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I feel that many people want to buy income-producing real estate yet never manage to buy even one building. I was the same in my twenties and thirties. It was not that I did not want to buy; I did not know how. (My unnecessary pride as a tax accountant and professional also kept me from asking others.)

In my 40s, as I considered how I wanted to work and what life in my 50s might look like, I thought I should create another source of income beyond tax accounting. This rekindled my desire to become a landlord on the side.

That was when I fell for a sales pitch for a newly built studio apartment. I was 46, my main business was doing well, and I had some cash on hand, so I let my guard down. But I thought, “Something is definitely wrong here,” investigated again, and ultimately canceled, forfeiting my deposit. (My first failure)

Although I advise others on tax and finance, I failed at income-property investing. Why? The answer was simple: I lacked knowledge and had not studied enough. Knowing about taxes and being able to buy income-producing property and run a rental business were entirely different things.

Determined to learn from that mistake, I joined a real estate course, willing to pay to learn from someone successful. But I failed again. I paid more than JPY 1 million and achieved nothing. (My second failure)

Still, I did not give up. I joined another real estate investment course and studied the methods thoroughly. This time, the course was excellent. Four months after joining, at age 47, I finally bought my first apartment building. (Third time lucky?)

I believed that if I learned how to buy properly, I could recover my earlier losses and tuition costs. At the same time, I continued looking for properties.

And that hypothesis proved right.

I bought my first building for about JPY 20 million, and I now believe it could sell for around JPY 30 million. Since I have not sold it, this is not a realized gain, but in my assessment it represents an unrealized gain of about JPY 10 million. I began to feel that I could recover my earlier losses and the cost of learning.

Search for properties. Check the numbers. Speak with brokers. Submit documents to financial institutions and obtain financing. Then buy, renovate, and welcome tenants. I have not sold any buildings yet, but I expect to rebalance my portfolio in the future.

Once you complete a full cycle of rental management with your first building, you have a small success and experience you can apply to the next. What was once unfamiliar becomes work you can repeat—in my case, a viable side business.

One building at a time, steadily. Within two years, I had 10 buildings and 79 units. I kept buying and now own 11 buildings with 87 units (as of September 20, 2026).

At this pace, I believe I could become a large-scale landlord in two years. Having started relatively late, in my late 40s, I am moving exceptionally quickly—as both brokers and financial institutions have told me.

There is no need to rush as I did. Taking 10 years to build a portfolio one building at a time is another way to aim to become a large-scale landlord.

Of course, even after buying the first building, I encountered various problems as I continued buying. This time, however, I have been able to move forward without being deceived. What happened? What did I check, how did I decide, and how did I overcome it? I share those experiences in the newsletter too.

You can follow those two eventful years, with all their ups and downs, in a free five-day email series.

Why not aim to become a large-scale landlord in 10 years?
It could transform your life.