe Mejia
Whether you have just started learning about real estate investing, or have been in the game for a while, you’ve probably heard the name Felipe Mejia. Today I got to pick his brain about everything from his beginnings in real estate, what he looks for when buying a property, his personal finances, bitcoin, and credit repair (we truly talked about ALL the things in this one). Shortly after his parents’ divorce, Felipe saw the power in real estate firsthand when his Mom converted her basement to pay her mortgage. He talks about his adventures in mobile homes and a giant flood that became a $30,000 blessing. As we walk through his journey, we get into the nitty gritty of getting started in real estate: the importance of becoming bankable, forming your LLC early and why you probably shouldn’t quit your w2 job just yet. Felipe recalls going “all in” with a cash buy in Nashville that snowballed into the 20 units he has today. He explains the moment that led him to discovering his “WHY” and how it shaped his investing decisions going forward. We discuss the benefits of leveraging a line of credit to grow your portfolio quickly without a conventional mortgage and the strategy he used to get one. Felipe runs down his list of what he looks for in his properties and shares some sage advice about plumbing that he will never forget. Switching gears, I ask Felipe the details on how he and his wife run their personal finances AND find out that he keeps a whole lot of cash on hand. He tells me about starting his new podcast, Rat Race to Financial Independence, and how he hopes to bring more diversity into the real estate conversation. We don’t agree on everything, but I love to hear his take on investing and cryptocurrency (I’ll stick to my long- term investing, thank you!) and how real estate and stock market investing are more similar than you think. This conversation was a fun one, and I know you’ll appreciate the wisdom Felipe shares for newbies and seasoned investors alike. Enjoy the episode! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/nerdsguidetofi/support