Path of Progress

Why He Left a CMO Role for Real Estate | Ep 68 Path of Progress


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In this episode of Path of Progress, Alex Kononov sits down with William Liu, multifamily investor, operator, and co-founder of GiveRise Capital. Together with his wife Anita, William oversees 160+ units and $37 million+ in assets under management β€” all while prioritizing family, values-aligned partnerships, and long-term wealth.


William’s journey is anything but traditional: from 4 years in the US Army as a Psychological Operations specialist to a 20-year corporate marketing career that took him from ad tech analyst all the way to Chief Marketing Officer in higher education.


A forced W2 exit right before his daughter was born became the catalyst to go all-in on real estate. He shares how he applied his marketing and psychology expertise to capital raising, the gritty lessons from his first 76-unit Class C deal in Irving, Texas, and how they quickly scaled to an 82-unit Class A property in Richardson just nine months later.


This is a masterclass in infrastructure building, navigating a soft market, creating supplemental loans, and turning military precision + corporate systems into a thriving family real estate business.


πŸ“Œ Key Takeaways:

βœ… From Army PSYOP to CMO β€” how 20 years of marketing became the ultimate capital-raising superpower

βœ… The β€œforced exit” moment that made him choose family and assets over corporate stability

βœ… First deal: 76-unit Class C in Irving, TX β€” buying from an upside-down seller and managing concessions in a tough market

βœ… Second deal nine months later: 82-unit 2017 Class A in Richardson β€” value-add office-to-unit conversion + supplemental loan strategy

βœ… Why values alignment and spending full days with potential partners beats any LOI

βœ… Applying investor funnels, CRM, and content to syndication (exactly like performance marketing)

βœ… Property management vs. asset management β€” the lesson that changed everything

βœ… Building community through Subtle Asian Real Estate and targeting Asian-American investors in their 30s–40s

βœ… Cash conservation mindset in a soft Texas market and why β€œcash is king” right now

βœ… Long-term vision: more multifamily, debt funds, private equity, and creating generational wealth


πŸ“š Book Recommendation:

– The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

– Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki


🌐 Connect with William Liu:

πŸ“Έ Instagram β†’ https://www.instagram.com/will.girldadinvesting/

πŸ’Ό LinkedIn β†’ https://www.linkedin.com/in/willliuh/

πŸ“§ Email β†’ [email protected]

🌍 Website β†’ https://www.giverisecapital.com/


🎧 Listen & Watch the Full Episode:

πŸ“Ί YouTube β†’ https://youtu.be/SSp4L8W7YlE

🎧 Spotify

🎧 Apple Podcasts β†’ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/path-of-progress/id1782550599


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#PathOfProgress #WilliamLiu #GiveRiseCapital #MultifamilyInvesting #CapitalRaising #RealEstatePodcast #FromCorporateToMultifamily #FamilyFirstInvesting #TexasMultifamily #AssetManagement #SupplementalLoan #ClassCtoClassA #PassiveIncome #LegacyBuilding #AlexKononov

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