Unique Way to Run Your Own Business

A few months ago, I had a few business owners reach out to me saying:

“Hey, Mark. Looks like you have a decent size audience of veterans. I run a small business and think you may have some people in your audience who could help me run mine.”

Fast forward to last week and I helped an Army E-6 land a role as a General Manager for a multi-unit home services franchise in Texas. We were even able to get him in via the Skillbridge program. Both he and the business owner are stoked.

I then posted about this on Twitter:

That then led to a flurry of requests from people reaching out to me, all saying:

“I think a veteran would be a great fit for a role I have.”

So let me share one of the better ones I received.

Market Leader in the Real Estate Industry

This position is with a company that has a nationwide reach and is looking to aggressively grow.

Fun fact: The CEO actually went to business school with two former podcast guests.

The position is for a Market Leader to sell and project manage their main business in their local market.

What is the business?

This is not a real estate agent position or a mortgage broker. The company has a really unique offering. Here’s how it works:

1. The company acquires the home of someone looking to sell with an initial payment based on the current value of the home, unlocking the majority of the seller’s equity and enabling them to pay off any mortgages.

2. Once the seller moves out, the company prepares the home for sale with designers, contractors (if needed), and their proprietary platform.

3.  The company then resells the home, at an average of 11.1% higher than what the seller would typically receive before their service, and the seller keeps all the upside.

Here is a huge reason this matters.

Pictures.

This picture for a home on a website like Zillow:

Will get a lot less interest than a picture like this:

It’s not just the photography, but the setting. Home sellers who put more effort into making their homes look ready for listings are going to generate more interest in their homes and get more offers.

Very importantly also, the company fronts a good portion of the seller’s home value, which enables them to unlock equity in their home which they can then use to make an offer on their next home.

The company then takes a portion of the proceeds after the seller’s home is sold. Even after their fee, the seller is very likely to make even more money than if they didn’t use this service.

And in the current market, sellers are looking for any edge they can find in selling their home AND in unlocking equity for their next home.

It’s really a win-win.

So what would you do?

This role has two main parts to it:

1. Business development

2. Project management

Business Development

First, you are not selling directly to homeowners. This company actually works with real estate brokers and others in the industry. They are the ones who use this with the sellers they are working with. So instead of contacting dozens of home owners, you only need a handful of good contacts to make this feasible.

Project Management

Once a homeowner is on board, then you would be managing everything that needs to get done.

Are you designing the setting of the home? No- the business has a team for that.

Do you need a real estate license? No- the business handles the bulk of the legal and financial legwork.

Are you taking pictures? Nope.

It’s building relationships and managing the project.

What’s the financial opportunity?

This role comes with a base salary of $50-60k. I know- that’s not a whole lot.

The opportunity comes once you start landing clients. You get .5% of the sales price for every home.

Let’s use an example market: Raleigh, NC

According to Zillow, the average home home price in Raleigh is $431,344.

So if you land one home and it sells, that’s a $2,156 commission.

Multiply that times five homes in a month (very doable) and that’s a yearly payout of $129,360 on top of the base pay for a total of $179,360.

Even if you only do 2 homes per month, that equates to over $100k in total.

Where are the openings?

Everywhere.

The business can work in any market.

Obviously, the larger the market, the more opportunity there will be.

Final Thoughts

Look, I really try to not sell you all snake oil. I hope by now you realize that.

This comes with a lot of training and support- the company does not leave you hanging out to dry here.

If you are a people person who can make connections in your area and can manage a project, this can be a great opportunity. You get to run what is, in a lot of ways, your own business.

If this sounds interesting, just respond back to this. You and I will set up a call and I can fill you in more, then can make an intro for you.

Mark

The Veteran Professional