This week I came across the white paper I wrote while at North Lake College. Data has always played a signficant role in my career. Excited to see how it is showing up as I shift to a speaker, mentor, and commercial realtor.
In every industry there is data that will help us working smarter not harder.
Here is a snippet of the possibilities, Working Smarter, Not Harder
Dallas-Fort Worth leads the state in terms of number of minority-owned startups. Unfortunately, they are unevenly clumped in one area, Accommodation and Food. This is particularly disconcerting when we consider the food insecurity in many communities that house a large percentage of minority residents.
Is there an opportunity for the top heave food start up to support agricultural companies in the area?
I started my real estate investment career in 2017. For my first property, I leased a single family house for 18 months and ran it as an AirBNB. This appealed to me for 2 reasons cash flow and no debt. Since that time, I’ve added two more properties to my portfolio and I also host properties for others. When the State of Housing in Black America (SHIBA) report came out last month, I realized it was time to share my expertise with others.
I define expertise in terms of my struggles, my successes, and my preparation. I approached this endeavor like any good researcher with a doctorate would 1) I immersed myself in the research- the literature and theory, 2) Designed and revised the methodology, and only then did 3) test the knowledge in the field. As a result of this approach, I have practical and theoretical knowledge that explains why building wealth via non-traditional real estate strategies needs a more prominent place in black communities.
To incorporate these non-traditional strategies effectively we need to be proactive rather than reactive. Wealth requires ownership, protection, and cash flow. As we build wealth via these strategies, we must be aware of the regulations and policies that may enhance or threaten our efforts.
As I mentioned, my first non-traditional real estate strategy was an AirBNB (aka short-term rental) property. So, lets start with the regulations governing those properties in Texas and the Dallas/Fort Worth Area, Short-term rental (STR) Regulations
Suzette Teague of Abundance Realty and CITA Property Management has been my client for about 5 months. Due to a new hire, I’m finally working on the vision she outlined for her business and growth. My primary focus is marketing and lead generation.
I expected this to mean marketing for Abundance Realty. I expected to generate leads related to buyers and sellers. Surprisingly, in this market I have found that I need to focus on marketing for the rentals we manage via CITA Property Management.
Some of CITA’s easy to rent properties are staying vacant longer than the trend. Suzette has explained her typical process and coached me on closing. Unfortunately, it has not translated in to new tenants.
I’ve read a few articles about how people search for homes to purchase. In the wake of zillow, trulia, realtor more people are taking the process in to their own hands. Finding a realtor use to be the first stop, not so in this market. I haven’t found any articles about how this is impacting families looking for single family homes or duplexes.
For home purchases, this seems to mean that the first person who can make contact in the search process becomes the chosen realtor. It’s a matter of building trust and providing value as families navigate the search.
If home buyers and renters are still a distinct group, then perhaps the building trust and adding value can be translated in to the rental market. I’ll try advertising to neighbors near the rental. Perhaps, “Do you want to like your neighbors”?
“economic development can be defined as efforts that seek to improve the economic well-being and quality of life for a community by creating and/or retaining jobs and supporting or growing incomes and the tax base”
“economic power having the material, labor, or money to influence and enforce economic decisions”
“economics the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services”
Economic power and economic development produces a certain level of freedom. This freedom is in large part rooted in the psyche of man. It is the perception of controlling one’s actions and decisions based on values and priorities while in reality still bending to the will of others. After all, no man lives in a vacuum.
Unlike formal education programs (aka degrees and diplomas), one cannot complete the journey to economic power or economic development. One person will never have all economic power. One person will never be fully developed. Hence, it never ends which is the beauty and the curse. By never-ending, one is forever growing, shifting, gaining, improving. By never-ending, one is also constantly judging, criticizing, internalizing, and revising. In this never-ending process, one’s cognitive acuity is forced to grow and attune.
In the USA, federal laws and regulations benefit business-owners and property-owners. One way for marginalized or forgotten groups to gain economic power and improve economic development is to take advantage of the benefits given to business-owners and property-owners. Real Estate is an ideal opportunity.
As we discovered in 2008, some entities are too big to fail. All of these entities, were at the least negligent with their Real Estate portfolios and/or securities. The individuals at the helm of these institutions were terminated with pay and then re-hired by government organizations to fix the problem.
The marginalized or forgotten groups must discover how to leverage this safety. I am working on a 10-point plan.
I love data. I love numbers. I love context. I love it all. I refer to myself as a data-geek and one of the most rewarding parts of my last career were data-nerd dates with faculty members who were curious.
As I’ve transitioned to real estate, I’ve found pockets of people with similar curiosity. They know that the growth in the economy is important and they believe that if they dig deeper they could figure out how it impacts their strategies. However, for the life of them they don’t have the time or the inclination to sit down and delve into it.
According to Berkadia report on Dallas-Fort Worth, “The enormous leasing activity [in 2018] is projected to drive occupancy up 50 basis points to 95.2%.”. In short this means that there will be more demand than supply. So, landlords who have vacancies can charge more for their supply; the market will support higher rents.
But, what does the trend mean for a real estate investor who owns single-family homes with long-term leases and tenants. Does this mean that she misses this opportunity? Well, it depends.
You could always increase rents. When you notify the tenants, explain the increase is the result of rising costs. If the tenants balk at the idea of a higher rent, then when they look at the supply they will see the higher rents for themselves. If you price it appropriately, staying will be more appealing than the hassle of packing and moving.
Dr. Yolanda Columbus 