Bigger Pockets Podcast co-host Henry Washington used a highly sophisticated strategy to finance the purchase of his first investment property — he stumbled blindly into the local bank that was closest to his house.
Washington had been telling people he was a real estate investor for weeks — despite having never invested in real estate before.
Within a few months of putting that out into the Universe, the Universe came back with his first opportunity. A friend who was in a bind offered to sell him a house for well under market if he could close in 30 days.
“Because I had decided I was gonna figure out how to do this, I told him ‘Yes,’” Washington told host Ricci Truong on the Camaplan Podcast, “even though I had no clue how to actually buy that property. I had no clue where the money was gonna come from to buy that property.”
Walking into that local bank ended up being the right choice. The bank loved the deal and asked for 15% down. The deal was so good that it produced positive cash flow almost immediately … and then the bank came calling again, offering to finance more deals like that and offering him a line of credit against the first house for the next down payment.
Acquiring that first investment within 90 days of deciding to be a real estate investor, Washington used the momentum to acquire 70+ properties and perform dozens of house flips in only three and a half years.
It all started with a panic attack over the sorry state of his finances. Prior to becoming a real estate investor, Washington had earned a six-figure salary but had still fallen into the trap of spending more than he earned.
The final indignity came when he was left off the mortgage of the first home he owned with his wife — for fear that his bad credit would jeopardize their approval.
Less than five years later, Washington is financially free thanks to real estate, able to dedicate that free time to raising his two children.
“My kids are small,” he said, “and so I’m fortunate enough that my kids are never gonna know a Daddy that had to get up and go to work every day, right?”
