How She Started Investing With a 580 Credit Score and Built a Real Estate Portfolio
Show summary
In this episode, Sarah shares her inspiring journey from refugee to successful real estate investor, highlighting strategies for building wealth, managing operations, and scaling in the Texas market.
Key takeaways
- Sarah bought her first property in Channel View, Texas for about $75,000 with a 580 credit score, using a hard money loan at 14% interest, and sold it two years later for over $100,000 profit.
- She started with $25,000 saved up, noting that hard money lenders care more about cash reserves and deal numbers than credit score.
- Her mentor taught her to evaluate every deal on three factors: equity, cash flow, and out-of-pocket cash required.
- She currently invests in Houston, Channel View, Texas City, and Amarillo, Texas, relying on realtor friends to source deals and calling Amarillo an overlooked market with cheap properties and strong cash flow.
- Her biggest operational challenge is finding reliable contractors remotely, especially in Amarillo, which sometimes requires her to fly in personally when her property manager (her father) hires the wrong people.
- She sees multifamily investing and renting houses room-by-room as the best near-term expansion opportunities, citing one property she rents room-by-room that cash flows well, with plans to move capital into multifamily by March 2027.
- She credits integrity and persistence as her competitive edge, noting she has had to overcome being underestimated by contractors as a woman in the business.
In this episode
- 00:00Sarah's 'just do it' philosophy and refugee background
- 02:05Intro: from Congo refugee to real estate investor
- 02:56Career highlight reel: first deal in Channel View, Texas
- 03:42Finding high margin deals in Houston, Channel View, Texas City, Amarillo
- 04:24Biggest bottleneck: finding reliable contractors remotely
- 05:01Best expansion opportunity: multifamily and room-by-room rentals
- 05:52Biggest fear: not buying enough properties
- 06:09Unfair advantage: integrity and being underestimated as a woman
- 08:00Networking and finding a trustworthy contractor
- 09:05Starting with a 580 credit score and hard money lending
- 10:55Final advice: generational wealth and convincing her father
- 12:06How to connect with Sarah
About USE THIS Sarah Kimfila
Sarah Kimfila came to the US from Congo as a refugee in 2001 and started investing in real estate in 2015 with a 580 credit score. She bought her first property in Channel View, Texas for about $75,000, sold it two years later for a profit, and has continued investing in Houston, Channel View, Texas City, and Amarillo, Texas. She has been investing for about a decade and uses hard money loans to fund her deals.
Listen to the audio
“my word of wisdom is just do it.”
Sarah Kimfila
“Finding the right contractor is like finding a faithful husband that will stay with you for the rest of your life.”
Sarah Kimfila
“I told my father respectfully, you're now where I want to be financially... but today my dad owns five properties. That's the power of real estate.”
Sarah Kimfila
Questions answered in this episode
How can I start investing in real estate with bad credit?
Sarah started with a 580 credit score and found a hard money lender willing to work with her at a 14% interest rate. She recommends saving up cash (she had $25,000 saved) since hard money lenders want to see money in your bank account, and working on improving your credit while you get started.
What should I look for when evaluating a real estate deal?
Sarah's mentor taught her to focus on three things: equity, cash flow, and how much cash out of pocket is required. She uses this framework to evaluate every deal before making an offer.
Is Amarillo, Texas a good real estate market?
Sarah says most people overlook Amarillo, but she finds properties there very cheap with amazing cash flow. She invests there along with Houston, Channel View, and Texas City, relying on local realtor friends to find her deals.
What's the biggest operational challenge in managing out-of-state or out-of-city rentals?
Sarah's biggest headache is finding the right contractors, especially in Amarillo since she lives in Houston. Her father manages her properties but has hired the wrong people at times, requiring her to fly out and handle it personally.
How important is networking for real estate investors?
Sarah says having the right people in your circle can make or break you. She credits attending meetings where experienced investors freely shared their mistakes, and she compares finding a great, reliable contractor to finding a faithful spouse who will stick with you long term.
Resources and links
Full transcript
Sarah Kimfila (00:00)
Yes. my word of wisdom is just do it. because for me I didn’t want to work for somebody for the rest of my life. when we first came to the US as refugees, my parents were janitors and I seen how hard their life was and I was like, I need to do something better. I need to figure out how I can invest my money.
the right way. So I started looking at stock markets. I started looking investing in gold. There were so many things I was looking for. But finding real estate, it has helped me to be able to support my family.
Scott Bursey (02:05)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast powered by Investor Fuel. I’m your host, Scott Bursey. Glad you’re with us. And today we have an incredible guest, Sarah Kimfila. She came from the US, from Congo, as a refugee back in 2001 and jumped into real estate in 2015.
Starting with a five hundred and eighty credit score. She bought her first house, flipped it two years later, and walked away with a seventy thousand dollar profit. Listeners, you can expect to learn how grit, determination, and smart creative strategies can build real wealth from absolute scratch. Sarah, welcome to the show.
Sarah Kimfila (02:44)
Thank
you so much.
Scott Bursey (02:46)
It is just wonderful having you here and to help our listeners get up to speed. Please give us the ninety second highlight reel of how your career ignited and where you’re pouring your fuel now.
Sarah Kimfila (02:56)
Okay, so I studied my real estate back in twenty fifteen. A friend of mine invited me. I had money saved up, but I just didn’t know what to do with it. So they were like, Well, you need to invest in real estate. I came to one of the class I got a mentor. You always need a mentor because without a mentor, you can’t do it. I had a mentor that walked me through it and I bought my very first property in Channel View, Texas. And
They told me the three things that I need to look for equity, cash flow, and how much out of pocket. And I was able to buy my first property. It was about seventy five thousand. Two years later I sold it over a thousand a hundred something and I used the money to fund my real estate. So I bought other properties and that’s what I’m still doing it now.
Scott Bursey (03:42)
That is remarkable. Wow. And curious to know what is working best for you right now in terms of finding high margin deals?
Sarah Kimfila (03:52)
So right now I have great friends who usually go find deals for me, the realtors. so I focus mostly in Houston, Channel View, Texas City, and also Amarillo, Texas. Most people they don’t think of Amarillo, but Amarillo market, the properties are very cheap and the cash flow amazing. So I have friends who go find deals for me.
And they’ll present it and if the number makes sense, I’ll put an offer in, I’ll buy it, and I use hard money loan, by the way. And then I’ll go from there.
Scott Bursey (04:24)
Thank you for highlighting that, Sarah. And digging a little bit deeper, what is the biggest headache or bottleneck challenge in your operations that you’re facing today?
Sarah Kimfila (04:35)
Right now I think what I’m facing is sometimes it’s finding the right contractors. especially in Amarillo because I’m here in Houston and I have a manager who happens to be my father. he’s the one who managed my property and sometimes he hired the wrong people and I have to fly there. So I think that’s one of my biggest headache.
I think as time go on I’ll figure out a way to fix it.
Scott Bursey (05:01)
And looking ahead, where do you see the easiest money or best expansion opportunities right now?
Sarah Kimfila (05:08)
Ooh. The easiest money is for me, after talking to a lot of my friends who invest in apartment buildings, I totally believe investing in multifamily units, it will be easier compared to what I’ve heard on single family. And also buying properties where I can rent room by room, like a big house where I can rent room by room.
it will make good money ’cause I cash flow on that. I have one property that I do that and it did cash flow good. the main one would be multifamily.
Scott Bursey (05:39)
How soon do you plan on rolling capital into that strategy?
Sarah Kimfila (05:43)
March twenty twenty seven.
Scott Bursey (05:45)
And switching gears here just a little bit. What is the one thing that concerns you the most in today’s challenging market?
Sarah Kimfila (05:52)
One thing that concerns me the most, not buying enough properties and regretting not getting into great deals. ‘Cause sometimes when you see a deal come in and I question myself and then it’s like, is it good? The longer you take somebody else already grab it. Yeah.
Scott Bursey (06:09)
And when you break that down further, what unfair advantage do you feel that perhaps you have a habit or a skill that gives you a competitive edge in your Texas market?
Sarah Kimfila (07:10)
I think for me it’s integrity. Integrity is very important. I grew up in the country. I grew up in Amarillo. And sometimes to make a deal we shake hand. And so I think in every deal I walk in, if I like the number makes sense. for me it’s all about integrity and I want the same for other people.
It’s the integrity and also just being myself. I’m very open. I’m very positive. And sometimes when you go to a contractor, they’ll kinda think like, she’s a girl, she doesn’t know what she’s doing. But then it’s like, Nope, that number doesn’t work. I can get a better price.
Scott Bursey (07:44)
That is some powerful perspective right there, Sarah. Thank you for sharing that with our listeners. And you’ve been a real estate investor now for a decade, ten years. When it comes to relationships and networking, what has made the biggest difference for you?
Sarah Kimfila (08:00)
I think having the right people in your circle can make you or break you. Because I remember when I used to attend some of the meetings, they would be like, hey Sarah, this is the mistakes I made. And to be with the right-minded people, they’re so freely to share the experience and because they love what they do.
they will tell you this is a mistake I made and this is what you need to do. And then also for the contractor, finding the right contractor is like finding a faithful husband that will stay with you for the rest of your life. Because having a great contractor when the AC breaks and you call them at eleven PM and they’re like, Hey, Sarah.
I’m on it. that makes a difference. So having the right people, network, and then also having the great contractor, it makes your life so much easier.
Scott Bursey (08:47)
Surrounding yourself with the right people makes all the difference in the world.
Sarah Kimfila (08:53)
Definitely.
Yes.
Scott Bursey (08:54)
And Sarah, for investors starting with limited capital or low credit, what is the first move they should make today to secure their first profitable deal?
Sarah Kimfila (09:05)
I had about five eighty and I just graduated from college. I was working for a company called Cargill. My credit was really bad, really, really bad. some of the lender wouldn’t even take it because they’re like your credit’s too low. But one of the lender, the hard money lender, believed in me and they’re like, Well, the interest rate is gonna be fourteen percent.
And I was okay with it. And think to start off, I saved up money. I had a total of about $25,000 that I saved. So having a hard money lender, what it does is.
It’s a little out of pocket. So I get to spray my money, but the lender wants to see how much you have in your bank. So I will tell anybody, have some money saved on the bank and get your credit in a good place because maybe I got lucky, the contractor finished on time and I didn’t have to pay the percentage. But even if you do pay it for a month or two, if the number makes sense, it doesn’t even matter.
Scott Bursey (10:01)
you have given us a lot of good advice to execute on, especially in the Texas market. But is there any additional words of wisdom or a golden nugget or two you’d like to leave with our listeners here today?
Sarah Kimfila (10:55)
Yes. my word of wisdom is just do it. because for me I didn’t want to work for somebody for the rest of my life. when we first came to the US as refugees, my parents were janitors and I seen how hard their life was and I was like, I need to do something better. I need to figure out how I can invest my money.
the right way. So I started looking at stock markets. I started looking investing in gold. There were so many things I was looking for. But finding real estate, it has helped me to be able to support my family. My father was against it. Because when I told my dad I wanted to invest in real estate, my dad is like, don’t do it. They just want to steal your money. But in our culture, we were raised to respect our parents and to listen to them.
But I told my father respectfully, you’re now where I want to be financially. And he got his feeling hurt, but today my dad owns five properties. That’s the power of real estate. It’s a generation that I want to live a generation wealth, and I’m teaching my kids. And so for me, if you can invest in anything, do real estate. You will ten years down the line, you would look back and you’re like, wow, I’m so glad I did it.
Scott Bursey (12:06)
for those of our listeners that want to keep this conversation moving, stay in your lane or collaborate with you on future deals, what’s the best way for them to plug into your pipeline and reach you directly?
Sarah Kimfila (12:17)
They can reach me. I’m usually on Facebook, on TikTok as Sarah Kimfila. Just my first and last name. And I love to talk about real estate. That’s something I would never stop until I die.
Scott Bursey (12:28)
Sarah, thank you so much for joining us today on the Real Estate Pros podcast.
Sarah Kimfila (12:32)
Thank you so much for having me.
Scott Bursey (12:34)
It’s been an absolute pleasure. And to our listeners, we appreciate you. If you receive value from today’s episode, please subscribe. We’ll be fueling your tanks with a lineup of Elite Guest, just like Sarah Kimfila, who are accelerating and setting the pace for the rest of the industry. Until next time, keep your standards high and your vision clear. We’ll see you in the next episode, everyone.
Sarah Kimfila (12:58)
Bye.
