From Making $35,000/Year to Quitting His Job with Rentals

Matt Kruger built his real estate business out of a $35,000 salary, a growing family, and almost no cash. He started with a cheap “grandma” house in Iowa in 2015, using a first-time homebuyer grant and only $2,500 to close, then renovated it himself and rented it out after a year. That first deal produced about $600 a month in cash flow, and he repeated the strategy four times in four years with low down payments and sweat equity.

After that, he stopped moving and used the cash flow from three rentals to improve the home he was living in, eventually unlocking a $160,000 HELOC on a house he bought for $180,000 and now says is worth about $500,000. From there, he shifted into short-term rentals, starting with a local Des Moines property that cost about $185,000 all-in and generated $57,000 in first-year bookings. He later quit his W-2 job after buying a second short-term rental and eventually sold a condo in South Padre Island for $325,000 after spending $12,000 to renovate it.

Krueger’s main argument is that the right real estate strategy depends on execution and market fit, not hype. He said non-vacation short-term rentals with the right amenities have stayed strong, and he expects his future growth to come from self-storage, more long-term rentals, and a disciplined cap on short-term exposure.