24-Year-Old Quits "Day Job" to Pursue Lease Options

by Jesse Grote
Columbia, SC

I just turned twenty-four in February, and this March will be one full year I have been investing in real estate. I would say that this whole year is a success story for me. I have already completed two full transactions from start to finish.

I found two lease option deals, and I ended up finding retail buyers for without even renting out the houses. The profits weren't great, only about $10,000 between the two, but I did learn a lot. I bought two rental houses simultaneously by just getting a conventional mortgage on them.

The tricky thing was, I was going through the mortgage process at the same exact time with both of these houses, and I closed on them a few weeks apart, so neither lender saw a huge mortgage on my credit report, which would throw off my debt to income.

Both houses generate about $250 per month positive cash flow, and I have about $45,000 in equity between the two. I have two more lease option deals that will mature in about six months to a year, and I should hopefully net $10,000 to $15,000 on each.

On top of that, I have another property that required a small rehab. I took title to the property and am now selling it outright to a retail buyer. I should net around $30,000 on this house if things go well. You can actually see pictures of some of my houses on my web site that I just created:

I would say lease option deals are my niche. They require little cash, and you can get very creative with them. I'm starting a large direct mailing campaign, and I have been advertising in the local newspapers which have generated most of my deals.

My goal for next year is to do one to two lease options a month and clear at least $10,000 for each. From all this success, I quit my 8-to-5 job about eight months ago and have been a much happier person since.