Memphis Invest, GP and related company Premier Property Management Group released 2013 First Quarter Results on Sunday April 21st and a positive trend for the real estate investment company and their clients continues.  Demand for investment property and opportunity continue to remain strong in both Memphis and Dallas and portfolio performance as well as client satisfaction remain high.  Sales at Memphis Invest, GP grew year over year 110% and tracked even compared to the 4th quarter of 2012.  As demand from existing clients continues to pick up, we expect to see growth throughout the year.

Starting a small business -- or growing the one you already own -- can be a daunting task. The small business owner must wear many different hats, and he or she must do so with resources that are often in short supply.  Memphis Invest has been blessed to come through the last few years of massive growth as an extremely strong company and we wanted to write an article showing other Memphis business owners a few organizations where they can get help and guidance.  Being honored last year as one of Inc. Magazines 500/5000 Fastest Growing Companies was huge for us and we'd love to see more Memphis small businesses on the list!

Memphis Invest Nominated for Small Business Award

Memphis Invest, GP was very honored this week to be formally nominated for the Memphis Business Journal Small Business Awards for the second year in a row!  

2012 was an incredible year of growth for our company not only in terms of volume and properties, but most importantly in processes and people.  So many changes and adjustments had to be made as we continued to grow at breakneck speed and yet the entire team did an outstanding job of keeping pace and working through the changes.  In addition, Memphis Invest, GP was named to the Inc. 500/5000 list of America's Fastest Growing Companies in 2012.  The honor and the recognition by other business men and women here in Memphis means a lot to the Clothier family personally and to all of our staff.   

We were honored in 2011 to be selected by the Germantown Chamber of Commerce as the Small Business of the Year and to be nominated for this award given by the Memphis Business Journal two years in a row is a real testament to not only the company and the business model, but really to the team.  With 41 full time employees and a committed group of partners providing excellent services, Memphis Invest has built an incredible group working for their clients.  We are really excited to see what 2013 brings and hopefully it brings the actual award!

Here is a full list of the 5 companies as finalist for the award for 26-60 employee category:

Small Business of the Year, 26-60 employees

• Greenway Home Services
• Herbi-Systems Inc.
• HOG WILD-Real Memphis Barbeque LLC & A Movable Feast Catering
• masterIT LLC
• Memphis Invest GP

We are honored to be mentioned with all the other fantastic Memphis companies.

Premier Property Management Memphis 

So far we are about 65 days into the new year and already business in Memphis is at a record pace!  Both Memphis Invest, GP and Premier Property Management are experiencing tremendous up ticks in business.  Much of that is attributed to existing clients continuing to build their portfolios, but this blog is not about Memphis Invest.  Today, I am writing to absolutely brag on the outstanding team over at Premier Property Management of Memphis.  They are doing a phenomenal job and February was the SINGLE BEST month in the history of the management company!  Not only did the management company close more than 100 rental contracts, but they also reduced outstanding vacancies below 5%.  

A new, National Survey sponsored by Premier Property Management Group was released this week discussing the long-term impact of renters in single-family homes.  Real estate investing has been a hot topic for the last few years and the media has really picked up the pace of reporting on large hedge funds buying property around the country.  As investors take a bigger role in purchasing distressed properties, no one has studied what the intentions were or the future plans of the renters who are occupying these properties.  There have been a lot of questions, but not a lot answers when it comes to what are the "new" renters going to do when they have the opportunity to purchase property again?

Every so often, I like to circle back around to topics and re-illustrate a point for our readers, staff and even our clients.  I happened to be talking to another passive real estate investment company last week and they were asking me about weeding through all the calls and requests they get from potential investors.  They relayed that they were getting a hundred or more calls and emails a week from interested investors and often they were spending a lot of time on the phone with no real chance of helping the investor get started.  For a myriad of reasons, the investor was not a good fit for their company.  I pulled a line from an article I had written almost a year ago to try and help them get over their hurdle:

86% of Customers Will Pay More For Better Customer Experience

So today I was researching different Memphis real estate terms and I just wasn't finding anything that excited me for the blog.  I will definitely have something out tomorrow highlighting some local real estate news with a wrap up of 2012 tomorrow.  However, while I was researching, I came across an excellent article in The Daily News from Lori Turner-Wilson, Customer Pay More For Better Experience, and seeing as how we are customer experience fanatics, it grabbed my attention.

Fortunately for real estate investors everywhere, there are a lot of real estate titles that have some great information on real estate investing.  Unfortunately, there are also a lot of books on real estate out there by get-rich-quick schemers and authors who may have completed a small handful of transactions and now want to tell everyone else how it is done. Many of these books are little more than promotional fluff to get you to buy whatever "can't lose" investment system these fast-talkers and new-comers to the real estate world are shilling. It can be difficult to wade through all the snake oil and "too-dumb to know I was lucky" books to find quality information. Here at Memphis Invest we have done some of the work for you by selecting a few good books. Here are three real estate book recommendations, in no particular order, that can actually leave you smarter than they found you. 

Preachers encouraging squatters? A recent NBC news report revealed an unusual development in the housing market. In one Atlanta neighborhood, residents and church members have seen a rise in distressed property that is foreclosed and then abandoned, growing dilapidated and becoming what neighbors call "crime magnets." In order to preserve their neighborhood, residents have encouraged families to move into distressed property, fix it up, and keep the neighborhood clean and safe.  This approach is being encouraged to prevent neighborhoods from sliding further into disrepair and decline while also trying to bring in families from shelters and off the streets, especially during the winter months.  I can't say that I agree with this approach, but I understand where they are coming from.  I also think there may be another option.