“I want to see the world. I want to experience life because I almost lost mine.”
What if something happened and you could no longer work? How would you and your family survive? AJ Osborne found himself in that precarious position 18 months ago, but because he had sustainable passive income from real estate investing, he was able to focus on healing and continue to support his family as he recovered. Real estate saved his financial life.
AJ had been leading a busy life, running his state’s largest brokerage firm as well as a real estate company when he fell ill with a disease called Guillain-Barré. It left AJ completely paralyzed and comatose, and he spent several months on life support. Since then, he has had to relearn how to walk, use his arms and communicate. Fortunately, his 1M ft2 self-storage portfolio allowed AJ to focus on healing while his passive income continued to grow. The experience inspired him to create Cash Flow 2 Freedom, a platform where AJ teaches others how to generate cashflow and achieve financial freedom.
Today, AJ joins me to share the story of his battle with Guillon-Barré, explaining how the experience changed his priorities and how the passive income from his real estate portfolio sustained his family through the ordeal. He discusses what motivated him to pursue real estate investing in the first place and shares his approach to buying and managing self-storage facilities. Listen in for AJ’s insight on the difference between being rich and wealthy—and learn how to leverage real estate investing to achieve the kind of financial freedom that can save your life!
Key Takeaways
AJ’s devastating health crisis
- Paralyzed and comatose, months on life support
- Guillain-Barré syndrome rendered helpless
How the experience changed AJ
- Changes outlook on what’s important
- Reprioritize life (family moves to top)
What became most important to AJ
- Time with children
- Basic functions (e.g.: walk on own)
How AJ’s real estate portfolio facilitated his recovery
- Bought family time and freedom
- Paid bills while he focused on getting better
What might have happened without real estate
- Disability income was 25% of previous salary
- Would have had to downsize, wife take job
How AJ got into commercial real estate
- Frustrated by fluctuation in consulting business
- Needed strategy to compound returns
AJ’s distinction between rich and wealthy
- Wealthy own assets and revenue coming in
- Rich have high income but owned by source
AJ’s approach to investing in self-storage
- Business rather than real estate asset
- Turn around by dialing up value and income
How AJ turned around a state-owned facility
- Bought at auction for $3.8M
- Eliminated 30% of tenants by doubling price
- Sold products, focused on customer service
- Doubled income in 6 months, worth $9M
How AJ manages his self-storage facilities
- Hire and train rock star management team
- Built out policies and procedures over time
The differences among small, medium and large facilities
- Expenses similar regardless of size
- Sweet spot between 60K and 150K ft2
What inspired AJ to start Cash Flow 2 Freedom
- Real estate saved family’s financial life
- Help others gain freedom with passive income
AJ’s advice for aspiring real estate investors
- Learn from mistakes
- Get to state of financial freedom on own
Connect with AJ
Resources
Podcast Show Notes
