Investor Profile – Trent McMurtrey
Trent McMurtrey’s journey to becoming an independently owned and operated HomeVestors® Business Owner in 2017 has been uniquely interesting.
Trent is a military veteran having spent twelve years in the military. He initially spent six years in the Marine Corps as an enlisted soldier. After his stint in the Corps, Trent did several things, but like a lot of veterans, he began to miss the uniform and the camaraderie which the military offers. After getting his bachelor’s degree in Human Relations/Psychology he attended the Army’s Officer Candidate School and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the US Army Infantry branch. However, he thought he could better utilize his degree in Human Relations/Psychology and transferred to the Chaplains Corps.
In addition to his military background, Trent has always had an entrepreneurial spirit. He has owned various businesses since the age of 25. One of these businesses was Academic Opportunities in America, which is an international education company. He owned and operated that company from 2012 until 2020 and even operated it in Shanghai, China for two years. The only reason he closed the doors on the business was because of the “Virus.” Due to the decreasing number of international students, the business model was no longer sustainable. Prior to the virus, Trent had forecasted another five-to-ten years of positive revenue, but the virus had other plans for Trent.
The Beginnings
Fortunately for Trent, he had a good friend who was a HomeVestors franchisee. After being convinced about the potential and opportunities, Trent bought his franchise in 2017 and received his initial training (SST) in 2018. Having obtained his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree in 2017 from the Michael J. Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University, Trent and his wife, Faith, were ready to hit the ground running…and that they did.
Faith McMurtrey was instrumental in the early successes of the real estate business due to her experience as a real estate agent. An entrepreneur at heart, she is also the Co-Owner of Elite Total Wellness. Faith helps people, families, employees, companies, dreamers, or anyone else who feels “stuck”. She can guide people using their own strengths and weaknesses and by honing in on their individual skills and ambitions to help get them through their hurdles or obstacles. Faith has even coached top companies like Coke by working with their employees to achieve their goals and quotas.
In the first year of business, the McMurtrey franchise, Southern Willow Properties, LLC, bought and sold sixty homes. Trent recalls he made a nice profit on his very first deal as a HomeVestors Business Owner. That very first deal eliminated any skepticism he may have had. As Trent describes it, “I had absolutely zero experience in buying homes “as-is”, quickly for an all cash deal.” Now that he has owned his franchise for a while, Trent is no longer in denial about buying homes “as-is”, quickly for cash in accordance with their current condition.
There are many reasons that people get into the real estate business and just as many reasons for buying a HomeVestors franchise. Trent and Faith had two reasons; build a passive income stream and build a personal real estate portfolio. Since starting in 2018, they have acquired twenty single-family rental properties in the Atlanta area. Trent saw a clear pathway to success from day one and gives a lot of credit to the military credo of mission accomplishment and the leadership skills he acquired while serving his country. Additionally, he credits his degree in Human Relations/Psychology when working with people and his finance knowledge acquired while working toward his MBA. But he mostly attributes his success to John Holman, the HomeVestors Development Agent in Atlanta, and many other HomeVestors franchisees in his network.
Success and Regrets
Hard work and success have many rewards! Trent and Faith can retire right now with the money they have made and the portfolio they have accumulated. That revenue can supplement social security, retirement funds, or pension payments. However, their immediate goal is simple…building their personal portfolio to forty single-family rental properties. As Trent puts it, “If my family has a medical emergency or I want to send one of my children to college, all I have to do is sell one of my houses.”
HomeVestors formed the Atlanta Advertising Council of which Trent is the President in Atlanta. There are about 170 markets 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 regrets. Trent’s regret is he wished he would have gotten involved with HomeVestors before the iBuyers entered the market. During the COVID crisis, Southern Willow Properties continued to grow and prosper while the iBuyers left the game…now they are coming back. Trent’s advice to anybody is to get involved with HomeVestors now! “There are enough deals to go around for everybody and the passive income generated by our portfolio is fantastic!” Trent also pointed out that he is immensely proud that the Military Times named HomeVestors a “Best for Vets” franchise.
What exactly does it mean to be a HomeVestors® business owner? When you become a HomeVestors business owner, you can get immediate access to motivated seller leads, funding for your purchases, 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 independent venture. Compare this system to a 2-day real estate guru workshop!
Trent, Faith, and their three children (Travis, 10; Micah, 6; Maci, 2) currently reside in Cartersville, GA. If you wish to contact Trent, he can be reached at Trent.Mcmurtrey@homevestors.com.
