Johnny Caal's Real Estate Journey | Story by J.P. Morgan – Transcript 

Johnny:

I remember sitting on those stairs one evening looking at my hands — my hands are cut up — with all that doubt. I’m thinking, did I really mess up here? What am I doing? Look at me.

[guitar music]

My grandfather was a very successful businessman in Central America in Guatemala. Then the Guerilla wars really got bad there. And in the 70s, he had to come through the border and actually swim across. He left everything behind, and I mean everything. My mom and dad became factory workers, which was in Pacoima, California. But the area was a very rough area. I remember hearing the gunshots. Da-da-da-da-da. Hearing the helicopters. And that’s how we grew up. But we stayed focused on education.

And got married with my college sweetheart, you could say. We were living good. But it was then that it just hit me. Most people would probably be satisfied; I wasn’t. Sitting in a cubicle wasn’t my thing. Long story short, I decided to quit my job, cashed out my 401(k). I borrowed money from my parents.

So now I have a beautiful boarded-up building [laughs] in the worst area in the San Fernando Valley. You know, my wife had no idea, and she said, “Are you crazy? You got a good job and you left it. What are you doing?” I’m working at the building physically, and I didn’t know how to do the physical work. And I remember sitting on those stairs one evening looking at my hands — my hands are cut up — with all that doubt. I’m thinking, “Did I really mess up here? What am I doing? Look at me.”

I called my grandfather and my grandfather would just say, “Keep going. Just do it.” So that was very encouraging. I said, “You know what? I’m not going to stop. The numbers can’t lie.” Now I’ve got the six units rented out, I don’t have a mortgage. I’m doing great. By 2001, I had a million dollars in the two buildings. And then I reinvested, reinvested, and it just snowballed after that.

[dramatic uplifting music]

We live the American dream in a different way, in a different mentality. Thinking outside of the box, remembering where we came from, the suffering and the hard work just gives us courage every day. 

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