096. Serial Entrepreneur Turned Investor with Beth Underhill

Connect with the host:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-e-jenkins/

Website: https://www.birchprosper.com/

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About the guest:

Beth Underhill, Founder of Lifestyle Equities Group, brings over 25 years of entrepreneurial expertise in construction, hospitality, and home renovations. With a keen eye for creativity and functionality, she has masterfully navigated finance, marketing, and client relations in small business operations. As co-owner of Outdoor Design Build for 23+ years, Beth has contributed to over $30mm in outdoor living spaces in Cincinnati. As a real estate investor, she's redeveloped $5mm+ in single-family homes and co-GP on 500+ multifamily units, 126-bed student housing, and other ventures. Beth aims to revolutionize the real estate market with cutting-edge strategies honed from years of entrepreneurial success.

Connect with Beth Underhill: 

Email: beth@lifestyleequitiesgroup.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethjanuzziunderhill/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/investingwithbeth/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheBethUnderhill

Episode Highlights:

✔️ Being flexible in business

✔️ Taking action on your “aha” moments

✔️ Leveraging easily accessible information to pivot as an entrepreneur

✔️ Applying lessons learned as an entrepreneur

✔️ Student housing vs multi-family

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Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:06

You might be surprised to hear that many real estate investors started off on a completely different path. You know, some of us came from corporate backgrounds, but some of the most successful investors were business owners, entrepreneurs, long before they shifted to the real property sector. And the ability to pivot is their superpower. So in this episode, we sit down with Beth Underhill, founder of Lifestyle Equities Group. She's leveraged over 25 years of entrepreneurial experience to achieve some pretty impressive things as a real estate investor. So don't miss this incredible conversation as Beth shares the details of her journey. From being a serial entrepreneur to having success at the multifamily and student housing. So don't miss this incredible conversation as Beth shares the details of her journey from being a serial entrepreneur to having success in the multifamily and student housing sectors. She's going to give you a few tips. She's even going to give you a few lessons learned so you can avoid some of the pitfalls of getting into this field. So listen close. Here is Beth from Lifestyle Equities Group.

SPEAKER_00 1:24

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SPEAKER_03 2:25

What would you do if you had the freedom to pursue the things you enjoy the most? How incredible would it feel to have the resources to pursue your passions fully and live life on your terms? This is Brandon Jenkins, host of the Capital Stack Podcast and principal of Birch Prosper. You might have heard that 90% of the world's wealthiest people attribute their wealth to real estate investing. Well, guess what? It's true. Investing in real property continues to be the greatest generator of wealth all over the world. So join us each week on the Capital Stack Podcast to hear about how commercial real estate group investment opportunities can help you reach true financial freedom and give you your time back. Hello everyone, what's up, and welcome back to the Capital Stack. I'm your host, Brandon Jenkins, and I'm super excited for today's show. So we have someone who is going to share her wisdom on why having a variety of investing and business experience as an entrepreneur suits you well as a syndicator and um and more. So our guest for today is Beth Underhill. Beth, how are you doing today?

SPEAKER_01 3:26

I'm doing well. Thank you.

SPEAKER_03 3:28

Absolutely. Thank you so much for being here. So Beth is the founder of Lifestyle Equities Group. They're a private real estate investment company with a portfolio of commercial and residential properties, including co-GP positions on over 500 multifamily units, as well as other asset classes like student housing and RV parks. So we'll talk about that. Um, with over 25 years of entrepreneurial experience, Beth hopes to impact the real estate market through the use of cutting-edge processes and innovative approaches that have served her well in other ventures. And I always talk about um on this show both transferable skill sets and also kind of having um an eye for which things sort of connect uh but among industries. You know, my background as an engineer is an example. Sometimes I use that to uh benefit me in this space. And Beth, it sounds like you've done that as well. And I applaud you for that. So um with that, welcome to the show. Thank you so much for for being here. Why don't you kind of share just a little bit about your background and your your journey with us?

SPEAKER_01 4:24

Absolutely. Well, first of all, thank you for having me. I'm excited to share um just about my real estate journey. But I'll start first with um myself. Um, I'm 54 years old, I'm a serial entrepreneur. I've owned multiple businesses, including a catering business, an online women's bulk apparel and accessory business, as well as a fitness studio. Um, I also um my husband and I actually we co-own an outdoor living space construction company that we've had for over 23 years uh in Cincinnati, Ohio, which is where I reside with my husband, four dogs, and one daughter. Um my daughter is actually uh heading into her sophomore year at the University of Kentucky. So she just finished her freshman year. So we made it through year number one, thank goodness, and uh heading into year number two. But uh I've always been a serial entrepreneur. Um I inherited that trait from my father. He was a small business owner. And I absolutely loved, you know, watching him build his shoe store business along with my uncle. Um they, of course, um inherited that from uh my grandfather. And just having watched him, I thought, you know, you just you just go out, you get your hands dirty, and you just make it happen. And uh so that's that's all I ever knew, like what to do, how to do. Um, of course, you know, early on in uh early on in my life, I worked at places like Burger King and and was a catering director for a hotel. And it wasn't until I met my husband that uh my thoughts and dreams of actually just going out and and doing it myself, becoming that small business owner, um, you know, really became a reality. So we started our outdoor construction business together. And as a result of that business, it led us into other businesses. Um, we hosted parties and I would do all the cooking. I'm Italian. So I, you know, my mom taught me everything I know. And that led to a catering business because everybody wanted to know, well, who was making all this food for all these wonderful parties? And so that opened the doors to something. And then once I had my daughter, I thought, okay, you know what, time to cut out the catering business. I'll pivot into um an online business. And that's when I started the golf apparel uh business. Um, and then something in me just decided that I wanted to help out women um and uh and help them out with, you know, how they felt about themselves and and what they thought of themselves and help them out physically, emotionally. And that led uh way to the fitness studio. Um and then I was diagnosed with cancer in 2015. And uh during that cancer journey, I just had a few aha moments that took me to a place that I said, you know what, I think I just need to focus on my family. So I closed down the studio. Um, and then that's when my husband and I started flipping houses, and that's how we got into the real estate world. So I became more of a stay-at-home mom. Um, but then I was able to apply some of our construction knowledge that we had gained over the course of, well, at that point it would be 20 years or so. Um, and we we started applying that to um to indoor renovating because we were always doing, you know, outdoor renovating essentially. Um, and that, you know, we ended up flipping for the, let's see, I think it was through the course of about four years, about five and a half million dollars worth of uh single family homes. So um, but then we realized, you know what, it's a lot of work. And we we're getting older and we need to figure out something that's going to maybe be a little less active. Um, and that's when I actually attended a multifamily syndication workshop. Um, and and I just entered into this world that I never knew existed. Uh, but I wish I would have, you know, 10 years ago or so. Um, I I probably wouldn't be here talking to you right now.

SPEAKER_03 8:18

You'd be on a beach somewhere.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

Yeah, exactly. So, anyways, yeah, that's a little bit about me and uh how I got started.

SPEAKER_03 8:26

Well, look, thank you so much for sharing um your journey. And I think it's just very fascinating because one, there's a couple of things that that really stand out to me. Uh, number one is you're an action taker, which I think is is um extremely valuable in this and in any business, as you've proven, because you've worked in um in a number of different protocols, a number of different industries and had success with them. And um, you know, I and I always think that you know, people when they take in information but don't do anything with it, um, you know, then I I can understand it, but it's missed opportunities. And I think that it's it's certainly um noteworthy that you've taken action on many occasions and have been open to pivot and then take action, which is another thing that most people struggle with. Um, I struggle with that. And so um, but I'd also like to say that, you know, I've seen time and time again for people who have exposure early on to entrepreneurship, um, they do really well um in business, you know, and with investing, with being an entrepreneur, because you you the seed has been planted, and you at the very least have seen that it is possible to then go out and do something and build something and have it grow into something positive that can change and positively impact your family, your community, and all these things. And so um, I just think that's really cool to to see here in your background. And you've all it also sounds to me like anytime that there's a problem that you've identified that you know that you can come up with a solution for, then you've gone after it. So just to me, it's just like I say, really, um, really impressive uh background. And so um thank you.

SPEAKER_01 9:55

I appreciate that. And and I would say that if there's one thing that I've learned um from taking all of that action is um, you know, a lot of times people hesitate to get into real estate investing um on the active side, um, especially, and or they don't know where to begin. Um and really they're just paralyzed with fear. And I think that's one thing that all of the action that I've taken up until my real estate journey has taught me just like what's what's to worry about, what's you know, we've reinvented, my husband and I have reinvented ourselves on so many levels. Um, you know, if you go from you know outdoor construction to catering to golf to fitness, I mean, they're all different, right? And now here we are flipping houses, or we were flipping houses, and now I'm in commercial real estate. So I think you know, that just speaks to the fact that I'm not afraid to do anything and I'm not afraid to start over, no matter what my age is. And and that should be really a lesson for anybody. It's it's never too late to start. It really isn't.

SPEAKER_03 10:56

That's right. It it sure isn't. I mean, it's in and another way to look at it is it's never too late to learn, you know. I uh because I think that's ultimately that's what people wrestle with is, you know, well, it's taken me X number of years to get to where I am now and to maybe have a certain level of expertise with what I'm doing now. And I think that it's just the thought that you know it it would take a similar amount of time or a comparable amount of time to learn something new. It's it's that's not the case. You know, it just you you you have to always be ready to learn. I think that's that's just really again, that's something that's very powerful. Um and let me ask you, so for for you, what what what are some of the the things that you've noticed that have um allowed you to pivot? Because that that's not easy to do. Like what you know, what what do you typically think of, or I guess uh that stands out to you that that lets you know, hey, this is a a time for me to pivot and do something new um in my business or my career.

SPEAKER_01 11:50

You know, for me, um when I have pivoted, there, you know, there's been like circumstances or signs, you know. Um I have a a one-year-old daughter that's walking around a house and I've got food everywhere, and I'm trying to push food out. I'm getting up at three o'clock in the morning so that every everything can be you know fresh. I'm exhausted by the time, you know, 6 p.m. rolls around. And and that was just a clear sign that, you know, this is not, I'm I'm not gonna be able to be the mom that I want to be for her. And so that was uh, you know, an aha moment. Um, you know, with my um um with my golf business, I actually, interestingly enough, I had a competitor and I had just entered into the market with my golf business. And this competitor, and and you know, the internet, I mean, we're talking about 2007, right? So the internet, I think, was still relatively new, so to speak. And this competitor thought that I was taking too much business away from her. We both had online stores. Now she was located in southern Florida, which is the golf capital of the world, right? So she also had, you know, foot traffic coming into her physical location. Um, but I was taking too much of the piece of the pie. And so she um went to um vendors that we both um purchased from, and she tried to get them to stop doing business with me. And so once that happened, I realized that, hey, I think I've got something here as far as um from a legal standpoint that she shouldn't be doing, um, which I did. It was tortious interference with business relations. Um, so I filed a lawsuit against her and won a small sum of money. And that was an aha moment. Like, you know what? I don't think I'm supposed to be going back to this business. So just take my money, walk away, and uh and move on. Um, you know, with the fitness studio, I was, I loved every moment of it. Um, but being diagnosed, it really changes your perspective on life. And my daughter was just entering into high school. And I thought, you know what? I have one daughter. She's my one and only, and I want to be as present as possible for everything that, you know, happens over the course of the next four years because I'm not gonna get to spend that much time with her when she goes away to school. So that was, you know, again, another aha moment. So again, another pivot. And and then for us with the fixing the with the single family home renovation, you know, we we're contractors ourselves, right? And we realized that not all contractors operate the same way we do. We stick to a timeline, we show up when we say we're gonna show up, you know, we communicate with the customers, but we were continually chasing after contractors. And we thought to ourselves, you know what, it we want to do business with people that operate like us. And if we aren't able to do that, then this is not the business that we really want to be in. Um, and once I ended up, you know, attending this multifamily syndication workshop, it was really the aha moment where I saw the bigger picture. Like there is this opportunity and it's out there, and I need to go grab it. Um, and and I just went to work. I just started, you know, friend requesting people, diving into Facebook groups, um, you know, learning as much as I could. And you know, I do want to say something. You mentioned something earlier about it's never too late to learn. Right now, especially, we are in a period of our time where you have access to so much information, almost too much information, right? I mean, you've got Google, you've got YouTube, you've got TikTok. I mean, my daughter, she gets most of her information off of TikTok, right? She knows things quicker than I do. And I read the news on my phone sometimes, right? But um, but that being said, you know, you have so much access to this information in which you can self-educate. Whereas back when I was, you know, back in 2007, when I'm starting um an internet-based business, I had to learn everything from books still, you know, nobody was teaching a lot, you know, on the web. And so, you know, I'm I'm going buying this book and that book and whatever else the case may be, and reading as much as I could about SEO. And um, so it's just so much easier right now to make those pivots because of all the educational resources that are out there.

SPEAKER_03 16:06

That's an excellent point. Um, you're right, because I think that a part of what holds us back from pivoting is that lack of information that at least that used to exist. But you're right, I mean, it's at our fingertips now. The the world is a much smaller place because of these things. And so, um, so really what the only thing that's holding us back is then our mindset, right? Because it's like, well, you have the information and it it the information is is out there, but you can also you know distill it down to what you need. So the information's here for us, you know. But it's just about okay, well, what are you going to do with it or are you gonna do anything with it? Um, so yeah, I I again just to me, just very powerful. Um, you know, and and I think that that for the listeners, that really is something that's important is anytime you're looking to make an adjustment, you know, sure, take the information in, but but take action on it. You know, I just I think that's the the way to do it. And so I and I wanted to ask you because you you mentioned um uh the redeveloping uh the single family homes. And is that in and just to be clear, the redevelopment there that is flipping the properties, or is there something where you're repurposing them as well?

SPEAKER_01 17:10

Or we like to call it redeveloping because sometimes fixing and flipping has uh has not necessarily the nicest connotation. So when I was thinking, hmm, what can I what can I say about this? How can I term this that is gonna sound like, hey, we're just not the typical? And it's interesting because as we started um redeveloping these homes or fixing and flipping, um, we we were taking on projects that were not the typical. We weren't doing the the lipstick on a pig where you would just go in, maybe spend, you know, I don't know,$10,000,$15,000, you know, paint job, carpet, and then that's it. I mean, we were actually building, adding on thousand square foot, you know, additions. We actually took a ranch home that sat between um an$800,000 home, and this ranch home was$300,000, um, and on the other side of it was a million dollar home. And we decided we were going to pop the top, so take the roof off, add a second story, finish off the basement. Um, and we ended up selling our house or that particular house for$765,000.

SPEAKER_02 18:15

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 18:16

So we really like dig in um or we dug in, I should say, and and uh transformed, you know, so many of these properties. Um and that, you know, and and those projects took a lot longer, obviously. I mean, we did we did some that were um, you know, maybe had like$40,000 budgets and and weren't quite as um costly as as some of those other ones. Um, but yeah, you know, and and we had realtors who would walk through these properties and they would tell our realtor, um, they would say, there's no way that these are our flippers. There's no way that they are. Like who are these people that are you know renovating these homes? And you know, our real estate agent that we um we did a lot of you know business with, um, you know, he was he was always so proud to put our houses on the market because he knew that the quality was going to be there and that that would never be an issue. And and I think that was really important um for us. You know, we we were used to, you know, we we weren't gonna put out something that was just, you know, um, we're just gonna try and get away with it. That that was just that's just not who we are. And uh, and so I think, you know, that's why we don't want to call ourselves necessarily flippers. We're redevelopers.

SPEAKER_03 19:27

Yeah, no, I mean I think that makes a lot of sense. I'm I'm here in the in the DC area, and um, you have a lot of row houses, and naturally DC is very much uh you're very much constrained in terms of land, so there's not exactly a whole bunch of new developments going up, but um, but that's a a strategy and an approach that some of the higher end, you know, rede uh redevelopers or um builders will use here is they'll extend up. And so these properties then sell for you know a good deal more because the they've added that much more value. You know, you like you just mentioned a thousand a thousand extra square foot, you've added some significant value to that to that property. So I would I would agree with the term redeveloping for sure in that because that's what it that's what it is. It's it and so um so now you you all were able to, because you mentioned that you had a lot of experience with um outdoor, um outdoor projects, I think, right? You said outdoor living spaces. Can you can you talk talk a bit about about that?

SPEAKER_01 20:19

Absolutely, absolutely. So my husband and I, um, when we first met, um, he was thinking about getting back into the landscaping business. He actually started a landscaping company when he was 16, sold it uh shortly before he was 20, and went to go work for his uh family business. And when I first met him, uh he was, you know, hey, I'm thinking about getting back into landscaping. And uh I said, okay, you know, I don't know anything about it, but all right, you know, I'll help you in whatever capacity. So we built this business ground up. We send out 75 flyers to friends and family members. And um, before we knew it, we were, I mean, we were had more business than what we knew to do with. But we were predominantly just, you know, uh installing plants and and you know, paper patios, things along those lines. Um, we weren't grass cutters. Um, and we we never entered into this space that we are in right now. However, fast forward to about um, I think it was right around 2005, we sent out a postcard. And of course, a postcard or magazines, that was how you advertised. When I tell my daughter this, she's like, what? Like, what are you guys talking about? You know, I mean, it would actually be printed stuff. Right, right. And you know, people still, obviously, the postcards are still very popular and so forth, but we no longer advertise that way. But we sent out this postcard with um a roof structure that's attached to um someone's home. And um essentially it's it's it's like taking um uh a three seasons room, um, but you just don't have the walls associated with it. So you're actually adding on this roof structure. It's got posts, you have these nice high ceilings. Um Fans, heaters, flat screen TVs with um stone fireplaces and so forth. Um, we sent this out, and next thing we knew, we had more business than what we need to, you know, to do with. And these were hugely popular at the time, like in California. So they were finally like making their way to Ohio, which is you know where we are. And I don't know if you've ever heard um, there's uh there's a quote by Mark Tru Mark Twain, and he said, if I ever die, I want to die in Ohio because I'm almost 10 years behind everything. So um, so it was it kind of rung true with these outdoor living spaces, but we started with one and honestly, we never looked back. And and that's and we so we made that pivot in our business to just building these structures. Um, they are they were hugely popular during COVID. Um, we had probably more inquiries um during COVID than we had in the entire existence of you know, the time that we've host we've held our business. Um, and that was just because people were looking for, you know, how can I be outside? How can I still entertain? How can I enjoy myself? Um, and and but but not be indoors. And so this is this was the answer. And uh, and so they're still hugely popular. They're a way to add on square footage and value to your home without necessarily adding on a full-blown addition because you're not you know worrying about some of the you know electric through the walls and drywall and paint and so forth. So um, and these these outdoor structures can actually be used year-round, um, it provided with you know, with the fans, with the fireplace, with the heaters and so forth. So um, I mean, it just it just really makes can really make a difference in a home.

SPEAKER_03 23:45

It it almost sounded like a uh a mini A-frame kind of home. Is it is oh it is? Oh wow, okay.

SPEAKER_01 23:51

Similar to that, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 23:52

That's that's that's incredible.

SPEAKER_01 23:54

Yeah, a gable, like a gable roof structure is is essentially what it is. Now, some of them are detached and some of them are attached. It just all depends on you know what the client wants because sometimes they want it maybe X number of feet from their home, and and then that's where everybody is gonna hang out and and they're gonna put you know awesome you know furniture and you know the couches and so forth. And maybe we build a fire pit as well, too, in addition to the fireplace. Uh I mean it's uh people spend upwards of$300,000 on these outdoor streets.

SPEAKER_03 24:26

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 24:26

Yeah, it's crazy.

SPEAKER_03 24:27

That that is incredible. Yeah, it's almost like a mini getaway. I mean, I hey I don't I don't blame them. I mean you have something where you can, you know, your home, but but then it's almost like a little vacation on your own property. Right. So that's that's that's incredible. Um, and so okay, and so because you because you all started this before you actually um started redeveloping single family properties, right? Or is it right around the same time?

SPEAKER_01 24:48

Yeah, so we started that we started that business back in well, we started it in 1998 or 99. I'm sorry, we started it in 1999 and pivoted into the outdoor spaces in 2007. We started our redeveloping in 2018 and did that until, well, um, well, actually, we we did we finish off one last year, but then we decided taking a break.

SPEAKER_03 25:14

There you go. There you go. And so so it sounds like I mean, it sounds like you were able to then use. I mean, that's so that's one thing that's interesting to me, is right. There are elements of um each business within each each subsequent uh project, right? So you're able to take some some learnings from you know that business and then roll that into the next one. And then naturally now you've kind of rolled that into the syndication space, which could, I mean, all of those things lend themselves well um to that, right? Because now you have you know uh remodeling, you have things it's also kind of a it's in a sense, it's a service business because you're working with the client to understand what they want. And then you're you know, you're you're providing the uh service or the the product that they want. And so I would argue that you know, this is the same with investors or tenants. You know, it's like you, you know, you have to make sure that you understand what they're looking for, and then you know, then you're you're providing that uh opportunity.

SPEAKER_01 26:02

Absolutely, absolutely. And probably the the you know, the the one the one thing that's been the most translatable in all of the businesses is just dealing with people and learning how to deal with people um from um from you know a catering business where you know you might have bridezilla or or not. Um you know, or I I dealt with a lot of doctors. Uh we have a very well-renowned um hospital here in Cincinnati, Children's Hospital. I did a lot of catering for the doctors at Children's Hospital. So dealing with with doctors to brides, to, you know, um in the fitness studio fit fitness studio, I had 150 women that were members and 150 different personalities essentially. So um, and then just you know, just even contractors, you know, how to how to handle contractors, especially when, you know, they're looking for their money and you can't pay them because they haven't completed everything that you want them to complete. So, you know, I it it's all you know, it all helps to um to kind of then deal with that investor who is looking for uh a particular investor investment, you know, scenario, or uh maybe they're they're having trouble navigating the portal, or maybe they just need their handheld, or they're asking about um, you know, hey, I you know, where's my K1? And uh why don't I have it now? And and you know, you're putting their their fears to rest if you haven't closed on a property quite yet, or or maybe if they are their distribution, they're expecting it, you know, uh you know, last week and it's not coming until next week, and and all kinds of explanations and and so forth. And so, you know, I just you know, people dealing with people is is probably to me, um, it's easy. I love dealing with people, you know. Um, but for a lot of people, it's it's it's can be a challenge.

SPEAKER_03 27:52

So yeah, yeah, and it's it's interesting because that's really the lifeblood of all of any business ultimately is that how it's about it's about people you're you know, is working with and servicing people and how you know how well can you how good can you make them feel about your product or service? I think I think the last point, two points that you made there are very important ones, right? If you have a deal where you're maybe raising for the deal and there's some things that are pushing timelines back, and how clearly are you communicating to them and keeping them confident and comfortable about the process? And then distributions. I mean, those are two, those, those two examples are very, very, very relevant in this um because they're the two things that sometimes will you know be in flux, and then you have to have a conversation with uh with your investors about it. And so let's so let's kind of talk then about uh about your transition then now and and sort of the space that you're in, because that's um one of the things that you that's your specialty now, really, is is investor relations and you know, going from sort of pre-close and then all through uh operations, but with the investor in mind, that's one of the things that that that you're really good at now. And so maybe maybe kind of talk about what you do at the moment in that regard.

SPEAKER_01 28:57

Yeah, sure. Absolutely. So um I met a a team of uh gentlemen who individually had all been investing separately, and they um we were actually at the Rod Khalif event in December of 2021. Um, so I ended up meeting one of them online prior to that. And he said, Hey, you know, if you're at Rod's event, you know, let's connect. So I connected with him at the event and he introduced me to the two other gentlemen that he had been talking to. Um, and somehow or another, I became part of their team. You know, they're like, Bef, do you want to join us? And I'm like, Sure. What do you want me to do? You know, and and so my role was of course going to be a combination of investor relations and marketing. So I thought to myself, you know, can I really do this? You know, I'm I'm so new to the space. You know, I had just attended the multifamily syndication workshop that I've I've mentioned several times now, um, about five months prior to. And I thought, well, you know, I know enough to be dangerous. And what I don't know, I can figure it out or find out online, right? So the first order of business is okay, well, we need a name, we need a logo, we need a website. And uh the name was pretty easy. They were all going to use their um the the first initial of their last names and and pull that together. Um, and so then it was up to me. Um, logo, uh, website. And luckily, I I built websites over the course of all of these other endeavors that I had done. So hopping onto Wix and building a website wasn't too too big of a challenge. And really, you know, they're they're so user-friendly nowadays that just got anybody can do it. Um, but you know, it's also a question of who has the time to do it as well.

SPEAKER_02 30:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 30:48

So um, so that was my role. And uh, and then the next thing I knew, we were um, you know, involved in this in a deal. And I was asked to um kind of clean up one of the pitch decks because someone else had had previously done it, but it it needed a few, needed some touches. So I started working on that, and uh, and slowly but surely my role started to evolve and it it became bigger. And uh, and once we closed on that first deal, then we had another one like ready to roll out, um, in which then I created the pitch deck for it. Um, I was introduced to a new um investor platform that the company was going to be using. And and I was, I did have a role in the decision making on, you know, are we going to use this platform or not? Um so it was up to me to set it all up and uh get it ready to go. Um and that was, you know, a nice, nice size learning curve for me. But uh so setting that all up and and then you know, really dealing with, you know, PPMs, subscription agreements, um, uploading them to the portal, walking investors through it all. Um and then I was I was in charge too of making sure all the money was was wired in and uh um and that we had enough money to close. And and once we did close, then it was up to me to make sure that all the LP positions were appropriated in the investor portal and whatnot. And um, and then we started sending out you know updates and and uh let's see, after the first quarter of this past year, we sent out our first distribution. So our investors, of course, were very happy about that. So sending out distributions and updates with that distribution and so forth. So I mean, from start to finish, I was able to just see an entire, you know, syndication go down. Um, and and all I ever really knew was what I learned at this, you know, this multifamily syndication workshop I attended. And even that was sort of a um scratch the surface, you know, it didn't dive deep into you know all these things that you know I was gonna have to problem solve for. And uh um so I again probably the best experience of my life, uh, simply because now, you know, we just hired now a person who is actually in charge of investor relations only so that I can kind of manage the bigger picture. And so I've been teaching her like everything that I know. Um, so it's interesting now for me to actually be the one that's sharing like everything that I learned through that initial process um and and and sharing that with someone else. And and I'm the teacher now. And and here it was, you know, a year ago. I I didn't know any of this. And uh so fast forward. Um and so sometimes, you know, I'm a firm believer that I well, I I will say this, I like to learn by by actually doing. That's how I learn best. Um, but I think that's really how most people, if you want to get started, you just you just have to go do it. And and you know, once you do it, um, you know, my fears, you know, if I had fear, nobody ever knew it because I I just was like, okay, I have to figure this out. Um, people are counting on me and this investment is counting on me.

SPEAKER_03 34:00

I I love that. And I think that I think that's a great point that you made there, though, is um, you know, some people let their fear stop them from trying. But uh it it sounds to me like you you sort of instinctively you know that the the way to get over the fear is by going through it and then you'll uh getting to the other side of it, you know, as opposed to letting the fear stop you from ever taking that first step. Because it's like, well, of course you're going to stop there if you you know if you if you don't work through it, but working through it is the way to get over it. So I think that's very powerful. And I also want to add, um, what what you just laid out in terms of that full process, what's interesting about that is it adds a ton of value because if you if it uh if any team lets those things drop, then that that's a quick a quick way to confuse and lose investors. And so, as an example, like uh uh an investment platform, you know, most people want the ease that a platform offers. And so if if you have some, if if no one knows how to set the platform up and help an investor set their account up or answer questions or whatever it is, then a confused a confused mind says no. You know, so even if they like the deal and like the team, then then they might be discouraged from it from partnering with you. So having you there to say, yeah, here are the things that you need to understand in order to get your account set up and they will get the PPMs and everything else you can sign or whatever it is, that's very helpful. You know, those are to me, though those are all things that you know that um uh that people might not think about, but they're they're very, very important because without them, you really can negatively it's an experience. So once an investor is, you know, a partner, they partner with you as a limited partner, it from there it's about controlling and managing that experience for them and not making it a headache, you know, and not they don't want to chase you down for information. So uh yeah, that's that stuff is extremely, extremely valuable um in this.

SPEAKER_01 35:47

Oh, absolutely. And you know, we we had uh we had a situation in which um, you know, there was a a brand new investor, first time investing in a syndication, and um was going to invest partly uh his own money and then through a self-directed IRA. So it was gonna require two subscription agreements in order to make that happen. Um, and as he received both of them, we decided to to set this up outside the outside the portal since there was gonna be two subscription agreements. And um, so when he received both of them, I think part of him was almost feeling a bit overwhelmed, like, oh my goodness, now I got I've got two of these documents I need to fill out. And and how do I, and so you know, it's our job to make sure that this investor like understands like this this is the process, this is why we have to do it, um, and and walking him through it in order to feel you know okay about it, as opposed to, oh, this is overwhelming and it's too much. And you know, maybe I should back out, maybe, or maybe I should only, you know, bring in X number of dollars and not do, you know, maybe only do my cash and not do my self-directed IRA or vice versa, whatever the case may be. So, you know, it can be, it can be overwhelming, especially for first-time investors. And and that's where it's again, it's my job, it's it's our job, it's our our job as a team, my job as an investor relations, um, but anybody, anytime you're investor facing, you know, I mean, that is the goal is to make them feel comfortable and confident on the not just the investment opportunity, but also who they're investing with.

SPEAKER_03 37:21

That's right, that's right. Because I because like you said earlier, it's it's about people. I mean, and so that's that's 100% it. And so, so so let me ask now um about criteria, right? Because what what um as you've you've you've made a shift into this space and now you're firmly in the space, that what what kind of criteria do you typically look for in um in a deal?

SPEAKER_01 37:41

You know, right now um we are going after class A properties that are cash flowing. That has been um, you know, given market conditions, um, staying away from um, you know, large value add opportunities is just not something that we want to be doing. Um, our our three current projects, or I should say, we have one that we closed on at the end of December of 2022, um, student housing, class A, 2018 build and cash flowing from day one. And we were able to um distribute after the first quarter of this year. So, you know, to close in December and have investors receive, you know, distributions at the end of, I think it was around the end of April, beginning of May, because we have to close out like March. And once that closes out, there's there's all kinds of you know things to reconcile. Um so um, so yes, so we are able to do that. Um, we have another student housing property, another class A 2016 build, 252-bed. Um, that's in Murphy'sboro, Tennessee. Um, again, same thing. As soon as we close on it, we're actually it's cash flowing. We don't have to do anything from a stabilization standpoint. So we're able to provide those distributions. Um and then another one that we're we are uh working on as well in Athens, Georgia, um, similar scenario. So that's what we're looking for right now. Um, you know, depending on how the market, you know, goes and shifts and whatever else the case may be, we'll keep an eye on it. Um we might, you know, take on a value add at some point, um, but for now, that's that's not what we're looking for.

SPEAKER_03 39:21

Yeah, no, that's that's awesome. And I think that's they're again kind of demonstrating that that um uh understanding of you know needing to adapt and pivot to to circumstances to to maximize uh value. So I think it's I think that's really solid. And um, you know, so so I kind of wanted to talk about your strategy. So at the moment you do a bit of student housing and uh multifamily. Uh is that is that is that correct? Okay. And so what are some of the differences between the the two from uh from your perspective?

SPEAKER_01 39:48

Um you know, it's funny because I never thought I would really like student housing. Uh and I I love it probably more so than multifamily. Um, you know, obviously, you know, the the some of the biggest differences, your leases, for instance. You know, you head into a school year for student housing, you're you're all leased up, right? You you have all these leases, you don't have to worry about, you know, signing leases unless, you know, someone for whatever reason, maybe they drop out of school, they leave, whatever the case may be, you have to find somebody to take over a lease. Um, but that's usually on them to do that. So, you know, there is that that lease up period, so to speak, with student housing. And that's generally, you know, maybe the first part of like from January through, you know, May or so, something along those lines. Um, but but usually it's like all at one time. Now, obviously, turning these units, um, especially getting them ready for school, can be um definitely a challenge, you know, especially on the property management team. Uh, so you you do have to worry about that, but it's usually like this window, you know, of maybe a two-week period, sometime in July, early August. Whereas, you know, with multifamily, um, you know, you're continually turning based off of when all of the leases expire and you're constantly having to, you know, make sure that you're you're keeping up that that occupancy rate. Um, whereas, you know, once you have everybody leased up with student housing, it's you're done, right? Your occupancy is there. And, you know, knock on wood, we feel very blessed that you know our properties right now are 100% occupied and 100% pre-leased. So um, so a very beautiful thing. Um, but you know, of course, most people when they think of student housing, especially investors, they might think of you know animal house, right? Where you know these crazy kids are destroying.

SPEAKER_03 41:43

Hanging from the ceiling plans and flying, yeah, hanging off the uh the rails and yeah.

SPEAKER_01 41:47

Absolutely, absolutely, and that's parties. That's really not the case. I mean, yes, you know, there there's going to be like maybe a degree of that, but not quite the extent. And the beautiful thing is, guess who's paying for the property damage? Yes, mommy and daddy for the rent. You know, so so that is one thing that I I really love about student housing is you know, unlike um you know, multifamily, where sometimes you're continually chasing after people for rent, um, you don't have to chase as much uh with student housing because you might have mom and dad's credit card. And uh, you know, guess what? You know, something happens, it's their credit report that it's gonna get reported to. So, and uh and mom and dad want to keep their credit, you know, as stellar as possible.

SPEAKER_03 42:32

Yeah, yeah, that that's right. You still have this extra layer of protection in there, really. And um, and you know, the other thing is of course you you can get because it's like what per, well, in some instances it's per per bed or more or less, isn't it? Right. So you and so you can effectively squeeze more leases in per you know square foot than you can uh for multifamily. So there are definitely some reasons to to really uh enjoy that that asset class. Uh one question that I have that um I don't know that I've ever asked before, but uh do you have to work at all with the university for you know in student housing?

SPEAKER_01 43:04

Um generally no. Um generally no. No. I mean, we've we've never had to. I mean, all the properties are off campus, um close proximity to campus, but but off campus. Um but so far, no. Um but it's been interesting, you know, depending on where you're located, you know, we have seen um, or we, I should say we meaning we as a country, we've seen some decline in you know, higher education and and the attendance of it. But you know, when we look at you know, these student housing properties that are in you know larger markets where you know the chances of the decline are gonna be less. You know, you're really seeing it with some of the smaller schools. Whereas, um, for instance, this this one property that we have that's near the University of Georgia, yeah, got national champs, you know, UGA, highly popular school. Um, they they keep increasing year over year. Um And and they're projecting, you know, at some point that you know they might hit a benchmark of 50,000, you know, students, and which is I I don't know when, but uh, but that's what they're projecting. And um, that's a big number. That is a big number.

SPEAKER_03 44:14

So no, that's that's incredible. You're right. I mean, I I'd imagine that um, you know, that seeing that increase could has to bode well for you. And it and it's out of curiosity, because I think you kind of mentioned the uh psychology, I guess I'll call it, of the two types of investors, right? Multifamily versus student housing. Um what what what are some of the other differences that you see between someone who right off the, you know, right away is like student housing, I'm all in versus multifamily, I'm all in. Like, you know, do you see, and especially from maybe your perspective in terms of having to um to get one to come over to the other, right? So if I'm a multifamily investor, getting me comfortable with student housing, like are you having, is it a challenge at all?

SPEAKER_01 44:52

It is a challenge. Um, you know, in multifamily, um, I think I think we're used to it, right? We understand it more. We've all maybe had to rent apartments um at some point um and uh or live in one. Um, you know, but but it's interesting because you know, you you think, you know, when I look back to my days of being in college, um, you know, student housing, like we were required to stay on campus for you know the first two years. And that's that's not the case anymore. You know, there's a lot of these universities that you know you can stay on, you know, your first year. And then after that, you know, you're free to go, you know, wherever. Um, so I think I think just you know, almost taking some of these um investors kind of back to the day when they were in college and and helping them to understand and realize, like, you know, you went through this. You know, I remember when I when I lived off campus, I mean, my parents were paying for it. They were, you know, it was their credit card and they were paying for it and so forth. And I think, you know, we tend to think that, you know, the older we get, the more responsible we're going to be. So that, you know, we're not going to have as much damage to property. We're going to pay our rent on time and so forth. But that's not necessarily the case.

SPEAKER_03 46:05

Yeah, that's right. That's right. It's not always the case.

SPEAKER_01 46:07

I mean, we've I've run into and heard of you know, horror stories with um, you know, multifamily, in which, you know, student housing is far better, you know, a product and investment opportunity just by virtue of the fact of mom and dad paying for things versus because, you know, you have all of these, you know, again, um, people aren't paying on time, they're skipping out. Um, so you know, I think it's it's just that educational process and and helping people to understand really the cycle of student housing. You know, most people don't realize that when you sign a lease, it's for 12 months. Everyone thinks, oh, you're signing a lease, you know, it's only going to be nine months because it's for the school year. No, you're signing for 12 months. And so mom and dad or whomever's paying, they're paying for you know, those three months that Susie or Joe might be at home with them on hanging out, you know, doing whatever. Um, maybe they've subled it to someone for three months. But if not, then it's still money coming out of their pocket. So that that's an aha moment for a lot of investors because they they just think, well, what do you do for those three months when you know school's not in session? Well, you keep collecting rent. That's what you do.

SPEAKER_03 47:20

Yeah, yeah. And I think you're right. I mean, uh, you just like you mentioned, it's kind of but it's just an education thing. I think for a lot of people that are, if they're not familiar with it, they might be accustomed to something else and it's the education thing. But but you're you I mean, you're you're right. It's like in if we think back to it, I know for certain when I was in school, there was no way I was going to damage the unit that I lived in because I wouldn't didn't want to get in trouble with my my parents. So I mean, you know, it just uh yeah, I I think I think it's it's just an education-based thing, especially in there. It depends on the market. There are other factors to consider as well, but certainly just the the model itself makes a whole lot of sense. Um I think.

SPEAKER_02 47:56

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 47:56

Um, so so so what's what's next for you then? What's next for lifestyles, uh Lifestyle Equities Group and for the partnership? Are there some uh different directions that you all are are going in or can or staying the course?

SPEAKER_01 48:08

Um well, you know, with um the multifamily and student housing, um, I I primarily um have have purchased and part of the team that that I talked about. Um but for Lifestyle Equities Group, we're actually in partnership with um another um entity. And we are fingers crossed, uh by the end of this month, should be under contract for a hotel in Antigua um down in the Caribbean. So so that's that's kind of the the big deal for Lifestyle Equities Group right now.

SPEAKER_03 48:42

That is really cool. That is really cool. Wait, so so hold on. Uh okay, maybe some details about that. You you can't you can't just you can't just mention that and not provide some detail. That sounds incredible. Let's let's let's talk about that. So, what how did this come about?

SPEAKER_01 48:55

Uh so this this was an off-market opportunity, and uh there's a um another partnership um that I have. And this particular gentleman and I, um, as well as a um uh a travel agent, we've been searching high and low for something in the Caribbean. Um, and so finally we've we came across this off-market opportunity. Uh, my husband actually, I sent him down in May. Um, yeah, he he was you know kicking and screaming, going to do reconnaissance and in yeah, exactly. Um, so he was he was able to um assess the property for us from a construction perspective. Um, and then um our travel agent, she actually traveled down there. Uh, when was it? Oh, mid-June. It was mid-June. Um she speaks fluent Italian, and the two owners are Italians themselves. So they're looking to sell the hotel and just, you know, move back to Italy, enjoy some time together. They're they're in their 80s, so they're ready to um, they're ready to move on from it. And uh it's 75 keys. Uh, we we just absolutely love the property. There is some value add that we will need to do, but uh the property is cash flowing well enough that um you know we can take a lot from the cash flow and and actually do the renovations over time. Um so yeah, we're just very excited about it. So we are working towards um, you know, uh kind of honing in on the contract. You know, we we're we're getting closer to where, you know, you know, everybody starts on one end, you know, and and eventually, you know, it's a giveaway. You meet in the middle and uh and you're all you know comfortable with the contract. And so once we have that signed, um, you know, obviously EMD and uh and then we'll we'll do some due diligence, but but we've already done enough that we know. So from that standpoint, it's just really capital raising so we can take over the property starting um January of 2024. So that's that's the place. Yeah, that's what we want to happen, that's what they want to happen, and uh so we're we're working towards that.

SPEAKER_03 51:04

Well, that is absolutely awesome. And congratulations on that. I'll keep my fingers crossed as well. Um, to me, that's just fascinating. Something you you can use, you know. I mean, I just think that's always um an awesome investment anytime you can use it, you know. So beautiful, beautiful. Um well, good. So so we're getting to kind of close to close, and um, we're getting close to the uh actionable tip portion of the show. Um, so Beth, for someone that's listening to this and you know, maybe they're excited, they like everything that you've said here, and so they want to take action. Um, what's something that they can do to take action now? And I'll say as a passive investor getting started.

SPEAKER_01 51:40

As a passive investor getting started?

SPEAKER_03 51:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 51:43

Um, I would say um I would say do your research, you know, start looking at syndications, start looking at, you know, entities when you are researching. Um you know, don't look at necessarily the the people that are posting that they've closed on this deal, closed on that deal, um, dive into them more. Find out their track record. There are a lot of syndication groups that have done deals over the course of the last two and three years, but some of them have never gone full cycle on a deal. So if you can find syndicators that have gone full cycle on deals so that you know and understand their track record, um, ask for references, um, talk to some of their investors. I think that's that's just so important when a passive investor is first starting out. And that's the beautiful thing about the team that I'm involved with. You know, individually, they've they've all gone full cycle on properties. So we we have, even though collectively we don't have that track record just yet, individually we do. And so we're able to talk to investors about, you know, the track records of them. Um, and and that that helps just instill confidence and and really it's about credibility.

SPEAKER_03 53:00

So absolutely, absolutely. I think that's excellent advice. And sort of helps build that that that trust as well, right? So you find kind of find out more details about potential sponsors and really dig deep into understanding, you know, whether they um have done or will do what they say they're gonna do. So I think that's very important.

SPEAKER_01 53:17

Right. Yep.

SPEAKER_03 53:18

All right, so um, for the listeners who want to hear more about you or maybe see more about you, maybe your social media stuff, um, how can they do so?

SPEAKER_01 53:24

Sure, you can follow me on Instagram or TikTok at Investing with Beth is my handle on both. Uh, you can always email me, Beth at LifestyleEquitiesgroup.com or Beth at investingwithbeth.com. Um, and call me, text me, 513-470-1078. Um, I'm a huge texter, so uh and I try and get back to people within um 24 hours. So I don't like to leave anyone hanging um if they've uh reached out to me.

SPEAKER_03 53:58

So awesome, awesome. So I'll include it and include that information in the show notes. And uh just again, Bet, this has been a very, very wonderful um and insightful uh conversation and discussion. So I really appreciate the value that you've added to the listeners and to myself. So thank you for being on the show.

SPEAKER_01 54:12

Hey, thanks so much for having me. I've enjoyed it.

SPEAKER_03 54:15

Absolutely. As always, thank you so much for tuning in to the show today brought to you by Bridge Prosper. If you enjoyed today's episode and you'd like to learn more about commercial real estate investing, please like, subscribe, and share. And we'll see you again next week. I'm Brandon Jenkins, and this is the Capital Stack, where we help you learn, apply, and prosper.