He started as a student with one small apartment and now systematically expands his assets through mortgages, refinancing, and strategic location selection.
For a long time, his friends didn't get why he was choosing to go into debt rather than live a carefree student life. While others were spending, Michal was working alongside his studies, saving up, and investing in his first apartment.
Now, he's 26, renting out six apartments and looking to expand his portfolio. By the end of this year, he wants to have 10 apartments. His strategy combines mortgages, refinancing, and scouting for properties in cities with growth potential.
He says investing isn't just about numbers and rising prices. It also brings challenges like non-paying tenants, conflicts, and personal mistakes that cost time and money. Whether he’ll reach 10 apartments by year-end is unknown. “Even if it’s eight or nine, it’s still a win,” he tells Refresher.
His portfolio is valued at around 21 million koruna according to current expert appraisals. Most of it is financed through bank debt. All properties were bought with mortgages, which he sees not as a fear factor but a tool for asset growth. His portfolio is spread across the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Initially, banks didn’t trust him, but he eventually learned how to work with the system. Michal states that investing in apartments isn't a carefree passive income and even choosing the wrong location can lead to big issues. “You’re always stressed and on alert. Owning more apartments means dealing with more problems like technical issues, tenants, disruptions, or things not going as planned. It’s a mental and time load.”
Small Apartments
His strategy from the start was clear – studios and one-bedroom apartments. According to him, they rent out faster and have stable demand. He owns an apartment in Bratislava, three in Trnava, one in Prague, and one in Šaľa.
He bought his first property at 21. It was a studio in Podunajské Biskupice. He was still studying but working full-time. The apartment cost just under two million koruna, with the bank lending him around 1.5 million. The remaining 400,000 koruna came from savings he made while studying and working. Since then, he says the studio's value has increased by 37.5 percent.
Michal moved to America during the summer, working as a door-to-door salesman. That income allowed him to save up quickly for the initial investment. He acknowledges the difficulty without some support or opportunity. Most people he knows got help from parents or borrowed from family. “I was lucky to earn and save abroad. Saving while working at a typical corporation would’ve been tough,” he says.
The mentality of Americans opened his eyes to investments. He was inspired by American investors and content creators he followed on YouTube. One simple idea influenced him greatly.
In real estate, an investor works with other people's capital, and this effect can significantly grow assets.
Three years ago, Michal started a transportation business with a friend. They own delivery vans and employ drivers as couriers, subcontracting for bigger companies like Packeta and GLS.
“This company generates income for me, but honestly, I don't want to fully focus on it anymore. I want to concentrate on real estate and investing. Lately, I've been getting more into investment and real estate consultancy.”
Mortgages Don't Scare Michal
He financed all his properties through mortgages. At first, banks didn’t trust him much. “Sure, I seemed like a young person keen on getting into debt. But over time, I learned how banking works, building creditworthiness, and proper communication.”
Key to his strategy is declaring rental income and regular tax returns. This transparency with banks allowed him to gradually secure more loans and expand his portfolio.
Total Property Value
21 million koruna
Bank Debt
9.7 to 10.9 million koruna
Estimated Net Worth
9.1 million koruna
An important part of his strategy is refinancing. When the property value rises significantly, Michal gets a new appraisal and tries to “release” part of the value increase in the form of another loan. He then uses this capital for further investments.
He sees refinancing as a natural cycle of working with growing asset value. However, he notes that small apartments generate capital growth more slowly unless there’s a significant price increase in the area.
Not Afraid of Rising Interest Rates?
He sees interest rates as a natural part of the economic cycle, not a boogeyman that should paralyze the market. He noted the period of extremely low rates that boosted property prices and created the illusion that cheap money would be permanent. The subsequent spike in rates has cooled the market, offering a more realistic perspective.
“It taught me one thing. Investments must make sense even with higher interest rates, not just under ideal conditions,” Michal says.
With every purchase, he anticipates higher rates, weaker cash flow, and reserves for fallbacks. He states that if a property doesn’t work with a 5–6% interest rate, it’s not a good deal.
So, changing rates haven’t stopped his investing; instead, they’ve made him more selective. “During the cheap money era, people bought anything.”
These days, I only buy what's in a strong location, with demand and long-term growth potential.
How Did He Think About His Portfolio?
Podunajské Biskupice – The Start of Business
This studio cost him just under two million koruna. At that time, he was still in a dorm, and many around him didn’t understand why he was going into debt instead of enjoying student life.
“For me, it wasn’t about wanting to own an apartment. I wanted to understand the system and see if I could work with banks, loans, and tenants.”
Today, he rents it for 12,000 a month. If he decided to sell, he estimates the market value would be around 2.7 million koruna.
However, he doesn’t plan to sell it yet. He’s waiting out the time test to sell it tax-free. “The first apartment doesn't change your life. But it changes the way you think.”
He believes this property was the most important, not for profit but for the experience. He learned to communicate with banks, set up rental agreements, handle technical details, and overcome initial mortgage fears. He says if he had waited for the “perfect moment,” he probably would’ve never started investing.
Trnava – Super Location
He considers buying a one-bedroom apartment in downtown Trnava a particularly intriguing investment. Bought for 1.9 million koruna, its appraisal in November 2025 was at 3.5 million koruna. A growth that would have seemed exaggerated years ago but was confirmed by the market. In Trnava, he doesn't own just this one apartment; he gradually built a wider property portfolio there.
He views Trnava as a key city, especially for new projects like larger residential zones or thousands of new apartments. He sees the stable influx of residents and investments as the basis for long-term growth.
Šaľa – Investment Mistake and Lesson
He bought the apartment in Šaľa for 1.4 million koruna. Now, he sells it for roughly 1.7 million, but its capital growth has been much slower than in other properties.
This experience taught him that location has more impact on the outcome than price or apartment type alone. Cities that stagnate or lose populations pose a higher risk of weak growth.
This example became an important lesson for him. Now he focuses more on city dynamics, infrastructure development, and long-term potential when choosing properties.
Prague – Biggest Win
He purchased the Prague apartment for about 4.9 million koruna. Now, it’s worth over 7 million, in his estimates. He considers this investment the most successful because of the combination of price growth and a strong market, significantly boosting asset value.
Reality Instagram Doesn't Show
Michal openly admits that investing in apartments isn't a carefree, passive income stream. Besides value growth and regular rents, it brings less positive situations too.
“For example, my tenant in Prague recently said he can't stay past the third month due to financial issues. He broke the contract, so I had to go from Slovakia to Prague for a week, prepare the apartment, list it, and find a new tenant. I could have used a real estate agency, but I don’t trust that process. Plus, it’s a new apartment, so I like to vet every tenant myself. I don't just want anyone, but the right tenant.”
Over the years, he’s dealt with cases needing police intervention due to neighbor complaints about noise, smoking, or interior damage. In another instance, a tenant stopped paying rent, claiming the passing of his mother left him unable to continue payments. Michal tried being empathetic, but in the end, the outstanding amount was never recovered. “Never trust tenants who don’t pay and blame such circumstances,” he says now with perspective.
How Does He Pick Tenants?
Another instance involved a tenant with a drinking problem who sought treatment. Since Michal was abroad, he managed the situation remotely with help from a local contact. However, after three months, the tenant had to move out, starting the tenant search anew.
These experiences have taught him to be more cautious and less emotional in vetting tenants. These days, he thoroughly checks people’s financial history and communicates personally with neighbors. He doesn’t use real estate agencies for rentals, preferring to keep the process under his control.
“For each new apartment, I introduce myself to the neighbors, leave my contact info, and regularly inspect the property, usually every two to four months, always coordinating with the tenant. I see it as a natural part of asset management and investment protection, not as a privacy invasion.”
Financial Reserve as Investment Strategy Foundation
Michal sees a financial reserve as the absolute foundation of healthy investing. For investment apartments, it's important to consider yield, liquidity, and overall risk. He makes sure to have a reserve covering several months of mortgage payments and operating costs to prevent trouble from tenant vacancies or unexpected expenses.
He doesn’t see mortgages as threats, but effective financial leverage tools. Risk, according to him, arises if the investor lacks enough reserves or buys a property on the edge of affordability.
“My philosophy is simple. Use bank capital for growth, but never without a safety pillow. Mine is 120,000 koruna saved up at all times,” he explains.
Risk, Discipline, and Long-Term Thinking
Michal doesn’t view investing as a quick route to passive income or an easy way to wealth. Instead, he describes it as a long-term process requiring discipline, constant checks, and stress management skills.
He realizes managing several properties means not just asset growth, but responsibilities – to banks, tenants, and his decisions. Every mortgage is a commitment, and every apartment offers potential profit, but also risks like non-payers or unexpected expenses.
Some decisions he now considers less successful, especially the investment in Šaľa, where capital growth lagged behind his original expectations. However, he says these experiences helped him assess opportunities faster and focus more on location quality. “With the first three apartments, I didn’t feel it at all; they brought nothing significant. The breakthrough came with the fourth apartment in Prague.”
When I bought it, I had no idea it would grow like this. Only after a year and a half, when I got a new appraisal, did it hit me that I had around 2.5 million in value there. And that’s something that naturally pleases anyone.
He Didn’t Waste Money as a Student
He recalls times when he lived in a dorm, tracked his spending via an app, and saved every unnecessary cost. He only bought his first car after owning four or five apartments. He deliberately invested money instead of spending it recklessly.
Today, he feels many young people see owning an apartment as a given. And if they don’t have one, they feel left behind, even when that’s not true. “There’s a weird mentality that an investment apartment is an end goal. People often want it without really knowing why, just because they see it on social media or from others.”
Michal also notes that five years ago, he practically had nothing. “I started from scratch. What I have today is a success I value — not as a final victory, but as the result of discipline and time.” He further states that wealth isn’t everything. Investing interests him, but he knows health, family, and inner peace matter more than mere numbers. “Money is a tool. If you lose health or relationships due to it, it’s senseless.”
Finally, he says if he were to give advice to a young person, it wouldn’t be “buy as soon as possible.” According to Michal, it’s key to thoroughly calculate whether it really fits your current life situation. “You need to evaluate everything carefully and not buy just because it’s trendy. It’s not an automatic or guaranteed path to success,” Michal concludes.
