Deal Diary: How Deandra McDonald Went From Lender Rejections to 10+ Unit Multifamily Properties

Name Deandra McDonald Location Virginia Occupation Real estate investor Assets Multifamily real estate Investment strategy House hacking, long-term rentals, joint ventures, seller financing Financing Conventional, FHA, seller financing Deandra McDonald graduated from college, took her first job as a lab technician making $28,000 a year, and got her first rent increase notification shortly after. That was all it took. She decided she was done being at a landlord’s mercy and started trying to buy a property. The first lender denied her outright. She had $5,000 in credit card debt, minimal savings, and no wiggle room. So she got a second job bartending, a third job lifeguarding, and a fourth job teaching swim lessons. For 18 months, Deandra cut every expense she could, including internet and cable, paid off the debt, and saved $3,500. That got her approved for an $85,000 loan and into her first property. She hasn’t looked back since. Here’s how she built from there. You got denied the first time and had almost nothing saved. How did you finally get into your first deal? I had to go back to that lender’s rejection list and work through it, line by line. I couldn’t make more money overn...