Kevin Paffrath (aka Meet Kevin) is a YouTuber and landlord influencer who rose in popularity since going full time on the video sharing site. He regularly livestreams his market trades and provides financial analysis for his nearly 2 million subscribers.
When California Governor Gavin Newsom faced a recall election, Paffrath dropped his hat in the ring of potential replacements. Not only that, but this popular young YouTuber got the second highest vote count.
Although politicians are increasingly using social media for politics, the tables are turning as social media influencers get political. It’s crazy at first glance to think this well-known investor and social media personality could one day assume a top role in politics.
But it seemed equally outlandish when Hollywood actors Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed ambitions to transition from silver screens to the role of California’s governor. The former was later elected President of the United States, as was businessman and TV personality Donald Trump.
With the lines between media and politics blurring, let’s dive into this real estate investor turned YouTuber turned politician.
Who Is Kevin Paffrath?
Paffrath has already accomplished a lot before the age of 30. Born in Germany, he immigrated to the U.S. as a baby and became a real estate broker by 2010. He and his wife Lauren partnered to create their own real estate business The Paffrath Organization.
From there, they started buying, renovating, and renting out properties throughout Southern California, which Kevin documented on his YouTube channel that started in 2010.
As the decade went on, his growing YouTube following became profitable enough to continue pushing full time into it. He’s also part of the Millennial Money channel on YouTube, alongside three other popular financial personalities.
By 2021, Paffrath was earning about $10 million a year from YouTube alone (up from $6 million last year). So, is he still buying and selling real estate with all these YouTube profits?
Is Meet Kevin A Financial Advisor?
Paffrath was a licensed real estate broker in the state of California. His early videos focused heavily on his role as a landlord. During this phase of his career, he brought his camera out into the world to film him renovating homes, discussing the housing market, and giving tips focused specifically on real estate.
During the 2020 pandemic, he shifted to vlogging in his at-home studio. He livestreams every weekday and draws a large audience with each video. In these videos, he branches out into discussing all things money and finances.
He often spends his time discussing his personal thoughts on the stock market. It’s important to understand he’s not a licensed financial advisor though. Most recently he’s reported an equity portfolio north of $20 million, allocated between JP Morgan, Webull, Coinbase, and other brokerage accounts.
Let’s break down where he ranks among his Millennial Money peers.
Who’s the Richest on Millennial Money YouTube?
Paffrath is featured on Millennial Money with Andrei Jikh, Graham Stephan and Jeremy Lefebvre. Each of these men is a young millionaire, but who is the richest?
His YouTube, investment, and real estate fortune makes Paffrath worth around $30 million. Jikh has an estimated net worth of $3.5 million based on his investments and YouTube earnings. Stephan earns approximately $2 million per year and has an estimated net worth just under $10 million. Meanwhile, Lefebvre also has a net worth around $10 million.
This makes Paffrath the wealthiest Millennial on the podcast with a net worth greater than his three co-stars combined. That’s a healthy lead he’s likely to hold onto, considering they all make their money in the same basic ways.
How did Paffrath amass such a fortune?
How Did Meet Kevin Make His Fortune?
Meet Kevin earns his keep from a variety of income sources. This is a combination of YouTube’s ad revenue, affiliate programs, and partnerships, along with income from his rental properties.
Paffrath also sells real estate and financial courses through his YouTube channel, along with getting paid revenue from premium subscribers and super chats. This supplements his other income and helps push him into the eight-digit annual income bracket.
Although he made his initial fortune in real estate, YouTube has been, by far, a more lucrative source of income and both he and his wife focus heavily on this channel for the sake of their children. So, why did he move into the political sphere?
Why Did Meet Kevin Run for California Governor?
Being a YouTuber and real estate broker earned Paffrath a fortune that allows him to do whatever he wants with his life. He has generational wealth and could easily live off the interest at this point. But he wants more than money – he also wants the power to enact change in the world.
His gubernatorial run in California is just the start of what’s sure to be a long-lasting political career. He calls himself a “JFK-style Democrat” who challenges the party establishment and doesn’t consider himself a typical politician.
In fact, he launched what was considered a long-shot campaign and participated in a lot of viral media antics. This includes starting a Twitter fight with Stephen Colbert, crashing anti-recall events for incumbent Gavin Newsom, and threatening to sue CNN for not acknowledging his campaign.
These tactics earned Paffrath a strong showing during the recall campaign and has many wondering if he’ll continue in politics. Most recently he’s hinted at throwing his hat in the mix for the Mayor of San Francisco role.
Meet Kevin’s Political Future
Despite Newsom’s recall vote failing, Paffrath stated his intention to keep the campaign going. There’s only a year left before Newsom faces another general election, and Paffrath is focused on politics. He stated he’s going to run again in the next election.
His plans include legalizing gambling, reforming the state’s water and wildfire management systems, and creating statewide net-negative energy communities.
There’s no telling how his political ambitions will play out, but one thing is certain – Paffrath proved that YouTubers have real pull with his constituents. Just like Hollywood stars-turned-Presidents in the past, there’s a good chance that we’ll see YouTubers showing more political ambitions in the future.
#1 Stock For The Next 7 Days
When Financhill publishes its #1 stock, listen up. After all, the #1 stock is the cream of the crop, even when markets crash.
Financhill just revealed its top stock for investors right now... so there's no better time to claim your slice of the pie.
See The #1 Stock Now >>The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Financhill has a disclosure policy. This post may contain affiliate links or links from our sponsors.