Entrepreneur Written Interviews

Interview with Walt Carey owner of StaySell, Inc

Walt Carey is an entrepreneur and owner of StaySell, Inc in the Real Estate business.  He got his start with buying a single wide trailer for $1,500 and turned that into $11,000 home.  After which he began to go bigger and from there he got his start with StaySell, Inc.  Like most people in the real estate business he has been hit hard by the market.  To stay afloat through these tougher times Walt has continued as a licensed practicing attorney in three states: Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Florida.  Walt holds a Bachelors Degree from Northeastern University and J.D. from New England Law School.

Seth: Tell me a little bit about yourself?

Walt: My name is Walt Carey I am 50 years old I have a Bachelors degree in Public Administration from northeastern university. I have a law degree from New England school of law.  Originally from Boston, Mass.

Seth: How did you get the idea for your business?

Walt: I got the idea for my business from one of my law clients in 1997.   My client had retained me for several real estate related transactions.  During this time, he showed me his real estate investment business and how he ran it.  I became fascinated with the business, the model, and his execution of his business plan.  He made a sizeable income, which was more than triple what I was making as a practicing attorney with a third of the effort.

Seth: Describe your target market/consumer base?

Walt: My target market in this business is the motivated seller.  The motivated seller is someone who has to sell because of extraordinary circumstances in their life or with the property.  Those might be: moving for job transfer, loss of job, needs cash, structural damage or extensive repairs needed on property and not enough money to fix it.

Seth: What were the barriers of entry in your industry?

Walt: Lack of knowledge about real estate in general, understanding fair market value and ability to estimate repairs.  Also a lack of quick available cash.

Seth: Did you create a business plan?

Walt: Yes, I created a business plan.  I described the type of business I was going to engage in, the mechanisms in which I would conduct it as well as the expected gross and net profits.  The business plan was drafted in two parts: one part was overall plan for the company as a whole and if I was using private investment funds, I would have a separate plan for a property that I was targeting for acquisition.  Several of the private lenders required a business plan.  Others didn’t. But, when I provided both the corporate and the individual property plan to all potential private moneylenders, it was warmly received.

Seth: What is your company’s unique value proposition compared to competitors within your industry?

Walt: My companies unique value proposition was that I was able to market creditability to a much higher level than many of my competitors.  This creditability was derived from the fact that I was a licensed attorney in the states where I was purchasing properties.   Potential sellers, with the help of the Internet were able to immediately access information, which validated my company, and me as an individual with credibility so any thoughts of a possible purchase being a scam transaction were immediately alleviated.

Seth: Have there been any factors that have hindered the growth of your business?  If so what are they?

Walt: The biggest factor was the bubble burst in the U.S. real-estate market beginning in the 2006 to 2008 time frame. We are still trying to recover from it.

Seth: Take me through a typical day for you…

Walt: It would start out with me checking on the MLS for newly listed properties for newly listed properties that would fall in my buying criteria.  If I found a property(s) that fit my buying criteria I would immediately contact the listing agent to get further particulars on that listing.  If his/her responses were favorable, I would immediately drive out and inspect the property for possible purchase.  At the same time I would be reviewing emails from potential sellers, buyers and individuals associated in the real-estate industry such as real estate agents, mortgage brokers, bankers, and construction/contractors.  If I had any properties that were in the rehabilitation phase I would visit that property on a daily basis to check for progress and to be notified of any problems which may exist with the on going repair.   I would also spend at least a half hour on advertising and marketing plans to ascertain the response rates I was getting to my advertising and whether or not I needed to modify those methods.

As most of the target market had 9 to 5 jobs.  I would usually have to wait until late in the afternoon or early in the evening to visit potential sellers to discuss the purchase of their home.

Seth: What personality traits should all entrepreneurs’ posses?

Walt: The first trait you must have is self-confidence. Other traits such as passion, drive, and the ability to understand the lessons that can be learned from failures are also extremely important.

Seth: What kind of advice would you give to young entrepreneurs?

Walt: Go for your dreams, never be dissuaded by negative feedback from others, follow your passion, and most importantly go with your gut.

Seth: Is there anything else that you would like to add?

Walt: I would encourage any young open-minded individual to explore opening a business that they have a strong passion for.  It’s a terrible thing to go through life and never pursue your dreams. Don’t settle, don’t ever settle.

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