How To Court The Next Generation Of Investors

Cultivating relationships pays off for one franchisee By Monica Feid Monica Feid Meet the next generation of real estate investors: Full-time executives with busy careers, fiscally conservative spending habits, untarnished credit, and a bit of philanthropic drive to do good for the community. Robert Brandes, of Alpharetta, GA., is now one of them. This week he is closing on the refinancing of a beautiful three bedroom home in Lithonia, GA. Not long ago, it was a shack with fire and water damage that, as Brandes said, “could have been knocked down.” But Brandes didn’t find the property, he didn’t rehab the property, and he didn’t find the happy renter for the property who now gushes over the pretty house she and her kids can call home. All of that legwork was the job of franchisee Todd Reid, owner of Nosara, Inc. in Roswell, GA. And the relationship between Reid and Brandes is a sign of the times: real estate experience meets impeccable credit. Even in the shaky economy, Atlanta has been attractive for real estate investing because of stable housing prices, a market for renters and white-collar wealth that is looking for alternatives to the stock market. Brandes is a fiscally conservative family man. His personal investments involve a home, a second home and a low-risk mix of CDs, stocks and bonds. As a vice president at FleetCor, overseeing the MasterCard® products group that provides commercial charge cards to companies, he has a full-time job that keeps him busy. And while Brandes admits that this may be a good time to invest in real estate, he also admits that he’s no expert. Robert Brandes But Reid is.  Reid, who coached one of Brandes’ sons in soccer, calls real estate investing a full-time career. And his business has evolved to meet the changing economy. Mortgages are harder to come by. And he can’t finance everything. So if he can’t rehab homes to sell to first-time homeowners, he can rehab homes to rent. That’s why Reid opened a property management division. He takes on all the headaches so more than 20 C-level executive investors, like Brandes, don’t have to. “It’s not like people are exiting Atlanta,” Brandes said. “Business is pretty stable and people need to live somewhere. It’s a good market for what Todd is doing. In fact, I know he has investors from out of state.” But Brandes took his time before becoming a first-time investor, and he examined all the numbers to make sure it was a good decision. “It took me a long time to get comfortable with it,” Brandes confessed. “When he gave me the estimate [for the repairs], I said, ‘Are you sure?’” After the rehab, Brandes watched his investment property rent within hours. The rehab went smoothly. And, as expected from Reid, so did finding a renter. “It rented literally in two hours,” Brandes said. “In fact, they stuck the sign in front and, by the time they got back to the office, they got the call. It’s a single mom with kids, and she works at Sara Lee in town. She was just thrilled.” So goes the evolution of real estate investing for one “We Buy Ugly Houses” franchisee and his growing network of local investors. Reid still gets to rehabilitate neighborhoods, families still get to live in beautiful homes, and conservative investors like Brandes get to keep their money closer to home and make a difference in the community while also making a return. “When I met the woman who’s renting it, it gave me such a sense of satisfaction knowing that I had taken a place that you could have knocked down and turned it into something that someone can be proud of,” Brandes said. . . . Monica Feid is vice president of BizCom Associates, HVA’s public relations agency.