Every investor wants all their properties to be loaded with high cash flow, but that’s usually not the case. Realistic expectations are essential to the longevity of your career and the maximization of your investments. Progress over perfection should always be the goal. As today’s guest, Ali Garced, stated, “progress is progress, and it will eventually add up”. Given that her dad is an investor, Ali has always been exposed to real estate, but it wasn’t until she was in the military that she decided to pursue it for herself. Once she realized how great of a resource VA loans are, Ali was determined to buy a house for herself. She purchased a house through the MLS but had to deploy before moving in, so that gave her another opportunity—renting it out. While it had seemed like a great idea, Ali later learned about the 1% rule and realized she was merely evening out after expenses and had no cash flow. This left her questioning if real estate was for her until she checked the appreciation of the house last year. From 2016 to 2021, Ali was shocked to find that the house appreciated double the price. Her unintentional buy and hold profited more than what she wanted to get from renting—a very pleasant surprise. Since then, Ali has invested in four other properties, including an out-of-state turnkey and a duplex. While none of these properties have been a “home run”, Ali is more than thankful for her “base hits” because they helped her build wealth faster than she imagined. Turns out that it’s hard to not make money when buying the right real estate! In This Episode We Cover The VA loan and how it’s an incredible resource for military families  The 1% rule and why it’s an important calculation to make when deciding on future or current investments Property management vs self-management and how to decide between the two The importance of having the right permits and how to check them The classic buy and hold method and how to make a profit with minimal work And So Much More! Links from the Show Real Estate Rookie Youtube Channel Ashley's Instagram Tony's Instagram Real Estate Rookie Facebook Group BiggerPockets Instagram Sara's Instagram BiggerPockets Calculator MLS Airbnb BiggerPockets Bootcamp Check out the full show notes here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/rookie155 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices