Real Estate Investment Success: How Bryce Matheson Built a Thriving Portfolio Using Other People's Money

In this insightful episode of The Nathan Newberry Show, real estate entrepreneur Bryce Matheson shares his journey from accidental property owner to successful fund manager. Discover how he built a thriving real estate portfolio, the critical lessons he learned along the way, and why using other people's money might be the key to accelerating your own investment success.

Introduction

What does high performance really mean in the world of real estate investing? According to Bryce Matheson, it's about "starting and never stopping" — maintaining the consistency to achieve your long-term goals through small, daily actions.

In this illuminating conversation, Bryce reveals how he transformed from a traditional corporate employee to a successful real estate investor who now manages a fund for passive investors. His story offers valuable insights for anyone looking to build wealth through real estate, whether you're just starting out or looking to scale your existing portfolio.

From his early entrepreneurial ventures (selling individually wrapped red vines on the playground at age 7) to acquiring 12 rental properties in his first year of serious investing, Bryce's journey demonstrates that success in real estate isn't necessarily about having specialized knowledge from the beginning—it's about taking action, learning from experience, and strategically using resources to accelerate growth.

The Accidental Real Estate Investor: How a $40,000 Check Changed Everything

Bryce's real estate journey began not with a grand strategy, but with a simple life transition. After following what he calls the "traditional route" of college education and a corporate job, he bought his first house simply because it seemed like the logical next step for someone with a "big boy job."

"I thought my path to financial freedom was becoming a really good engineer," Bryce explains. "For whatever reason, I just kind of had it in my head that, okay, I now have this big boy job, now it's time to get the big boy house."

This initial purchase wasn't even an investment strategy—Bryce simply had roommates who paid rent to help cover his mortgage. It wasn't until two years later, when life circumstances changed, that the true potential became clear.

"I was engaged, about to get married," Bryce recalls. "My soon-to-be wife at the time had a house as well, so we ended up selling my house and moving into hers."

The Light Bulb Moment

The pivotal moment came after selling that first house: "I remember very vividly walking out of the title company with a check for $40,000. Coincidentally, that $40,000 was exactly what I was making at my W2 job."

This realization hit Bryce like a bolt of lightning: "I didn't really do anything to make this money, but at my job, I had to slave for an entire year to make the same amount. I tasted the blood in the water. That was the first catalyst that set it all off."

This experience illustrates an important principle for aspiring real estate investors: sometimes the most powerful lessons come not from books or courses, but from direct experience. Bryce admits he did things "backwards" compared to many people:

"I tripped and kind of fell into real estate, and it worked out for us. It wasn't until I saw that that I was like, 'Okay, now I need to go learn more.' I think that's abnormal. I think a lot of people are all about reading and studying and talking to mentors, but they never actually take that leap."

After paying off his student loans and credit card debt, Bryce used the remaining $20,000 from the sale to buy his first official rental property. This set the foundation for his real estate empire, which eventually expanded to include flipping houses, lending, and ultimately launching an investment fund.

Maximizing Efficiency: The Secret to High Performance as a Family-Focused Entrepreneur

As Bryce's real estate portfolio grew, so did his family responsibilities. With marriage and children came the challenge of maintaining high performance while balancing family life. This transition forced him to develop efficiency skills that ultimately made him more productive than ever before.

"I was so used to it being me, myself, and I. I had all the time in the world, and I could focus on whatever I wanted," Bryce explains. "Then you get married, and then you have kids, and you realize, 'Oh, I'm spread a lot more thin.'"

Rather than seeing these family responsibilities as limitations, Bryce discovered they actually enhanced his performance through forced efficiency:

"What's funny is now I would say that I'm way more performant and efficient with that time than I ever was before, because I didn't really value my time. I had as much of it as I wanted. Whereas now I'm like, 'This is me time. This is when it starts, and this is when the me time stops.' I have to get as much done in between as I can, because after that, I have to kind of shut it off and focus on my wife and kids."

The Importance of Partnership

Bryce credits much of his success to his wife's support and their shared vision. Remarkably, their relationship began with a foundation in financial discussions—they literally "fell in love at first interest rate" while hiking on their first date.

"The whole time we were just talking about mortgages and interest rates," Bryce laughs. "Now we joke that we fell in love at first interest rate, because that's what we did. The whole hike we were talking about, 'What do you charge your roommates? What do they pay for? How much do you have left over? What are you going to use that for?'"

As their family grew, their roles evolved, but their financial goals remained aligned:

"The roles changed, but the end goal didn't. We still had this goal towards financial freedom and making sure that we were set up for life. She took on a lot more on her plate as far as basic housework and keeping the kids and getting their schedules and packing lunches. She knew, 'I know that you're more focused on this; I can handle this side of it. We're going to divide and conquer.'"

This partnership approach allowed them to reach financial independence in approximately four years—a timeline that might have been even shorter if Bryce had been less hesitant to leave his corporate job.

"After my daughter was born, my wife quit her W2 job, and then I still worked my W2 job for probably two more years," Bryce admits. "Realistically, I should have quit sooner. I was just a little bit too terrified to take that leap, even though we had the money in the bank."

The #1 Real Estate Investing Lesson: Use Other People's Money

When asked about the most important lesson he's learned in real estate, Bryce doesn't hesitate: "The number one thing that I wish I could go back and tell myself is: use other people's money."

This insight came after he and his wife rapidly expanded their portfolio but then hit a wall:

"We scaled very quickly. In that first year, we bought 12 units in the first 12 months, and after that, we were making around $2,500 a month net. It was pretty decent income, especially for a young married couple with no kids. But then we ran out of money."

At that point, they mistakenly thought they had reached their limit: "We at one point kind of threw our hands in the air and were like, 'All right, well, I guess this is all we can do for now.'"

This limiting belief prevented them from seeing the abundant capital all around them:

"There is so much money out there that you don't even realize, whether that's in your first-degree network or your second-degree network. There are so many people that even just have $50,000 or $100,000 just sitting there on the sidelines that they don't really know what to do with."

Finding Deals Attracts Money

Bryce emphasizes that having a good investment opportunity is the key to attracting capital:

"If you have a deal in your hand, I promise you that the money will follow, because people are hungry for that. They have these funds; they don't know what to do with them. Partner with them, split it 50/50 or 60/40 or 70/30, however you decide to do it."

This lesson transformed Bryce's approach, leading him to create a real estate investment fund where he now pools capital from multiple investors to purchase undervalued properties. This model allows him to:

1. Scale much faster than individual investing
2. Create passive income opportunities for investors
3. Acquire properties even in challenging market conditions
4. Focus on significantly undervalued properties (typically 50% of market value)
5. Force appreciation through renovations and increased rents

"We find properties that are very profitable," Bryce explains. "I don't say that to brag, but I do just wish I could go back and explain to myself: there's a better way to do this. There are people who are really good at this, and there are ways to make a good amount of money without having to do any work."

From Active Landlord to Fund Manager: Making Real Estate Truly Passive

Bryce's evolution from hands-on landlord to fund manager represents a sophisticated approach to real estate investing that many aspiring investors overlook.

"I had this 'I'm going to figure it out myself' mindset, which is so stupid," Bryce admits. "I wanted to get my hands dirty. I wanted to buy that property. I wanted to figure out how to be a landlord and handle the contracts and do all the tenants and all these things."

Now, with the perspective of experience, he sees the limitations of that approach:

"Knowing what I know now, there are ways to passively invest in real estate, make way more money than you could have otherwise being a landlord, and not have to deal with tenants and toilets and do all these things."

This evolution has allowed Bryce to create a win-win solution: passive income for his investors and scalable growth for his business. And while his fund does have certain requirements (such as a $5,000 minimum investment to comply with SEC regulations), it's accessible to everyday investors, not just the ultra-wealthy.

"Most people are just like you and I," Bryce explains. "They either have some retirement funds and they want to diversify, or they're tired of making 4% in a high-yield savings account, or maybe they have some CDs or something that's just doing okay but not amazing."

What makes his approach particularly valuable in today's market is the ability to find deals that work despite high interest rates:

"Right now, especially when interest rates are so astronomically high, you really can't find a lot of properties that cash flow. But we can, and we do. We find properties that are very profitable."

Unlike REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) that often track with stock market fluctuations, Bryce's approach focuses on creating value through active management:

"We don't really see those fluctuations in the real estate that we do because we're buying properties that are so significantly undervalued. They're typically 50% of market value. We go in, we fix them up, and then we stabilize them and increase rents and then sell them for profits."

Conclusion: Consistency, Partnership, and Leverage for Real Estate Success

Bryce Matheson's journey from accidental landlord to successful fund manager illustrates several key principles for real estate investment success:

1. Consistency beats intensity: High performance is about "starting and never stopping," not bursts of frantic activity.
2. Direct experience is the best teacher: Sometimes diving in and learning as you go is more valuable than endless preparation.
3. Family responsibilities can enhance efficiency: Limited time forces you to maximize productivity during your working hours.
4. Partnership is powerful: A supportive spouse with shared goals can dramatically accelerate your progress.
5. Using other people's money is the key to scaling: Your own capital will eventually run out, but good deals will always attract investors.

Perhaps most importantly, Bryce's story shows that real estate success doesn't require specialized knowledge from the start – it requires action, adaptation, and a willingness to learn from each experience. Whether you're just considering your first property or looking to scale your existing portfolio, these principles can help you build wealth through real estate more efficiently and effectively.