01 June 2026
He Was Laid Off From TSA, Now He Owns an Entire Rental Portfolio
BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast
About
Before building an entire real estate portfolio, Matthew Garland was laid off from the TSA. He went from searching for contraband in your suitcase to searching for jobs ASAP. He had no degree, no office job experience, but he was good at connecting with people.
He got a job as a loan officer and was making money hand over fist. Then the market crashed, his savings dwindled, his credit score plummeted, and he even got foreclosed on. It was time to build something real. That’s when a rich client of his introduced him to the “wealth hack” that helped him rebuild his life through rental properties.
Now, you probably know Matthew as MG the Mortgage Guy, sharing as many insider lending secrets as possible so you can buy your next property. In this episode, he’s doing the same, telling YOU how to get preapproved now, what you need to get a lender to take you seriously on your first deal, and how he rebuilt his life, one property at a time.
If you think you can’t build a real estate portfolio because you’re starting from zero, MG will show you how to get ahead and into your first deal, even if you feel way behind the starting line.
In This Episode We Cover
The “wealth hack” of the rich that gets you investment properties with little money down
How to rebuild your financial foundation with real estate investing (even if you have little money or low credit)
Why you never overleverage yourself and why scaling quickly (probably) isn’t worth the stress
Four things you need to get preapproved for a mortgage (and what to do if you’re missing one or all)
When to call a lender: Do you need to have perfect credit before you start?
And So Much More!
Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/real-estate-1285.
Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email advertise@biggerpockets.com.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
He got a job as a loan officer and was making money hand over fist. Then the market crashed, his savings dwindled, his credit score plummeted, and he even got foreclosed on. It was time to build something real. That’s when a rich client of his introduced him to the “wealth hack” that helped him rebuild his life through rental properties.
Now, you probably know Matthew as MG the Mortgage Guy, sharing as many insider lending secrets as possible so you can buy your next property. In this episode, he’s doing the same, telling YOU how to get preapproved now, what you need to get a lender to take you seriously on your first deal, and how he rebuilt his life, one property at a time.
If you think you can’t build a real estate portfolio because you’re starting from zero, MG will show you how to get ahead and into your first deal, even if you feel way behind the starting line.
In This Episode We Cover
The “wealth hack” of the rich that gets you investment properties with little money down
How to rebuild your financial foundation with real estate investing (even if you have little money or low credit)
Why you never overleverage yourself and why scaling quickly (probably) isn’t worth the stress
Four things you need to get preapproved for a mortgage (and what to do if you’re missing one or all)
When to call a lender: Do you need to have perfect credit before you start?
And So Much More!
Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/real-estate-1285.
Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email advertise@biggerpockets.com.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices