09/12/2026
Hey everyone,
I'm writing this from the Huntsville, Alabama area, coffee in one hand, Rollie and his sidekick barking at every dog that dares to walk around the lake. The sidekick is Wags, my friend's granddog, a huge Doberman who carries a stuffed seahorse everywhere he goes. So much for looking fierce. Rollie is having the time of his life. We've been on the road for a good while now, walking RV parks, talking to owners, learning a new asset class the slow way, in person. But I've got to tell you what happened yesterday morning, because I'm still grinning about it.
Back in the early 2000s, I started the Madison County REIA up here. I sold it to a fella named Zack Childress a good fourteen years ago, and I'll be honest, I figured enough time had passed that he might not place my face. So I showed up at their Friday coffee meeting unannounced, half expecting to sit in the back like a stranger.
Boy, was I wrong. Zack looked up, jumped out of his chair, and wrapped me in the biggest bear hug you ever saw. Then he turned to the whole room and told them I was the reason he was standing there, and the reason they were all sitting there. I don't know that I've ever had a moment quite like that. We had a long visit, and I've got a feeling something good is going to come of it. Stay tuned.
Now, back home, Mark has been "busy" with a major rehab. And by busy I mean he's the director of the construction crew. Not one callus on the man. Now, Mark can swing a hammer with the best of them, but that's not why we're here. Whether it's a house stripped to the studs or an RV park at the end of a gravel road, we're not looking for a job. Our job is to find the opportunity. The crew does the swinging.
And this one is an opportunity worth talking about. A house with a foundation water leak. Insurance paid the owners to fix it, and they got as far as stripping it to the studs: sheetrock cut four feet up all the way around, cabinets gone, toilets, tubs, showers, HVAC, hot water heater, all of it hauled off. Then the money ran short, the skills ran shorter, and a divorce landed on top of the whole mess. That's the moment a lot of houses get stuck. Mark stepped in, negotiated creative financing that made the numbers work, and now he's putting it back together.
Monday's topic: rehabbing and due diligence. What things actually cost right now, from a job that's happening this week, not from a video somebody made three years ago. And the homework that keeps you out of trouble, both when you're buying and when you're trying to nail down what a rehab is really going to run before you write the check. That house is a perfect example of why both halves matter.
Rollie and I will be pointed south and home in time for the meeting. Come with your questions. Come with your war stories. Come say hello!
Monday, September 14 ·6PM · Talon Tactical Outfitters, 301 Commerce Blvd, Midway, FL. Come to the middle of the building and look for us!
It's been too long. Let's fix that.
Camille and Mark
P.S. Not a member - Come to your first meeting at no cost. Bring friends, co-workers - we would LOVE to meet you.
