In this episode of The Real Estate Path, I sat down with Travis Hall, a real estate investor who caught the bug in 2008 from a book his boss handed him, lost every dollar he had on his very first deal, and has spent the 16 years since building a portfolio that spans fix and flips, rentals, short-term rentals, and creative financing alongside his wife and business partner Ingrid.

We had an honest conversation about what it really takes to fail on your first deal and keep going, why adding value to someone ahead of you is the fastest path to your first win, and how the partnerships you choose — and the questions you refuse to ask — will define how far you go.

Some key topics we explored:
• Losing his entire savings on a failed wholesale attempt in Boise in 2009 — and why quitting was never a real option
• Moving from Idaho to Denver to find a market where the numbers actually worked
• Working 20 hours a week for free for a local mentor just to be in the room where deals happened
• Why riding the coattails of someone ahead of you beats any book, course, or YouTube video
• Being equally yoked with your spouse: Ingrid as Travis's integrator, keeping the vision grounded when he squirrels
• Losing $70,000 on a flip when his partner bailed during a market downturn and left him with 100% of the loss
• The 30-question framework for vetting a new partnership — including what happens if someone dies, skips town, or just stops showing up
• Why analysis paralysis is the number one thing stopping beginning investors and how to break through it by picking one strategy and taking baby steps

I learned a lot from this conversation and especially appreciated Travis's advice on riding coattails. He didn't wait until he was ready — he showed up for free, did the work, and put himself in the room. That's the whole shortcut right there.

What stood out to you from this conversation? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Connect with Travis Hall:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetravishal/
Podcast: Yoked Podcast

Connect with Jim Lee / Formosa Investing:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/formosainvesting/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/formosainvesting/
X: https://x.com/bzjimlee
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/formosainvesting

About The Real Estate Path
The Real Estate Path is a conversation-driven podcast focused on the real journey of real estate investing. Content is for educational purposes and reflects personal experience and general discussion, not investment advice.

Disclosure: The content shared on The Real Estate Path Podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, legal or investment advice. The views and opinions expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or the podcast. Individual circumstances vary and past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Always conduct your own due diligence and consult a qualified financial, tax or legal professional before making any investment decisions.

In this episode of The Real Estate Path, I sat down with Casey Gregersen, a petroleum engineer turned real estate investor who used a two-weeks-on, two-weeks-off field rotation at Shell Oil to quietly build a rental Portfolio from Wyoming while living in Houston.

We had an honest conversation about what it really takes to build a team you can trust, why learning the work before you delegate it is non-negotiable, and how to structure partnerships so they don't turn into the thing that slows you down.

Some key topics we explored:
• Using a 2-weeks-on/2-weeks-off field rotation to start investing in real estate while working a full-time engineering career
• The basement drywall lesson: spending months on a job a professional finished in two hours
• Why you need to learn the work before you delegate it — contractors will take advantage of you if they sense you don't know what you're doing
• Building a team that respects you because they know you've already done what you're asking them to do
• Hiring and firing based on core values: ownership, perseverance, and humility
• Why partnerships are like marriages and why you should plan the exit ramp before you ever start
• Starting with finite deals like fix and flips before locking into long-term buy and hold partnerships
• Raising capital intentionally: an accredited fund for larger investors and fractional investing to bring in non-accredited partners on a defined two-year commitment

I learned a lot from this conversation and especially appreciated Casey's take on delegation. He didn't skip the work — he did it until he understood it, and that's what gave him the credibility to lead a team that actually shows up for him.

What stood out to you from this conversation? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Connect with Casey Gregersen:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caseygregersen/

Connect with Jim Lee / Formosa Investing:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/formosainvesting/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/formosainvesting/
X: https://x.com/bzjimlee
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/formosainvesting

About The Real Estate Path
The Real Estate Path is a conversation-driven podcast focused on the real journey of real estate investing. Content is for educational purposes and reflects personal experience and general discussion, not investment advice.

Disclosure: The content shared on The Real Estate Path Podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, legal or investment advice. The views and opinions expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or the podcast. Individual circumstances vary and past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Always conduct your own due diligence and consult a qualified financial, tax or legal professional before making any investment decisions.

In this episode of The Real Estate Path, I sat down with Carlos Garzon, a Colombian immigrant who came to the US with no English, found real estate by accident, lost everything in the 2008 crash, and rebuilt his path around a mission to help families who cannot qualify for traditional loans get into their first home.

We had an honest conversation about what it really takes to start over when everything falls apart, how Carlos turned being bilingual into a competitive edge most people overlook, and why he believes that comfort, not failure, is the most dangerous place an investor can land.

Some key topics we explored:
• Coming to the US from Colombia with no English and learning the language from kids on a soccer field
• Getting into real estate by chance after selling a car to a real estate agent's sister in 2005
• Losing two investment properties and over $350,000 in the 2008 crash and choosing to rebuild
• Why being comfortable is more dangerous than failing and how a new marriage sparked the pivot back into real estate
• Using bilingual skills and cultural connection as a genuine advantage in the Latino community
• The business model: acquire through SubTo and seller finance, then place buyers who cannot qualify for bank loans
• Closing a 5-unit co-living property in Texas with 4.5% seller financing and 24 fractional investors
• Growing a real estate meetup from 3 people to over 30 in just a few weeks

I learned a lot from this conversation and especially appreciated Carlos's perspective on comfort. He said being comfortable is one of the most dangerous places you can be, and hearing that from someone who has lost everything and rebuilt more than once hits differently than it does from someone who has never had to start over.

What stood out to you from this conversation? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Connect with Carlos Garzon:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carloscreativeestates/

Connect with Jim Lee / Formosa Investing:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/formosainvesting/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/formosainvesting/
X: https://x.com/bzjimlee
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/formosainvesting

About The Real Estate Path
The Real Estate Path is a conversation-driven podcast focused on the real journey of real estate investing. Content is for educational purposes and reflects personal experience and general discussion, not investment advice.

Disclosure: The content shared on The Real Estate Path Podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, legal or investment advice. The views and opinions expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or the podcast. Individual circumstances vary and past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Always conduct your own due diligence and consult a qualified financial, tax or legal professional before making any investment decisions.