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Proptech Companies Are Taking a Customer-Centric Approach

Combining Technology with the Human Element By Matt Olsen Henry Ford once said, “Most people spend more time and energy going around problems than in trying to solve them.” This quote perfectly captures how real estate companies should approach technology advancements in today’s digital age. It’s not enough to simply implement a new solution and expect it to resolve every problem; instead, the real estate industry is shifting toward a customer-centric approach. Whether they serve buyers, sellers, agents, or investors, real estate companies are challenged to stand out in a saturated market by providing the right solutions to build strong relationships while solving their customers’ biggest challenges. From reducing costs associated with paperwork and manual labor to giving investors access to automated data exchange from one singular platform, technological developments provide tangible benefits for those seeking to maximize operational efficiencies for scale. Innovations in technology are supporting the needs of investors by offering opportunities to automate manual workflows, standardize processes, and create seamless data exchange via APIs. Putting the Customer First Proptech companies that take a customer-centric approach are able to show they understand their users’ needs and demonstrate their willingness to address them. To put this in practice, Endpoint, a digital title and escrow company, took a deep dive into their customers’ specific challenges and technical requirements and focused on solving them with automation. For example, many real estate investors are looking to scale their businesses and expand into new markets. Traditionally, these investors had to source local title and escrow vendors in every region. However, with advancements in technology, they can now handle their transactions on a national scale with a single point of contact. Having a single platform to house all of their deals with open order automation, instantaneous document exchange, and real-time transaction statuses is a total game changer. By understanding which parts of the process are most cumbersome, proptech companies can focus on improving the features that would make the biggest impact on efficiency and allow customers to get more done in less time. “This is a problem in the sector that technology can solve,” said Shawna Hernandez, chief operating officer for Endpoint. “Automating tasks and amplifying the human aspects are big themes to lean into as the industry builds solutions to solve the frictions of volatility and standardization.” The Human Element While technology can save time and increase operational efficiencies, there are certain scenarios that still require a human touch. With large-scale transactions, a human touch is imperative to create confidence for the user, so they can rest easy knowing that they’re receiving personalized customer service and being supported by a team in addition to technology. The human touch is still needed to monitor the intricate details of the transaction process. “The companies that combine technology with people to deliver a seamless customer experience ultimately win,” said Scott Martino, CEO of Endpoint.  Technology needs to address the specific nuances of each business model. Because real estate is a relationship-driven industry, technology shouldn’t replace every human interaction. Even with technological advancements, proptech companies can still build loyalty and trust among their customers by providing a single point of contact that can address any questions or concerns. A Focus on Standardization In any product development initiative, it’s important to keep the process and user journey in mind. This means having a standard operating procedure (SOP) in place that guides users through the workflow specific to their respective transactions. “Standardization is key,” said Hernandez. According to Hernandez, the team at Endpoint identified standard practices that were ripe for automation, as well as areas where a personal touch was needed. They factored in such nuances to create a system that was effective at empowering employees to step in when a human touch is needed. This process was critical to ensure that all potential scenarios and outcomes had been taken into account — even situations that shouldn’t be automated. Standardization promotes efficiency throughout the entire process and ensures that all parties involved in the transaction are on the same page. Custom Solutions Built for Scale It’s beneficial for tech-forward investors to align with proptech companies that are building with their needs in mind because the solutions will help solve their unique frictions. When selecting proptech companies to work with, it’s important to look at the company’s core values and track record to ensure that the solution is tailored to the investor’s needs and not just a generic one-size-fits-all approach. When implementing new technology, investment companies should utilize the right change management practices to help ensure that employees are set up for success. A customer-centric proptech company will be able to partner with you to guide you through the process, so all team members can follow the standardized process and seamlessly integrate the technology into daily operations. Plays Well with Others Many real estate companies have their own technology and are looking for vendors that can integrate with their current tech stack via API integrations, which can sometimes be faster or easier than implementing an entirely new platform. Emerging proptech solutions, like those offered by InspectHOA, a platform that streamlines the HOA document acquisition process, can automate a seamless data exchange to improve and accelerate transactions. Endpoint has leveraged InspectHOA’s workflows to streamline an integral part of the closing process. By integrating directly via API, the HOA documents and data that InspectHOA collects can automatically be loaded into the transaction without human touch. It’s important to consider the resources it will take to implement an entirely new system and weigh that against the ease of using an existing platform via an API integration. By partnering with an outside vendor, you might be able to solve pain points more quickly, while also creating new relationships in the industry. Keeping the Customer in Mind As more proptech companies apply a customer-centric approach, investors will continue to benefit from customized solutions that will help them scale. Knowing the impact customer-centric solutions have on customer satisfaction means that striving to address each customer

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The Evolution of the Single-Family Rental

Investors Need to Plan for the Economic Shift Everyone is Feeling Right Now By David Hicks Real estate investing can be a great way to curate long-term, and even generational, wealth. The most common type of real estate investment is single-family rental (SFR) – as opposed to multi-family or commercial properties. Reportedly, there are 108.5 million Americans who rent their housing and 35% of those rentals are single-family homes. Sure, those facts and figures are promising, but is this type of investment still a viable option? What does the future of SFR real estate look like? In the wake of COVID-19, the current inflation troubles, and the record high interest rates, landlords and property managers need to plan for the economic shift everyone is feeling right now. There are a few factors to consider if you are contemplating the road to becoming a residential real estate tycoon. What are Single-Family Rentals and Why are They So Popular? By definition, a single-family rental is a home that is leased to a family or an individual. The property could be a standalone home, townhouse, flat, or apartment. Single-family homes are the most popular type of housing in the U.S. In fact, there were 82 million single-family units across the country in 2021. Tenants tend to be attracted to this type of rental because they do not have to worry about caring for a house. Owning a home takes a lot of work and everything rests on the owner. When you rent, there is always someone you can call to fix a towel rack that may have fallen or update an appliance that gave out. SFR real estate allows families to live in quality homes in nice neighborhoods without the hassles of owning the property. Plus, many single-family rentals have the amenities of a luxury apartment building, such as fitness centers or entertainment areas. These perks, coupled with extra outdoor space for families with small children or young couples with pets, make these types of rentals ideal. COVID’s Impact on Single-Family Rentals With the “zoom town” boom during the pandemic, the supply of homes for sale was not able to keep up with the demand – causing cutthroat bidding wars that resulted in houses being sold for much higher than the asking price. This accelerated the growth of SFR real estate. Single-family rentals allow millennials — the smallest group of homeowners in the country — the chance to embrace the suburban lifestyle without having to drop a large down payment or feel the strain of a monthly mortgage. With most of this demographic feeling the weight of resuming student loan payments, homeownership seems to be a far-off goal. Even if the Supreme Court rules in favor of President Biden’s student debt relief plan, many millennials may still have remaining balances to pay off. The interest-free forbearance, which has been extended nine times since March 2020, gave borrowers a chance to build their savings, just not for homes. However, with more companies shifting to work-from-home or hybrid schedules, younger employees can move away from expensive city living to take advantage of more space for fewer dollars. Additionally, if young renters want to move to another part of the country in a few years’ time, they have more freedom to do so without the strings of homeownership. This is especially important to millennials who have different priorities than other generations. According to Business Insider, millennials are willing to spend $5,000 or more on a trip — making them the highest travel spenders. Millennials also travel more than any other generation, taking a whopping 35 days a year to get out of town. Generation X, baby boomers, and Generation Z all take less than a month with 26 days, 27 days, and 29 days devoted to travel, respectively. The Future of Single-Family Rental Real Estate Even before COVID, the single-family rental real estate market was faring well, and predictions show it is only going to grow. From 2019 to 2020, there was a 30% increase in build-to-rent single-family homes. These types of property management owned communities make up about 6% of the homes being constructed in the U.S. — a figure that is expected to double over the next decade. It is also unlikely that renters will move on to buy a home anytime soon. Due to the high inflation rate — peaking at 7.11% last year — everyone is feeling a bit pinched for cash. In an effort to get a handle on the rising rate of inflation, the Federal Reserve has raised the federal funds rate seven times in the last year. Even though the inflation rate has started to come back down, the Fed is not planning to slow down the interest rate hikes. Hence, those invested in the residential real estate market may see an opportunity. With soaring interest rates, potential homebuyers are attempting to save money by renewing their leases instead of purchasing a property. This gives landlords at least another year of steady cash flow before having to worry about finding another tenant. Final Thoughts It is important to note that you do not have to be a major property management company to generate wealth through single-family rental real estate. Anyone could be a real estate investor in the SFR market. The strategy is straightforward: you buy a home when property costs are low, make any updates or renovations to the property, and rent it. Over time, you can take advantage of increased rent costs and appreciation. When you are ready to sell the home, ideally, you will be selling when asking prices are high. At the end of the day, your ability to properly maintain the home will be a big determining factor in its overall value. While there are other components to consider, such as location, type of home, amenities nearby, etc., fresh coats of paint and updated appliances can go a long way when it comes to deciding a rent or asking price. Residential real estate

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An Ounce of Prevention — Best Practices

Preventive Maintenance Plans Can Save You Time, Money and Hassle By Doug Ellis As they build their portfolio of single-family rental (SFR) properties, owners and operators focus on key business strategies—to find quality renters, reduce tenant turn times and maximize their investment. But there is one step a lot of owners and operators often overlook: preventive maintenance. Part of maximizing your SFR investment is ensuring that each of your properties is properly maintained. You do not want to waste your time or money, so be strategic and thoughtful in your approach. This means knowing what you have in each of your homes and investing in a preventive maintenance plan. Here is what you need to know about getting started with SFR preventive maintenance plans. Start with an Asset Database Many SFR investors are lacking a simple tool to help them manage their properties effectively—a database that catalogs the fixed assets within each home they own. For example, how old is your HVAC unit? When was the water heater last serviced? Have there been roof repairs? An asset database is key to staying on top of property maintenance, and that is critical because missing key maintenance checks can lead to expensive capital investment repairs and replacements later. Having a detailed record of your assets, as well as which services have been performed and when, can help you properly maintain the properties. This work ultimately helps prevent unnecessary costs and headaches. Plus, this data can enable predictive analytics so you can perform preventive, versus reactive, maintenance. Build Preventive Maintenance Plans With your asset database in place, you are able to build proactive preventive maintenance plans. Having an established maintenance plan in place can help reduce or prevent potential repairs and extend the lifespan of everything from HVAC units to plumbing fixtures. Plus, you can use the information to make decisions regarding capital investments. So, what items should be included in your plan? To help extend the life of the assets within your SFR properties and capitalize on your investments, MCS’s investment property management experts recommend at least biannual maintenance checks that include: HVAC systems HVAC preventive maintenance helps you protect your SFR investments by avoiding extensive repair costs, early unit replacements and lost revenue from disruptive tenant relocations in the case of an outage. Schedule checks that follow ASHRAE standards for HVAC preventive maintenance with your SFR property services partner twice a year to keep your system in working order. Each year MCS receives a large number of work orders due to backed-up condensate lines, an issue that can result in drywall damage, mold and remediation. With a proper preventive maintenance plan, HVAC condensate lines are “blown out” to help prevent back-up, keep the system operating efficiently and reduce larger repair expenses down the road. Filter Changes Beyond biannual checks for your overall HVAC system, regular filter changes should get their own checkmark on your preventive maintenance checklist. Replacing HVAC air filters is essential to extending the life of your units. But even though your tenants would experience cleaner air and near-term savings—the U.S. Department of Energy notes that replacing a dirty filter can reduce an A/C’s energy usage by 5% to 15% — it is a task you should not hand over to them. Instead, schedule regular filter changes with your SFR property services partner. Roofing Roofs and gutters may be the most frequently neglected maintenance item—until there is a problem. Avoid big repairs or emergencies through regular inspections and cleaning. Ensure your property services providers check for potentially loose or damaged shingles or tiles and clear gutters regularly to avoid standing water and reduce fire hazards.  Water Heaters Extensively used assets like water heaters require checks to keep them working well—and longer. Because sediment can build and pollute the water in your water heaters, scheduling preventive maintenance checks every year to flush them can help keep them running as efficiently as possible. Plumbing Preventive plumbing maintenance can catch small issues before they turn into bigger ones. Have your property services provider regularly check all plumbing fixtures to ensure they are in working order and are sufficiently tightened or fastened. Drain cleans to avoid backups should also be on your checklist. Landscaping Do not neglect your SFR properties’ exteriors. From ongoing yard upkeep and fence repair to the winterization of sprinkler systems, addressing issues before they become problems via preventive maintenance maximizes your investment in multiple ways, including avoiding costly fines for HOA and other municipal violations. Find a Partner to Help Having a property services partner to oversee critical investment property maintenance and management tasks can help you keep your properties in peak condition. A good partner can help you build and maintain your fixed asset database, keep preventive maintenance schedules and serve as a maintenance expert for your entire SFR portfolio. Beyond handling these critical needs, your property services partner also can help you understand and consider the bigger picture of your entire portfolio, so you can confidently decide when and where to make capital investments strategically. We see a lot of owners forgo preventive maintenance, but that choice consistently backfires. You would not expect your car to keep running well—or for long—without regular oil changes and other maintenance. The same is true for your homes.

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For SFR, Adversity Is in Our DNA

It’s Far Too Early to Write Eulogies for the Late, Great SFR Market By Greg Godderidge From humble beginnings, the Single-Family Rental (SFR) market has grown into an asset class worth trillions of dollars. Today, institutional investors own approximately 500,000 properties of the 16 million single family rental homes nationally, representing a fraction of all rental units in the United States. But their importance to the national housing industry is unquestionable, as they provide consumer choice, professionally managed properties, and an attractive alternative to the traditional multifamily or apartment rental options. With the housing market going through a period of correction caused by the Fed’s mandate to tame inflation, the industry is enduring its first stress test since the Great Recession. Acquisitions have slowed while warehouse financing and securitization deals have been put on ice after the Fed’s unprecedented interest rate hikes beginning in March of 2022. Will the SFR Asset Class survive the challenge? For those questioning the ability to weather the storm, let’s remind them that the SFR business was born out of adversity and is built to withstand imperfect market conditions. A Look Back at History Let’s take a quick look back at the origins of the SFR industry. The Great Recession and the collapse of the mortgage market led to a surge in foreclosures, which peaked in Sept. 2010, when approximately 120,000 homes were repossessed in a single month. With the sudden inversion of supply and demand, home prices plummeted. In those years, real estate was considered an undesirable investment. Some bold investors were not intimidated by the grim market conditions and began acquiring foreclosed properties to rent out while they waited for the market to recover. We owe thanks to those trailblazers who took a chance on a “risky” investment that many others were shying away from as property repossessions were sweeping the country. Brave investors brought activity back to an otherwise lifeless housing market and ultimately helped stabilize home values and propel the housing market’s recovery. They also provided affordable housing solutions for families recovering from the financial crisis. These investors realized the cash flow, low interest rates, and steady price appreciation were a profitable recipe. The business model’s early success attracted the attention of more capital markets participants and large institutional investors who could aggregate a significant number of rental properties. Thus, from the ashes of the foreclosure crisis, the Single-Family Rental asset class emerged in 2012. For the next ten years, the SFR market enjoyed steady growth, with an entire cottage industry of vendors, management companies and outsourcers sprouting up to support it. Big operators such as Invitation Homes, American Homes 4 Rent (now AMH), Tricon and others established a new standard of living for suburban renters with professionally managed properties and amenities. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated all the positive housing trends and drove even more demand for maintenance-free single-family living, igniting a boom in the SFR space. The market conditions through the pandemic solidified the SFR industry’s position as the “darling” of the real estate asset classes. The SFR industry continued to outperform expectations with a record number of securitizations, new market entrants, and expanding warehouse banking lines. The picture became a little less rosy in 2022 when the Federal Reserve cranked up interest rates to tame runaway inflation. The Current Market Now that we have entered a slower period for the housing market, the explosive growth of SFRs has slowed with it. Investor activity is down due to the run-up in borrowing costs and cap rate constriction. Rent growth has also softened in recent months. Despite these pressures, the underlying fundamentals of the SFR market remain strong: Cash flow remains steady and valuations have normalized. The major players continue to report strong financial results. AMH’s same-home average realized rent rose by 8% in 2022. At Tricon, same-home rent grew by 7.3% in January of this year with solid growth in new leases and renewals, and same-home occupancy holding steady at 97%. They are proving the SFR asset class is well designed to perform in adverse conditions. There is still plenty of appetite from investors who are waiting patiently on the sidelines for conditions to stabilize. Once the market settles into a clear pattern, we can expect the growth of SFRs to resume. Analysts are currently debating what that sweet spot will be for homebuyers and investors to jump back into the market. A report by John Burns Research & Consulting found that 5.5% is the magic rate to reinvigorate the mortgage market. Even if we never see rates drop down to 3% again, if mortgage rates stabilize in the 5.5% range the market can adapt and begin to build a foundation for future growth. While waiting for the market to establish a new trend, investors should take the opportunity to review their inventory, assess their risk, and make any necessary adjustments. That could mean reviewing and streamlining current in-house capabilities or talking with an experienced outsourcer. Partners who can deliver asset management technology, scalable full-service support, and access to a network of vendors will be valuable in this time to help investors manage their portfolios and potentially mitigate losses. An outsourcer with a nationwide footprint like the homegenius family of companies, and its affiliate Radian Real Estate Management LLC can help investors finetune and execute their SFR strategies in different markets across the country. Overall, this is a moment to be cautiously optimistic. As inflation moderates, interest rates should also decline toward the 5.5% sweet spot. Home prices have fallen from their peak, which means there are new opportunities for investors to grow their portfolios. With affordability still an obstacle for many would-be homebuyers, the rental market will likely remain strong. And behind it are secular trends such as suburban migration and work-from-home arrangements that are relentlessly driving demand for SFR properties across the country. It is far too early to write eulogies for the late great SFR market. The fundamentals of the market are too strong and vigorous.

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The Factors Driving Rental Property Insurance Underwriting Decisions

Creative Solutions are Needed to Serve Real Estate Investors By Scott Phillips It seems you cannot go a day without hearing about the ongoing economic inflation that has been ushered in on the heels of the global pandemic. There seems to be no aspect of life unaffected by inflation, including rental property insurance. But why? What are the factors that are truly driving rental property insurance underwriting decisions? Hopefully, the following will answer those questions in a concise and digestible format. Underwriting a rental property insurance policy can be boiled down to two core factors: The risk exposure of a given property or portfolio of properties and the cost to replace the property(s) in the event of a loss. The risk exposure of a property is the primary driver of both property and liability rates. But first, what is an insurance rate? An insurance rate is a simple metric of cost per $100 of insurance coverage.  »         Rate x per $100 of building coverage = Premium  »         $.50 (Rate) x 2,500 ($250,000 (building coverage)/$100) = $1,250 (Premium) Through the lens of an underwriter, determining the condition and inherent risk of insuring a property’s structure and liability exposure is an incredibly complex multi-faceted equation. The risk exposure of a rental property is determined by three factors:  »Geographical Location // Exposure to natural disasters, weather, and crime.  »Property Condition // Age, construction quality, type, and updates/upgrades.  »Property Management // Occupancy, tenant screening, maintenance, etc. With the amount of accessible data these days, it has rendered the exposure to CAT activity, i.e., catastrophic weather events in the area where the property is located, as the biggest variable risk factor to determine. According to a recent report released by AON, after adjusting for inflation, in 2011 the number of CAT events costing $1B+ was 10, in 2021 it had jumped to over 22. In 2022, the total economic impact of natural disasters was estimated to be $313B globally. It is important to note that most of the costs behind these large numbers are NOT for total losses but rather partial losses, such as when a part of a roof blows off during a major weather event and rain destroys a portion of the home but leaves the structure intact. Ultimately, the anticipated frequency, severity, and cost of claims within a given area drives the rate an underwriter needs to obtain to achieve a sustainable loss ratio. Since rental properties exist across the United States, the real estate investor insurance market is frequency driven vs. severity driven. Accordingly, the cost to repair a partially damaged home such as in the above example, is more expensive per square foot than it is to (re)build a new home. The data supporting this is widely accessible but anecdotally anyone who has remodeled their house can attest to this. This calculation is known as Insurance to Value (“ITV”). ITVs are based off either Replacement Cost Valuation (“RCV”) or Actual Cost Valuation (“ACV”). It is very important to distinguish between RCV and ACV. RCV is the cost to replace the damaged part of the home today while ACV is what the current value is less depreciation. For reference, to replace the roof in the above example could cost $10K, but if it was insured as ACV, it may only be worth $1k because it was near the end of its predetermined life expectancy of say 25 years, thus resulting in two very different outcomes for an investor and overall claims experience. Since ACV is more of a calculation determined by depreciation and not the actual cost of labor and materials in today’s prices, we will only focus on RCV factors and drivers. Claims data from the past nine months as of February 2023 from our data partners at Verisk 360Value®, reported a nationwide average replacement cost for a typical rental is $181/ft. The bands of the report were from $155/ft (AR) to $232/ft (AK/HI). Meaning, on average a rental property should be insured at: $181/ft (RCV) x 1,500 Sq Ft home = $271,500 Dwelling coverage (100% ITV) As you can see, pulling back on the RCV per square foot will lead to underinsuring the property. Historically and understandably, the REI industry has been widely underinsured, with estimates below 50% of the recommended ITV. However, the causes of the underinsured estimates are NOT a straight-line to investors trying to control costs and stabilize cashflows, but rather a combination of factors, most notably inflation that has driven up the cost of capital, labor, and materials. In addition, the rapidly increasing frequency and severity of catastrophic weather events throughout the US has profoundly impacted the entire insurance ecosystem – a topic that far exceeds the depth in which this article is intended to cover. The growing challenge of balancing the financial constraints for a rental property to be a viable investment with the need to properly insure the property has become exponentially more difficult. This challenge has forced underwriters and brokers to produce creative solutions to continue to serve their investor clients. Meanwhile, real estate investors of all sizes are feeling as though they need to take a crash course in risk management to better navigate these solutions. Investors navigating their own risk management strategies can look to do the following:  »         Be sure to work with a broker with expertise in this niche property insurance market, including access to specialty insurance markets solely focused on the REI industry.  »         Be diligent with the maintenance of the property to prevent avoidable losses in the future.  »         Consider working with/hiring a property manager that offers: •          Preventative maintenance programs – including 24/7 resident incident reporting. •          Thorough tenant screening protocols and regular property inspections. •          A property insurance program. There is no ‘silver bullet’ for real estate investors to thwart or eliminate the higher cost of property and liability insurance for their investment properties. However, there is some good news. Recent data shows the cost of materials is coming down as supply issues

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From Business to Carpenter to Real Estate Investor

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Learn From Others and Drop Your Ego to be Successful Robert Sturrock is an independent business owner with HomeVestors® of America, Inc. in Southeastern Wisconsin, where he buys, rehabs, and sells residential properties. But his professional journey is far from typical. Life Before HomeVestors Sturrock graduated from the University of Wisconsin—Stevens Point in 2001 with a degree in Business Administration. Upon graduation, he began his business life in the restaurant industry holding key management positions. However, it didn’t take long before he realized that was not what he wanted to do. So, he decided to get his hands dirty in the building trades. Sturrock worked for three years in the trades as a carpenter building and remodeling homes, an experience that would prove beneficial down the road; in 2004 he purchased his first rehab and his first rental property. The HomeVestors Journey Begins While still working in the trades, Sturrock saw a HomeVestors billboard featuring “UG,” the company “caveman” mascot. He made an inquiry with a local franchisee, and was attracted by the HomeVestors systems, the lead generation program and the support available from the corporate office. In April of 2005, at the age of 28, he bought his HomeVestors franchise along with a partner. That partner, Sturrock recalled, was a gentleman that he used to cut his grass for as a boy. The gentleman admired his work ethic and told him that if he ever went into business to give him a call… so he did… and the new partnership was formed. As an added benefit, Sturrock met his future wife, Christi, during his initial HomeVestors training. Christi worked as the office manager for another HomeVestors franchisee. Today, she manages all the sales for their company, Riverhouse Investments LLC, in addition to owning her own brokerage. When Sturrock bought his franchise, HomeVestors had not yet developed their Development Agent (DA) program, but he did have a primary mentor, Ernie Hughes. Hughes went to work for HomeVestors of America in July of 2005, but his relationship with the company and its founder, Ken D’Angelo, goes all the way back to 1973 when they were partners in other real estate ventures. Hughes impressed upon Sturrock to follow the HomeVestors proven systems and WASH-RINSE-REPEAT. Present Day In 2010, Sturrock started focusing on building his portfolio with single-family homes. Today, that portfolio includes a duplex and several multifamily properties, with 95% of his portfolio in Milwaukee. In 2016, Sturrock became a DA and today considers his role as a DA the most rewarding part of his business. He supports 32 people in a three-state area and is instrumental in their successes. In 2018, Sturrock bought out his partner of 13 years and is currently focusing on fix-and-flips and buy-and-holds. Advice from an Expert Sturrock is a firm believer in the single-family rental business and has sage advicefor investors just getting started. •          Spouses need to support each other and have mutual goals. •          Don’t have an ego. •          Follow the system and learn from others. •          Live below your means so you have more money to invest in real estate. 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 for qualifying purchases and repairs, 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 with a focus toward your individual business goals. If you are interested in a franchise, call 866-249-6932, email Sales@homevestorsfranchise.com or visit www.homevestorsfranchise.com. Each franchise office is independently owned and operated.

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