Monday, March 30, 2020

34 Vi Luxury Real Estate Investor in Charlotte


Carolina Capital is a hard money lender serving the needs of the “Real Estate Investor” and the "Small Builder" borrower who is striving to build wealth and generate income for themselves and their families. We offer “hard money rehab loans” and "Ground up Construction Loans" for investors only in NC, SC, GA, VA and TN (some areas of FL, as well). 

As part of our business practices, we also serve as consultants for investors guiding them to network with other investors and educating them in locating and structuring transactions. Rarely, if ever, will you find a hard money lender willing to invest in your success like Carolina Capital Management.  
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Bill Fairman (00:03):
Hi everyone! It is Bill and Wendy with Carolina Capital Management.
Wendy Sweet (00:08):
Ola!
Bill Fairman (00:08):
By the way, do not forget like, share, love.
Wendy Sweet (00:13):
Me in particular.
Bill Fairman (00:13):
Down. We have other archive videos by the way. Depending
on the platform that you are on, it is going to be to the top, to the bottom,
to the side. It might just pop up at the end and Nick knows it might find it.
Carolina Capital Management, CarolinaHardMoney.com.
Wendy Sweet (00:29):
Tell all your friends.
Bill Fairman (00:29):
We are here with our great friend Vi. She is one of our
wonderful borrowers.
Wendy Sweet (00:36):
And a very dear friend.
Vi Luxury (00:39):
Thank you.
Bill Fairman (00:39):
A great conversation with her. I am so amazed at how she
got started and I am going to let her tell the story do not worry.
Wendy Sweet (00:46):
I knew her when she was a nobody.
Bill Fairman (00:50):
When we first met, she was really good at finding great
deals.
Wendy Sweet (00:53):
Acquisitions.
Bill Fairman (00:53):
In the Charlotte market and unfortunately, they never met
the box that she was placed in where she was working. And then she got smart
enough, I am really good at this. I am going to do it myself.
Wendy Sweet (01:09):
Yeah! And then she really started making money.
Bill Fairman (01:12):
So what got you into the real estate in the first place?
Wendy Sweet (01:14):
Yeah! What were you thinking?
Vi Luxury (01:15):
I always wanted to do real estate. And I was just thinking
you know what, I need to just start networking and working under people that
knew what they were doing. And you guys obviously knew what you were doing.
Bill Fairman (01:28):
Yeah. Some people think so.
Vi Luxury (01:29):
I think so. So, I started off with wholesaling. This is
what you guys taught and with Larry. And I learned that I thought you know
what, there is more ways to grow in this business and I can do it I think, I
think I can. And I have the people that can help me get there.
Wendy Sweet (01:48):
Right.
Vi Luxury (01:48):
So I saw the opportunity from you guys and the experience
that you guys had and the direction that I can go and what you guys were
willing to teach and show. And that is what I did. And you guys became a big asset
to my business.
Wendy Sweet (02:03):
Awesome! Wow! Thanks.
Bill Fairman (02:06):
That is what we love to hear. So, you have your niche
really is the luxury market in Charlotte area. Correct?
Vi Luxury (02:16):
Right.
Bill Fairman (02:16):
And frankly, the first house you ever purchased, I was
thinking what is wrong with her?
Wendy Sweet (02:27):
She has lost her mind and she will never get that much money
out of this.
Bill Fairman (02:31):
Because she was the first in the neighborhood to do a
house that size and it turned out to be one of your biggest profit margin
homes, did not it?
Vi Luxury (02:40):
It was. And I was thinking to myself.
Wendy Sweet (02:42):
Thank you God.
Vi Luxury (02:43):
There is opportunity. You just got to be brave enough and
I have the support and I had the training with you guys how to run the numbers
and you know, understand the ARV, understand what potential of profit and
repairs and I felt really confident that it was going to get done.
Wendy Sweet (03:05):
And I will tell you, you always have impressed me with the
vision that you have for neighborhoods. You are one of the few people that can
see the changes that are coming down the pike and you really, you honed in on
that and I think that really came from you being a wholesaler first.
Vi Luxury (03:27):
Right.
Wendy Sweet (03:27):
Being able to see what you were selling other people. I
remember a HUD that that you showed me of closing one time where you made
$90,000 on a wholesale fee. That is right, $90,000 on a wholesale fee. I was
like, man, I want to be Vi when I grow up. That is awesome.
Vi Luxury (03:44):
Well, I think I learned it from like the great friends
that we have, like Jeff Johnson, the 90,000 was not Jeff. It was not him.
Bill Fairman (03:52):
That is too funny.
Vi Luxury (03:59):
I will have up with my head there.
Wendy Sweet (04:00):
Yeah, for sure.
Vi Luxury (04:01):
But I think it was just learning and being able to sell to
these builders and understanding there are numbers and their construction
numbers and that benefited me in my business was kind of learning how to sell
and what worked for them.
Wendy Sweet (04:14):
Right.
Vi Luxury (04:14):
And kind of adjusted that for myself.
Wendy Sweet (04:16):
Right. You know, the other thing I think is so awesome
about what you are doing too is you have a great design eye and walking into
any one of your houses, especially after their stage, they are just mind
blowing. But I think you might hold the world record for the largest center
island I have ever seen. It is like a ski slope, but it was unbelievable. It
just blew me away when I saw that. So what do you think it was that kind of
trained you to understand that luxury market?
Vi Luxury (04:55):
Well, I think I go in this as buying as a woman and that
is what I like, that is why I like to have. I like to have nice big size
bathrooms, nice big size island. So I almost build these homes for myself and
wanting another person to buy and still buy that dream that I want. And that is
where how I get it.
Wendy Sweet (05:15):
Awesome.
Bill Fairman (05:16):
You do a great job of seeing what you would like to have,
but not doing it in weird colors like no one else would want. Because that can
be dangerous if you have a particular design in mind and then you want to do it
with colors that you liked. And you know, in this business it is all about me
and kind of plain, but you are doing it in a way where it is still great and it
still has the ability for people to add to it if they need it to. I want to go
back to that first house that we were talking about that house was just a
contemporary look like a normal two story house with a front porch and you will
walk in the front door and the whole house is just wide open with this
beautiful giant chandelier and the big wraparound steps and the loft and the
kitchen was just unbelievable. It when you walked into the house, it was a
modern design. When you walked back in the house, it was a traditional
contemporary looking two storey that was an awesome vision that.
Vi Luxury (06:23):
Well I think I went with the neighborhood and went, you
know, someone is going to want this house. You walk in and you see all this.
And that is what I was thinking. I kept the colors of the what fit in the
neighborhood design. If someone young in that neighborhood, because that is who
was coming into the neighborhood and that was trendy. So, and it is good to
follow your neighborhood pinterest areas.
Wendy Sweet (06:46):
That was really smart. I remember the first time you told
me that that you were, because I would ask you, how did you pick that light
out? You know that light fixture was like, "Oh I saw it on the
neighborhood pinterest, there were other people that put that up there."
That was so smart to think of that. How did you even think to get on the
neighborhood pinterest?
Vi Luxury (07:04):
I just kinda look around and who your friends are, your
friends on Facebook or your friends on, you know, your real estate sites and
kind of follow each other now.
Wendy Sweet (07:16):
Awesome, yeah! And then I know through the years that we
have been doing business together, I have seen you pick up partners as you go
along the way because there are other people really that want to learn what you
are doing and you have been so good at giving back and taking them under your
wing and showing them what to do to, how have those worked out for you? Well,
not all of them are perfect of course.
Vi Luxury (07:38):
Well you know, in business it is important to find
business partners that see eye to eye and page to page and not every deal is
going to be always be like that, but you are going to work through it because
you signed up. But I, you know, I think it is been a learning lesson for both
sides. So you just keep moving forward and you kind of pull in people in your
life and in your business that can help you get there. Or is there a learning
lesson?
Wendy Sweet (08:04):
Awesome.
Bill Fairman (08:04):
Well, I know we talked about trendy design, but you know
your designs are trendy but they are still timeless too. It is not something
that is going to go out of favor in a few years and then they are going to have
to remodel either because it is classically designed as well. I really enjoy
what you do to the interior these homes and a lot of the places that you have
built in are pretty small lot footprints. But you have been able to make the
most out of the space that you have there. Me, I like a lot of space in the
backyard where people cannot see me.
Wendy Sweet (08:44):
You were going to say you want to pee in the backyard and
nobody can see it in. He and his dog. A really big bush.
Bill Fairman (08:57):
There is definitely a market for what you are putting
together. So, are there other designs, other areas you want to go into?
Different types of property, you know like multifamily or anything like that?
Vi Luxury (09:08):
We do and that is what we want to start doing. But I think
there is some other projects that we have that we need to finish up this year.
We really love doing the modern and we think it is a quick sale for Charlotte.
A lot of people are moving in and are just crazy about that. And just, you
know, we remember that it is even the moderns you still have to keep it
timeless in inside where you know they are not going to want to switch out
their tile the next year or their light the next year or six months.
Wendy Sweet (09:35):
Right.
Bill Fairman (09:35):
A little less expensive to build too, are not they?
Vi Luxury (09:38):
Not necessarily.
Wendy Sweet (09:40):
Windows are more.
Vi Luxury (09:41):
The windows are more sightings more.
Wendy Sweet (09:43):
So it might save you in the trim package.
Vi Luxury (09:51):
Nothing is cheap, not in Charlotte, not anymore.
Wendy Sweet (09:52):
So financing wise, you know, we are thrilled that you have
chosen us to do some of your loans with and you have got new construction and
rehab that you have been doing. So what are some of the other ways that you are
getting financed on some of the projects that you're doing?
Vi Luxury (10:05):
Well, other ways is, you know, to kind of gap the in
between, right? So you get a loan, you bring a partner in that can help you
support your construction and also to your payments. That is how you partner
and you find your loans and always partner with a trusted partner.
Wendy Sweet (10:24):
And get it in writing. Get everything in writing, right?
Vi Luxury (10:31):
Unfortunately, handshakes are not always.
Wendy Sweet (10:33):
They are not what they used to be, are they?
Bill Fairman (10:37):
There are plans on cocktail napkins never worked out.
Wendy Sweet (10:39):
Yeah! That is for sure.
Bill Fairman (10:42):
So, in the bigger picture when people were doing large syndications
with multifamily or self storage where you are doing larger dollar
acquisitions, you can raise a fund where it takes care of the down payment, the
payments going forward, there are what we call the debt service.
Wendy Sweet (10:59):
That is called gap fund.
Bill Fairman (11:01):
Until the difference. It is the same thing. I mean, you
can put a fund together to do that on the larger dollar. What Vi does is she
brings in partners that can help her with that on some of these larger
properties. So that is good.
Vi Luxury (11:14):
Yeah. That becomes a learning experience for both sides.
They want to get in construction, we need the project to get done. We teach them
the steps and you know, at some point they will be able to do it without us.
Wendy Sweet (11:24):
Right.
Vi Luxury (11:24):
You know, share the knowledge.
Wendy Sweet (11:27):
So it is a learning experience for them. They get to make
money by putting money into it and they get to learn what you are doing.
Vi Luxury (11:35):
Right.
Bill Fairman (11:37):
So what are your some of your biggest challenges right
now?
Vi Luxury (11:40):
Oh, you know, I think when you get into real estate number
one in Charlotte, it is going to be finding the property that you are going to
work. Those are so hard to find now. And also funding is always gonna be an
issue unless you guys have great friends and business partners like you guys.
Bill Fairman (11:57):
As long as we have money.
Wendy Sweet (11:59):
As long as we have money then so to you?
Vi Luxury (12:01):
Yeah. That is right.
Bill Fairman (12:03):
Well, I know the market changes all the time and you know,
when we first got started there was a lot of low hanging fruit and I know right
now it is very difficult to find inventory and especially in the Charlotte
market. Have you thought about branching out any into some of the bedroom
communities as well? How are you trying to stay focused in there?
Vi Luxury (12:24):
I still think that in Charlotte there was enough money and
enough projects, you just got to be smart on how you find them. There was
always low hanging fruit kind of everywhere. And I just feel like back then,
not everyone was chasing after it, but now like everyone is in real estate or
everyone is trying to become an investor and some deals are made and not
closed, you know when people go under contract and then they fall apart and it
is not being closed. So, but I still think that there is still enough for me in
Charlotte.
Bill Fairman (12:57):
So are you relying on others defend you deals more or are
you doing most of this yourself?
Vi Luxury (13:05):
When I first started, it was me and my agent. My agent
friends that actually are girls, you know, one of the ones that helped me to
find some of my real estate deals. But I am able to network now that I have
been in the business long enough and people know that when I am interested
enough and I put my DD and that you know, my earnest.
Wendy Sweet (13:23):
That is due diligence. DD is due diligence. So anyway, you
do your due diligence.
Vi Luxury (13:30):
I did my due diligence and I mean, now I forgot the
question.
Bill Fairman (13:36):
I thought the question was, how are you finding
properties?
Vi Luxury (13:36):
Now it is just kinda like I know friends, they may not be
able to do it or in the times and not right for them and they will pass it
along to us or we will do, you know, same kind of just goes back and forth.
Wendy Sweet (13:56):
Yeah. Are you finding that you are going into a different,
where the after repaired values are lower because you were doing nothing but
high end stuff? Are you finding that you are dipping into a lower sale price
and some of the stuff that you are doing? Are you, what is your thought on
that?
Vi Luxury (14:17):
I mean, I guess, you know, because the scare everyone like
the economy and everything, everyone is kind of going lower. But I am just kind
of sticking with what I know. And that has not changed. The properties that I
am doing, it is still high end. It is still going on to contract. So for me, I
am going to stick with what I know and sell what I know and what I have and it
is higher end but it is still working. Maybe that does not mean it is not going
to change in the next two, three years. But for right now I am sticking with.
Wendy Sweet (14:46):
Well I think what sets you apart too is your designs are
so different from what everybody else is doing and that really stands out. So
you know, if someone is looking at two houses that are, you know, $800,000 and
they walk in your house and they walk in the other one, yours always stands
out. Yeah. It is just amazing. I think that makes all the difference in the
world with how you do it.
Vi Luxury (15:12):
And I, you know, thank you. I cannot take all the credit
because I have to say it is also the person listing it. You know you have high
end, you gotta have a high end realtor.
Wendy Sweet (15:23):
That is a great point.
Vi Luxury (15:24):
Push that high end price knows how to teach it, preach it,
sleep and think and talk about it.
Wendy Sweet (15:30):
Yeah, that is a good point. Your team means everything.
Vi Luxury (15:33):
That is true.
Bill Fairman (15:34):
And I loved your promotions on these houses when they are
ready to go on the market you invite a whole bunch of people and have you get
them all liquored up. You cater it.
Wendy Sweet (15:48):
She did a casino night and one of them. That was a lot of
fun.
Bill Fairman (15:51):
You have beverages and people talk about it.
Wendy Sweet (15:53):
Yeah they do. It gets out there.
Bill Fairman (15:57):
You end up with a bidding process and I do not know if it
is the same now because the market has changed a little bit, but you know at
one time you had people fighting over the properties, which was great. But
fortunately we are still in a pretty low interest rate environment, which is
still helping even the higher end stuff.
Vi Luxury (16:19):
And you guys still have lots of money.
Wendy Sweet (16:20):
It depends on what day you ask. And I think this market
too, you know, everything is coming in this direction. People are moving to the
Southeast, but North and South Carolina just have a great predicted growth. So
you are in a year in a good spot and you know, are the job growth here, the
companies that are coming here. We are in a good spot.
Bill Fairman (16:47):
And if it will stop raining soon, maybe you can get some
stuff completely.
Wendy Sweet (16:51):
Yeah!
Vi Luxury (16:51):
That is true.
Wendy Sweet (16:53):
That would be nice.
Bill Fairman (16:54):
Do you have anything else you wanted to add?
Wendy Sweet (16:56):
I think that is it.
Bill Fairman (16:56):
Did you have any questions you wanted to ask us at all?
Vi Luxury (16:59):
I am always like.
Bill Fairman (17:01):
Why are we doing this to you?
Wendy Sweet (17:02):
Yeah! Like why are we doing this? Why are you doing this
to me?
Vi Luxury (17:08):
No, I appreciate the opportunity of even being able to,
you know, to sit here and talk about how we built this relationship to it.
Bill Fairman (17:17):
Well this will go out to tons of people.
Vi Luxury (17:19):
Well I am glad I brushed my hair.
Wendy Sweet (17:20):
That is great.
Bill Fairman (17:25):
Thanks for joining us. Thank you so much. Bill and Wendy
with Carolina Capital Management. Please like and share and subscribe. That is
what I was looking for. CarolinaHardMoney.com for information.
Wendy Sweet (17:49):
Tell all of your friends.
Bill Fairman (17:49):
Bye!
Bill Fairman (17:54):
Thank you very much for joining us. Hope you had a good
time. Get a little knowledge as well. Do not forget to subscribe and like us,
and if you like see some more episodes perhaps up here, perhaps down here for
there is place to press to get to the other episode. Enjoy.

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