May 20, 2025

Lewis Realty Associates

Lewis Realty Associates
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Lewis Realty Associates
Lewis Realty Associates
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Season 3

What’s it like to grow up in the “woods" of Holly Ridge, shrimp with your dad along the Carolina coast, and then go on to build one of the largest real estate companies in the area?Meet Chris Rackley, the owner and President of Lewis Realty Associates, and a local leader in vacation rentals and real estate on Topsail Island. In this episode, Chris shares his personal journey, from working on shrimp boats as a kid to leading a full-service real estate team managing over 170 vacation homes. We talk short- and long-term rentals, home buying and selling, investment properties, community growth, and what it means to stay rooted while the world around you changes. Whether you’re a visitor, a local, or dreaming of coastal life, this episode is full of insight, warmth, and local know-how.

Topsail’s Top Choice Awards: 1st Place for Favorite Vacation Property Management Company and 2nd Place for Favorite Real Estate Services

Lewis Realty Associates, Inc.
320 N New River Drive
Surf City, NC 28445
(910) 328-5211

https://www.realestatetopsail.com/

https://www.vacationsontopsail.com/

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/TopsailIsland/

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/lewisrealtyontopsail/

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewis-realty-associates-inc-28960a108/

X:https://x.com/lewisrealty

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WEBVTT

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Welcome to Topsail Insider, where you can hear all about the businesses and events in the beautiful coastal towns in the greater Topsail area of North Carolina.

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Coming up today we're interviewing Chris Rackley, the owner of Lewis Realty Associates.

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He is a true Topsail local, born and raised right here.

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And we'll be discussing vacation homes, short-term and long-term rentals, home buying and selling, investment homes, and much more, today on Topsail Insider.

00:00:32.183 --> 00:00:46.746
It is time to indulge and experience the finest coastal hospitality on Topsail Island with Saltwater Resort Suites in Surf City, North Carolina.

00:00:46.746 --> 00:01:03.127
Designed to exceed your expectations, guests can enjoy elegant suites featuring premium luxurious bedding, fully equipped kitchens with dishwashers, 75 inch flat screens, en suite washers and dryers, and gorgeous ocean views.

00:01:03.127 --> 00:01:14.632
With the grand opening of their newest location, you can now relax in their saltwater pool and modern clubhouse, perfect for unwinding, socializing, and private events.

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Book your next beach getaway today at saltwatertopsail.com or call (910) 886-4818.

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Saltwater Resort Suites redefining luxury on Topsail Island.

00:01:30.531 --> 00:01:37.165
Hello everyone.

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Welcome to Topsail Insider.

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My name is Christa and I am your host.

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Today we have Chris Rackley joining us.

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He's the owner of Lewis Realty Associates, located on Topsail Island in North Carolina.

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Welcome, Chris.

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Thank you so much for joining me today.

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Yes, ma'am.

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Glad to be here.

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To kick things off, why don't you give me a quick overview of your business because you do more than just buying and selling homes.

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Yep.

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we're the second oldest company in the Topsail area.

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And, we're a full service brokerage.

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We do vacation rental property management.

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Long term property management.

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We do represent buyers and sellers, commercial and residential.

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We do it all.

00:02:10.735 --> 00:02:11.664
Oh, commercial too.

00:02:11.664 --> 00:02:12.115
I didn't know.

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Commercial.

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Yes ma'am.

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Yes, ma'am.

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Before we go on, I also wanna ask you about Top Choice Awards.

00:02:17.774 --> 00:02:18.014
Yeah.

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Because you won two awards.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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That was a, that was a very stressful time for, for myself and my wife who owns the local business Salon Blue Hair Salon.

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the contest?

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The contest.

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Really, it was stressful.

00:02:28.843 --> 00:02:29.593
We were stressed.

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I'm sorry, but it was fun.

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we, we were, fortunate enough to be voted the, number one vacation rental company in the area.

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Yeah.

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And the number two real estate company in the area.

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And my wife, got an award for.

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best hair Salon as well.

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Hair Salon, that's right.

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What's her name and what's the name of the salon?

00:02:43.234 --> 00:02:46.824
her name is Misty, Rackley and her, salon is Salon Blue Hair Salon.

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It's on two 10, like in between Lowe's and Surf City.

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Totally drive by it all the time.

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Yeah, all the time.

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All the time.

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Alright, well congratulations to you.

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We are about to, get 2025 season kicked off we're gonna start reviewing the categories, maybe make a few changes and make a few changes in the rules as well to kind of tidy things up, but, got you.

00:03:03.718 --> 00:03:04.704
But y'all did great.

00:03:04.704 --> 00:03:05.604
You killed it, so thank you.

00:03:05.604 --> 00:03:10.290
And while we're talking about awards, I also know that you were realtor of the year.

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When year when was this?

00:03:11.436 --> 00:03:12.936
This was back in 2003.

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I'd been in real estate for, about three years and, you know, be, to be realtor to year one, you have to be an outstanding, realtor and follow the code of ethics and be honest.

00:03:21.616 --> 00:03:24.075
And you also need to do things for your community.

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In that time I was a volunteer firefighter And it's basically your peers, vote for who they think deserves that award.

00:03:31.145 --> 00:03:37.225
So in '03, I was realtor a year, and then '06 I was voted the board president.

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I was in my twenties.

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Is this the, the Realtor's

00:03:40.286 --> 00:03:40.376
Yeah.

00:03:40.376 --> 00:03:42.026
Topsail Island Association of Realtors?

00:03:42.026 --> 00:03:42.295
Yep.

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So in my twenties I was the board president and at that time we

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in your twenties.

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500 members.

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Dude,

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Yeah.

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So that was, that was interesting.

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And I wasn't satisfied with everything that I'd gotten done.

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So I ran again.

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so I've been board president twice, and, that was, I think I was 30 the second time.

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Mm-hmm.

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So young.

00:04:01.040 --> 00:04:06.270
And then, 2016 I was voted Topsail Island in Chamber of Commerce, man of a year, I believe it was

00:04:06.536 --> 00:04:06.825
Nice.

00:04:06.961 --> 00:04:07.050
Nice.

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Yeah.

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And, Served on various committees with the towns and with the local association.

00:04:12.966 --> 00:04:16.865
I served with the base of Business Alliance for a Sound Economy.

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It's a group of lobbyists for the housing and real estate industry.

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I was on their board for some years.

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So I've, I've been real active nowadays.

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Like, I'll bump into some people and they're like, where have you been?

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And I'm like, well, I'm, I've been incognito, you know, I'm raising children.

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So it's, it's, it's, yeah.

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Yeah.

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It's hard to, to be that active, But, uh, there's a.

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There's a taste for the civic activities and for politics that I do like, and I can't say that I won't get back in that.

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Yeah.

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Once my children are growing.

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But right now my family's the focus, you know?

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I mean, that was, that's the purpose of life far as I'm concerned.

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Alright, well I moved here the end of 2015.

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And, since I've been here, it's so rare that I meet someone who was actually born and raised here.

00:05:01.579 --> 00:05:02.569
And you were?

00:05:02.569 --> 00:05:03.079
Yes, ma'am.

00:05:03.079 --> 00:05:03.889
Where were you born?

00:05:03.889 --> 00:05:05.689
I was born actually in Jacksonville.

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Yeah.

00:05:05.838 --> 00:05:08.625
But, live in Holly Ridge I call it the woods.

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It's out in the country, you know, down, down by the, waterway marsh landing area.

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Is it still the woods?

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Not as much as it used to be.

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Yeah.

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Unfortunately, there's a lot of subdivisions around us, but, you know, we own a parcel of land there that was family owned and, there's conservation land next to us, so once you get to our property, much like it was years ago in the pre-interview you were talking about, you lived on a piece of land with multiple houses on it.

00:05:31.156 --> 00:05:32.685
That was mostly your family, right?

00:05:32.685 --> 00:05:33.107
Yes, Yes, ma'am.

00:05:33.107 --> 00:05:35.872
So is that also the land you grew up on?

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It is I am a third generation that, lived there and my children are fourth

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and, incredible.

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Yeah, it's, it was awesome.

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To, to have a place where family can, can be together is super rare.

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you know, it's my wife and I and our children in one house, and then we've got her mother and stepfather in another house, and then my father and his wife and another, yeah.

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You know, so on Saturday morning you may hear the, the door slam shut and it's just the kids and they're one of the grandparents houses.

00:06:02.762 --> 00:06:02.973
I see.

00:06:02.973 --> 00:06:03.452
That's the

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coolest.

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Yeah.

00:06:04.579 --> 00:06:08.089
Where I grew up, which was also in, in the Woods.

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Mm-hmm.

00:06:08.254 --> 00:06:08.336
Mm-hmm.

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We were actually on a tobacco farm, but we were all within a, a five mile radius of my grandmother.

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My cousins.

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Yeah.

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And, and it was fantastic.

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Oh, yeah.

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And the cousins were the best friends growing up, and, and we played in the woods.

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It was just.

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It was a, a great life, I just want to get back, I really want you, I mentioned this on the pre-interview, but if you just keep an eye out Yeah.

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For anything that could be turned into a compound.

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Yeah, absolutely.

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Absolutely.

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I really want one.

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It is my dream.

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It's so cool that you're on the same property that you Yeah.

00:06:37.795 --> 00:06:38.976
were raised on Yes,

00:06:38.976 --> 00:06:39.216
ma'am.

00:06:39.322 --> 00:06:41.451
how many houses do you have on that property?

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we used to have four actually, but one of them got away from the family, when I was much younger.

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But you know, the people who bought it are just good people like us and mm-hmm.

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I mean, they're almost like family fit.

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They fit in.

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Yeah, they fit in well.

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So, I've seen a vast amount of growth even from 2015, and you've been here your entire life.

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Give me your perspective as a local here, the changes that you've seen, not just in Holly Ridge, but Greater Topsail, just the impact on the environment and, the culture

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Mm-hmm.

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Yeah.

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when I was in high school, us kids would go to the beach, you know, on a Friday or Saturday night after work and we'd go one of two places.

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We'd go to the Scotch Bonnet Pier or Barnacle Bills Pier, and, neither of those are here.

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They were lost in 1996 to Hurricane Fran.

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but in the wintertime, when we would come over, it would just be local kids there playing in the game rooms and, you might pass one or two cars on the island.

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The whole entire time.

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And we joke that in the wintertime, they rolled the streets up on the island, because it was that slow, restaurants, were closed during the winter?

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was kind of almost like a ghost town.

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But I mean, now you go to the island even in December on a weekend and you've got a wait, you know, there's, there's people here all the time.

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there's so many more amenities now.

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We've got so many more stores, grocery stores and, and mom and pop shops and more restaurants and some big box and all these things.

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And, and those are wonderful.

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I mean, growing up here, I remember when Highway 17 was a three lane road, there was no grocery stores around here, and we would travel to Wilmington, with an ice chest in the back of the car Oh wow.

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To bring food back.

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was like a weekly trip we we're going to town.

00:08:20.264 --> 00:08:20.389
Yeah.

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You know, like that saying.

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So, so, now I go to town,

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Surf city

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Day.

00:08:26.535 --> 00:08:26.865
Yeah.

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if groceries, there's no weekly shopping, it's like, oh, I need this, I'm gonna grab it on the way home.

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So that's wonderful.

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the negative of it, of course is, the infrastructure is, is changing and growing with it, and there's some headaches there with traffic and, things like that.

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I have noticed, you know, I come from a commercial fishing family, my father commercial fished and so I'm real in touch with the water.

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I've noticed that we've got more polluted areas and things like that.

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What, what kind of things are you seeing to indicate the pollution?

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Is it debris floating?

00:08:55.440 --> 00:08:56.325
just runoff.

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mean, yeah, anytime you've got a, a development, you're, you're gonna have some runoff there's things that, that we do from the real estate side of the, of, development, with stormwater management and things like that to cut that down.

00:09:08.455 --> 00:09:10.375
But there's always gonna be some impact.

00:09:10.375 --> 00:09:16.414
you'll see, like with shellfish, you'll see if we have torrential rains, they may be closed for a week or more.

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shellfish are filter feeders, so they're filtering all that.

00:09:19.924 --> 00:09:23.375
They're actually cleaning the water, but you don't want to eat it when they're cleaning the water.

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Right?

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Yeah.

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So, so that was, that's probably the, the most negative thing I've seen.

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But, you know, the state, all in all, and the towns do a good job in managing that, we've got things to, to, to cut down on that risk.

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Mm-hmm.

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So you said your dad was a commercial fisherman.

00:09:37.716 --> 00:09:41.374
Was he out of, surf City here, or was he down in Sneads Ferry?

00:09:41.374 --> 00:09:42.793
More or less Sneads Ferry.

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But he really, he was all over, up and down the coast.

00:09:45.553 --> 00:09:47.203
he had, he was a shrimper mainly.

00:09:47.203 --> 00:09:51.238
And, when I was four years old, they took me to Mobile Bay, Alabama.

00:09:51.238 --> 00:09:53.097
And I lived on a shrimp boat for six months.

00:09:53.352 --> 00:09:54.702
oh, that's Forrest Gump.

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Forrest Gump, just like it, you know, so, and then I grew up working on the boats with him, in the summer and,

00:10:01.773 --> 00:10:02.793
How old were you then?

00:10:02.842 --> 00:10:12.982
just growing up, 8, 9, 10 on up, I worked on the boats with him until I was about 18 or 19 and that's when I decided I was gonna go to college.

00:10:12.982 --> 00:10:19.462
And then in my mid twenties I worked with him a week in Pamlico Sound, shrimping.

00:10:19.462 --> 00:10:21.173
he was down a crew member.

00:10:21.173 --> 00:10:23.063
And, I mean, I love it.

00:10:23.063 --> 00:10:26.312
you like it as much at 20 as you did when you were eight, nine, and 10?

00:10:26.967 --> 00:10:27.207
Probably not.

00:10:27.633 --> 00:10:27.812
Probably.

00:10:27.812 --> 00:10:28.863
You're like, I'm going back to

00:10:29.043 --> 00:10:29.793
Yeah.

00:10:29.793 --> 00:10:30.153
Yeah.

00:10:30.153 --> 00:10:30.873
Probably not.

00:10:30.873 --> 00:10:35.523
I mean, it's, it's a great life and, and, and, and I do love it, but it's hard work.

00:10:35.523 --> 00:10:41.878
It's dangerous, And, and right now seafood prices are down, you know, because we've got an import problem.

00:10:41.878 --> 00:10:47.388
You know, we've got imported seafood coming in, so that drove the, the, the local seafood price down.

00:10:47.587 --> 00:10:57.726
I was gonna ask you if you've noticed a difference from when your dad was, actively fishing for a living versus, and, are you still tight with the fishing community down in the

00:10:57.981 --> 00:10:58.851
yeah, absolutely.

00:10:58.851 --> 00:11:02.131
All up and down the coast of North Carolina, we know fishermen all over,

00:11:02.261 --> 00:11:04.966
Is business better or worse these days or the same

00:11:05.581 --> 00:11:07.256
last year was a tough year for 'em.

00:11:07.256 --> 00:11:07.427
really?

00:11:07.427 --> 00:11:07.667
Yeah.

00:11:07.667 --> 00:11:10.817
The prices on shrimp were like a dollar, a dollar and a quarter.

00:11:10.817 --> 00:11:15.557
And you know, for instance, these, these boats burn 20 gallons a diesel an hour.

00:11:15.557 --> 00:11:16.937
I mean, easily know

00:11:16.981 --> 00:11:17.731
and we know if fuel went

00:11:17.807 --> 00:11:18.106
Yeah.

00:11:18.106 --> 00:11:19.667
Diesel's $4 a gallon.

00:11:19.667 --> 00:11:24.106
So, you know, calculate out that for every pound of shrimp you get a dollar 25.

00:11:24.106 --> 00:11:28.067
And for every gallon of diesel, you've lost $4.

00:11:28.067 --> 00:11:31.052
So it, it doesn't, doesn't balance out.

00:11:31.052 --> 00:11:31.371
Mm-hmm.

00:11:31.412 --> 00:11:31.442
Mm.

00:11:31.442 --> 00:11:32.131
That's a tough year.

00:11:32.131 --> 00:11:32.221
Yeah.

00:11:32.351 --> 00:11:32.572
Yep.

00:11:32.572 --> 00:11:34.371
So, well, I'm hoping you see

00:11:34.381 --> 00:11:35.221
turning around?

00:11:35.356 --> 00:11:56.057
I'm hoping, you know, I've mixed feelings on the whole tariff situation in national politics, but, but I'm hoping that it will help to seafood industry and, and that's a big, if that's, if they do target imported seafood with the tariffs, drive that cost up and that people still want seafood.

00:11:56.057 --> 00:12:05.897
Because I wonder, you know, if, if inflation continues and, and companies pass tariffs on to us, are we gonna be able to even afford to buy the seafood to begin with?

00:12:05.897 --> 00:12:07.456
So is that the, you know, right.

00:12:08.447 --> 00:12:08.797
We'll,

00:12:08.897 --> 00:12:09.256
see.

00:12:09.256 --> 00:12:15.076
I, I think some of the commercial fishing, organizations are think it's gonna help 'em, so I, I hope it does.

00:12:15.076 --> 00:12:15.077
Yeah.

00:12:15.167 --> 00:12:15.846
I really hope it does.

00:12:15.846 --> 00:12:16.366
I do.

00:12:16.547 --> 00:12:17.177
Absolutely.

00:12:17.389 --> 00:12:30.500
Since we're on the topic of, of how things have changed and infrastructure, do you think that that bypass, you know, bypass Was originally supposed to start by the BP station here, and now it's moved up towards the high school now.

00:12:30.500 --> 00:12:34.434
Do you think that, that's gonna help traffic through Hampstead?

00:12:35.075 --> 00:12:36.059
I, I think so.

00:12:36.059 --> 00:12:37.259
I think it's a godsend.

00:12:37.259 --> 00:12:45.059
Hamstead used to just be a wide place in the road when I was growing up and, and now it's like, I mean, it's like little Manhattan, you know?

00:12:45.059 --> 00:12:49.590
It is, it is wild going through there and the wrecks and the people getting hurt and all the traffic.

00:12:49.590 --> 00:12:57.090
So if I was coming from another area and previewing this area and I drove through Hamstead, I'd go right on.

00:12:57.090 --> 00:12:59.220
I mean, it's just, it's, it's that bad.

00:12:59.220 --> 00:12:59.429
Yeah.

00:12:59.429 --> 00:13:02.370
So I don't see how it, it can't help.

00:13:02.370 --> 00:13:06.195
We gotta get some cars off of 17 and on something else.

00:13:06.195 --> 00:13:06.254
Yeah.

00:13:06.254 --> 00:13:07.065
Through that area.

00:13:07.065 --> 00:13:10.784
Now would I have rather it had went to the VP in Surf City?

00:13:11.225 --> 00:13:11.524
for sure.

00:13:11.865 --> 00:13:12.014
for sure.

00:13:12.014 --> 00:13:12.134
Yeah.

00:13:12.134 --> 00:13:15.644
But, and I feel like at some point that it will connect

00:13:15.720 --> 00:13:16.980
do you know why they changed that?

00:13:17.190 --> 00:13:18.110
I don't, I don't.

00:13:18.110 --> 00:13:29.014
Now I have interesting thing though, is I have heard that the long range plans and, and these are just, you know, analyst's opinion of where things are gonna go.

00:13:29.014 --> 00:13:37.294
But they say eventually at the lows in the BP station, that there'll be an overpass there that will go over 17.

00:13:37.294 --> 00:13:41.195
It'll come off of the, of the bypass when it's extended there.

00:13:41.195 --> 00:13:43.654
And you'll have an overpass dropping you off on two 10.

00:13:43.654 --> 00:13:51.985
And I mean, we're talking 50, 60 year long range plan, I mean, the high rise bridge in Surf City was on a long range plan for 30 years.

00:13:51.985 --> 00:13:56.705
I mean, we would, we would, I mean, I remember in the nineties they'd say, yep, we're getting a highrise bridge.

00:13:56.705 --> 00:14:02.794
And we'd be on the list and then, you know, legislatures go through the budgeting process and it would drop off the DOT master plan.

00:14:03.345 --> 00:14:03.764
mm-hmm.

00:14:03.875 --> 00:14:04.955
would move it somewhere else.

00:14:04.955 --> 00:14:10.625
So when we finally said that we were getting a bridge, I didn't believe it till I saw the first piloting going down.

00:14:10.625 --> 00:14:11.554
I'm like, yeah, whatever.

00:14:11.554 --> 00:14:13.355
Sure we are, but it's there.

00:14:13.355 --> 00:14:13.429
Yeah.

00:14:13.580 --> 00:14:20.690
So we moved here when I think that the bridge was already being built, if not close to completion in 2015.

00:14:20.690 --> 00:14:22.070
Does that seem right?

00:14:22.924 --> 00:14:24.514
15, 16, something like that.

00:14:24.514 --> 00:14:24.815
Yeah.

00:14:24.980 --> 00:14:28.070
So, I mean, the, the, the swing bridge was still in place.

00:14:28.070 --> 00:14:28.159
Mm-hmm.

00:14:28.159 --> 00:14:30.679
And we were here for the removal of that.

00:14:30.679 --> 00:14:35.879
But, did that, I, I didn't go, I wasn't going over to the island a lot at that stage.

00:14:35.879 --> 00:14:39.120
So did that make a big difference in the traffic going to and from the island?

00:14:39.120 --> 00:14:42.330
'cause I still feel like it's a, a bottleneck.

00:14:42.360 --> 00:14:49.230
it's always gonna be a bottleneck when you, you know, no matter what you do when you get to the island, there's always so many places you can go.

00:14:49.230 --> 00:14:50.340
It's one of two ways.

00:14:50.340 --> 00:14:50.700
Yeah.

00:14:50.700 --> 00:14:52.919
You know, so you're always gonna have a bottleneck there.

00:14:52.919 --> 00:15:01.139
And, and we have to face it, unless we build a freeway coming into the island, you're gonna have a bottleneck on the mainland side.

00:15:01.139 --> 00:15:07.620
And if you go to any beach town on the eastern seaboard of the US on Fridays and Saturdays, it is traffic.

00:15:07.620 --> 00:15:07.889
Yeah.

00:15:07.889 --> 00:15:09.389
And that's just life in a beach town.

00:15:09.565 --> 00:15:12.149
you know, do you feel like the roundabouts have helped out?

00:15:12.565 --> 00:15:14.090
like, yeah, I think so.

00:15:14.090 --> 00:15:16.940
I think it, it helps to keep traffic flowing.

00:15:16.940 --> 00:15:17.475
I do too.

00:15:17.475 --> 00:15:24.830
You know, if, if people use it right now, a lot of people get nervous and they do a complete stop and all that, and you're like, oh, come on, let's go.

00:15:24.860 --> 00:15:28.549
Well, honestly, it took me a minute to realize like, Christa, why are you stopping?

00:15:28.549 --> 00:15:30.049
Like it was just kind of habit.

00:15:30.049 --> 00:15:33.919
But now that I've gotten used to it, I was probably one of those you were behind.

00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:34.850
Like what is she doing?

00:15:35.070 --> 00:15:35.350
Yeah.

00:15:35.350 --> 00:15:37.149
I remember, I remember I, Dr.

00:15:37.149 --> 00:15:39.215
I had a Jeep Wrangler when I left for college.

00:15:39.215 --> 00:15:45.845
I went to NC State and I piled all my stuff in the Jeep and I drove up Highway 50 all the way to Raleigh.

00:15:45.845 --> 00:15:47.975
I didn't take 40 because the Jeep was slow.

00:15:47.975 --> 00:15:52.565
And in Kenansville there's a roundabout, I believe it's Kenansville.

00:15:52.565 --> 00:15:57.424
And when I got there, I had never seen a roundabout and I didn't know what to do.

00:15:57.424 --> 00:15:58.460
I was just like, what?

00:15:58.460 --> 00:16:02.585
So I understand, but I know now what to do.

00:16:02.750 --> 00:16:07.279
There's a, but there's some down in Wilmington that got me used to it before that one was actually installed.

00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:08.690
So I kind of got the feel for it.

00:16:08.690 --> 00:16:11.919
So let's talk about what drew you into becoming a real estate agent.

00:16:11.919 --> 00:16:15.009
I know your aunt played a big part in your life, so can you tell me a little bit about her?

00:16:15.009 --> 00:16:15.605
Yeah.

00:16:15.754 --> 00:16:19.404
my great aunt, Elizabeth, but she's known as Peggy, that was her nickname Lewis.

00:16:19.404 --> 00:16:21.904
And you know, people will say, when did you start real estate?

00:16:21.904 --> 00:16:23.465
And I say, when I was eight years old

00:16:24.115 --> 00:16:25.909
Yeah, I remember you saying that's crazy.

00:16:25.909 --> 00:16:26.205
Yeah.

00:16:26.404 --> 00:16:37.029
on Saturdays, aunt Peggy would, would take me over to the office and, she would pay me probably $5 on a Saturday to wash real estate signs or clean the office and things like that.

00:16:37.029 --> 00:16:52.144
So I was in the environment, from a very young age, moving up into the teenage years, I got to the point where I'd answer the phone and she had a small rental department and I'd take reservations and this was so long ago, we were still doing it by hand on paper, it was no computers.

00:16:52.144 --> 00:16:53.825
This was early nineties.

00:16:53.825 --> 00:16:57.304
And as things progressed and I got older, I'd work a little bit more.

00:16:57.304 --> 00:16:59.404
Then I left for college.

00:16:59.404 --> 00:17:01.534
And honestly, I never thought I'd come back.

00:17:01.534 --> 00:17:03.335
I had big dreams of I was

00:17:03.534 --> 00:17:04.154
No real estate.

00:17:04.154 --> 00:17:05.269
What did you go to college

00:17:05.525 --> 00:17:08.345
I went to college for, communications and a minor in computer science.

00:17:08.345 --> 00:17:10.984
And what I wanted to get into was advertising copywriting.

00:17:10.984 --> 00:17:11.075
Mm-hmm.

00:17:11.075 --> 00:17:13.174
You know, I wanted to write advertisements.

00:17:13.174 --> 00:17:13.204
Okay.

00:17:13.204 --> 00:17:14.894
you know, like commercials and things.

00:17:14.894 --> 00:17:16.450
But, I, I kept

00:17:16.480 --> 00:17:17.279
Where'd you go to school?

00:17:17.529 --> 00:17:18.339
North Carolina State,

00:17:18.345 --> 00:17:20.444
Go Pack.

00:17:21.369 --> 00:17:35.480
but I kept in touch with Aunt Peggy and, she would discuss business with me and things that was going on and, and she made the comment to me, it was around 2000, late 99, 2000 that she thought she'd sell a business she was getting up in, in years.

00:17:35.480 --> 00:17:36.650
And she was ready to retire.

00:17:36.650 --> 00:17:41.930
And she made the comment, she said, you know, you worked in the office and stuff, but you never showed any interest in taking it over and.

00:17:41.930 --> 00:17:44.045
Thought to myself, I was like, wait, what?

00:17:44.045 --> 00:17:46.984
And she was like, you never showed any interest in taking over.

00:17:46.984 --> 00:17:49.055
If you had have, I'd have turned it over to you.

00:17:49.055 --> 00:17:50.974
And I was like, that was a possibility.

00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:51.740
You didn't even

00:17:51.845 --> 00:17:54.115
I didn't even think that way, at that age.

00:17:54.115 --> 00:17:58.974
So I said, wait, let, let me think a little bit before you do anything.

00:17:58.974 --> 00:18:03.494
So I came home and, really it was a trial run just to see if I liked it.

00:18:03.494 --> 00:18:05.724
And, it was a very small operation.

00:18:05.724 --> 00:18:07.224
It was my aunt and one other lady.

00:18:07.224 --> 00:18:15.214
we were on the causeway where the marina is now, the little white building, 4 21 Rowan Avenue across from East Coast Sports.

00:18:15.214 --> 00:18:16.295
That's where the office was.

00:18:16.295 --> 00:18:18.634
I think we had eight vacation rentals.

00:18:18.634 --> 00:18:22.724
and, and so I cut my teeth with that and I got my real estate license.

00:18:22.724 --> 00:18:25.365
And back then it was a sales person's license first.

00:18:25.365 --> 00:18:29.144
And then about a month later, I got my broker's license.

00:18:29.144 --> 00:18:34.775
Then my aunt went to Turkey for two weeks and just left me in charge

00:18:34.775 --> 00:18:35.746
and said, go for it.

00:18:35.746 --> 00:18:36.855
It just jump right in.

00:18:36.855 --> 00:18:37.694
Sink or swim.

00:18:37.694 --> 00:18:39.345
How, how did that go for you?

00:18:39.525 --> 00:18:41.414
It went better than expected.

00:18:41.414 --> 00:18:41.984
Yeah.

00:18:41.984 --> 00:18:42.045
Yeah.

00:18:42.045 --> 00:18:55.575
I mean, I, I had some tough decisions, which I won't go into now that I had to make, but I kept the business going those two weeks, which was an eternity back then for somebody 20, 21 Then one thing from another, gradually, she started teaching me and.

00:18:55.575 --> 00:19:01.555
And next thing you know, I was the one making the decisions and running and she was coming into office less and less and less.

00:19:01.555 --> 00:19:08.275
And, you know, fast forward to today, it's a much different company and we were managing 170 some vacation rentals and

00:19:08.365 --> 00:19:08.655
Wait, what?

00:19:08.655 --> 00:19:08.656
Yeah,

00:19:09.025 --> 00:19:09.474
what, yeah.

00:19:09.474 --> 00:19:09.569
Yeah.

00:19:09.569 --> 00:19:09.769
From

00:19:09.855 --> 00:19:10.615
170.

00:19:10.884 --> 00:19:11.305
Yeah.

00:19:11.305 --> 00:19:11.454
Yeah.

00:19:11.454 --> 00:19:13.884
We're one of the larger vacation rental companies now.

00:19:13.884 --> 00:19:19.085
you know, we're turning real estate into the brokerage side, you know, with some of the big boys.

00:19:19.085 --> 00:19:20.904
So it's, it's, it's a whole different operation.

00:19:20.904 --> 00:19:20.964
Wow.

00:19:20.964 --> 00:19:21.805
Yeah.

00:19:21.805 --> 00:19:22.825
Been very fortunate.

00:19:23.539 --> 00:19:25.549
I had really had no idea it was that many.

00:19:25.549 --> 00:19:26.329
Yeah.

00:19:26.430 --> 00:19:26.431
Okay.

00:19:26.431 --> 00:19:29.454
So that's why I got a couple gray hairs, so

00:19:29.525 --> 00:19:30.365
so very few.

00:19:30.365 --> 00:19:31.055
You're doing fine.

00:19:31.055 --> 00:19:32.855
Okay.

00:19:32.855 --> 00:19:37.815
I'm assuming that the, all the people that have been relocating here, and it's, it's a lot.

00:19:37.964 --> 00:19:38.734
yeah, it's a lot.

00:19:38.894 --> 00:19:41.805
That would obviously be wonderful for your business,

00:19:41.805 --> 00:19:44.115
I mean, it's just mind boggling growth.

00:19:44.115 --> 00:19:46.785
And you we're seeing it in different demographics.

00:19:46.785 --> 00:19:49.755
We're seeing it in retirees that are moving here.

00:19:49.755 --> 00:19:58.414
probably because some of the good medical facilities we have in Wilmington and what a better place to live at in the beach, but we're also seeing the young professional move here.

00:19:58.414 --> 00:19:58.440
Yeah.

00:19:58.440 --> 00:19:59.855
In the twenties and the thirties.

00:19:59.855 --> 00:20:02.795
And that was something that was never here.

00:20:02.795 --> 00:20:14.439
like if you were in your twenties and you were single at Surf City, you had to go to Wilmington or somewhere else to meet People, so now it's, it's a huge change, having that demographic here and, and young families.

00:20:14.439 --> 00:20:16.328
And then of course we've got the military.

00:20:16.328 --> 00:20:20.919
And so the, the area is just, it's just fascinating how it's grown.

00:20:20.919 --> 00:20:23.558
you probably had a lot of military from the get go,

00:20:23.604 --> 00:20:25.134
Yeah, we, we always did from the get go.

00:20:25.134 --> 00:20:36.953
The weird thing was, was in the nineties, it was like you went over to Sneads Ferry and now Sneads Ferry, predominantly military and you know, even h Ridges and, but it, there was really no military presence there.

00:20:36.953 --> 00:20:39.233
There was no military personnel there in the nineties.

00:20:39.233 --> 00:20:40.854
It didn't seem one or two here or there.

00:20:40.854 --> 00:20:43.554
It was like they didn't even know we existed.

00:20:43.554 --> 00:20:45.564
And yet we were the back gate of Camp Lejeune.

00:20:45.933 --> 00:20:46.223
Yeah.

00:20:46.403 --> 00:20:53.523
And then I think the change really started happening in 2003 when George Bush, he did a, they called it brack.

00:20:53.523 --> 00:21:01.354
It was base realignment and something act, and it was when they closed down some bases and consolidated with other bases.

00:21:01.354 --> 00:21:04.114
So some bases left and some grew.

00:21:04.114 --> 00:21:04.419
Mm-hmm.

00:21:04.419 --> 00:21:09.453
Well, can't lajeune be the largest amphibious marine base in the world was not gonna be shut down.

00:21:09.453 --> 00:21:10.054
It grew.

00:21:10.054 --> 00:21:14.388
And they've moved people from the West Coast operations over to Camp Lajeune.

00:21:14.388 --> 00:21:16.068
They moved from other marine bases.

00:21:16.068 --> 00:21:17.449
They still are.

00:21:17.449 --> 00:21:17.451
Still are.

00:21:17.451 --> 00:21:17.544
Yeah.

00:21:17.544 --> 00:21:17.898
Yeah.

00:21:17.898 --> 00:21:24.618
And, and that was when we saw like the Sneads Ferry area just explode with growth.

00:21:24.618 --> 00:21:25.249
You know what I mean?

00:21:25.249 --> 00:21:27.739
We've got Marsoc got special forces, right.

00:21:27.739 --> 00:21:28.729
They're here,

00:21:28.878 --> 00:21:28.880
here.

00:21:28.880 --> 00:21:30.679
They just relocated from California.

00:21:30.858 --> 00:21:31.338
that's right.

00:21:31.338 --> 00:21:31.608
Yep.

00:21:31.608 --> 00:21:32.058
Yep.

00:21:32.058 --> 00:21:39.259
So, so I, that really spurred the military crisis was in 2003 and from their on, I mean, it's just exponential.

00:21:39.259 --> 00:21:44.689
And the amazing thing is, is many of them stay, you know, they, they love the area as much as we do.

00:21:44.689 --> 00:21:46.818
And them, when they retired, they end up staying here.

00:21:47.094 --> 00:21:52.284
So in 2008 there was the, the Great Recession housing crash.

00:21:52.284 --> 00:21:53.544
How did that affect you?

00:21:53.814 --> 00:21:54.023
yep.

00:21:54.023 --> 00:22:00.384
what, you know, like in 2004, 2005, the real estate market was, I mean, it was like on steroids.

00:22:00.384 --> 00:22:03.183
I mean, prices were jumping like crazy.

00:22:03.183 --> 00:22:03.854
For instance.

00:22:03.854 --> 00:22:05.683
I had helped a lady buy a condo.

00:22:05.683 --> 00:22:12.354
A year later, she calls and says, put, put it on the market, and we put it on for a hundred thousand dollars more and it sells.

00:22:12.354 --> 00:22:12.443
Oh, wow.

00:22:12.443 --> 00:22:13.253
You know what I mean?

00:22:13.253 --> 00:22:14.544
It was just wild.

00:22:14.544 --> 00:22:14.604
Yeah.

00:22:14.604 --> 00:22:19.203
you know, then we got to 2007, 2008 and the crash started.

00:22:19.203 --> 00:22:22.249
That lasted from oh eight to 2010.

00:22:22.249 --> 00:22:28.578
And at that time, you know, I'd only been in real estate with a license about seven, eight years.

00:22:28.578 --> 00:22:39.604
And, so I mean, I had had a great career for an early 20 something, the banks had loosened up lending requirements and they were, you know, we used to joke that you could be in prison and get a

00:22:39.729 --> 00:22:40.128
Mm-hmm.

00:22:40.128 --> 00:22:40.449
I mean,

00:22:40.493 --> 00:22:46.183
mean, it was like we never heard denied, it was always approved and they would do adjustable rate.

00:22:46.183 --> 00:22:53.594
mortgages, which means that the interest rate might be 3% right now and the payment might be $800 and everything's great.

00:22:53.594 --> 00:22:59.413
And then you get a notice in the mail, your interest rate's 4, 5, 6, 7 and the payment goes up.

00:22:59.413 --> 00:22:59.564
Yeah.

00:22:59.564 --> 00:23:00.838
And now, no longer.

00:23:00.838 --> 00:23:02.713
Now you can no longer afford it.

00:23:02.713 --> 00:23:06.163
So the foreclosing and the bank sells for pennies on the dollar.

00:23:06.163 --> 00:23:11.114
'cause banks have insurance that gets money back so they can afford to sell for pennies on the dollar.

00:23:11.114 --> 00:23:11.173
Yeah.

00:23:11.173 --> 00:23:15.973
So then you start having the market value drop and then you got people that are over leveraged.

00:23:15.973 --> 00:23:17.503
I mean, it was just a chain reaction.

00:23:17.503 --> 00:23:17.594
Yeah.

00:23:17.594 --> 00:23:26.453
you know, so, so by the time 2008 came around, you know, we were going home and I turned on the news and it was another bank had collapsed.

00:23:26.453 --> 00:23:29.933
So basically my industry was at the center of the problem.

00:23:29.933 --> 00:23:29.993
I.

00:23:29.993 --> 00:23:34.344
And we had people that were desperately needing to sell property.

00:23:34.344 --> 00:23:38.513
And we'd list it and we'd do everything we could do, and it just, nobody cared.

00:23:38.513 --> 00:23:39.804
Nobody wanted to buy.

00:23:39.804 --> 00:23:41.604
Nobody could get a loan.

00:23:41.604 --> 00:23:48.243
I would tell clients, look, I can go outside and stand on my head in the front yard, and they will not take a second look.

00:23:48.243 --> 00:23:56.989
I mean, I had doctors that I represented that had 13, 14 properties that couldn't even get a loan, and they were well funded, you know what I mean?

00:23:56.989 --> 00:23:58.608
It was just like the whole system had halted.

00:23:58.608 --> 00:24:03.209
So here I was, the rental department hadn't been built up to any degree.

00:24:03.209 --> 00:24:06.328
I think I had like 30 properties then, which was bigger than when I started.

00:24:06.328 --> 00:24:08.398
But it just hadn't, hadn't got traction yet.

00:24:08.398 --> 00:24:13.618
And, we were still a small company and I worked for two years with absolutely no paycheck.

00:24:13.963 --> 00:24:15.253
for two years,

00:24:15.328 --> 00:24:16.709
went through every bit of savings.

00:24:16.709 --> 00:24:22.979
I was fortunate enough that I had had a good early start in my career, but I mean, it ended up in a financial disaster for me.

00:24:22.979 --> 00:24:26.278
But there was an adage that I always.

00:24:26.278 --> 00:24:32.429
Kept saying in my head was that you never know how close to success you are if you quit.

00:24:32.429 --> 00:24:39.778
And that kept me through those two years till things started picking back up and we could put the pieces back together and move on.

00:24:39.778 --> 00:24:41.788
And I mean, I'm so thankful for that.

00:24:41.788 --> 00:24:45.888
My wife we were newly married and then the crisis happened and, you know, she made money.

00:24:45.888 --> 00:24:48.019
She's, she does hair, she was still making some money.

00:24:48.019 --> 00:24:49.038
I wasn't making anything.

00:24:49.038 --> 00:24:50.449
She's like, why don't you go get a job?

00:24:50.449 --> 00:24:52.459
And I'm like, I, I can't get a job.

00:24:52.459 --> 00:24:53.118
She's like, why?

00:24:53.118 --> 00:24:58.278
And I was like, 'cause I, I was like, I've got an opportunity here and I know what I can build.

00:24:58.278 --> 00:25:05.538
If the economy straightens out, if I go get a job, I'm just gonna help somebody else build it and I'm not gonna get the reward.

00:25:05.538 --> 00:25:07.878
So I'm stubborn as a mule.

00:25:07.878 --> 00:25:11.898
And I told her, I said, look, I'm gonna stay there till they dragged me out.

00:25:11.898 --> 00:25:12.378
Yeah.

00:25:12.378 --> 00:25:13.368
You know, I'm not leaving.

00:25:13.368 --> 00:25:15.348
And thank God I was right.

00:25:15.348 --> 00:25:16.759
It was a big chance, thank God.

00:25:16.959 --> 00:25:18.663
So it took about two years for it to turn

00:25:18.989 --> 00:25:19.278
Yeah.

00:25:19.278 --> 00:25:19.294
Yeah.

00:25:19.294 --> 00:25:21.993
Two years we started seeing, you know, change.

00:25:21.993 --> 00:25:23.223
It wasn't a good market.

00:25:23.223 --> 00:25:27.153
It wasn't, you know, you weren't getting rich, you were just barely getting by.

00:25:27.153 --> 00:25:31.084
But about two years it started, you know, the government pumped a bunch of money in the economy.

00:25:31.084 --> 00:25:35.023
They did a bunch of, aid, they did a bunch of legislation to get things going.

00:25:35.023 --> 00:25:35.443
I mean, 'cause

00:25:35.459 --> 00:25:35.538
right.

00:25:35.538 --> 00:25:36.058
I forgot about

00:25:36.104 --> 00:25:36.673
Yeah, yeah.

00:25:36.673 --> 00:25:45.074
I mean, 'cause we really, you know, we were, we were basically at the Great Depression in a sense, you know, because you'd hear your grandparents talk about that.

00:25:45.074 --> 00:25:46.124
And it was getting to that point.

00:25:46.124 --> 00:25:52.693
I mean, there was, on tv there was tent cities, you know, people living in tents 'cause the bank had took their house 'cause they couldn't pay for it.

00:25:53.009 --> 00:25:59.669
So, yeah, so people were in these, in these loans that they could no longer afford to pay because of the adjustable rate.

00:25:59.669 --> 00:26:07.318
If they can't pay the loan and they can't sell the house, then it forecloses, and then so everyone lost

00:26:07.364 --> 00:26:07.875
everyone lost.

00:26:07.875 --> 00:26:08.138
Everybody lost.

00:26:08.138 --> 00:26:12.554
And we had to learn a whole new way to do real estate sales.

00:26:12.554 --> 00:26:15.064
We were doing, what they call short sales.

00:26:15.064 --> 00:26:19.773
And that was where we would be selling for less than what was owed.

00:26:19.773 --> 00:26:21.124
And the bank had to approve it.

00:26:21.124 --> 00:26:27.814
And it was kind of like a, kind of like a bailout for the bank in a sense, you know, that we'll get this much instead of nothing.

00:26:27.814 --> 00:26:37.003
we were doing a lot, we were representing actually, bank of America, ed in my office had over a hundred listings with Bank of America that were foreclosed

00:26:37.134 --> 00:26:39.169
you were essentially you're selling for the bank?

00:26:39.169 --> 00:26:39.618
That's,

00:26:39.844 --> 00:26:40.174
Yeah, yeah.

00:26:40.174 --> 00:26:41.493
Yep, yep.

00:26:41.493 --> 00:26:53.253
The whole, we industry changed and, and you know, banks were corporate America and they had certain requirements and certain forms and certain procedures and, you know, I mean, it was like learning real estate all over again, really, you know?

00:26:53.253 --> 00:26:54.963
But thank God that ended.

00:26:55.098 --> 00:26:55.699
Yeah.

00:26:55.699 --> 00:26:56.358
Yeah.

00:26:56.358 --> 00:26:58.016
What about Covid?

00:26:58.016 --> 00:26:59.750
How did Covid affect your business?

00:27:00.766 --> 00:27:18.405
When, and I don't know how I knew this if, but when I, there was an A, b, C news special 2020 and they were talking, you know, I had heard the word Covid and such, but they were showing the cities in China were just deserted and it scared the you know what, out of me.

00:27:18.405 --> 00:27:25.415
I'm like, my God, you know, this might be a real thing, so I started thinking about, well what, what are we going to do?

00:27:25.415 --> 00:27:32.790
And I was already kind of preparing my mind how we're gonna handle vacation rentals if there was quarantines and all these things.

00:27:32.790 --> 00:27:37.711
So the first three, four months of it was gut wrenching.

00:27:37.711 --> 00:27:45.381
we've really had no guidance from the government on what to do with existing vacation rentals and, we have to answer to two different bosses.

00:27:45.381 --> 00:27:47.601
We have to answer to the vacationer, to the owner.

00:27:47.601 --> 00:27:49.971
And it was just kind of winging it.

00:27:49.971 --> 00:28:01.921
And, you know, some of what we call the OTAs, like VRBO and the Airbnbs, they were just willy-nilly canceling reservations, and giving people their money back, which our owners were screaming at us.

00:28:01.921 --> 00:28:04.951
And so we were trying to take it case by case basis.

00:28:04.951 --> 00:28:05.161
And, so the

00:28:05.580 --> 00:28:07.310
so the travelers were not canceling?

00:28:07.441 --> 00:28:09.336
no, the travelers wanted to come.

00:28:09.336 --> 00:28:10.145
I mean, they,

00:28:10.280 --> 00:28:10.641
wanted

00:28:10.665 --> 00:28:22.236
they still, yeah, they still wanted to get to the beach town and, you know, but due to the quarantines in different states and different things, they may or may not could leave, they may or may not come back.

00:28:22.236 --> 00:28:25.460
So it was just like, it was just unbelievably chaotic

00:28:25.460 --> 00:28:27.799
So the first two or three months, you had just a ton of

00:28:27.944 --> 00:28:30.019
can, yeah, just tons of cancellations.

00:28:30.019 --> 00:28:36.599
I mean, it was like I was signing checks for refunds nonstop, and yeah, it was, it was wild.

00:28:36.599 --> 00:28:41.019
but once, I think it was around in May or June.

00:28:41.019 --> 00:28:50.964
You know, things started, settled to the point was like, okay, we've given ourselves to quarantine break now for the ones that want to go out in the world and go, go and if you wanna stay home, stay home.

00:28:50.964 --> 00:28:51.025
Yeah.

00:28:51.025 --> 00:28:55.194
But then we saw it was just unbelievable.

00:28:55.265 --> 00:28:55.724
oh, really?

00:28:56.454 --> 00:29:00.625
I mean, just like we couldn't, we couldn't find enough houses to rent.

00:29:00.625 --> 00:29:06.204
It was just, they were all being filled up and that ran for three years solid.

00:29:06.204 --> 00:29:08.035
Just unbelievable.

00:29:08.035 --> 00:29:09.414
I mean, unbelievable.

00:29:09.414 --> 00:29:17.065
And then finally in 2024, we did see a, a slight tick down, and that was industry-wide on vacations.

00:29:17.065 --> 00:29:21.654
But my theory is, is that, you know, social media is just that.

00:29:21.654 --> 00:29:24.144
It gives you a snippet of the social mood.

00:29:24.144 --> 00:29:29.305
And when I look at my social media feed last year, a lot of my friends were going on cruises.

00:29:29.305 --> 00:29:33.865
They were going to resorts, they were going overseas because they hadn't been able to do that.

00:29:33.910 --> 00:29:34.130
For.

00:29:34.130 --> 00:29:34.515
Okay.

00:29:34.599 --> 00:29:34.960
Yeah.

00:29:34.960 --> 00:29:41.559
And I feel like that was, you know, talking to colleagues in other areas that were in vacation rental space is they saw the same thing.

00:29:41.559 --> 00:29:52.359
but it was like if you took Covid out and you said 2019, and then fast forward to 20 24, 20 24, still a better year than 2019.

00:29:52.359 --> 00:29:52.714
Realize.

00:29:52.714 --> 00:29:53.170
Yeah.

00:29:53.170 --> 00:29:57.460
So, so it was like the linear growth that would've happened without Covid Gotcha.

00:29:57.460 --> 00:29:59.140
Has now started.

00:29:59.140 --> 00:29:59.589
Yeah.

00:29:59.589 --> 00:30:08.865
And Covid was the anomaly And in 2025 our books are looking better than 2024, you know, so we're back on a linear track of growth, which is sustainable.

00:30:08.865 --> 00:30:08.880
It's a

00:30:08.924 --> 00:30:11.000
a dip, but it's not, it's, it's, yeah.

00:30:11.000 --> 00:30:11.720
Where it should be.

00:30:11.890 --> 00:30:11.970
be.

00:30:11.970 --> 00:30:13.005
It's where it should be.

00:30:13.005 --> 00:30:13.454
Yeah.

00:30:13.454 --> 00:30:13.785
Yeah.

00:30:13.785 --> 00:30:13.786
Okay.

00:30:13.786 --> 00:30:13.787
Yep.

00:30:13.787 --> 00:30:14.930
Covid was just, that's so interesting.

00:30:14.930 --> 00:30:15.555
It was wild.

00:30:15.555 --> 00:30:19.785
But, you know, COVID, in another sense, in the, in the late nineties.

00:30:19.785 --> 00:30:23.694
I took some internet classes at State and that was groundbreaking.

00:30:23.694 --> 00:30:29.275
Well, we were like revolutionary that we would get on a computer and dial up and take a college class.

00:30:29.275 --> 00:30:29.335
Yeah.

00:30:29.335 --> 00:30:32.335
But, so we've known that we could work from home.

00:30:32.335 --> 00:30:34.375
We've known that we could go to school from home.

00:30:34.375 --> 00:30:39.384
We've known all this for 25 years, but yet nobody ever kicked us in the butt and made us do it.

00:30:39.384 --> 00:30:40.194
Covid did.

00:30:40.194 --> 00:30:40.644
Yeah.

00:30:40.644 --> 00:30:45.115
And then the light bulb went off and everybody's like, wow, I could live at the beach.

00:30:45.115 --> 00:30:46.164
I could live at the mountains.

00:30:46.164 --> 00:30:46.734
I could live here.

00:30:46.734 --> 00:30:47.575
I could live there.

00:30:47.575 --> 00:30:47.634
Yeah.

00:30:47.634 --> 00:30:48.565
And still work.

00:30:48.565 --> 00:30:48.805
Yeah.

00:30:48.805 --> 00:30:51.535
So here comes all your 30 something professionals.

00:30:51.535 --> 00:30:51.565
Oh.

00:30:51.750 --> 00:30:51.970
ah,

00:30:52.224 --> 00:31:00.884
it's been in hindsight, COVID was a challenge, but there's always benefits, And, and I mean, I'm not a dinosaur yet.

00:31:00.884 --> 00:31:07.154
I'm 47, but I remember a time when there wasn't internet, when it wasn't computers in your thirties.

00:31:07.154 --> 00:31:12.585
Now there was never a time, it's just second nature to them, you know, to work from home.

00:31:12.585 --> 00:31:13.125
That's normal.

00:31:13.125 --> 00:31:13.769
Yeah, yeah,

00:31:14.143 --> 00:31:17.442
We know that the retirees from up north, they come down here.

00:31:17.442 --> 00:31:22.042
I've heard it's because North Carolina is central.

00:31:22.042 --> 00:31:25.222
It's, if you go any further than us, it's a little too hot and too many bugs.

00:31:25.222 --> 00:31:30.712
And there's alligators and we're sort of like, we're at the, the lowest point that they want to go outside of the north.

00:31:30.712 --> 00:31:31.373
Right.

00:31:31.373 --> 00:31:33.323
But the temperatures are so much milder here.

00:31:33.337 --> 00:31:33.577
Yeah.

00:31:33.577 --> 00:31:33.962
Yeah.

00:31:33.962 --> 00:31:36.127
We're, we're actually class subtropical.

00:31:36.127 --> 00:31:42.817
A climate, which, you know, this past winter, I'd argue that, but we're supposed to be subtropical.

00:31:42.817 --> 00:31:42.877
They

00:31:42.982 --> 00:31:45.053
we had about six inches on the ground.

00:31:45.053 --> 00:31:46.262
it was a good time.

00:31:46.262 --> 00:31:50.758
when we first moved here, we made the mistake of putting some palms in our yard.

00:31:50.758 --> 00:31:50.877
Yeah.

00:31:50.877 --> 00:31:57.307
And it snowed I think 18, 17 or 18, we got snow and it's sat on those palm trees and they were dead.

00:31:57.307 --> 00:32:01.958
And then if people move here and they do, they, that's, they want those palm trees in their yard.

00:32:01.958 --> 00:32:03.157
I'm like, y'all be careful

00:32:03.583 --> 00:32:05.647
yeah, I've got some in our office parking lot.

00:32:05.647 --> 00:32:09.428
The girls at the office just like were all over me to put palm trees up.

00:32:09.428 --> 00:32:10.807
And I'm like, no, no.

00:32:10.807 --> 00:32:11.498
And they kept on.

00:32:11.498 --> 00:32:12.397
I'm like, fine.

00:32:13.718 --> 00:32:14.468
Well, good luck.

00:32:14.468 --> 00:32:15.968
I'm been better luck than we did.

00:32:15.968 --> 00:32:18.307
I think I'll stick with the magnolias and

00:32:18.458 --> 00:32:18.938
Yes.

00:32:19.837 --> 00:32:20.288
All right.

00:32:20.288 --> 00:32:22.218
so we have all these people moving here.

00:32:22.218 --> 00:32:23.597
Have you seen a slow down at all?

00:32:23.597 --> 00:32:24.978
No.

00:32:25.143 --> 00:32:25.363
no.

00:32:25.363 --> 00:32:29.478
you know, interest rates has been a big topic the last couple years.

00:32:29.567 --> 00:32:30.528
How do you feel about that?

00:32:30.528 --> 00:32:31.103
I've,

00:32:31.728 --> 00:32:46.667
I, I've, I've been in this 25 plus years active with a license and I remember a time in the early two thousands when the interest rate dropped under 6% and we clicked our heels together and said, my God, it's free to borrow money.

00:32:46.667 --> 00:32:47.984
5.9%.

00:32:47.984 --> 00:32:48.674
It's free.

00:32:48.674 --> 00:32:51.855
And people bought houses and everybody was excited.

00:32:51.855 --> 00:32:56.805
So now when I hear somebody griping, oh my God, the interest rate is 6%.

00:32:56.805 --> 00:32:59.714
And I'm like, you just been spoiled, you know?

00:32:59.714 --> 00:32:59.750
Yeah.

00:32:59.759 --> 00:33:01.829
well we had a 3% interest

00:33:01.914 --> 00:33:02.174
Yeah.

00:33:02.174 --> 00:33:03.795
And that was not normal.

00:33:03.795 --> 00:33:11.643
that was not, if you look at the history, that was totally an anomaly And, you know, 6% is notoriously a great rate.

00:33:11.643 --> 00:33:17.133
So, and so the people come into this area, that's not a deterrent for them.

00:33:17.133 --> 00:33:19.053
Now I certainly can argue that.

00:33:19.053 --> 00:33:26.292
For a first time home buyer, typically you're, you're strapped and you're on a wing and a prayer and a point in the interest rate will make a huge

00:33:26.383 --> 00:33:26.643
it does.

00:33:26.643 --> 00:33:27.002
Yeah.

00:33:27.002 --> 00:33:27.363
Yeah.

00:33:27.492 --> 00:33:31.123
But, but here it doesn't seem to make that big a difference.

00:33:31.123 --> 00:33:31.242
I mean,

00:33:31.272 --> 00:33:34.123
People can always refinance if they do go lower.

00:33:34.123 --> 00:33:34.573
Right.

00:33:34.573 --> 00:33:36.643
And so you're not seeing a slow down at all.

00:33:36.643 --> 00:33:40.885
I thought I was seeing, I thought I was seeing houses sit on the market just here in my own neighborhood.

00:33:40.885 --> 00:33:42.536
They were sitting on the market a long time.

00:33:42.536 --> 00:33:44.461
By that I mean 30 days.

00:33:44.461 --> 00:33:45.020
Right.

00:33:45.020 --> 00:33:45.955
That's a long time.

00:33:45.955 --> 00:33:50.786
Because at one point people were like, before you list your home, could you please let me know?

00:33:50.786 --> 00:33:52.635
So I have dibs people were out bidding each

00:33:52.800 --> 00:33:53.141
Oh, yeah.

00:33:53.141 --> 00:33:53.415
Yeah.

00:33:53.415 --> 00:33:59.125
There was a time that, like we'd put a house on the market and within two hours we'd have multiple offers.

00:33:59.125 --> 00:33:59.875
Yeah.

00:33:59.875 --> 00:34:06.006
It was, I mean, it's fun, but it's pandemonium, but in a traditional market.

00:34:06.006 --> 00:34:08.815
You're looking, two to three months Yeah.

00:34:08.815 --> 00:34:12.085
For home sales, and that's usually you're happy.

00:34:12.085 --> 00:34:12.655
Yeah.

00:34:12.655 --> 00:34:16.360
so when it takes 30, 60 days, I'm like, great, no problem.

00:34:16.360 --> 00:34:17.231
Yeah.

00:34:17.231 --> 00:34:17.681
Awesome.

00:34:17.681 --> 00:34:22.240
You know, we, we found a good, solid buyer and it's probably gonna be a great transaction.

00:34:22.240 --> 00:34:22.630
I did,

00:34:22.646 --> 00:34:28.795
I saw the dip, but I swear I think it's picked back up again where people, it's, they're going a lot faster again, so.

00:34:28.795 --> 00:34:29.246
All right.

00:34:29.246 --> 00:34:34.735
Well, I was kind of hoping it was slowing down a little bit, just because our schools are overcrowded.

00:34:35.146 --> 00:34:36.106
I know, I know.

00:34:36.476 --> 00:34:37.346
How old are your kids?

00:34:37.431 --> 00:34:38.840
my, oldest is 12.

00:34:38.840 --> 00:34:40.550
She's, in middle school at Dixon Middle.

00:34:40.550 --> 00:34:42.860
And our youngest is eight and she's at Coastal.

00:34:42.860 --> 00:34:47.030
And I mean, the middle school, Dixon Middle is two stories.

00:34:47.030 --> 00:34:49.041
It looks like a movie.

00:34:49.041 --> 00:34:49.880
High school.

00:34:49.880 --> 00:34:49.940
Yeah.

00:34:49.940 --> 00:35:02.141
To me, because, in my graduating class in 95 at Dixon High was like 120 They have, in her class there's like five or 600 kids just in the sixth grade class.

00:35:02.141 --> 00:35:06.702
And I'm like, there wasn't that many people in the school, you know, like, it's just mind blowing.

00:35:06.702 --> 00:35:16.922
But, you know, the, the school system, Onslow and Pender County, Pender County's got many accolades with Topsail, through the years and, you know, and Dixon has been, good for my children.

00:35:16.922 --> 00:35:19.052
They've, they've grown in leaps and bounds and, yeah.

00:35:19.052 --> 00:35:21.202
There's a lot of kids, but, they're keeping up with the growth.

00:35:21.347 --> 00:35:22.237
yeah, yeah.

00:35:22.237 --> 00:35:23.481
They're doing their best.

00:35:23.481 --> 00:35:23.541
Yeah.

00:35:23.541 --> 00:35:24.322
I can tell you that.

00:35:24.322 --> 00:35:26.871
And we, we've got two new schools being built here.

00:35:26.871 --> 00:35:30.472
I think a lot of people were up in arms because they weren't building a new high school.

00:35:30.472 --> 00:35:34.132
So we have one high school and multiple middle schools and multiple elementary schools.

00:35:34.132 --> 00:35:41.521
But what we didn't understand was that the plan was they're gonna build the new middle school toward near South Topsail.

00:35:41.521 --> 00:35:42.621
Mm-hmm.

00:35:42.621 --> 00:35:46.552
And then they're gonna take the middle school that is here by the high school and make that, I think the ninth grade.

00:35:46.552 --> 00:35:49.161
So it's gonna be, it's gonna go back into being, a high school.

00:35:49.161 --> 00:35:52.612
It may not be substantial, but it'll be any little bit helps.

00:35:52.612 --> 00:35:56.831
so being a, a real true local here mm-hmm.

00:35:56.831 --> 00:36:10.161
I know you've got the advantage of, you know, the area better than the new people that are coming in here and, but what, what else, what other advantage is there to being a real true local here and selling real estate?

00:36:10.266 --> 00:36:10.565
Yeah.

00:36:10.565 --> 00:36:13.766
there's an old nickname called an Old Salt.

00:36:13.766 --> 00:36:16.295
you know, like an old sea captain on the coast.

00:36:16.295 --> 00:36:17.166
He's an old salt.

00:36:17.166 --> 00:36:18.425
And that's kind of how we are.

00:36:18.425 --> 00:36:19.295
We're old salts.

00:36:19.295 --> 00:36:23.706
We, we've been through the hurricanes, we've been through the economic recessions.

00:36:23.706 --> 00:36:26.615
We know the area, we know their property owners.

00:36:26.615 --> 00:36:33.266
We know the pitfalls with insurance and the taxes and, and the, regulatory agencies with the state.

00:36:33.266 --> 00:36:40.936
And you, you can't do a real estate transaction without having service providers, you know, home inspector, surveyors, pest control, Attorneys.

00:36:40.936 --> 00:36:42.735
We know all of them personally.

00:36:42.735 --> 00:36:43.666
We know the good ones.

00:36:43.666 --> 00:36:45.226
We know the not so good ones.

00:36:45.226 --> 00:36:54.106
when I, if I was to come into this area, without that knowledge, it would be super hard to, to give the level of service that we give.

00:36:54.106 --> 00:36:54.885
You know what I mean?

00:36:54.885 --> 00:36:57.001
'cause it'd almost be like, I've got blinders on.

00:36:57.001 --> 00:37:00.090
I don't know which way to go and I'm learning as I'm helping my client.

00:37:00.090 --> 00:37:01.831
And that's not what they hire us for.

00:37:01.831 --> 00:37:03.121
They hire us for the knowledge.

00:37:07.032 --> 00:37:12.771
Let's talk about the different real estate services that you offer, and, and who each one is for.

00:37:12.771 --> 00:37:15.681
So let's start with the vacation property management.

00:37:15.681 --> 00:37:22.291
This is for homeowners who trust your team to manage their property rental, whether they live locally or not.

00:37:22.291 --> 00:37:25.681
Are most of them local or not?

00:37:25.742 --> 00:37:26.882
most of 'em are not.

00:37:26.882 --> 00:37:29.802
you know, we have a lot of clients from the triangle and from Oh really?

00:37:29.802 --> 00:37:32.632
Charlotte and, and, Greensboro, Winston-Salem.

00:37:32.632 --> 00:37:38.211
But we have equally as many from Ohio and Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

00:37:38.211 --> 00:37:43.161
And New York, and we even have some that live on the west coast of California that have homes out here.

00:37:43.161 --> 00:37:45.181
so I mean, really they're spread around.

00:37:45.181 --> 00:37:52.231
There's clients that we've had for, Lord, they even were back with my aunt that I've never met.

00:37:52.231 --> 00:37:55.561
But I know 'em just as good as I know anybody else.

00:37:55.561 --> 00:37:55.621
Yeah.

00:37:55.621 --> 00:37:59.101
Because we've worked with 'em, so never laid eyes on 'em, so Yes.

00:37:59.101 --> 00:38:00.181
It, it, it's wild.

00:38:00.181 --> 00:38:03.262
But, but yeah, we've got a full service, vacation rental department.

00:38:03.262 --> 00:38:11.291
I got a full-time property manager, full-time maintenance coordinators, full-time housekeeping director, reservationist, full-time accountant on board.

00:38:11.291 --> 00:38:19.893
And our goal is that we handle everything for the homeowner maintenance, you know, guest concerns, booking reservations, cleaning.

00:38:19.893 --> 00:38:20.702
Cleaning, yeah.

00:38:20.702 --> 00:38:21.302
Everything.

00:38:21.302 --> 00:38:29.047
Our goal is that in the end, all the owner has to do is check their bank account for the direct deposit or go to the bank and cash a

00:38:29.097 --> 00:38:29.516
Mm-hmm.

00:38:29.702 --> 00:38:30.722
And that's all they have to do.

00:38:30.722 --> 00:38:30.847
Yeah.

00:38:30.847 --> 00:38:32.342
We do everything else for 'em.

00:38:32.342 --> 00:38:36.211
Collect accommodation, tax, sales, tax, all those reports, all those things.

00:38:36.211 --> 00:38:36.422
Yeah.

00:38:36.422 --> 00:38:38.402
So, so it's, it is totally full service.

00:38:38.577 --> 00:38:43.577
I would imagine that some of those owners, do they ever, this is also their vacation home?

00:38:43.577 --> 00:38:46.396
Like, do they say, okay, in this, these two weeks, I'll be there?

00:38:46.396 --> 00:38:47.567
Don't book it out.

00:38:47.567 --> 00:38:47.568
Yeah,

00:38:48.047 --> 00:38:48.166
Yeah.

00:38:48.166 --> 00:38:53.867
There's, there's some companies that will put a limit on that and we never have.

00:38:53.867 --> 00:38:55.737
I've always said, look, you know,

00:38:55.771 --> 00:38:56.052
your house.

00:38:56.277 --> 00:38:57.206
it's your house.

00:38:57.206 --> 00:38:57.210
It's your house.

00:38:57.210 --> 00:39:03.896
If if you wanna block it out and you want to come or send your family, understand you're not gonna make money.

00:39:03.896 --> 00:39:09.266
And understand if it's a peak season, that you're taking a great opportunity to make money from us.

00:39:09.266 --> 00:39:13.737
And at the end of the year, if you're not happy, it's because you booked it too much.

00:39:13.737 --> 00:39:13.947
Yeah.

00:39:13.947 --> 00:39:14.007
You

00:39:14.061 --> 00:39:14.547
I get it

00:39:14.547 --> 00:39:20.036
So, and I've never, I've never ever, 'cause I can fire a client just like they can fire me.

00:39:20.036 --> 00:39:20.847
We can fire them.

00:39:20.847 --> 00:39:24.927
I've never, ever, ever had to fire a client because they used it too much.

00:39:24.927 --> 00:39:25.586
Okay.

00:39:25.586 --> 00:39:27.751
so I have no need to put that barrier

00:39:27.797 --> 00:39:29.222
have you ever had to have a talk.

00:39:29.436 --> 00:39:30.121
Never have.

00:39:30.121 --> 00:39:30.387
Really?

00:39:30.387 --> 00:39:30.782
No.

00:39:30.782 --> 00:39:31.052
No.

00:39:31.052 --> 00:39:33.331
I mean, 'cause they got expense just like us.

00:39:33.331 --> 00:39:37.902
And I mean, they're successful people and they understand how money works, and they're like.

00:39:37.902 --> 00:39:42.371
You can come down, you can come down in the fall when it's not gonna be booked.

00:39:42.371 --> 00:39:42.521
Yeah.

00:39:42.521 --> 00:39:43.061
and I'm fine.

00:39:43.061 --> 00:39:44.021
We're totally fine with

00:39:44.112 --> 00:39:45.942
it's honestly the best time to come anyway.

00:39:45.942 --> 00:39:46.152
Love fall.

00:39:46.152 --> 00:39:46.811
Yeah.

00:39:47.052 --> 00:39:47.802
Love it here.

00:39:47.916 --> 00:39:48.206
Yeah.

00:39:48.206 --> 00:39:49.422
It's locals high

00:39:49.567 --> 00:39:50.007
That's right.

00:39:50.007 --> 00:39:54.226
It's almost like, you know, we don't go out to eat as much during the summer and, and you

00:39:54.347 --> 00:39:54.527
no.

00:39:54.527 --> 00:39:55.817
'cause you can't get in anywhere.

00:39:55.876 --> 00:39:56.206
in.

00:39:56.206 --> 00:39:59.896
And then October we, you go out to eat and you see all the locals and we all joke.

00:39:59.896 --> 00:40:02.867
It's like we're all like a bunch of roaches crawled out from underneath things.

00:40:06.407 --> 00:40:07.606
it safe to come out yet?

00:40:07.606 --> 00:40:08.822
funny.

00:40:08.822 --> 00:40:10.092
okay.

00:40:10.092 --> 00:40:13.146
So, tell me what you do then for the renters.

00:40:13.447 --> 00:40:16.056
Oh, for the renters is, give 'em a great guest experience.

00:40:16.056 --> 00:40:21.577
when they, when they call in to book the reservation, of course their reservation is help 'em find a home that will fit their needs.

00:40:21.577 --> 00:40:21.697
Mm-hmm.

00:40:21.697 --> 00:40:27.277
And we've got like 50 pictures and, 3D walkthroughs online, floor

00:40:27.362 --> 00:40:27.842
your website?

00:40:27.847 --> 00:40:28.206
Yeah.

00:40:28.206 --> 00:40:28.416
Yeah.

00:40:28.416 --> 00:40:31.521
So, I mean, basically they're seeing the house before they ever get there.

00:40:31.521 --> 00:40:37.211
So we help 'em select it and then, we make everything as easy for them as as possible, just like we do.

00:40:37.211 --> 00:40:41.731
The owners, the linens are delivered beach toys and beach chairs, those are delivered and ready for 'em.

00:40:41.731 --> 00:40:42.152
They can

00:40:42.496 --> 00:40:43.936
You work with local companies

00:40:43.981 --> 00:40:44.791
local companies.

00:40:44.791 --> 00:40:44.795
Yeah, local companies.

00:40:44.795 --> 00:40:44.806
Yep.

00:40:44.806 --> 00:40:47.731
And they can do it all through us.

00:40:47.731 --> 00:40:50.492
So it's just one, one invoice for their vacation.

00:40:50.492 --> 00:40:50.731
That's great.

00:40:50.731 --> 00:40:52.681
And then we coordinate all the others.

00:40:52.681 --> 00:40:54.692
And of course we've got a 24 hour emergency line.

00:40:54.692 --> 00:40:57.661
'cause you know, an air conditioner's gonna break in the summer.

00:40:57.661 --> 00:40:57.782
Right.

00:40:57.782 --> 00:41:00.092
It's just, it is, there's, it's too hot for 'em.

00:41:00.271 --> 00:41:02.032
Plumbing issues, like whatever can happen.

00:41:02.492 --> 00:41:02.791
Yep.

00:41:02.791 --> 00:41:08.652
So it's, it's not out the ordinary that, two o'clock in the morning, we've got our staff, handling a problem.

00:41:08.652 --> 00:41:15.342
And the beautiful thing is, is that we do so much volume with, with local vendors that I can actually get an air conditioner guy out there at 2:00 AM

00:41:15.447 --> 00:41:19.556
Mm mm Yeah, because you've developed those relationships so well.

00:41:19.556 --> 00:41:19.742
Relationships.

00:41:19.871 --> 00:41:20.112
Yep.

00:41:20.112 --> 00:41:20.981
Because we're local.

00:41:20.981 --> 00:41:21.521
Yeah.

00:41:21.521 --> 00:41:22.001
Yep.

00:41:22.001 --> 00:41:22.271
So

00:41:22.617 --> 00:41:23.726
What about the linens?

00:41:23.726 --> 00:41:27.847
Y'all provide the linens or, or people bring their own,

00:41:27.896 --> 00:41:28.436
here.

00:41:28.436 --> 00:41:32.277
About two years ago we made the change where we include the

00:41:32.277 --> 00:41:32.697
Mm-hmm.

00:41:32.786 --> 00:41:32.876
Mm-hmm.

00:41:32.876 --> 00:41:37.516
before that it could be that they could bring their own linens or they could rent their linens.

00:41:37.516 --> 00:41:37.802
Okay.

00:41:37.802 --> 00:41:38.202
Yeah.

00:41:38.202 --> 00:41:38.882
But, you

00:41:38.882 --> 00:41:41.601
and they would rent them through you or through a service Okay.

00:41:42.007 --> 00:41:42.217
Yeah.

00:41:42.217 --> 00:41:43.266
And then they'd be delivered.

00:41:43.266 --> 00:41:46.827
But, we made the change to, to include linens now on everything.

00:41:46.827 --> 00:41:51.027
Just, you know, industries change and demands from your consumer changes.

00:41:51.027 --> 00:41:55.407
And that was one of the things is they didn't wanna, they wanted all inclusive.

00:41:55.541 --> 00:41:55.961
yeah.

00:41:55.961 --> 00:41:57.585
we're already over packing anyway.

00:41:57.585 --> 00:42:04.155
The last thing I wanna do is now have to bring in my sheet sets and comforter covers and all that stuff, did you say you have laundering facilities at your

00:42:04.500 --> 00:42:15.659
We, yeah, we actually have, have a room designated to laundry and because, you know, we'll switch out comforters from week to week and, you know, you gotta have 'em laundered while you're using the other one.

00:42:15.659 --> 00:42:19.469
And, you know, sometimes there's, you know, they get sold and they need to be cleaned.

00:42:19.469 --> 00:42:24.295
So, you know, rather than run to the mainland, to the laundromat and do this, do that, we just have it there.

00:42:24.494 --> 00:42:25.065
That's great.

00:42:25.065 --> 00:42:25.695
Love it.

00:42:25.695 --> 00:42:26.144
Okay.

00:42:26.144 --> 00:42:33.434
Is there anything else you wanna say about your vacation property management that I haven't covered?

00:42:33.840 --> 00:42:37.590
Well we're award-winning in Vacation Rental Management.

00:42:37.590 --> 00:42:43.300
you know, of course we got the, the Topsail's Top Choice Award, and here's an award I haven't announced to anybody.

00:42:43.300 --> 00:42:44.170
So this is Breaking

00:42:44.340 --> 00:42:44.829
Alright.

00:42:44.829 --> 00:42:45.550
There's.

00:42:45.699 --> 00:42:47.710
a website called compare.com.

00:42:47.710 --> 00:42:55.059
And what Co Parent is, is it compares vacation rental property management companies for a property owner that's seeking management.

00:42:55.059 --> 00:42:58.985
And we recently got awarded for the market leader in Topsail.

00:42:58.985 --> 00:42:59.304
That's amazing.

00:42:59.364 --> 00:43:00.204
That's amazing.

00:43:00.239 --> 00:43:01.000
it's Congratulations.

00:43:01.000 --> 00:43:01.400
Thank you.

00:43:01.400 --> 00:43:01.840
Yes, ma'am.

00:43:01.840 --> 00:43:06.804
And it's, it's based on actual data comparing meshes in with our vacation rental systems.

00:43:06.804 --> 00:43:11.244
So they're looking at all our finances and our bookings and our ADRs and all these things.

00:43:11.244 --> 00:43:15.280
And that's how they pick that you're a market leader and we, we got that award.

00:43:15.280 --> 00:43:16.119
That's cool.

00:43:16.230 --> 00:43:16.550
wonderful.

00:43:16.550 --> 00:43:20.269
Tell me, also, I'm looking at your, your website here, the VRMA

00:43:20.275 --> 00:43:20.605
Yeah.

00:43:20.605 --> 00:43:28.954
VRM accreditation, we are the first, and to my knowledge still the only only company in Topsail that, has that accreditation.

00:43:28.954 --> 00:43:31.894
And what VRM is a Vacation Rental Management Association.

00:43:31.894 --> 00:43:39.155
It's a trade organization and they provide training and knowledge and different things for vacation rental managers, and they have an accreditation.

00:43:39.155 --> 00:43:44.855
It took me probably three or four months and a, about a two or three inch stack of paper mm-hmm.

00:43:44.855 --> 00:43:54.644
That I had to produce of how we did things, the results, our procedures, our policies, our finances, and then after they review it, then if.

00:43:54.644 --> 00:43:57.539
You're in compliance with how they think things should be done.

00:43:57.539 --> 00:43:58.260
They accredit you Nice.

00:43:58.260 --> 00:44:01.349
And, and so we're the only accredited company in the area.

00:44:01.394 --> 00:44:02.264
That's incredible.

00:44:02.264 --> 00:44:03.014
Very good.

00:44:03.014 --> 00:44:06.349
And then what is this the proud member of the 100 collection?

00:44:06.414 --> 00:44:16.065
Yeah, the Hundred Collection is a, group that goes out and curates vacation rentals and they have certain guidelines, it's gotta be this way, that way it's gotta be this quality or that quality.

00:44:16.065 --> 00:44:23.425
And, the Hundred Collection contacted us and wanted to select some of our vacation rentals to, to market in their collection, to their guests.

00:44:23.425 --> 00:44:29.244
And their guests expect quality and service because it's part of the Hundred Collection.

00:44:29.244 --> 00:44:35.244
And it provides a mechanism, I mean, really any property could be part of the a Hundred Collection.

00:44:35.244 --> 00:44:40.224
You might have to do some things, but you can always bring the quality up.

00:44:40.224 --> 00:44:49.375
So it, it provides a mechanism that if an owner wants some more attention, we have these things that we could do to get you accepted by the Hundred Collection.

00:44:49.530 --> 00:44:49.820
Okay.

00:44:49.820 --> 00:44:50.485
Okay.

00:44:50.485 --> 00:44:52.445
Out of your 170

00:44:52.639 --> 00:44:53.329
Right now.

00:44:53.329 --> 00:44:58.670
I mean they gave me a, a gamut of properties that we, we could have advertised, with them.

00:44:58.670 --> 00:45:00.260
But of course there's always a fee.

00:45:00.260 --> 00:45:03.860
So we didn't advertise 'em all because some of 'em didn't need it.

00:45:03.860 --> 00:45:05.510
Some of 'em are already booked for the summer.

00:45:05.510 --> 00:45:06.079
Right.

00:45:06.079 --> 00:45:13.639
but I think it's probably around 20 right now which seems to be kind of the norm with other companies in the Hundred collections, around 20 or so.

00:45:13.639 --> 00:45:15.960
But, so far just given us some good results.

00:45:15.960 --> 00:45:16.755
We've been happy with it.

00:45:17.275 --> 00:45:23.425
And before we move on we have all different people from all walks of life coming here with all different budgets.

00:45:23.425 --> 00:45:27.414
So do you have properties that fit all the different budgets?

00:45:27.414 --> 00:45:28.494
Yeah, absolutely.

00:45:28.554 --> 00:45:34.885
I mean, from the, from the small one bedroom condos at the north end to the, 10 bedroom houses.

00:45:34.885 --> 00:45:36.579
It doesn't matter what you're looking for.

00:45:36.579 --> 00:45:37.121
We've got it.

00:45:37.204 --> 00:45:37.206
Alright.

00:45:37.206 --> 00:45:42.125
You have long term rentals too, and you mentioned seasonal rentals.

00:45:42.125 --> 00:45:42.815
So tell me about those.

00:45:42.860 --> 00:45:49.280
Yeah, so long-term rentals, you know, if you're living in the area and you wanna sign a year lease, you actually live in the property.

00:45:49.280 --> 00:45:55.840
Typically on the island, it's hard to find a year lease because most of the time, either if the owners are using it or it's a vacation

00:45:56.065 --> 00:45:56.335
right?

00:45:56.335 --> 00:45:56.635
Yeah,

00:45:56.739 --> 00:46:01.349
do have a handful on the island that are long term, but, not as much as we do on the mainland.

00:46:01.349 --> 00:46:01.565
Yeah.

00:46:01.565 --> 00:46:13.440
what we do different in that is we actually, it seems that some companies would put a person in the house and then they don't go back in the house again for another year.

00:46:13.440 --> 00:46:14.460
Oh my God.

00:46:14.460 --> 00:46:16.260
What could happen in a year?

00:46:16.260 --> 00:46:19.005
You know, the dog could have tore the carpet up.

00:46:19.005 --> 00:46:20.864
It could be holes in the wall.

00:46:20.864 --> 00:46:21.405
Yeah.

00:46:21.405 --> 00:46:22.394
It could be filthy.

00:46:22.394 --> 00:46:25.184
So we do quarterly checks on our long term rentals.

00:46:25.184 --> 00:46:25.425
Okay.

00:46:25.425 --> 00:46:35.065
And, and that gives us the opportunity, one, to know the, the tenant better and to work with the tenant if there is a deficiency, whether caused by the tenant or whether just maintenance in the house.

00:46:35.065 --> 00:46:35.065
Yeah.

00:46:35.065 --> 00:46:37.570
'Cause sometimes maintenance goes to the wayside.

00:46:37.570 --> 00:46:39.849
The some tenants don't wanna bother you.

00:46:39.849 --> 00:46:41.500
They're like, oh the sink's leaking.

00:46:41.500 --> 00:46:42.639
I don't wanna bother 'em.

00:46:42.775 --> 00:46:44.094
in the meantime it's costing more

00:46:44.264 --> 00:46:44.829
In the mean.

00:46:44.829 --> 00:46:45.280
Yeah.

00:46:45.280 --> 00:46:46.059
Now the cabinets

00:46:46.105 --> 00:46:47.184
Creating more damage.

00:46:47.184 --> 00:46:47.514
Yeah.

00:46:47.679 --> 00:46:48.340
we need to know.

00:46:48.340 --> 00:46:52.809
So that's one unique difference that I see is that we actually go look at the

00:46:53.215 --> 00:46:56.844
And you let the renters know up ahead of time like, this is what we're gonna be doing.

00:46:56.844 --> 00:46:58.945
And you don't get any pushback.

00:46:59.074 --> 00:47:01.059
How do you always get pushback with human beings?

00:47:01.914 --> 00:47:03.324
I don't even know why I asked.

00:47:03.340 --> 00:47:04.900
How houses are easy.

00:47:04.900 --> 00:47:05.980
People are hard.

00:47:06.019 --> 00:47:06.309
Yeah.

00:47:07.780 --> 00:47:16.260
but, but it's, I mean, we'll we do everything we can do to make it convenient for 'em, but it's part of our job is to go make sure the house is being taken care

00:47:16.364 --> 00:47:16.815
gotcha.

00:47:16.815 --> 00:47:17.565
Okay.

00:47:17.565 --> 00:47:19.581
And what about the seasonal rentals?

00:47:19.597 --> 00:47:25.536
what a seasonal rental is, is, let's say we've got a vacation rental and it rents like dynamite from May to October.

00:47:25.536 --> 00:47:25.762
Mm-hmm.

00:47:25.762 --> 00:47:29.376
And then we have crickets chirping from November to May.

00:47:29.376 --> 00:47:29.436
Yeah.

00:47:29.436 --> 00:47:34.831
And the owner may, not want to come down or may just wanna turn some more money.

00:47:34.831 --> 00:47:36.831
so we have a list.

00:47:36.831 --> 00:47:38.092
It's, we call it seasonals.

00:47:38.092 --> 00:47:49.681
And it's basically kinda like snowbirds or even, we've had military programs at Camp Lejeune and they would bring in, Marines and soldiers that would be staying in the area and they'd have a government budget for housing.

00:47:49.681 --> 00:47:53.112
And, they may be here for three, four months and they would stay in 'em.

00:47:53.112 --> 00:48:00.791
you know, so it is, it, is it, what it is, is a stay longer than 90 days because if it's 90 days or less, it's still considered vacation rental.

00:48:00.791 --> 00:48:03.791
And that's from, that's codified with state legislature.

00:48:03.791 --> 00:48:03.822
Okay.

00:48:03.822 --> 00:48:05.931
so it's gotta be more than 90 days.

00:48:05.931 --> 00:48:07.402
There's no accommodations tax.

00:48:07.402 --> 00:48:11.001
It's really akin to a, to a year lease, but it's just shorter.

00:48:11.001 --> 00:48:11.146
Mm-hmm.

00:48:11.146 --> 00:48:18.766
and a lot of times you'll see things like, Utilities will be included because I mean, why take the utilities out of the owner's name for four months?

00:48:18.766 --> 00:48:18.827
Yeah.

00:48:18.827 --> 00:48:21.047
so we'll put a cap on, electricity.

00:48:21.047 --> 00:48:25.967
Hey, if you, your first 200 is on us after 200, you gotta pay the difference.

00:48:25.967 --> 00:48:26.746
Things like that.

00:48:26.746 --> 00:48:31.306
But what it does, I mean, our owners love it, you know, I mean, because of course it turns money.

00:48:31.306 --> 00:48:33.166
There's no reason rhyme to it.

00:48:33.166 --> 00:48:37.427
I can't ever predict how many people's coming, why, when, where.

00:48:37.427 --> 00:48:37.487
Yeah.

00:48:37.487 --> 00:48:40.666
It's just, here's the list they call and we try to,

00:48:41.117 --> 00:48:47.177
so if you have, if you have a list of 30 houses that you do this with, what's the percentage that you

00:48:47.567 --> 00:48:49.456
Prob probably around 60.

00:48:49.456 --> 00:48:50.027
Yeah.

00:48:50.027 --> 00:48:50.262
Yeah.

00:48:50.262 --> 00:48:51.347
It's, it's not bad.

00:48:51.347 --> 00:48:51.677
No.

00:48:51.677 --> 00:48:57.887
I mean, and there's been years, like with the Ospreys, the, the real funny looking planes that the military have.

00:48:57.887 --> 00:48:57.947
Yeah.

00:48:57.947 --> 00:48:58.012
Yeah.

00:48:58.012 --> 00:49:00.077
They do vertical takeoff and horizontal flight.

00:49:00.077 --> 00:49:05.226
the Marines, that's a marine plane, and the Air Force were training on it.

00:49:05.226 --> 00:49:09.817
So this was back mid 2000 tens, you know, in that range.

00:49:09.817 --> 00:49:19.847
every year there would be like 20 Air Force pilots that were coming from somewhere out west, and they'd be a Board Camp Lejeune for that training program on the Ospreys, and they would stay with us.

00:49:19.847 --> 00:49:23.777
We had actually made the list of being recommended to these pilots.

00:49:23.806 --> 00:49:32.086
you if the, if the base was the one that was, is setting up that contract with y'all, like, we've got 20 people coming in, we'd like to use your facilities.

00:49:32.086 --> 00:49:32.987
That's great.

00:49:33.106 --> 00:49:33.317
Yeah.

00:49:33.317 --> 00:49:36.976
Well, I know a lot of people who moved here did want to rent first.

00:49:36.976 --> 00:49:39.047
Whether it's waiting for your home to.

00:49:39.047 --> 00:49:45.481
Get completed or to really get to know the area and figure out like, which neighborhood do I wanna build in?

00:49:45.481 --> 00:49:48.362
And that, I think something like that would be really perfect for them.

00:49:48.362 --> 00:49:51.961
The only problem is, is you haven't figured that out by a certain date.

00:49:51.961 --> 00:49:55.141
You still have to get out because you need it ready for, for

00:49:55.186 --> 00:49:55.427
Yeah.

00:49:55.427 --> 00:49:58.456
Typically, we're moving seasonals out around May.

00:49:58.891 --> 00:50:00.181
Is that when it happens in May?

00:50:00.181 --> 00:50:02.492
I thought it would happen a little sooner than that actually.

00:50:02.586 --> 00:50:03.992
I mean, at the latest May.

00:50:03.992 --> 00:50:11.731
It depends, on the house and the volume of the house, you know, how many vacations it's gonna turn that year, but no later than May.

00:50:11.731 --> 00:50:16.771
Sometimes we're moving 'em out in March and April if we've got things to do in the house to get ready for vacation rental.

00:50:16.771 --> 00:50:17.942
Mm-hmm.

00:50:19.211 --> 00:50:20.351
You've got two websites.

00:50:20.351 --> 00:50:23.681
So let's give the website address for the vacation

00:50:23.686 --> 00:50:25.186
vacationsontopsail.com.

00:50:25.382 --> 00:50:27.242
vacationsontopsail.com.

00:50:27.242 --> 00:50:27.981
ma'am.

00:50:27.981 --> 00:50:30.311
So home sales and buying.

00:50:30.311 --> 00:50:32.742
We're talking about your traditional real estate now.

00:50:32.742 --> 00:50:41.222
So, I have a question for you and, and I feel like it's a dumb question, but I feel like there are other people out there like me who don't know the difference.

00:50:41.222 --> 00:50:50.132
I'll tell you, I had someone reach out to me who's gonna be relocating here from New York, and he asked where the brokerages were.

00:50:50.132 --> 00:50:50.222
Mm-hmm.

00:50:50.222 --> 00:50:52.112
And I'm like, let me get back to you.

00:50:52.112 --> 00:50:58.862
So I kind of, I need to know the difference between just a real estate agent and a real estate broker.

00:50:59.342 --> 00:51:03.331
Yeah, in this state there are no agents anymore.

00:51:03.331 --> 00:51:13.561
they're all brokers that when you go to real estate school and, and you pass the class and the estate exam, you get a, what we call a PB license.

00:51:13.561 --> 00:51:15.452
It's a provisional broker's license.

00:51:15.452 --> 00:51:27.492
And what that means is that one, you've done the minimal requirement to have a real estate license and that two, you've got to take 90 more hours of education to upgrade your

00:51:27.882 --> 00:51:28.302
90.

00:51:28.527 --> 00:51:29.771
yep, 90 more hours.

00:51:29.771 --> 00:51:34.961
And then the third thing is, is that you can't work unless you're associated with a broker.

00:51:34.961 --> 00:51:40.452
That's broker in charge eligible or a company who has a broker that's broker in charge eligible.

00:51:40.452 --> 00:51:46.961
And so, so let's say I'm a PB and I've got a hang, my license is determined.

00:51:46.961 --> 00:51:51.251
Are you using, and it comes from the, you have to hang it on the wall in a, in a brokerage

00:51:51.266 --> 00:51:53.157
that is exactly the term that he used.

00:51:53.157 --> 00:51:54.266
I had no idea.

00:51:54.536 --> 00:51:57.896
from the old days when you just, you hung your license at the brokerage house.

00:51:57.896 --> 00:51:58.226
Okay.

00:51:58.226 --> 00:52:03.447
So you've gotta hang your license and then, then I've gotta do my 90 days and then I'm a broker.

00:52:03.447 --> 00:52:12.657
I still can't be a broker in charge because I've got to take and produce experience and I think it's two or three years experience.

00:52:12.657 --> 00:52:16.797
And this class and that class, there'd be broker in charge eligible.

00:52:16.797 --> 00:52:27.536
And so then if I further my education and I get that experience and I'm broker in charge eligible, I can go to work for a company and be their broker in charge and run their sales department.

00:52:27.536 --> 00:52:29.427
Or I can open my own company or

00:52:29.532 --> 00:52:31.992
Can there be multiple brokers in charge?

00:52:32.021 --> 00:52:39.117
There can be multiple broker in charge, eligible people in the office, but there can only be one broker in charge that is in charge.

00:52:39.117 --> 00:52:39.237
Gotcha.

00:52:39.237 --> 00:52:39.956
Yep.

00:52:39.956 --> 00:52:45.746
And you know, namely, the whole sales operation is under that person.

00:52:45.746 --> 00:52:48.356
They're responsible for what these other agents are doing

00:52:48.376 --> 00:52:49.152
is that you?

00:52:49.391 --> 00:52:49.751
no.

00:52:49.751 --> 00:52:52.961
Thank God it used to be He

00:52:52.967 --> 00:52:54.072
Who is the poor soul?

00:52:54.072 --> 00:52:54.306
Yeah.

00:52:54.336 --> 00:53:00.766
ed McKenna, my vice president, he, he runs my sales department, our sales department, and he's the, he's the broker in charge for sales.

00:53:00.766 --> 00:53:05.697
Now I am the broker in charge on the vacation rental side, and it, and it's very similar.

00:53:05.697 --> 00:53:11.396
I'm responsible for everything my people do, and I've gotta provide 'em guidance and I gotta know what they're doing and, and whatnot.

00:53:11.396 --> 00:53:11.936
Okay.

00:53:11.936 --> 00:53:12.056
Yep.

00:53:12.867 --> 00:53:14.811
how many agents do you have working for you?

00:53:14.811 --> 00:53:14.907
We've got,

00:53:14.936 --> 00:53:16.797
We've got, five agents right now.

00:53:16.797 --> 00:53:18.237
we're still actively hiring.

00:53:18.237 --> 00:53:22.967
I've had as many as 10, but some have retired and some have gotten out of the business.

00:53:22.967 --> 00:53:27.137
there's companies that I call 'em a clearinghouse for agents.

00:53:27.137 --> 00:53:30.527
They just love to hire agents and they may have 200 agents.

00:53:30.527 --> 00:53:36.077
And the truth of the matter is, is that these agents are paying a fee to be associated with that company.

00:53:36.077 --> 00:53:42.902
And agents in my mind, have become an invoice and how is one broker in charge gonna manage 200 agents or not?

00:53:42.902 --> 00:53:42.992
Yeah.

00:53:42.992 --> 00:53:45.961
The agents don't get the guidance they need.

00:53:45.961 --> 00:53:47.371
They're just out there.

00:53:47.371 --> 00:53:49.351
And that's not our philosophy.

00:53:49.351 --> 00:53:55.351
I'd rather have a smaller team that is skilled, close-knit and manageable.

00:53:55.351 --> 00:53:57.362
Is, is how we've always done.

00:53:57.572 --> 00:54:01.266
just going back to that, you were born and raised here and you're local.

00:54:01.266 --> 00:54:01.387
Mm-hmm.

00:54:01.387 --> 00:54:08.141
do you choose agents to come and work for you that are also local or they kind of run the gamut?

00:54:08.217 --> 00:54:08.507
yeah.

00:54:08.507 --> 00:54:09.146
No, they're local.

00:54:09.306 --> 00:54:10.177
they're all local

00:54:10.251 --> 00:54:12.322
All our agents actually live here.

00:54:12.322 --> 00:54:13.791
They've lived here for some time.

00:54:13.791 --> 00:54:16.202
they may not be as local as I am 'cause I'm as

00:54:16.277 --> 00:54:16.567
Yeah.

00:54:16.652 --> 00:54:17.371
you can get.

00:54:17.371 --> 00:54:19.472
But, but, but they are local.

00:54:19.472 --> 00:54:20.402
That, that's key.

00:54:20.402 --> 00:54:21.242
That's key for us.

00:54:21.242 --> 00:54:23.831
I mean, our slogans, simply local, simply better.

00:54:23.952 --> 00:54:25.391
Simply local, simply better.

00:54:25.391 --> 00:54:26.172
Okay.

00:54:26.172 --> 00:54:31.351
I wanna ask another question that might be dumb, but I'm learning today.

00:54:31.351 --> 00:54:35.327
Do some agents only represent buyers and then some only represent sellers.

00:54:35.327 --> 00:54:36.496
Or does everyone kind of

00:54:36.601 --> 00:54:36.891
yeah.

00:54:36.891 --> 00:54:40.246
In, in, in our office we do both.

00:54:40.246 --> 00:54:42.027
It depends on the client's needs.

00:54:42.027 --> 00:54:48.356
Now, there are companies that are buyer agent only companies, and there are companies that are seller, agent only companies.

00:54:48.356 --> 00:54:49.286
But we do both.

00:54:49.286 --> 00:54:56.376
We've taken classes to represent a seller, and on the other side, we've taken classes to represent a buyer.

00:54:56.376 --> 00:55:13.597
And, when, when it's called agency, when we sign an agency agreement with you, that means that it's our fiduciary responsibility to look out for your best interest and always try to get you the best possible price, terms and conditions, disclose material facts, basically take care of you.

00:55:13.597 --> 00:55:14.586
Mm-hmm.

00:55:14.586 --> 00:55:17.407
And, you know, we do that for sellers or buyers, depending on the situation.

00:55:18.306 --> 00:55:20.137
What kind of buyers do you tend to see the most?

00:55:20.137 --> 00:55:25.717
Families, retirees, military, or those young, single 30 somethings.

00:55:26.306 --> 00:55:36.842
It is, I mean, on the island, usually investor slash family that's investing is typically what you see on the island.

00:55:36.842 --> 00:55:42.391
Now, you know, you don't, you don't see as many military on the island unless they're higher up the chain.

00:55:42.391 --> 00:55:42.782
'cause the

00:55:42.822 --> 00:55:43.112
Yeah.

00:55:43.351 --> 00:55:47.911
has gotten so crazy that, you know, it's just not feasible.

00:55:47.911 --> 00:55:58.722
But on the mainland, it's a very good mix of, you know, you're 30 something early, 40 something professional, maybe 20 somethings, and, you know, military.

00:55:58.722 --> 00:55:58.766
Mm-hmm.

00:55:58.797 --> 00:55:59.157
Hmm.

00:55:59.157 --> 00:55:59.726
Okay.

00:55:59.726 --> 00:56:07.416
And going, talking about the real estate investors, what kind of opportunities are there in the area right now?

00:56:07.416 --> 00:56:08.277
if people are looking,

00:56:08.407 --> 00:56:08.706
Yeah.

00:56:08.706 --> 00:56:16.686
Here's something that's, yeah, I mean we think, you know, I see a house for 1.3, 1.4 million and I'm like, my god, that's a lot of money.

00:56:16.686 --> 00:56:21.666
'cause I remember when that same house would've sold for a hundred thousand dollars, 25 years ago.

00:56:21.806 --> 00:56:22.097
Yeah.

00:56:22.206 --> 00:56:22.327
Yeah.

00:56:22.327 --> 00:56:33.277
But when you go out away from here and you go to other areas like up north or down south of Florida, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4 is a bargain.

00:56:33.277 --> 00:56:34.237
You know?

00:56:34.237 --> 00:56:40.447
So we have people that will sell property in New York and it would be a modest property.

00:56:40.447 --> 00:56:40.806
Yeah.

00:56:40.806 --> 00:56:42.726
But they've got $2 million.

00:56:42.726 --> 00:56:44.771
Their buying power is so strong.

00:56:45.132 --> 00:56:46.931
Very modest house for a million.

00:56:46.931 --> 00:56:47.802
Just a million

00:56:48.177 --> 00:56:48.467
Yeah.

00:56:48.467 --> 00:56:48.822
Yep.

00:56:48.891 --> 00:56:48.952
Yeah.

00:56:49.027 --> 00:56:49.746
And that worries

00:56:49.762 --> 00:56:50.572
a fixer upper.

00:56:50.572 --> 00:56:50.936
Yeah, a

00:56:51.067 --> 00:56:51.097
or upper.

00:56:51.097 --> 00:56:51.489
Yeah, fix or, yeah.

00:56:51.489 --> 00:56:53.827
And that worries me about this area.

00:56:53.827 --> 00:56:57.996
'cause I remember when Starter Hanes were 150, 175,000.

00:56:57.996 --> 00:57:01.717
Now the bottom of our market on the mainland's 3 50, 3 75.

00:57:01.717 --> 00:57:01.777
Yeah.

00:57:01.777 --> 00:57:05.347
And you know, I'm like, how do people get started with that?

00:57:05.347 --> 00:57:07.327
That that's difficult complaint, right?

00:57:07.327 --> 00:57:07.746
Yeah.

00:57:07.746 --> 00:57:08.376
It's

00:57:08.481 --> 00:57:10.041
buyers, how do you get started?

00:57:10.202 --> 00:57:11.041
is super difficult.

00:57:11.041 --> 00:57:22.086
And then another worry that I have with the price appreciation is that you've got people that's been here and they're of modest income, modest living, and they've been here, you know, much like I have for generations upon generations.

00:57:22.086 --> 00:57:25.206
And the property values increasing and the taxes are increasing.

00:57:25.206 --> 00:57:31.027
And you seen this in other areas as it gets to a point where they can't afford to even pay the property tax.

00:57:31.027 --> 00:57:34.476
So now they have to sell their home place because of the growth.

00:57:34.476 --> 00:57:35.047
And I'm like,

00:57:35.317 --> 00:57:36.126
that makes me sad.

00:57:36.126 --> 00:57:36.128
Yeah.

00:57:36.217 --> 00:57:40.447
Yeah, it makes me sad too, and I'm like, why doesn't, which I'm not running for office.

00:57:40.447 --> 00:57:50.016
I, but if I was to run for office, that would be one of the things is that the state legislature needs to have some kind of buy down on property tax in those situations.

00:57:50.016 --> 00:57:51.996
Yeah, because it's happening all over the state.

00:57:51.996 --> 00:57:54.817
North Carolina's just everywhere you go.

00:57:54.817 --> 00:57:55.387
It's growing

00:57:55.791 --> 00:57:56.121
a whole

00:57:56.376 --> 00:57:58.567
whole life everywhere in North Carolina, you know?

00:57:58.567 --> 00:58:01.327
So it's not just a Surf City, Topsail Island problem.

00:58:01.327 --> 00:58:02.617
It's a North Carolina problem.

00:58:02.617 --> 00:58:02.742
Yeah.

00:58:03.351 --> 00:58:05.601
My parents live on the Intercoastal up in Havelock.

00:58:05.601 --> 00:58:12.641
and the house is paid off, but they're on a very fixed income.

00:58:12.641 --> 00:58:17.532
And those, they do talk about those property taxes and the insurance

00:58:17.577 --> 00:58:17.876
Yeah.

00:58:17.876 --> 00:58:24.896
If you're, if you're retired and living on a fixed income, you're just one invoice away from a disaster.

00:58:24.896 --> 00:58:29.842
I mean, growth is great for us, but it's not for a lot of people.

00:58:29.842 --> 00:58:30.472
Yeah.

00:58:30.472 --> 00:58:30.592
You know,

00:58:30.981 --> 00:58:35.391
I thought you were gonna say like, so their property value's gone up and now they can sell and they are rich.

00:58:35.586 --> 00:58:35.706
were,

00:58:36.141 --> 00:58:39.981
Like they bought it for 30,000 and now it's 300,000 and they're doing great.

00:58:40.036 --> 00:58:41.722
that's, and that's true.

00:58:41.722 --> 00:58:45.172
But you know, I'm in touch with so many locals.

00:58:45.172 --> 00:58:46.492
They don't wanna sell.

00:58:46.552 --> 00:58:47.242
They don't wanna move.

00:58:47.242 --> 00:58:48.202
That's, that, that's

00:58:48.467 --> 00:58:48.757
yeah.

00:58:48.757 --> 00:58:53.181
That's where they raised their children and their, you know, their mom or dad was born.

00:58:53.181 --> 00:59:00.172
You know, I mean, different stories, family stories, and that's the last thing they want to do is sell it and have, and where do they go, you know?

00:59:00.172 --> 00:59:02.766
They go somewhere else.

00:59:02.766 --> 00:59:03.547
That's expensive.

00:59:03.547 --> 00:59:03.606
Yeah.

00:59:03.606 --> 00:59:05.347
So, so, you know what I mean?

00:59:05.347 --> 00:59:05.706
So, yeah.

00:59:05.706 --> 00:59:07.086
Can they make a bunch of money?

00:59:07.086 --> 00:59:07.597
Yeah.

00:59:07.597 --> 00:59:08.766
And do some of them do it?

00:59:08.766 --> 00:59:09.157
Yeah.

00:59:09.157 --> 00:59:12.427
But there's a lot of them that are like, I, I don't want to leave.

00:59:13.389 --> 00:59:18.639
So the one last thing I wanna say here is that website address is different now for your traditional real estate site.

00:59:18.639 --> 00:59:21.019
That is RealEstateTopsail.com.

00:59:21.019 --> 00:59:24.820
RealEstateTopsail.com and that focus just on buying and selling real estate.

00:59:24.820 --> 00:59:31.780
And, and it has every property that's listed in the North Carolina regional MLS no matter if it's listed with us or another company.

00:59:31.780 --> 00:59:32.980
'cause we can represent you.

00:59:32.980 --> 00:59:45.344
And the North Carolina regional MLS is about 9,000 and some agents and all their listings, it spans from as far north as like New Bern, Washington, all the way south and inland.

00:59:45.344 --> 00:59:48.313
Now I won't say that we never sell outside our area.

00:59:48.313 --> 00:59:56.713
'cause if it's a coastal community, you know, like we've sold in Oak Island, we've sold in Wrightsville, it's similar enough that we're comfortable.

00:59:56.713 --> 01:00:01.048
Our license says I can can do brokerage activity anywhere in the state.

01:00:01.048 --> 01:00:10.409
But typically, you know, being local, you focus on your local area 'cause that's where you know the area and you can give the, the great service.

01:00:10.409 --> 01:00:10.559
Yeah.

01:00:10.559 --> 01:00:17.599
you know, and I represented myself on a mountain cabin that I bought, but that was for me, I wouldn't represent a buyer for a mountain cabin because,

01:00:17.643 --> 01:00:18.273
Just don't know the

01:00:18.494 --> 01:00:18.813
I, yeah.

01:00:18.813 --> 01:00:19.668
I just don't know.

01:00:19.668 --> 01:00:23.449
Do you know as much about that as I do coastal property, so

01:00:23.614 --> 01:00:28.713
So you may go outside of Greater Topsail, but you, you, you stay coastal in the areas that you know

01:00:28.878 --> 01:00:29.298
the area.

01:00:29.298 --> 01:00:29.719
Yeah.

01:00:29.719 --> 01:00:29.809
Okay.

01:00:29.809 --> 01:00:30.079
Yep.

01:00:30.079 --> 01:00:34.199
I mean, 'cause we get, we get investors, I mean we get, most people love Topsail.

01:00:34.199 --> 01:00:35.849
It's just, I gotta be a Topsail.

01:00:35.849 --> 01:00:37.128
But we do get investors.

01:00:37.128 --> 01:00:39.498
Like, I don't care where it is, I just wanna be on the coast.

01:00:39.498 --> 01:00:39.978
Yeah.

01:00:39.978 --> 01:00:42.768
You know, so we'll shop, you know, we'll take 'em to Emerald Isle, we'll take 'em.

01:00:42.768 --> 01:00:43.309
Oak Island,

01:00:47.534 --> 01:00:47.954
Okay.

01:00:47.954 --> 01:00:49.664
Let's talk about your future plans.

01:00:49.664 --> 01:00:54.313
Where do you see Lewis Realty Associates in the next three to five

01:00:54.588 --> 01:00:55.699
next three to five years.

01:00:55.699 --> 01:00:57.228
I mean, continuing the growth curve.

01:00:57.228 --> 01:01:02.869
You know, I'm, I'm not satisfied with the size of the company just yet, even though it's great in leaps and bounds.

01:01:02.869 --> 01:01:06.199
I get bored easy and, and growth keeps me from being bored.

01:01:06.378 --> 01:01:06.518
Mm-hmm.

01:01:06.688 --> 01:01:06.969
Mm-hmm.

01:01:06.969 --> 01:01:14.063
so continuing the grave curve, we do heavily marketing for, vacation properties to manage and, and sales listings.

01:01:14.063 --> 01:01:17.184
So, keeping that up, focusing on technology.

01:01:17.184 --> 01:01:19.793
'cause technology's where it's at, it's where it always been.

01:01:19.793 --> 01:01:29.873
With the internet, we can reach out and, and touch people that are interested instead of, blindly advertising to people that have no interest whatsoever.

01:01:29.873 --> 01:01:31.833
And, focus on the local area.

01:01:32.443 --> 01:01:35.083
Are you hiring any new agents Anytime soon.

01:01:35.139 --> 01:01:37.603
yeah, we, we, we always take 'em case by case.

01:01:37.603 --> 01:01:39.224
'cause we just won't take anyone.

01:01:39.224 --> 01:01:41.384
It's gotta meet a certain criteria, but always

01:01:41.608 --> 01:01:46.349
before we wrap things up, I like to leave the listeners with one last final thought.

01:01:46.349 --> 01:01:48.628
What, what would you like to leave our listeners with today?

01:01:48.688 --> 01:01:55.708
Well, you know, you see on TV and you see on social media that, people say buy local, you know, for Valentine's Day, and that's great.

01:01:55.708 --> 01:01:58.889
Absolutely buy from mom and pop, buy from the gift stores, everything.

01:01:58.889 --> 01:02:01.858
But that's even more important in real estate.

01:02:01.858 --> 01:02:04.949
And you know, it's deal with the local agents.

01:02:04.949 --> 01:02:09.478
You know, you don't wanna deal with a big box that they're all over the place.

01:02:09.478 --> 01:02:11.188
They don't know the area intimately.

01:02:11.188 --> 01:02:16.108
You wanna find that agent that knows that area, lives in that area, has done business in that area.

01:02:16.108 --> 01:02:19.588
And that's where we come in is because that's who we are.

01:02:19.588 --> 01:02:23.184
you know, we, we know this, this area, and that's the value of us.

01:02:23.784 --> 01:02:26.753
Before we go, what is, what is your physical address?

01:02:26.753 --> 01:02:29.873
Physical address is 320 North New River Drive in Surf City.

01:02:29.873 --> 01:02:36.063
we're right beside the famous Island Delights, little 1950 style, hamburger and hotdog and ice cream.

01:02:36.063 --> 01:02:36.184
Yeah.

01:02:36.184 --> 01:02:36.934
restaurant.

01:02:36.934 --> 01:02:37.143
Yep.

01:02:37.143 --> 01:02:38.193
Right beside them.

01:02:38.313 --> 01:02:40.773
And you said you did some new work to this building recently?

01:02:40.954 --> 01:02:41.403
Yeah.

01:02:41.403 --> 01:02:52.434
we had started, that building was built in oh three, the first part of it, and then a few years later I bought the lot next door and made that a parking lot.

01:02:52.434 --> 01:03:00.134
And then just before Florence in 2019, we started, with a, addition and it was for the sales department.

01:03:00.134 --> 01:03:04.934
And, so we've added on the buildings around 6,000 square feet now.

01:03:05.083 --> 01:03:05.773
that's huge.

01:03:05.833 --> 01:03:06.793
It's quite huge.

01:03:06.824 --> 01:03:07.949
I'm gonna have to stop by there and

01:03:08.083 --> 01:03:09.313
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

01:03:09.313 --> 01:03:18.853
Big nice conference rooms and many offices and, you know, really kind of a state of art facility from, from what it started as, when I started our office was like.

01:03:18.853 --> 01:03:21.088
600, 700

01:03:21.184 --> 01:03:21.603
Mm-hmm.

01:03:21.688 --> 01:03:21.778
Mm-hmm.

01:03:21.778 --> 01:03:22.469
Very small.

01:03:22.469 --> 01:03:26.139
So, so it's, it's, it's quite, quite different.

01:03:26.139 --> 01:03:27.849
People ask me that, that's known me for years.

01:03:27.849 --> 01:03:29.048
I'll say, you still in real estate?

01:03:29.048 --> 01:03:31.088
And I always say, yeah, the bank won't let me leave.

01:03:31.088 --> 01:03:32.289
And that's why.

01:03:33.128 --> 01:03:33.594
Oh, that's funny.

01:03:35.289 --> 01:03:35.679
Okay.

01:03:35.679 --> 01:03:44.960
And just to, repeat those, website addresses again, one is RealEstateTopsail.com and the other is VacationsOnTopsail.com.

01:03:44.960 --> 01:03:48.175
Phone number is, it's been the same phone number for 60 some years.

01:03:48.175 --> 01:03:51.556
It's (910) 328-5211.

01:03:51.952 --> 01:03:54.063
And what email address do you like to give out?

01:03:54.128 --> 01:03:55.097
Yeah, you can do info@topsailarea.com

01:03:57.527 --> 01:04:01.358
Are you also on, the social Facebook, Instagram X or LinkedIn or any of the other

01:04:01.568 --> 01:04:02.527
Yeah, absolutely.

01:04:02.527 --> 01:04:06.577
I know our Facebook address by heart is the most coveted Facebook address out there.

01:04:06.577 --> 01:04:08.768
It's facebook.com/topsailsland.

01:04:08.978 --> 01:04:11.347
Oh my gosh, you do not have that.

01:04:11.347 --> 01:04:12.277
That's awesome.

01:04:12.277 --> 01:04:13.697
You grabbed it up.

01:04:13.697 --> 01:04:13.882
Grabbed it up.

01:04:13.882 --> 01:04:14.478
Oh, that's

01:04:14.478 --> 01:04:14.867
it up.

01:04:14.867 --> 01:04:18.697
And the Instagram, you know, the, the X and the LinkedIn, I can send you those.

01:04:18.697 --> 01:04:19.927
I don't know those by heart,

01:04:20.092 --> 01:04:20.753
I'll find them.

01:04:20.753 --> 01:04:29.652
Well, thank you so much, Chris, for coming in and, and, and explaining all those things to me and telling me about your, your, your personal history as well growing up here.

01:04:29.652 --> 01:04:32.643
And I find it so fascinating to find someone who.

01:04:32.643 --> 01:04:35.362
I was born and raised here and just has those deep roots.

01:04:35.362 --> 01:04:35.813
I love it.

01:04:35.813 --> 01:04:40.103
So thank you and thanks for telling me all about Lewis Realty Associates.

01:04:40.103 --> 01:04:40.157
Yes, ma'am.

01:04:40.208 --> 01:04:40.418
ma'am.

01:04:40.418 --> 01:04:40.898
Thank you.

01:04:42.233 --> 01:04:50.753
Hey, if you enjoyed today's episode of Topsail Insider, please show your support by clicking the follow or subscribe button on your favorite podcast listening platform.

01:04:50.753 --> 01:04:55.494
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01:04:55.494 --> 01:05:02.574
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01:05:02.574 --> 01:05:07.643
While you're there, you can click the Send me a voicemail button and let me know exactly what you're thinking.

01:05:07.643 --> 01:05:11.393
Your message just might be on an episode of Topsail Insider.

01:05:11.393 --> 01:05:20.704
You can email me at christa@topsailinsider.com or call or text me at (910) 800-0111.

01:05:20.704 --> 01:05:26.253
Thank you for listening and supporting Topsail Insider and our local businesses and nonprofits.

01:05:26.253 --> 01:05:31.474
These are our neighbors and our friends, and together we build a mighty and a beautiful community.

01:05:31.474 --> 01:05:33.273
I'm super proud to be a part of.

01:05:33.273 --> 01:05:35.273
I'll see you around Topsail.