Why This Expert Investor Owns Only ONE Rental Property

Episode #501

Check Out "The BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast":
https://www.biggerpockets.com/podcast...

Ask Your Question on the BiggerPockets Forums:
https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums?...

Episode Show Notes:
https://www.biggerpockets.com/podcast...

Join BiggerPockets for FREE 👇
https://www.biggerpockets.com/signup?...

Grab the Book, “Short-Term Rental, Long-Term Wealth”:
https://store.biggerpockets.com/colle...

Find an Investor-Friendly Agent in Your Area:
http://biggerpockets.com/agentmatch

Investing in Short-Term Rental Properties: A Beginner’s Guide & How to Get Started:
https://www.biggerpockets.com/guides/...

Connect with Mike:
https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/m...

Connect with Dave:
https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/d...

Connect with Ashley and Tony:
Ashley: https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/a...
Tony: https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/t...

Mike Baum owns just one rental property, but this one property alone has changed his life. It’s allowed him to become such an investing expert that he’s constantly being asked for his opinion on the BiggerPockets forums, and he provides some of the most well-thought-out investing advice on the internet. So why does he have just one rental property, and why doesn’t he grow using his expertise? The answer isn’t that obvious.

You wouldn’t know it, but Mike is permanently disabled. After overworking so hard that he ended up losing his vision, he was placed on disability for the rest of his working career. This high achiever was forced to slow down and find something else that could replace his day job. Shortly after his diagnosis, he found BiggerPockets and turned a family vacation home into a short-term rental.

Now, he’s got systems and processes that help him self-manage with very few headaches, and he will probably keep this property as his one and only rental for life. Why didn’t he “FOMO” in when everyone was gobbling up real estate in 2020? Why didn’t he grow his portfolio to become the next tycoon? Mike has some clear answers for why he did what he did, and after listening to him, you might change what you want, too.


00:00 Intro
03:03 Losing Sight After Overworking
05:53 Empty Lake House?
09:21 Managing a Vacation Rental
12:49 Know This BEFORE You Buy
18:00 Just ONE Property
21:25 No-FOMO Investing
26:49 A “Very Interesting” 2025