Every year around this time, somebody asks me what I want for Christmas. And every year I give the same unhelpful answer: “I’m good.”
That’s not me being difficult. It’s that the thing I value most at this point in my life isn’t something you can wrap. It’s time. And the closest thing I know to buying more of it is income that shows up whether or not I’m the one doing the work.
That’s what passive income is. And this year, I want to make the case that it’s the best gift you can give yourself.
I Learned the Hard Way What “Passive” Isn’t
I’ve been in Decatur real estate for more than twenty years. I’ve managed rentals, swung hammers, chased contractors, and answered the phone on holidays because a pipe froze somewhere. All of that taught me a lot, and I don’t regret any of it.
But I’ll be honest with you: owning a rental yourself is a job. A good one, sometimes, but a job. The rent comes in, and so do the problems.
What I’ve moved toward over the years, and what we built BACH to offer other people, is the other version. You own a piece of a real property. Somebody else does the work.
What a BACH Membership Actually Gives You
When you become a member of BACH, here’s what you’re really giving yourself:
Ownership in something real. Not a stock ticker. A specific, restored rental home in Decatur that you can drive past. BACH members find, analyze, and buy properties together, and each one sits in its own LLC.
A smaller first step than you’d expect. The stated minimum is $1,000 per property. You don’t need to save for a down payment or qualify for a loan.
Somebody else’s phone ringing. Quality Home Locator renovates and manages the properties. BACH handles the books, the taxes, and the distributions. You don’t fix the furnace on Christmas Eve.
Numbers you can trust. I’ve written before about the systems that keep BACH running: every account reconciled monthly, distributions paid by ACH, a tax return checked three times. Boring and reliable. That’s the point.
BACH laid out all the details in Give Yourself the Gift of Passive Income This Holiday Season.
It’s Also a Gift to Decatur
Here’s the part I care about most. When you invest with BACH, your money doesn’t disappear into some fund in another state. It goes into buildings right here.
This year, that meant taking 228 W Main St one apartment at a time. Quality Home Locator’s crew rebuilt Unit 6 from the floors up, and it rented before the trim went on. Every finished unit is a family with a good home, a local crew with steady work, and a block that’s a little more alive than it was. I wrote about that in Two Empty Storefronts, Two New Beginnings, and it’s the same reason I was glad to see the Powers Mansion get its next chapter.
So yes, it’s a gift to yourself. But it’s one that does some good on the way.
Why I’d Start Now
I’m not going to tell you there’s a deadline. There isn’t. Real estate rewards patience, not urgency, and the right time to invest is when it fits your life.
But I’ve noticed something about the end of the year. People slow down. They think about what went right, what they’d change, and what they want next year to look like. If one of your answers is “I want my money working for me instead of the other way around,” this is a good week to do something about it instead of just writing it on a list.
Start small. Pick one property. Watch how it does for a year. That’s exactly the advice I’d give anyone just starting out in real estate.
Wrap This One Up for Yourself
Becoming a BACH member starts with a simple hello. Fill out the contact form or email bachinvestmentgroupllc@gmail.com, and someone from BACH will reach out to get to know you and get you set up. Ask what properties are open. Ask anything you want.
And if you’d rather learn more first, start with why passive real estate investing with BACH is a smarter way to build wealth and how to invest.
Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and thank you to everyone who’s been part of what we’re building in Decatur. Here’s to next year.
