I went from broke single council house mum to millionaire with 38 homes

FROM a single mum who swapped her council house for a property empire, to a young widow who fought to provide for her family – three women share the secrets to their success.

‘I went from broke single mum to multimillionaire’

Katie Bloomfield, 42, lives in Suffolk with her husband Danny and their blended family of six children – aged five, 14, 17, 18, 19 and 22.

They run DKB Homes, a property development and investment company.

“As the plane descended into Los Angeles airport, I looked at my husband Danny and thought about just how far we’d come.

Before we met, I’d been a divorced single mum of three, living a modest life in a council house on a budget. Now, we were multimillionaires, flying across the world to speak at a conference.

After my divorce in 2012, I moved into a council house with my three children, then four, six and nine.

Sinking into depression with no self-confidence or self-worth, I smoked every night when the children were in bed, and drank heavily every weekend when they were with my parents.

I worked in the hotel industry, doing everything from reception, waitressing and reservations, but my salary didn’t go far and money was a constant worry.

I wasn’t looking for love, but in May 2017, I met Danny – a divorced dad of three who ran a sports coaching business – on a night out, and it was love at first sight.

By then, I’d got a handle on the drinking and depression, but money was still tight, and I didn’t know how to change things.

In October 2018, Danny proposed and we moved in together two months later, blending our families.

We married the following October, and six months later Covid hit.

I was furloughed from my job, as I was three months pregnant and deemed vulnerable, while Danny’s coaching business was put on hold.

Our home was rented and neither of us had money saved, but we set about finding a solution, determined to give our family long-term financial security.

Danny’s grandad had always said to him that property was where to invest – but how could two normal people like us, with no money behind us, get on the ladder?

We spoke to family and friends who had savings, and trusted us and our work ethic, and we borrowed £100,000 to buy two rundown rental properties.

We worked tirelessly to get them done up and rented out, then we refinanced them to pay back the loans.

We had enough left over to buy another house, which we also did up – repeating the process. A year later, we had 11 more.

The money was simply recycled from one property to the next, and the business took off from there.

In 2020, we began posting on social media about how we were building up our portfolio and making good money.

People kept asking how they could make money by investing in property, too.

In 2022, we qualified in neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), a set of techniques aimed at increasing confidence and building communication skills, becoming life coaches to help others achieve their own successes.

Today, we have a property empire of 38 homes, a combination of single buy-to-lets, multiple-occupation (HMOs) and developments – and our assets total £11million.

Despite being multimillionaires, we live in a very normal home. It’s a detached six-bedroom house in a small, close-knit village.

There are fingerprints on the walls from our five year old and toys all over the floor.

We like to keep life down-to-earth for the children, and have been conscious not to bring up rich, entitled kids.

We have a family reward programme, much like a Tesco Clubcard.

Rewards are only available to those who have earned them, and are things like a shopping trip or a break away together, while the older children work and pay for any large purchases themselves.

I strongly believe that anybody can make money if they have the correct tools and outlook – it’s all about having the right mindset.”

• Follow Danny and Katie on Instagram @The_bloomfields_life.

‘I fell apart after my partner died – now I can’t wait to see what the future holds’

Claire Harris, 48, is the founder of Pets 2 Places and lives in Milton Keynes.

“After a hectic day accompanying an anxious elderly woman and her dog to the vets, ferrying another dog to kennels and a third to the groomers, I arrived home tired but happy. I love every minute of my pet taxi business and the life I’ve managed to build.

Thirteen years earlier, in August 2012, I’d held the love of my life’s hand as he took his final breath, leaving me with three kids to provide for.

Falling into despair, there were times I didn’t even want to be alive.

Gary and I had met on a blind date in November 1996, when I was 18 and he was 20. He was kind, funny and handsome. We went on to have three kids and life was hectic, but filled with love.

Gary was only 36 in January 2012 when he spotted blood in his urine. He was eventually diagnosed with kidney cancer that July, and found out it was terminal the following month.

We were in complete shock and denial, and just nine days later, he passed away with me and our 14-year-old daughter by his side. We were utterly broken, as were our other two children, then just 10 and 11.

As the months passed, I turned to drink when the kids were in bed and ended up having a complete breakdown. Having left school with no qualifications, I’d done various casual jobs over the years, including cleaning, and a few months before Gary got ill, I’d spent £30,000 I’d inherited buying a cleaning franchise.

Now, however, I had to give it up, losing every penny.

Filled with panic over how I’d provide for the kids, I simply couldn’t function – every night, I prayed that I’d go to sleep and not wake up. I couldn’t see a life without Gary in it.

Two months later, Gary’s mum, who worked as a vet’s receptionist, mentioned that lots of their clients struggled to get their animals to appointments, as they couldn’t drive.

It sparked something in me. Since I had a car and always loved animals, I thought I’d give a new business a try.

In October 2014, I spent £100 on a Nokia phone and credit, and printing some leaflets. I wasn’t expecting much, but before long I was ferrying people and their pets to and from the vet for £15 a trip.

It gave me another reason to get out of bed, and it stopped me being alone with my thoughts while the kids were in school.

Summoning every ounce of strength, I put on a cheerful persona and people began to confide in me.

Most customers were elderly and, hearing their past struggles, I realised they had survived terrible times – and I would get through my grief, too.

I got busier and busier, with customers telling me they’d be lost without me. Feeling like I was giving something back kept me going.

In the first year I made £10,000 just from doing it casually.

I researched and learned how to do everything myself, from accounting to customer retention, and this gave me the idea to start my own Pets 2 Places franchises – so far, I’ve sold two.

Now, I make around £100,000 year and have lots of exciting things in the pipeline, such as campaigns for safe seats for pet transport.

I’ve had a lot of therapy to deal with my grief, and have found love again with a wonderful man called Alex, 42.

He’s great with my kids, who are now in their 20s and tell me all the time they’re proud of me. I’m proud of myself, too.

After losing Gary, the future looked so bleak – now, I can’t wait to see what it will bring.”

‘Starting my business saved my life’

Dannii Summerfield, 38, owns her own toy business and lives in Cambridgeshire with husband Reece, 40, a technical director, and their three children aged nine, 14 and 17.

“Kissing my three children goodbye, my husband Reece and I headed to my friend’s wedding. I’d been looking forward to it, but when I got to the entrance, fear and anxiety overcame me – my throat felt like it was closing, my heart pounded and I thought I was going to pass out.

Panicking, I ran back to the car, begging Reece to take me home where I finally calmed down.

Never having had mental health problems, I assumed it was a one-off – but that panic attack in February 2017 was the beginning of a nervous breakdown that would leave me too terrified to leave the house.

A year earlier, I’d given birth to our third child after a smooth pregnancy and straightforward labour.

My maternity leave was coming to an end, and I was getting ready to return to my sales job the following month, when I began having more and more panic attacks.

My GP diagnosed panic and anxiety disorder and prescribed antidepressants and CBT, but neither really helped and I deteriorated rapidly.

Over the next few weeks, I became agoraphobic, unable to go outside for fear of having another panic attack. I couldn’t eat or sleep, and I resigned from my job.

Reece had to take over the nursery and school runs as, although I felt guilty, I could barely get out of bed and was close to being suicidal. I lost a lot of weight, was weak and looked terrible. Reece was supportive, but he didn’t understand how to help.

Two months later, we were struggling financially and I knew I had to work to keep us afloat. Trying to push down the anxiety and hopelessness, I started researching things I could do from home, and saw a Facebook post where someone had painted their family on to wooden peg dolls.

I’d always loved art at school, and thought they would make amazing toys, so I ordered 10 pegs from Amazon for £8.

Desperately wanting a distraction from my own thoughts, I started to paint a doll. It took my mind off everything else and I actually enjoyed doing it.

It also gave me something to post online for the first time in months, which made me feel connected to the outside world.

I painted 10 peg dolls and posted pictures of them in childminding groups, soon selling my first for £4.

Orders started to come in immediately. Having a purpose again helped me feel more calm and capable, and the darkness began to lift.

Four months later, I had to deliver an order to the children’s school.

It was the first time I’d been out alone and was really nerve-wracking, but I managed without having a panic attack. Slowly, I began to go out more and more, until I was pretty much back to normal.

In eight months, I made £21,000 profit and now, eight years on, my business is my full-time job. Last year, I made £28,000 and I’ve now earned around £100,000 in total.

Occasionally, I still struggle with my mental health, but now I have coping strategies, such as breathing exercises, which calm me down.

I love the freedom, the creativity and that I can be at home for my children.

I’m in the top 1.6% of Etsy sellers, and there’s no doubt that starting my business saved my life.

I hope my story helps those who are struggling to realise that they won’t always be in a dark place.

Sometimes it takes time, but things do get better.”

• Visit Peggyandpip.etsy.com.