REI INK

Investor Profile

Investor Profile

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 987 views

Alan Washer Sweet Home Chicago Born and raised in Chicago, Alan was working for American Remodeling and enjoying a very successful corporate career. In 1988, a promotion moved him from Chicago to just outside of Los Angeles until his job took him next to Dallas in 1995. The person who helped Washer with his final relocation from Los Angeles to Dallas was a realtor who also bought and sold homes. The realtor lit the “investor” spark in Alan which ultimately led to a phone call with Ken D’Angelo, who founded HomeVestors of America, Inc. in Dallas and began franchising in 1996. The stage was set! Alan got married in 1993 to his now-wife Maria, and had a son, Erik, in 1996. So, he left American Remodeling in 1999 to start his HomeVestors franchise in Dallas. Even though Alan attributes much of his current success to what he learned in the corporate world for fifteen years, the life-family-work balance was lopsided. He wanted to spend more time with his new family and not travel as much. Then, their daughter Alexandra was born in 2001, and Alan and Maria decided they wanted to be closer to family. In July of 2003, they moved back to Illinois. Alan sold his Dallas franchise and bought the Chicago franchise covering Cook and DuPage counties. That then grew into Lake and McHenry counties. That then evolved into Alan becoming the Ad Council president for Chicago (until he moved to the northern Chicago market) and the Development Agent for Chicago and Northwest Indiana in 2008 when the DA program started. With a burgeoning business, Maria stepped in to handle the bookkeeping, staging, and design side of the operation for Value Properties, Inc. Did the Washer’s attain what they wanted? Business is obviously excellent, but just as important is the achievement of balancing family and work. In Alan’s words, “The flexibility that comes with being a HomeVestors® independent business owner is so important. It did take some time to ramp up and get comfortable with what we were doing, but right off the bat it did allow me the flexibility to go to any of my young son’s school events and games. When my daughter was born it allowed the same flexibility.” He went on to add, “And as both kids got older there was really nothing my wife and I missed related to the kids, whether it was parent conferences at school, plays, musicals, soccer for my son and dance or ballet for my daughter. As the kids grew and things got more competitive, my wife and I were always able to travel for soccer games for my son through middle school, high school and even college and the same for my daughter while she was in competitive show choir and dance in high school.” Success Comes from Following the System Besides his excellent work ethic, Alan attributes his success to always being respectful of other people (not so common these days), always being on time (as simple as that sounds) and FOLLOWING THE HOMEVESTORS TRAINING MANUAL AND SYSTEM! Alan also gives a huge amount of credit to HomeVestors for creating the Development Agent program in 2008. The DA program provides the necessary field support for both the new business owner as well as the seasoned ones. An additional piece of advice: “You need to be passionate about helping people!” HomeVestors What exactly does it mean to be a HomeVestors business owner? Owning a real estate business is life changing and naturally comes with risks! When you become a HomeVestors® business owner, you get immediate access to motivated seller leads, financing resources, one-on-one coaching with your local Development Agent, proprietary software for analyzing properties and deals, and access to a nationwide network of coaches and peers. Your house-buying business is yours and you run it as your own venture. If you are interested in a franchise, contact April Nealey at april.nealey@homevestors.com Each franchise office is independently owned and operated.

Read More

Alex Seehaver and Don Cameron

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 2,510 views

Going From “Putting Your Toe in the Water” to National Recognition Being named the HomeVestors® National Franchise of the Year for the fifth time over the last ten years is no small feat. Yet that is exactly what happened to Donald Cameron and Alex Seehaver of Hi-Land Properties, an independently owned and operated HomeVestors franchise headquartered in West Palm Beach, Florida. Hi-Land Properties is one of more than 1,100 independently owned and operated franchises in 176 markets nationwide. Since 2005, Hi-Land has purchased over 1,400 homes from local sellers. Donald Cameron bought his first of five franchises in 2005 after being introduced to Ken D’Angelo, the then owner and founder of HomeVestors of America. With a background in the construction industry, Don decided to “put his toe in the water” and begin to buy single-family properties. With a desire to grow the business, he chose HomeVestors because of their name recognition and the various tools they offered to their franchisees. Beginnings of the Dynamic Duo In 2008, Alex Seehaver joined Hi-Land Properties starting in the marketing side of the operation. As Alex describes it, “When I first joined Don, I did marketing, answered the phones, took out the trash…anything that had to be done for the good of the business.” Alex is now the Vice President of Hi-Land Properties. Alex’s background was in finance, but most importantly, Alex and Don both shared the entrepreneurial traits of hard work, integrity, discipline, and goal setting. Don credits his strict adherence to goal setting as a major factor in their rapid success. The team sets goals every year; they review the goals on a monthly and quarterly basis; and they also set quotas which are reviewed just as regularly. Combined with their absolute commitment to advertising and using the HomeVestors tools, they had a formula in place for expansion and success. Today, Hi-Land owns five franchises in Florida, covering the East Coast counties of Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Brevard, Volusia and Flagler as well as the West Coast counties of Collier, Lee and Charlotte. Seehaver serves as the Ad Council President for all of their East Coast territory.   “This is not a job,” says Cameron. “I cannot even imagine retiring. This business has forced me to become more organized and focused. It also made me more compassionate and more empathetic with people who are less fortunate. When people are distraught over possibly losing their home, we pay them upfront, buy their house, and in some cases, afford sellers the opportunity to remain on the property post-closing if they desire a little more time to arrange for a move.” Present and Future Currently, Hi-Land Properties’ bread and butter is “fix and flip” because they have their own in-house general contracting firm to manage the renovations as well as their own real estate brokerage. Having these in-house capabilities allow them to take on more difficult properties that need complex work. They are also doing more wholesaling and are even buying properties with complex legal issues. They have found a niche in dealing with properties that have extensive code liens and also homes that have “fractional” ownerships such as when three people inherit a home, and not everyone wants to sell their share. Looking ahead to 2021, Alex and Don see several challenges facing the real estate market such as the ending of foreclosure moratoriums and forbearance programs as well as potential increases in interest rates. But they also see an opportunity to help more people. And while housing inventory is low, the “sell-side” of the industry is a lot easier. Their advice to new real estate investors: Start small. Be conservative. Follow the HomeVestors® system. HomeVestors What exactly does it mean to be a HomeVestors business owner? Owning a real estate business is life changing and naturally comes with risks! When you become a HomeVestors® business owner, you get immediate access to motivated seller leads, financing resources, one-on-one coaching with your local Development Agent, proprietary software for analyzing properties and deals, and access to a nationwide network of coaches and peers. Your house-buying business is yours and you run it as your own venture. If you are interested in a franchise, contact April Nealey at april.nealey@homevestors.com Each franchise office is independently owned and operated.

Read More

Investor Profile

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 1,197 views

Almas and Asif (AJ) Jadavji THE ENTREPRENURIAL SPIRIT Prior to becoming independent HomeVestors® business owners, Almas and Asif (AJ) Jadavji already possessed the two main ingredients for success: THE ENTREPRENURIAL SPIRIT and WORK ETHIC. While still living in Canada (they both have dual citizenship), Almas worked as an Accountant and later as an IT Director. However, both Almas and AJ came from entrepreneurial families and knew that eventually they would want to own their own business. In 2006, that opportunity presented itself when Almas and AJ moved to San Antonio, Texas, and along with Almas’ father, opened a Sprint store. That one Sprint store grew into twenty stores stretching from San Antonio to Houston. When the stores were at their peak, they decided to sell them. According to Almas, “In the first six months of my daughter’s life, I never once changed her diaper…my mother did all that. My career was so time consuming.” A NEW BEGINNING WITH ZERO EXPERIENCE While still in San Antonio, Almas and AJ attended a “franchise expo” where HomeVestors had a display. After listening to a presentation, they decided to give it a try. So, in 2015, Almas and AJ became HomeVestors independent business owners and started Raw Capital LLC. With absolutely zero experience in real estate, except for AJ being a huge fan of HGTV, they jumped right in with a positive attitude and a little apprehension. Their attitude was that “every failure was like a trial run, so let’s just trust the tools we’ve been given and follow the process.” Beginning a real estate career with a HomeVestors franchise, with little or no experience, is not uncommon. Many of the independent business owners came from the military or other private industries/sectors and built strong and profitable organizations. Contrary to the advice of experienced mentors, Almas and AJ decided that their very first deal would be a “fix and flip” (probably an HGTV influence). They bought a house, rehabbed it, and then it took them a year to sell it. Having learned a lesson by not “following the process”, they then made a self-correction and proceeded to add 12-15 rental properties to their personal portfolio. “If I could do it again, I would follow the process from day one,” explained Almas. Now, AJ does all the buying and Almas does the rehabbing. They have also started doing short-term rentals in addition to the traditional long-term rentals. Recently they began financing properties and hold the notes for passive income with no landlord headaches. MOVING INTO 2021 Almas and AJ are extremely optimistic about 2021. Having just achieved their five-year milestone with HomeVestors, they have zero apprehensions moving forward. Even though there is a shortage of inventory currently in San Antonio which affects their ability to buy homes at a rate they’d like, the selling side of the business right now is very profitable. Almas’ only regret is not having started sooner. “If we started this business sooner, we could have hit our goals sooner,” she explained. The Jadavji’s advice to new investors entering 2021: “Don’t be scared, listen to people who know more than you, and trust the tools you’ve been given.” HOMEVESTORS What exactly does it mean to be a HomeVestors business owner? Owning a real estate business is life changing and naturally comes with risks! When you become a HomeVestors® business owner, you get immediate access to motivated seller leads, financing resources, one-on-one coaching with your local Development Agent, proprietary software for analyzing properties and deals, and access to a nationwide network of coaches and peers. Your house-buying business is yours and you run it as your own venture. Almas, AJ, and their two children (Ayden, 12; Ariyanna, 10) currently reside in San Antonio, TX. If you wish to contact Almas, she can be reached at Almas.Jadavji@homevestors.com.  If you’re interested in a franchise, contact April Nealey at april.nealey@homevestors.com Each franchise office is independently owned and operated.

Read More

Tanice & Paul Myers

  • by
  • Comment Off
  • 894 views

Turning Their Passions Into a Thriving Operation Tanice and Paul Myers began their HomeVestors careers in February 2018. They bought their first franchise in the Seattle area, called Fobes Hill, LLC. After that, they bought a second franchise in Crawfordsville, Indiana called Northern Point and own thirty rental properties in that area. Tanice was born in California, the daughter of a United States Army combat soldier, Pete Hjellen, who served during the Vietnam War. At two years of age the family moved to Anchorage, Alaska where she is considering buying another HomeVestors franchise. Tanice worked at Microsoft for over ten years and as she said, “Microsoft will always have a special place in my heart, and I will cherish my memories forever. And I am so very thankful for everything that Microsoft has provided me over the last 10 years.” She also felt very empowered the day she resigned in December of 2018. Tanice gave up a W-2 income and great benefits so she could join her husband in their new real estate business. She loves being in control and wanted to spend more time with her family and “have time to play.” Paul, on the other hand, had worked with real estate investors for the last fifteen years. Prior to becoming a HomeVestors franchisee, he worked as a real estate broker, general contractor, and investment specialist. Tanice and Paul have turned their passions for family, technology, and real estate into a thriving operation. Not only do they currently own two franchises, and looking at a third, but they are also building their own portfolio with five rental properties in the Seattle area and thirty in Indiana. They attribute HomeVestors with their portfolio expansion. HomeVestors provides training, networking opportunities, mentorship, and financing. Tanice and Paul are also Development Agents in Washington state, helping new franchisees and providing mentorship. HomeVestors also formed the Franchise Advisory Council (FAC) of which Tanice is the Chairperson. There are fourteen HomeVestors regions nationwide, and HomeVestors welcomes feedback from “the field”. This feedback allows HomeVestors to adjust their training and marketing programs. Owning a real estate business is life changing and naturally comes with risks. At HomeVestors, their priority is to limit those risks through training, tools, mentorship, leads, and financing resources. For any questions, Tanice can be reached at Tanice.Myers@homevestors.com and Paul can be reached at Paul.Myers@homevestors.com 

Read More