Investors and Residential Developers

[renshawc]

Dan asked me to introduce myself to the forum - my name is Camille Renshaw, and I head up Commercial Real Estate and Residential Development for Keller Williams at the Parks. Basically that means I help investors and developers find good deals across Central Florida. I work in everything from condo conversions, SFR flips, commercial buildings, vacant land, to new construction. I do a ton of research on projects as they come on the market, and tell my clients about the ones I like.

I publish quite a bit of investor news and strategy at my Web site, Serious Real Estate, http://www.SeriousReal.com. Please give me your feedback, and let me know if I can be of help to anyone here. I'm always glad to meet new folks in real estate.

-Camille Renshaw

[Just Information]

Welcome Camille

[CharleyB]

Welcome Camille!
If you would please look at our properties and give my your opinion and suggestions as to how to liquidate it. I have two postings here "Unappraisable." and "How do you market historic properties." I'm somewhat of a novice but am learning fast. Our holdings are shown at:
www.rockyfordinternational.net
All the Best,
Charley

[renshawc]

My background is as a business planner for corporations and individuals, so this is my natural first question: is there a real financial opportunity here for the buyer? Or is there another real intangible benefit to owning this property? I would appraise the property as similar opportunities have sold in similar towns. I would also consider the highest, best use of the property and determine what this would mean financially to the buyer. Pretend you're the company or individual's financial or business planner, and determine how your numbers would run from that posture.

For example, Disney or similar film studios might make a great potential buyer from you. They considered buying all of Arkadelphia, Arkansas, after a tornado struck it 4 years ago. What does Disney normally pay for opportunities like this, given the income the opp will produce for them?

Hope this helps,
Camille
http://www.seriousreal.com

[CharleyB]

Camille;
Thank you for your reply. When I place myself in the buyer's shoes I envision this senario, among others.
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Problem: I am the CEO and owner of a small manufacturing operation in the northeast US. My labor costs are eating my lunch but my conscience won't allow me to go off-shore. Inventory and property taxes are sky high because I'm in a depressed area where the government needs all the tax revenue they can get. My employee's cost of living is increasing faster than inflation and my turnover is increasing. My facilities are aging and need upgrades. I'm tired of freezing every winter. My products are marketed and shipped nationwide via truck and internationally via shipping containers. My raw materials are shipped to me by rail so I need rail access near a port.
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Solution: I run across these properties on the internet in southeast Georgia that include most of the historical district of a small town. Upon investigation I realize the manufacturing labor rate in the area is less than half of that where I am. Not only that, they have a strong technical college near by that will train my employees under the Governor's Quick Start Program and this program will pay ME $2,500 for each one that I hire. This is looking good already. The City and County government will virtually waive inventory and property taxes for ten years in order to get the jobs. I'm going to be a hero. There is plenty of available, relatively low cost land and housing for my employees that will relocate with me. The cost of living is stable. I realize that these properties include a privately controlled rail siding long enough to place 15 box cars. Plenty of room. The siding is adjacent to the main line of Norfolk Southern Railway that has recently merged with CSX Railroad so I won't have the high switching charges for my raw materials. I need a new manufacturing building but realize that a low interest loan is available with state underwriting to build it. I see that there is over 20,000 sf of existing buildings that I can use for office space and support buildings. What about communications? Wait, there are 50 pairs of fiber-optic phone lines already installed in the rail siding and 50 more in the office space. I could hook up 100 DSL's tomorrow. I see from the information that the average high temperature in JANUARY is nearly 60 degrees. I won't be cold any more. After contacting the Georgia Ports Authority I see that they operate one of the top ten ports in the world that is just 50 minutes away. Good Lord, Diemhler-Crysler is seriously looking at a site nearby for manufacturing. Even Briggs & Straten moved down there from Milwaulkie 5 years ago mainly for reduced labor costs. I need 3-phase power for my equipment, yes it's there and provided by an EMC (Electric Membership Cooperative) much lower rates. What about shipping my products? The effective shipping radius is about 300 mi. directly via truck but that includes nearly 10 million people. For longer distances I can use Norfolk Southern's intermodal service where they load shipping containers onto rail cars for long distance shipping. With these other businesses (Post Office, Cafe, etc.)I can either lease them or operate them in-house to generate immediate cash flow. If I get them registered on the Historical Registry I can take 10% to 20% of the improvement costs off our taxes. Restoration grants are out there. I like free money! The Music Hall would work wonderfully for training sessions, seminars, etc. Could even lease it for events. What about security? It seems that this town hasn't seen serious crime in decades. No more graphiti.
Looks like I need to move to Dixie!
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This would be the pitch. What do you think?
All the Best,
Charley

[Dan Auito]

Spend a few bucks and get that into some Investors Business Daily Papers! (write an article and submit!) Masterful Charlie, that's what that is! Do a direct mail campaign to company owners in the North East, I know it takes time! So maybe folks can pass along your proposal by giving folks the link from here. It doesn't get any cheaper than that! And it travels at the speed of lightning too! :SM025: :SM135: :SM056:

Folks soon we will be able to rely on our network here to do exactly what needs doing for each of our members when they need it done, there IS power in numbers, remember 6 degrees of seperation is all we really have to overcome. Do you see the potential?

[CharleyB]

Dan, Camille, et.al.;
In the above posting I related one vision for the potential buyer.
Here's another.
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Problem;
My wife and I are living in this big city and raising our two kids here. Life is rushing by fast and we are spending very little quality time with them or with each other. Our jobs have taken over everything. We spend ten or twelve hours a week commuting to our so-called careers, if the traffic is good, so that we can make all those payments on this house, cars, cell phones, day care, etc. etc. We are both vested in our 401k plans with our companies but they are not doing a very good job in managing them. Although we have both obtained great levels of skills and knowledge in our fields we have very likely achieved the highest level that we can in our respective companies.

We are usually too exhausted to do much on the weekends, usually just one day, but we occasionally take time to do some exploring out in the small towns looking for antiques & such. We are both fascinated with historic buildings and dream of a day when we can own one.

We have been talking about this situation, our life situation, for years but have not, as yet, had the courage to act on changing it. In our spare time, the little of it that there is, we often surf the net just looking at small town life and historic buildings.
Being the "Priest of the House", I need to make a decision.
Well it's time to stop dreaming and start acting.
You get what you settle for.
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Solution:
One cold winter afternoon we run across this site on the internet
(www.rockyfordinternational.net) where this couple is selling nearly the entire historical district of a small town in southeast Georgia. This may just be the solution.

What about the welfare of our children? They come first.
The public schools look good but we find that there are several private schools just minutes away that offer first class educations. Georgia Southern University is 15 min. away, the Savannah College of Art and Design is one hour away and the University of Georgia is two hours away. The crime rate in this small town is nearly zero. The environment is pristine with many recreational activities around; the Atlantic Ocean beaches are just an hour away, we can safely walk to the Ogeechee River to fish, even Disney World is just a day's drive. Looks good for them.

What about an income? We can't both just leave our jobs.
Through our research we have discovered that I can become a consultant in my field but we will need world-class communications and delivery services.
Well that's not a problem, there are 50 fiber-optic phone lines already installed into the block of buildings and FedEx, UPS and DHL will pickup and deliver daily. I always wanted to be a consultant.

What about the purchase of such a large project?
Let's call the owners. They say that they are willing to "phase" the project by allowing us to commit to a portion of the properties, the ones that will generate an immediate cash flow, and grant us a twelve-month option to purchase on the remainder. The purchase price for the first phase is a little too high for us to swing but the owners are willing to take a much smaller down payment and carry the remainder on a note at a near prime rate of interest and have pledged to do the same on phase 2. I have been told that if I change our 401k's and IRA's into Self-directed programs we won't get killed in penalties. My wife has always wanted to operate a restaurant and the one down there is ready to open and the only one in town. These 1880's buildings are perfect for antique shops. What better way to sell antiques than in an "antique town". The old 1906 Bank of Rocky Ford building still has the walk-in vault in place and would make a perfect place for the first antique shop. People would come just to see the building. Our dream is coming true! Well, in that case, let's dream bigger. The second phase includes historic buildings on a rail siding, one of them the original cotton gin building. Since the first practical cotton gin was invented by Eli Witney just a few miles from there it seems like a good attraction to restore the gin. There are grants out there for that type of restoration project. That would bring in tourists. On the tourism aspect, this property is dripping with history. General Sherman marched right through the middle of town during his "March to the Sea", the Central of Georgia Railroad came to town in 1854, there have been people there since 1791. The potential for tourism is tremendous.
These owners seem to be honest people who just want to place their town in the right hands. This will be a good life decision for my family and will leave a legacy to my children.

Good lord, that's enough dreaming, time to act.
Time to call a family meeting.
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All the Best,
CharleyB

[Dan Auito]

Ever considered writing as a second career Charley! I want to know what this family does next? Can we get chapter two which tells us about how they are doing and what is going on in the town now that they have taken up residence and began to live their dream! This has the makings of a book like "The Secret Life of Bee's" Read that book folks you will love it! Charlie if you took the time to write a book about this fabulous life to be lived, someone would indeed buy this property as a result.

Regardless, I find your ability to project and put into story form a life to be lived here absolutely riveting, I know this is a serious attempt to show what a valuable property this is and can be but these scenarios take me off into a wonderful place as I read. I have to say I just love the scenarios and possibilities, maybe the good lord is forcing you to write this book one chapter at a time!

Chapter two please! :whistling

[CharleyB]

Camille, wherefore art thou!
I pray all is well.

Dan;
Thank you for your kind words. This whole process of marketing these properties has taken on a life of it's own. I shall keep trying until I succeed.
All the Best,
CharleyB

PS: Chapter Two in a day or two.

[CharleyB]

Hey Y'all;
I've been thinking that my stories about the perfect buyer for our properties have been getting somewhat off-topic in this thread so I'll post "Chapter 2" on my original post: http://www.magicbullets.com/forum/showthread.php?t=131
Hope it's OK with Dan.
CharleyB