From Starting Over at 30 to 17 Rentals (and Financial Freedom) 5 Years Later episode artwork

EPISODE · Sep 15, 2025 · 32 MIN

From Starting Over at 30 to 17 Rentals (and Financial Freedom) 5 Years Later

from BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast · host BiggerPockets

At 30, Sarah King was forced to liquidate all her assets after a messy divorce. She had to start over and rebuild any wealth she had acquired, all while being a single mom to her one-year-old. Now, just five years later, she has 17 rental properties and is on track to retire early as a multimillionaire over a decade before traditional retirement age. She did it all with very little money and creatively found ways to invest without having a huge bank account.  And she’s done it all while working full-time. After building up a small rental portfolio with her now ex-husband, Sarah already had some of the skillset to invest in real estate. The problem? Those properties were sold to pay for divorce fees, leaving her with little money, but a basic plan. Her next step? Find a duplex, renovate it to increase the equity, rent out one side, and live in the other, and…repeat. She did a house hack BRRRR (buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat)!  With proof of concept, Sarah went on to repeat this renovation and refinance process, allowing her to scale, with little money, into a sizable rental property portfolio that will pay for her early retirement. Now, she’s got a plan to retire with $6M (yes, you read that right) in assets, and is giving you the framework she’s using to get there so that you can repeat it! In This Episode We Cover How to build a rental property portfolio with little money but a need for financial freedom The best first investment property to start building wealth with (you can do it with kids!) Why you do not need to use your own money to invest in real estate (private money 101) Better than long-term rentals? Why Sarah pivoted to this high-cash-flow strategy  Buying homes for $200,000 (or less) and still raking in serious rental income  And So Much More! Check out more resources from this show on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BiggerPockets.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/real-estate-1174 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At 30, Sarah King was forced to liquidate all her assets after a messy divorce. She had to start over and rebuild any wealth she had acquired, all while being a single mom to her one-year-old. Now, just five years later, she has 17 rental properties and is on track to retire early as a multimillionaire over a decade before traditional retirement age. She did it all with very little money and creatively found ways to invest without having a huge bank account.  And she’s done it all while working full-time. After building up a small rental portfolio with her now ex-husband, Sarah already had some of the skillset to invest in real estate. The problem? Those properties were sold to pay for divorce fees, leaving her with little money, but a basic plan. Her next step? Find a duplex, renovate it to increase the equity, rent out one side, and live in the other, and…repeat. She did a house hack BRRRR (buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat)!  With proof of concept, Sarah went on to repeat this renovation and refinance process, allowing her to scale, with little money, into a sizable rental property portfolio that will pay for her early retirement. Now, she’s got a plan to retire with $6M (yes, you read that right) in assets, and is giving you the framework she’s using to get there so that you can repeat it! In This Episode We Cover How to build a rental property portfolio with little money but a need for financial freedom The best first investment property to start building wealth with (you can do it with kids!) Why you do not need to use your own money to invest in real estate (private money 101) Better than long-term rentals? Why Sarah pivoted to this high-cash-flow strategy  Buying homes for $200,000 (or less) and still raking in serious rental income  And So Much More! Check out more resources from this show on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BiggerPockets.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/real-estate-1174 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NOW PLAYING

From Starting Over at 30 to 17 Rentals (and Financial Freedom) 5 Years Later

0:00 32:54

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

MG Show MG Show The MG Show, hosted by Jeffrey Pedersen and Shannon Townsend, is a leading alternative media platform dedicated to uncovering the truth behind today’s most pressing political issues. Launched in 2019, the show has grown exponentially, offering unfiltered insights, comprehensive research, and real-time analysis. With a commitment to independent journalism and factual integrity, the MG Show empowers its audience with knowledge and encourages active participation in the political discourse. French Your Way Jessica: Native French teacher founder of French Your Way Boost your French listening skills and test your comprehension with this one of a kind series of podcasts. Get the chance to listen to a real conversation between native speakers talking at normal speed AND customise your learning experience through carefully designed sets of questions (2 levels of difficulty) available for download at www.frenchvoicespodcast.com. All interviews also come with the transcript. French teacher Jessica interviews native speakers of French from around the world who share a bit of their life and passion. Where else would you meet in one same place a French yoga teacher based in Melbourne, a soap manufacturer from Provence, or a couple cycling around the world? That Hoarder: Overcome Compulsive Hoarding That Hoarder Hoarding disorder is stigmatised and people who hoard feel vast amounts of shame. This podcast began life as an audio diary, an anonymous outlet for somebody with this weird condition. That Hoarder speaks about her experiences living with compulsive hoarding, she interviews therapists, academics, researchers, children of hoarders, professional organisers and influencers, and she shares insight and tips for others with the problem. Listened to by people who hoard as well as those who love them and those who work with them, Overcome Compulsive Hoarding with That Hoarder aims to shatter the stigma, share the truth and speak openly and honestly to improve lives. The Small Business Startup School – Business Notes | Financial Literacy | Retail Psychology – For Professionals & Entrepreneurs The Small Business Startup School Inc. Starting or buying a small business? While personal circumstances may vary, business patterns remain timeless. On The Small Business Startup School, we explore strategies, insights, and practical solutions to help entrepreneurs confidently navigate their journey.Hosted by Ola Williams—a retail entrepreneur, fintech founder, and financial coach with over two decades of experience—this podcast marries financial awareness and retail psychology with optimism to deliver actionable takeaways.Join us to learn, grow, and connect as we uncover the keys to business success.Let’s continue to learn together and be encouraged to keep on connecting!

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast?

This episode is 32 minutes long.

When was this BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast episode published?

This episode was published on September 15, 2025.

What is this episode about?

At 30, Sarah King was forced to liquidate all her assets after a messy divorce. She had to start over and rebuild any wealth she had acquired, all while being a single mom to her one-year-old. Now, just five years later, she has 17 rental properties...

Can I download this BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast episode?

Yes, you can download this episode by clicking the download button on the episode player, or subscribe to the podcast in your preferred podcast app for automatic downloads.
URL copied to clipboard!