We got married in 1998 and rented our first apartment together in West Los Angeles. We began investing in Real Estate in 2001 with the purchase of our first townhouse in Encino. A year later, we bought the lot on which we eventually built our first home in Big Bear. In 2001, the real estate market was very similar to the current market. Prices were down from previous years and interest rates were low (although not nearly as low as they are today). At the time, our interest rate was 7.75%, but the price was still low. Even after paying taxes and HOA fees, we were only paying a little more than what we had been paying for rent.
That townhouse in Encino and the lot in Big Bear were the beginning of a string of real estate investments (including several in Texas, Florida, Burbank, San Diego, and Hawaii) that eventually allowed us to quit our 9-5 jobs and move to our “vacation home” in Big Bear. We now live off of the income from our investments and are able to spend time helping others find properties that will not only provide years of enjoyment for their families, but hopefully also lead them to the kind of financial freedom that we have found through Real Estate in San Diego, Big Bear, and beyond.