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Beyond Just Numbers

A Journey to Financial Freedom

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My Story

Hi, I’m Kat!

Hi! I’m Kat, and I’m a “retired” CPA. I ditched my 9-5 corporate job in June 2022 and became a full-time real estate professional. I now get to do what I love and am passionate about. I started this blog in 2020 to inspire others feeling trapped in their job to start their financial freedom journey. My goal is to help you build the life of your dreams by making great financial decisions and investing in real estate.

4 Facts About Me

> I Love Obstacle Races

> I Love Sushi

> I Love Hiking

> I Have 4 Dogs and 1 Cat

“Often, the more money you make the more money you spend; that’s why more money doesn’t make you rich – assets make you rich.”

-Robert T. Kiyosaki

Back Story

Despite being an accountant, I wasn’t always great at managing my finances.

I was born in the US, but I grew up in Colombia. Financial literacy wasn’t taught at school or home. My family never talked about money or investing. We didn’t have much money to begin with.

I grew up with the mentality that investing was for the wealthy and unless I became wealthy, I wouldn’t be able to invest. Eventually, I realized how wrong I had it. You build wealth BY INVESTING.

Growing up, my goal was to come live in the US, pursue the American Dream, and become wealthy.

I came to live in the US permanently when I was 16 years old. I was a high school graduate with big dreams. I wanted to live the life you see in the movies. Little did I know, I was pursuing the wrong thing. I was going to go to college, obtain my degree, work hard, climb the corporate ladder, get married, buy a house, have kids, and continue working hard until my job made me wealthy. That’s exactly the path I was on until real estate came into my life.

I had never even considered real estate investing as an option. I became obsessed with the idea while working as an assistant property manager for a real estate investment company. This was back in 2011 and I was 20 years old at the time.

The investment company was owned by a wealthy family, so it proved my theory that investing was only for the wealthy (or so I thought). My new goal was to become wealthy so I could invest in real estate too. I even came up with an elaborate 10-year plan.

The problem was that, by then, I was already a financial mess. I had credit card debt, student loans, and a car note. I was living the good life, but paycheck to paycheck. I had no idea how to get out of this cycle. I unsuccessfully tried for several years, but I was still pursuing the wrong thing.

Then I met my husband, Ryan, another accountant who was also in the same endless cycle. Although Ryan was in a better financial position than I was, he was also trapped in the rat race. He owned a house and had retirement accounts, but still had bad debt and no options. Ironically, it was the fact that he was better off that triggered me to finally get my financial situation in order.

It took me a couple of years to figure it all out and correct the mistakes that I made early on. 

In 2017, I found myself working for another real estate investor and this was the last push I needed. After getting his portfolio turned around, I felt that it was time to start my real estate investing journey. By then, I had read several financial literacy and real estate books, so I knew better. Real Estate Investing is for ANYONE.

We bought our first investment in 2019. In just 3.5 years of investing in real estate, I was able to accumulate more wealth than I ever thought possible.

When I started this blog in 2020, my goal was to retire from corporate in 2027. Fast forward 2 years later, and here I am!

Of course, I couldn’t have done it without my amazing and supportive husband. For this to work, we both had to jump on board and together venture into our financial freedom journey. Ryan is due to retire his job as an accountant in the summer of 2023.

Our chosen path to early retirement was through real estate investing and other side hustles while still working the 9 to 5 job. 

Real estate has allowed us to build the life of our dreams one house at a time. It has given us options that we never thought possible.

I would love for everyone to experience the same and this is why I am here. My goal is to inspire you to choose your path and start your journey. 

I am beyond grateful to have the opportunity to share my financial freedom journey with you.

Thanks for visiting my blog and don’t be a stranger! If you are on Instagram, go say Hi! @beyondjustnumbers

beyondjustnumbers

New Blog Post 🚨 In this week’s blog post I am New Blog Post 🚨 In this week’s blog post I am going over why we bought a short-term rental, our experience so far. Plus what we did prior, during and after purchasing our first short-term rental in March 2022, a Cabin in Blue Ridge, GA.

Check it out at www.beyondjustnumbers.com or link in bio @beyondjustnumbers
I can’t stress this enough. Some investors are l I can’t stress this enough. Some investors are looking to make money from day one, but that’s not always the case. It wasn’t for us and I’ve talked to a lot of rookie investors who have told me “Thank God I have my personal finance situation together.” 

This is just my opinion. Do you agree? Let me know in the comments!

Want to join a free community of like-minded individuals? Join our REI Coffee Chat Community where we talk real estate investing, personal finance and financial freedom, and much more! Link in bio @beyondjustnumbers

Want to learn more about investing in real estate? Read my blog www.beyondjustnumbers.com

#realestateinvesting #realestateinvestor #creativefinancing #investmentproperty #buyrealestate #firemovement #debtfreejourney #financialindependenceretireearly #rentalproperty #investinginproperty #personalfinanceblog #wealthbuilding #planforretirement #investorlife #livefree #airbnb #moneyisfreedom #enjoythejourney #reicommunity #realestateinvestments #shortermrentals #cashflow #realestate
I used to think that investing in real estate was I used to think that investing in real estate was for the rich. I became in love with real estate while working for a real estate investment company that owned hundreds of units. This was back in 2011 and I was 20 years old at the time. I had less than 5 years permanently living the US, so I had no idea about anything. I grew up in Colombia and the only talk of money we ever had was the lack of it. 

The investors I worked for were a wealthy family, so naturally, I thought… Real Estate requires wealth. I don’t have wealth. Therefore, I cannot invest. 

I figured… well shit, I need become wealthy so I can invest in real estate. Eventually, after educating myself I realized how wrong I had it. You can build wealth BY INVESTING in real estate.

Took me a couple of years to figure it all out. Hence, why I didn’t start investing until 2019. I wish I had figured out earlier, but it is what it is. In just 3 years of investing in real estate, I was able to accumulate more wealth than I ever thought possible. 

Just to give you an idea…Did you know you could invest in real estate with as little at 3.5% of the purchase price? For a $150,000, that’s only $5,750. Buy a duplex that needs a little bit of work, fix it up, rent one side and live in the other. This will reduce your monthly expenses significantly, save the money and do it all over again.*

Of course it’s not that simple, but it’s also not that difficult. There are some particular steps and considerations which is  why I recommend doing further reading on the subject. 

Book Recommendation:
✅“The House Hacking Strategy” by Craig Curelop and ✅“Investing in Real Estate with No (and Low) Money Down” by Brandon Turner. 

#realestate #realestateinvesting
🚨 New Blog Post! Continuing the “Getting Star 🚨 New Blog Post! Continuing the “Getting Started in Real Estate Series” 

You’ve found a property either on your own or through a realtor, you’ve run your numbers, you’ve got a lender and now you are ready to make an offer. What’s next?

In this post I want to discuss a few items:

✅Key components of a real estate contract
✅How do you make a compelling offer to ensure you get the property you want
✅The main contract contingencies and how they work
✅Communicating with your realtor

I also provide real examples of what we have done personally. 

Check it out at www.beyondjustnumbers.com

Let me know what you think!
If I listed all of the hats, I’d never end 😂. If I listed all of the hats, I’d never end 😂. Anyone else? Show me the multiple hats you wear and tag me. Let’s have fun with some reels.

Trying to get good at the real game like @investinginyourwealth. How did I do?
The fact that you are not where you want to be doe The fact that you are not where you want to be doesn’t mean you won’t get there. Greatness takes time. Focus on what you control.

And remember, it’s okay to pivot.

#mindset #realestate #firemovement #realestateinvesting #realestateinvestor #rentalpropertyinvestor #rentalproperty #cashflow #motivation #financialfreedom #financialindependence #financialindependenceretireearly
We see a lot of advice around hiring a real estate We see a lot of advice around hiring a real estate friendly CPA. However, when you look up  CPAs that specialize in real estate, they can be pricey.  However, that doesn’t mean that other CPAs or tax professionals aren’t good. They might not be particularly aware of certain items, but they can research and collaborate with theirs peers. Perhaps it may require you to do a little of work to compensate. Things you can do:
✅ listen to The Real Estate CPA podcast or join the Facebook group
✅follow social media accounts of the pricey Real Estate CPA and take notes of what they are saying
✅attend free educational events 
✅read BiggerPocket book on Real Estate taxes 
✅if you know anyone working with a really good Real Estate CPA firm, ask them what they are doing

Then use that to go your CPA or tax professional and be like “Hey, is this something we can do for me?” They’ll probably say, “Let me look into it”. 

If they are good, they are going to research it and/or ask their CPA peer group. (CPAs and tax preparers also have Facebook groups where they collaborate with each other).

Here is a piece of advice, if they tell you “No, we can’t use this loophole or no, you don’t qualify to use this strategy” —> Ask WHY and “How can I qualify in the future?.” This way you confirm they did their homework and aren’t just being lazy. Don’t just take no for an answer. You can then get a second opinion by asking a question in a forum or to your peers.

So don’t panic if you don’t have a real estate CPA or tax professional. 

Next video I’ll be answering the question… “Can I skip the tax professional altogether and do my own taxes?”

#realestate
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