Back in high school, I mowed lawns to earn extra cash. One of my regular customers owned a fourplex and a small 640 sq/ft office building. Fast forward to graduation, I sold my lawn care business, but kept in touch with that same customer. He mentioned he was moving to Florida after his son graduated, and a year later, I reached out—just in time before he listed his two properties. The office building rented for $450/month and the fourplex for $2,500/month. He offered me the office building for $45K and the fourplex for $190K. After some advice from my dad, I decided that the small office building would be the perfect way to step into real estate. I hopped on a call and negotiated the price down to $38,800. I secured a loan of $27,160 on a 4% ARM, amortized over 30 years. Now, three years later, that same building rents to a nail salon for $560/month. That first deal opened the door to so much more in real estate, and it all started with a lawnmower!