414: Financial Independence at 29 by Quitting Rentals to Invest in THIS w/Dillon Leonard

Real Estate Rookie

Do you dream of building a real estate empire and reaching financial independence but stop short due to the “tenants and toilets” problem? The irony wasn't lost on twenty-nine-year-old Dillon Leonard when a renter accidentally burned the roof off one of his properties. This incident, along with several others, prompted him to explore self-storage investing as a way to escape residential rentals while still allowing him exposure to real estate.

Knowing little to nothing about this often-forgotten segment of the market, Dillon sought expert advice by taking local self-storage owners out for coffee. He soon took action on a 12,000 sq. ft. property for around $300,000 and tripled his investment in a year’s time. Encouraged, he scaled his portfolio over the next three years and now receives approximately $70,000 in gross monthly revenue from 800 units!

Dillon’s self-storage success story has allowed him to build a team and implement systems to run day-to-day operations. Not yet thirty, he now enjoys options that many twice his age wish they had, including potentially retiring from the fire department, spending more time with family, and leaving a property package as a legacy. Tune into this episode to explore the nuts and bolts of the self-storage industry as well as the inspiring mindset realizations that Dillon has experienced in his journey!

In This Episode We Cover

Finding financial freedom by investing in often-overlooked assets (like self-storage!)

The exact method Dillon used to find the most lucrative self-storage properties

How to scale in self-storage using a variety of financing methods

The due diligence practices you MUST utilize to be successful

How to know when hiring a team becomes essential – and how to pull it off

Why an entrepreneurial mindset frees you from financial fear no matter what happens

Why it’s never too soon to start crafting your exit strategy

And So Much More!

(00:00) Intro

(01:14) Residential Rental Woes

(05:09) Escaping Tenants & Toilets

(07:38) 1st Self-Storage Deal

(10:34) Financing Self-Storage

(12:53) Self-Storage vs. Rentals

(19:13) Growing His Self-Storage Business

(22:47) Time Management Tips & Tricks

(26:04) Scaling through Creative Financing

(27:50) Hitting Financial Freedom!

(31:09) Acquisitions and Due Diligence

(34:55) Systems and Processes

(37:23) Quitting His Job

Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/rookie-414

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