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The Math Behind Freedom: How Giang Nguyen Turned her W2 into Seed Money for her Real Estate Investments
GUEST SUMMARY
In this insightful episode of In The Lab, Ruben welcomes Giang Nguyen, founder of One River Capital, a former scientist turned real estate investor and syndicator. Yan shares her remarkable journey from working in gene therapy at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia to achieving financial freedom through multifamily real estate. Her story unfolds with precision and strategy—from buying her first $30,000 foreclosure property in cash to scaling into duplexes, five-units, and eventually syndications.
Yan breaks down the financial and emotional blueprint behind leaving a W2 job the right way—by doing the math, living below her means, and mastering capital allocation. She reveals how she bought, renovated, and refinanced early properties, often paying in cash before leveraging them to scale. As a mortgage broker and syndicator, Yan dives deep into the mindset and numbers that drive wealth building—covering how to calculate key performance indicators (KPIs), why cash flow matters more than NOI, and how investors can prepare to transition from single-family homes to multifamily investments.
This episode is a playbook for anyone looking to build wealth strategically, without hype—only math, milestones, and mastery. Tune in now to learn how Yan’s methodical approach can help you engineer your exit from a W2 and design a business that funds your freedom.
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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE EPISODE:
07:35 Giang talks about the push that made her need to grow in multifamily
22:21 Giang talks about how syndication performance is measured.
KEEPING IT REAL:
00:05 – Offense vs. defense
01:09 – Scientist to investor
06:23 – Choosing freedom over medicine
08:58 – First $30K property
10:35 – Learning by doing
14:04 – Living below one’s means
15:57 – Employer match strategy
17:00 – No car philosophy
18:35 – Comfort in numbers
21:01 – Financial blind spots
23:33 – Tracking key KPIs
25:01 – Distribution vs. NOI
30:55 – Cash flow clarity
33:37 – Proof of concept
35:04 – Multifamily cash flow
36:09 – Zoning strategy explained
37:26 – Buying “by right”
38:05 – Highest and best use
40:06 – Transition to 5+ units
42:00 – Immigrant lending limits
43:40 – Lender risk factors
1:41:13 – Power of community
Episode Hashtags: #RealEstateInvesting #FinancialFreedom #Syndication #Multifamily #W2ToWealth #CashFlow #ImmigrantEntrepreneur #WomenInRealEstate #MortgageBroker #OneRiverCapital #InvestSmart #BuildWealth#CapitalRaising #FinancialStrategy
CONNECT WITH THE GUEST
Website: https://onerivercapital.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thatsalsainvestor/
Published on 7 hours ago