A Bit About Me
As a child, I recall my mother having an intense interest in real estate. She would take me with her when she went to real estate investing seminars buying all of the books and cassette tapes available. She even went as far as getting her real estate broker's license. She studied very hard to accomplish that yet never worked in an agency.
My mother was always like Wonder Woman to me. She was an English and Spanish teacher for the City Schools. She later went back to University to become certified as a Speech therapist. She became the first African American woman to integrate the city's staff of therapists. You would have to agree … she is an amazing woman. Still, she was limited by her own beliefs and the culture of the time.
I redoubled my efforts to achieve success where my mother fell short. I decided I should just go to college to get my degree then get a "good job." After all, if Wonder Woman couldn't do it, how would I?
I enrolled in the University of North Carolina Asheville. While being actively involved as a student, I was still very unsure of myself. I believe that occurred because I had been taken care of by both of my parents. I was well provided for and every need was met. I had no clarity of a career I would love while still providing me the safety and security I had known my entire life.
The entire time I was at UNCA, I was dating a guy who was enrolled in a nearby college that hosted a lot of international students. He was from Jamaica, and he knew exactly what he wanted to do. He wanted to be a doctor. Not just any doctor ... a neurosurgeon. He transferred to another college in Kentucky, and we continued dating as much as possible under the circumstances. Of course, that meant not much. Finally, he popped the question. He wanted us to get married because he felt, "We'd feel each other and be more connected if we were married while we were so far apart."
My reply was, "Of course, we would get married at some point but not right away." I couldn't understand why he got angry. He insisted that it was time for us to be married since we had been dating for so long and were going to anyway. A big red flag went up when he said, “We need not share it with our parents because they wouldn't continue to support us.” We would have another ceremony after we completed school. Red flags were all over the place! But when one is young and naive, they never believe that humans can do the things they do.
I married "Joe" when I was nineteen years old. We talked to each other constantly. In a few months, the green card conversation started. Of course, I would support him with that. He was my husband. We set the appointment with The Immigration and Naturalization Department in Charlotte, North Carolina. The interviewer began asking a series of questions, and I didn't understand the reason for them. I was asked questions about his background and our relationship. I was asked about his family and if they knew me. I was asked about where he lived and what the building looked like. And, once again, my very young self said, "Why are you asking all of these strange questions?" I will always remember how the officer looked me directly in my eyes and said, "Because sometimes men or women try to find someone to marry them so they can get a green card and stay in this country.” I was stunned! Joe said, “Well, that's not what's going on here. We've been together a long time.” In the end, he got the card and vanished! Yep, I got bitten hard on that one.
It was the worst experience I had ever had in my entire life. I was completely and utterly devastated. I doubted my intuition. I imagined a safety net provided by this man. I had kept everything from my family, so I felt bound to suffer in silence. There was no way I could tell them.
That was the moment I made a clear choice! My decision was to focus solely on my education. I decided to pursue a bachelor of science in business, with a concentration in marketing. I put all of my energy into studying and participating in extracurricular activities. I was awarded the Sojourner Truth Award presented to an African American commuter student each year. I was appointed to Who's Who among students in American Universities and colleges. I was invited to be on the Chancellor's Colloquium priming young students for leadership. I graduated with Academic Excellence.
After graduating, I was invited to apply for the position of Admissions Counselor where I recruited students across North and South Carolina to apply to UNCA. It was quite the run. Thank you, "Joe!" I see now, how this experience was truly a gift for me.
Next, I joined Wachovia Bank as a Personal Banker. During that time, every customer was assigned their own banker. Holding that position, my responsibility was to maintain my current portfolio of customers and to expand the deposit and loan balances held in that portfolio. After many years, I transitioned into being the bank contact for mortgages. So, if a customer spoke with any other banker about a mortgage, the branch employee would refer that loan to me.
I was, eventually, absorbed into Wachovia Mortgage Company as one of their mortgage bankers, primarily originating conventional loans and construction loans on single family residences and multifamily properties up to four units. I also did FHA loans; however, conventional mortgages were my focus. While at Wachovia, I held the titles of Assistant Manager, Banking Officer, and Assistant Vice President over the course of my career there from 1987-2001. During that time, I worked on hundreds of personal loan files. Now, as I expand into commercial real estate investing, my knowledge expands, accordingly, to include the analytics behind it.
Being a lender created some great adventures for me as I began working for SBA Disaster Assistance in Pensacola, Florida. The SBA would go into a Declared Major Disaster Area after a catastrophe. If residents had a shortfall in their insurance coverage, an SBA loan could make up the difference for them with extremely low interest rates, if they qualified. SBA is under the arm of Homeland Security and comes in at the same time as FEMA to assist families when severe storms strike.
I stepped out of lending when I began working in the field of sales and sales training. If you remember the days of television infomercials, you may remember the direct response marketing company, Guthy-Renker. One of the Guthy members owned Protocol Direct Marketing in Asheville NC. It was through that company that I fine tuned my sales and closing ability. Remarkably, it was the first time I learned that closing didn't happen by accident. Apparently, I learned well because I stepped into the position of Sales Trainer. I, later, used those same skills when I successfully ran my own Healthy Chocolate business and later a Crypto currency business.
As life unfolds, expected changes start to occur. Both of my parents were maturing and began requiring additional care. I decided to become licensed as a therapeutic foster parent. Doing so allowed me to become a mom, as I had never had children of my own. It also allowed me to care for my maturing parents along with my foster child. Truly, it was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life! It was a time that greatly enhanced my organizational skills and ability to see the big picture.
In 2019, I obtained certification from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition as a health coach. Improving a person's overall state of being is of primary importance to me. It influences all the elements of life creating balance, peace and contentment.
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In addition, here I am today, as a caregiver and also working in retail. Though I do enjoy it, I eagerly look forward to aligning with other investors with the same vision. That vision is to create cash flow using multifamily properties. As I see it … the sky’s the limit!
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