Thread by @austinschless

In 2012, an investment banker retired on $80k/year in passive income.

9 years later, he's up to $325k/year and counting.

How'd he do it?

THREAD: A strategy and story about how to achieve financial freedom

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In 1999, Sam put his neck on the chopping block.

He graduated from college with $4k in the bank and started his dream job at Goldman Sachs making $40k/yr.

Then the unimaginable happened...

Shortly after starting his job, he invested $3k in a stock called Vertical Integration Systems

He sold it for $155k

His net worth immediately jumped to around ~$160

Then, he took an employment chance...

In 2001, Sam quit his job at Goldman Sachs to pursue another opportunity.

His comp increased to $80k/yr + bonus.

He saved his bonuses, maxed his 401(k), and purchased a condo in SF.

His fortune was slowly growing.

He saved and invested and then he made a silly decision...

In 2004, Sam bought a $78k G Wagon.

He loved the car, but it didn't fit in his garage.

He sold the car for a $20k loss and bought an $8k Honda Civic :)

From there, his income took another large jump up to $120k + a larger bonus.

Sam became one of the youngest VP promotes in his office.

Around the same time, his condo appreciated by 40%.

It was time to take another chance...

In 2005, Sam bought a single-family house in SF for 1.5m.

He operated his condo as a rental until he sold it in 2017 for 30x annual gross rent.

That sale made Sam a millionaire at age 28, but it wasn't enough to retire...

During the 2008-2009 financial crisis, Sam became obsessed with building passive income streams.

He tried lots of things, but here are his top 5 favorites...

#5 Physical Real Estate

In his 20s and 30s, this was Sam's favorite passive income investment.

The issue is there are a lot of variables
• Crappy tenants
• Maintenance issues

Nonetheless, real estate has lots of great benefits
• Great returns
• Tax benefits

#4 Creating Your Own Products

If you're creative, you should explore creating your own products.

To generate ~$50k/yr in passive income, you'd need to sell around 42 products/month at $100 apiece.

Doesn't seem too hard, so what products should you create?

Here are some highly profitable, passive income, product ideas:

• Ebooks
• Courses
• Consulting
• Notion templates
• What else?

#3 Fixed Income/Bonds

They aren't the most appealing of the passive income streams, but they do make you money; passively!

Bonds provide a great defense to an investment portfolio; especially during times of uncertainty.

#2 Real Estate Crowdfunding

This is Sam's favorite passive income stream.

RE Crowdfunding gives you great flexibility to...

• Invest in multiple asset classes
• Diversify your location
• Reap benefits of real estate w/o the headache

So how can you get started?

Here are some places to get started with real estate crowdfunding:

• @fundrise
• @CrowdStreet

#1 Dividend Investing

When it comes to passive income, value stocks are where it's at.

Look up the "Dividend Aristocrats"

They are blue-chip companies that have demonstrated consistent increases in dividend payouts over three years.

So, how can you get started?

The easiest way to get exposure to dividend stocks is to buy ETFs or index funds.

Here are some recommendations:

• $DVY
• $VYM
• $NOBL
• S&P 500 index

For more on Sam's path to financial freedom and how you can do that same, check out his blog below.

financialsamurai.com

For more strategies on financial freedom and investing, follow me @austinschless.

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