Chris Faison is the founder of The Attractive Lifestyle, a Short Term Rental Real Estate company that is revolutionizing the central Texas market. Chris was able to quickly scale his company to six figures within the first six months, during a pandemic and shows no signs of slowing down.
A major component to his success has been the result of being the creator of a real estate strategy that allows him to run a business out of properties that he rents and sublets, providing lower barriers to entry and the quickest return on investment possible.
He is now sharing his expertise and looking to personally train others on how to apply his strategy and build a real estate empire of their own.
Below, Chris answered some questions.
How did you first discover your passion for real estate?
Prior to leaping into this business venture, I was actually never passionate about real estate specifically, but entrepreneurship as a whole. My entrepreneurial tendencies sprouted at the age of 18, when I was flipping sneakers online as a college student to pay bills. That was the year where my mindset completely evolved and have since then known that my life long goal was to achieve financial freedom that will later result in a legacy that could impact future generations.
As far I’m concerned entrepreneurship is the only true path to doing so. I knew that I was going to dedicate myself to whichever vehicle was required to reach the life that I want to live, just based on the opportunities that would later come about. Sometimes you just have to put your head down and push trusting that no matter how far you go, you know it will be in the right direction. I truly believe that we’re raised being taught wrong when society tells us to simply follow our passion.
Sometimes your passion can take a lifetime to pay off, and it’s hard to tell a starving artist to follow their passion when bills are due this month! I would advise anyone to invest your time and energy into a venture that will allow you to establish yourself, as that will later provide you with an abundance of resources that can be used to then fund your actual passion. Keep an open mind to possible career changes as opportunities arise because you simply don’t know what you don’t know.
With the COVID pandemic hitting shortly after you started the business, how did you manage to adapt and make it profitable?
Overall, confidence and self-belief are huge. Before I signed on my first property, I spent my free time physically touring over 200 properties and being rejected by every owner along the way. It would have been really easy to give up on my dreams and focus on continuing the growth in my corporate banking career. That would have been accepted as the “norm”, but I knew that the lifestyle I was after was anything but average. It was clear to me that those who were rejecting my business strategy were only reluctant because they were simply stuck in their old ways.
The optimist in me saw nothing but opportunity, knowing that once I would gain my first acceptance, it would lead me to pioneer a modern approach to the industry, therefore, leaving me with essentially no competition. I believe that the definition of a true entrepreneur is someone who is willing to lose everything in the pursuit of their dreams because they are confident in their ability to gain it all back. Considering all of the risk-taking and stress that comes along with the responsibilities of being a business owner, that is something that is definitely easier said than done.
When the pandemic struck, I witnessed property owners sell their homes at rock bottom prices and even leave the industry as a whole. Rather than giving up, I saw this as an opportunity to continue to go all-in and further separate myself from the competition. I invested every penny in my name month after month and acquired multiple properties that ended up doubling the size of my portfolio. Times were rough, and I had to work twice as hard just to break even, although I’ve always believed that the universe rewards those worth rewarding.
As an entrepreneur, what are the most important values that you believe enable your success in business?
Being innovative is what will separate you from the competition and will also enable you to create the most impact. The real estate industry is arguably the oldest form of investing, so there are competitors in the industry who have been operating the in’s and out’s to their business for longer than I’ve been alive. If I would’ve stuck to creating a traditional real estate company, it would’ve led to nothing but playing catch up with those guys for the duration of my career.
Being innovative while taking a high level risks can often lead to working under immense pressure so being able to remain focused under those high levels of stress is also completely crucial. It may sound a little crazy, but you have to enjoy the pressure, literally welcome it. For me, the moments where I was under the most pressure have often led to the most amount of growth. The feeling of facing fear with a relentless passion and a hint of anxiety can truly bring out the best version of yourself.
I believe it forces you to operate at your sharpest level and to become more creative than you could have ever imagined. When you’re in that zone, the only thought running through your mind is “what more can I do to make this work?” and that is the moment where you truly find out what you’re capable of.
What advice would you give someone to help them grow their business during a difficult economic period?
Only take advice from those who are living the life that you want. The world is a very loud place and this generation has social media to influence that more than ever. If you’re embarking on a venture that is new to you and everyone around you, sometimes your parents or inner circle won’t be able to understand the things that will lead you in the right direction.
To resolve that, I recommend finding the right mentors that way, you have footsteps to follow, leading to a far more efficient path. Mentors changed my life early on as they allowed me to gain a different perspective, which I would have been completely blind to if I would have solely listened to those in the environment that I grew up in. Also, learn from the simpler lessons that the pandemic has taught us all.
We’ve now learned that you should keep your overhead as low as possible in case of an emergency. For instance, why get yourself tied into a long term lease for office space when you and your employees can be just as productive from home? Lowering your overhead will not only minimize risk but also free up resources that will allow you to increase your capacity as a whole. Keeping costs low usually means that you’ll have to be willing to do the dirty work. Many business owners put themselves above cleaning toilets and mopping floors, but you have to remember that no one will care about your business as much as you!
You have achieved so much within just your first year of business, what’s next?
Expanding out to major cities across the country has been on my to-do list for a while now, the beauty of my business structure and Airbnb as a whole is that it can be applied to just about any area of the world so I’d like to really take advantage of that freedom.
Although as far as the present moment, I want to give back by helping others who are seeking to begin a real estate journey of their own and showing them how to do so in a passive and cost-efficient manner that way it can apply to the majority of individuals no matter their expertise or background. In February of last year, I published an e-book titled “Short Term Rental Success” that provides a step-by-step overview on how I started my journey and personal mentorship will be a more in-depth version of that providing the student with private one-on-one training. I’m looking to give back and help others while continuing to relentlessly seek growth in all aspects of life.
If you are interested in being personally mentored or simply connecting with Chris Faison, I recommend you do so by reaching out to him directly via social media or visiting The Attractive Lifestyle’s website linked below:
- Instagram: @chrisfaisoninc
- Website: www.theattractivelifestyle.com
