Lessons From Our First Ventures

Late 2022 I saw a post that Matt was tagged in on social media about some real estate he was buying in the desert. I thought to myself, “Matt is into real estate?? I had no clue.” At this point, I was managing several properties, including a 180+ unit apartment complex, and I owned some real estate of my own. So naturally, I was excited when I saw my friend venturing into the field I was so passionate about. I gave Matt a call and we got to talking about the properties he was working on, his goals, and where he saw his future.

Among many things, Matt is methodical. He does everything with a purpose and always has his eyes on the future. This real estate venture he was working on was a full top to bottom remodel (or “gut” as it is sometimes referred), of 2 different 2000+ square foot 4 bed 2.5 bath homes that he planned to turn into trendy short term rentals (or Airbnb’s). I remember thinking it is incredible how much of a self starter he is to never own a piece of real estate to jump head first into not only 1, but 2 full remodels. I mean the risk that that takes? Wow! 

How did he do it?

Well, like any great businessman/entrepreneur, he knows how to put a great team around him. He had a friend who had run a few projects of his own and knew how to analyze deals. He had another friend who was a lender who they partnered with, and he was able to find and interview a quality general contractor (“GC”) who completed the jobs. Once the remodels were complete, through a few contacts he made throughout the remodel, he was able to find a property manager as well. 

Did this seem daunting? Yes, Matt mentioned how overwhelming a job like this is, but he continually made progress and leaned on his team's experience and was able to get the project to the finish line. Right around this time I had just finished a project of my own where I bought a house that I was going to live in that needed a big renovation and I learned a thing or two as well.

Remember how I mentioned that I worked as a maintenance technician? This might seem like I understood the basics of fixing minor things throughout a property, but boy was I in for a surprise. Repairing and renovating a house is difficult work. The only time I ever claim to be a big handyman is when my wife asks. When she asks me to fix something as simple as a door hinge, thats when I become the general contractor of the year. So, as you can imagine, when my wife (then fiancé) asked "Are you sure you can fix this place up?" I scoffed and said "come on... I was a maintenance man, of course I can." Now, this home needed a pretty sizable remodel and I had some time and unknown arrogance believing I could do a good job. Needless to say, I learned... and learned... and learned some more.

I spent every day for about 3 months after work driving 30 minutes, repairing leaks, tearing up old flooring, taking out the popcorn ceilings, painting, etc. I had family and friends come over and help me out several times and am so grateful they did, because I would still be working on that place today. As a matter of fact, at the time of writing this, we still live here and if you ask my wife, how the remodel went she will tell you it is still going pretty slowly and the contractor (me) sucks.

 Why would anyone someone with no experience remodel a home?

Isn't that the question of the decade in my household. The simple answer is money. I'm a very frugal individual and did not want to spend more than I had to. In hindsight, while I learned being frugal is important, doing the job right and renovating your home to quality standards is very essential, and finding a happy medium was a major lesson learned. Also, aside from the countless lessons I learned while renovating my home, my biggest takeaway was when it makes sense, spend the money. Not only for you and your families peace of mind, but if you are going to get the money back throughout your investment, then spend your time on what you are good at and leave the skilled work to the professionals.

I'll end with this, my home is lovely (some would say), and I am proud of the work we all did, my family and friends included, but we certainly wouldn’t get paid the big bucks if we changed careers.