Have you ever had an idea brewing in your head for years and then woken up one day and decided—no excuses—you’re going to just do it?

And you do, going so far as to execute it with the fervor you had dreamed about. You’re unstoppable!

This is the attitude I had the day I jumped into real estate full time.

However, after rehabbing a few properties, my progress came to a standstill. I was held up by the second-to-last “R” in the BRRRR strategy—the dreaded “refinance.” I wouldn’t have more cash to deploy in more deals until I was able to refinance.

Limited capital is the single biggest reason newbie investors are unable to scale. But I wanted to avoid knocking on the doors of private lenders or exploring partnerships. To keep growing my real estate portfolio, I had to find more capital within my existing properties.

And I did! How? Through the power of home equity.

In one year, I grew my portfolio from three to 20...