Elwood Homes
In 2015 my partner and I started Elwood Homes as we made our first purchase of a rental property in Vancouver, Washington. The property was distressed—hardly touched in decades and in a sad state of affairs—but we saw the spark of potential and knew we could do right by the house (and its eventual residents). The renovation was supposed to take 6 months… it took 13. We did a lot of the work ourselves, learned heaps along the way, but emerged triumphant.
Our investment strategy is different than most: while our own businesses are booming we buy single-family homes and pay them off as quickly as possible, then rent them out, holding the properties to serve as our retirement plan (or sooner if businesses go bust). We focus on the “overflow” market of Vancouver, Washington (a suburb across the Columbia River from low-vacancy, high-rent Portland, Oregon), making thoughtful choices about finishes and features, and seek tenants who will take as much pride in living there as they would in a home they’d purchased. No slumlords here! We’re at four properties so far, with more on the way.
