Freedom on Credit: How My Bold, Crazy Gamble Changed Everything

"The immigrant hustle, a risky decision, and redefining what freedom means"

"My hands were shaking. I sat at my computer, heart pounding, as I transferred money from my credit card into my checking account." Yes, It was from a credit card. It was 2018. I had moved to America in my early 20s, and even after years of nonstop work, all I had to show was good credit, an unhelpful cousin, and determination forged by desperation.

I never intended my journey into real estate to begin with credit cards. Yet here I was, staring at my husband's IRA statement (just around $20,000), knowing it wasn’t enough. Property prices might've been cheaper back then, but they still felt astronomical to someone who started from zero.

"Why don't we just use credit cards?" I asked him. He laughed, then paused, realizing I was serious. Back in Asia, where I was born, debt was a dirty word, and credit cards were for emergencies, not investments. But in America, the math seemed different. Zero percent interest promotions, cash advances—this was “free money,” at least for a year or two. Risky? Absolutely. Crazy? Maybe. But impossible? Apparently not.

I did it. With shaking hands and a racing heart, I transformed that credit card balance into my very first property.

People often romanticize the immigrant hustle—hard work, grit, and determination. But it’s never that simple. I worked relentlessly, from the illegal working conditions as a teenager in my home country to the unforgiving grind of immigrant life. I knew what it was to have nothing. But strangely, having nothing gave me courage: if you have nothing, you have nothing to lose.

Using credit cards to buy real estate wasn’t bold just financially—it was psychologically transformational. It taught me that in America, systems exist. Rules can sometimes bend, and "No" can actually become a "Yes." It was an education, an initiation into risk, leverage, and opportunity that changed my entire worldview.

Fast forward to today: I now own four properties. Yet, ironically, the more I have, the less I feel connected to traditional ideas of "wealth." Owning more property felt more restrictive, not liberating. It wasn't freedom—it was something else: worry, obligations, mortgages, taxes.

Times have changed dramatically since that first risky move. Property prices are soaring, interest rates are unpredictable, and the American dream feels increasingly unreachable, unless you’re prepared to uproot to places like Kansas City, Missouri

Tulsa, Oklahoma or Boise, Idaho—places with lower costs but uncertain opportunities.

Here’s the point of my story: Change is no longer coming. Change is here, faster than ever before. The rules that once governed financial security have shifted. Yet, we're still conditioned to believe property ownership is the only secure path to wealth and stability.

But what if true freedom is about flexibility? What if real wealth isn't about having more, but needing less? I learned firsthand that true wealth is the courage to take risks, the wisdom to adapt, and the freedom to live life on your own terms.

If you're reading this feeling stuck, anxious, or behind—let my journey remind you: You're not alone. You're not behind. You’re courageous for even questioning traditional wisdom. And sometimes, the boldest moves you make in life will redefine what freedom really means.

In the next blog post, I'll share exactly what I’d do differently now, knowing everything I know today. But until then, remember:

Real freedom starts when you dare to define it yourself.