Subscribe via:
Show Summary
In this conversation, Dylan Silver interviews Jamie and Felecia Brown, luxury home builders in Charlotte, discussing the booming real estate market, the importance of land due diligence, and the custom home building process. They emphasize the significance of understanding land risks and the timelines involved in building luxury homes, while also touching on the role of investors in the market.
Resources and Links from this show:
-
Listen to the Audio Version of this Episode
Investor Fuel Show Transcript:
Jamie And Felecia Brown (00:00)
even if it’s like five years from now, like we don’t want our customers to come back five years from now and say, hey, you know, it’s nothing like moving in your new home and a good rain comes and you look in your backyard or your front yard and it’s flooding. Right. Right. So that’s what we want to prevent the future. You know, any future mishaps as well.Dylan Silver (00:17)
Yeah.So the specialty really there is with that land risk, right? And I think that’s something that often gets overlooked, especially when you’re talking about new construction, right? You could have the foundation settle and now you’ve got a crack running upside the home and that’s a risk whenever you’re doing a new construction, right?
Jamie And Felecia Brown (00:38)
Yes, especially when you’re spending millions of dollars to build, you know, a luxury home. We have heard of a person being close to finishing and because they didn’t the company didn’t do the due diligence for the land, they actually had to start over and we don’t want that. I mean, even if someone has the financial ability, that doesn’t mean they want their money wasted. Right. Of course.Dylan Silver (02:38)
Hey folks, welcome back to the show. Today’s guests, Jamie and Felecia Brown with JFB and Company, are luxury home builders serving the Charlotte market with a specialized focus on land stage risk. Services include luxury land auditing, evaluating topography, buyer alignment, and school district impact before capital is deployed. Their mission is to prevent time risk before it erodes investor returns. Welcome to the show, Jamie and Felecia.Jamie And Felecia Brown (03:05)
Thank you for having us. Thank you.Dylan Silver (03:08)
Absolutely, absolutely. I didn’t mention this to you before hopping on here, but it does really seem like the Carolinas and of course, Charlotte, the market that you’re in is one of the hottest real estate markets in the country.Jamie And Felecia Brown (03:22)
Oh yeah, oh yes it is, yes it is. I mean I’ve pretty much been living in Charlotte most of my life I’ve been here pretty much I am a resident, long-term resident. I’ve seen a lot of growth, a lot of growth over the last few years. It’s been phenomenal as far as I’m crazy how fast it’s been.Dylan Silver (03:40)
You know,one of the interesting things that I’ve seen too is I don’t want to say that it’s like a sleeper market because everyone who I talk with will tell me no, Charlotte’s and the Carolinas have been booming for 20 years. But I think recently and I don’t know how long this trend has been going on. There seems to be interest from across the country in the Carolinas. Are you seeing that as well?
Jamie And Felecia Brown (04:03)
Oh yes, you’re definitely seeing, I see a lot of people moving in here and joining the things that we have going on here. So yeah, I’ve definitely seen a lot of people, new faces, a lot of growth. And you know, it’s funny because most people that you meet now,When you tell them that you were born and raised here, or you’ve been here most of your life, they say, what? It’s kind of shocking. It’s like most people now are somebody that came in from other countries, made from other countries, other cities. So it’s crazy. It’s also exciting.
Dylan Silver (04:38)
Yeah, I’m seeinga lot of that. Not just people moving there, of course, military presence, but also investors from across the country who may be investing out of state. So they may be residing in one area and then investing in the Carolinas. Now, when we talk specifically about the luxury custom home builder space, I’m a little bit of a fish out of water in this space.
Jamie And Felecia Brown (05:42)
Yeah.Dylan Silver (05:52)
I mean, so walk me through, you know, the market and also to, know, when folks are considering a custom home, is this something where they’re already living in that Charlotte market and they may be upgrading or might they be relocating from another area entirely?Jamie And Felecia Brown (06:07)
It really depends. Some people that are looking to upgrade because of their lifestyle, some people just decided to move from where they currently were residing at. So it really varies, really, as far as who’s looking for our services, be honest with me.Dylan Silver (06:28)
Now, if we can, I’d like to get a little bit granular here, Jamie, and walk through, you know, from the cradle to the grave. What does a deal look like? If I’m interested in a custom home and maybe I don’t even have the land, right? Would you be able to assist me with, you know, every step of that process? Or do I really have to come with my ducks in a row up to that point, meaning I have the land and I have an idea of exactly what I want everything to look like?Jamie And Felecia Brown (06:56)
Well, as far as for us, mean, we pretty much assist the client or customer in which we will contact someone who’s actually does the custom home building. We don’t do that part of it, but we do a lot of the legwork and assisting them in regarding that process. I mean, for us, I mean, we was pretty much started with the land and the due diligence part.you know, that’s where we pretty much start out. That’s for us, that’s the basis of everything, making sure that whatever the customer.
dream home or whatever their vision is, it can’t be supported by that land. So we do know there are research on the land to make sure that everything goes according to plan and it goes smooth without any hiccups. That’s one thing about us and what we do.
I mean even if it’s fine.
Dylan Silver (07:50)
Okay, got it. So just so thatJamie And Felecia Brown (07:53)
even if it’s like five years from now, like we don’t want our customers to come back five years from now and say, hey, you know, it’s nothing like moving in your new home and a good rain comes and you look in your backyard or your front yard and it’s flooding. Right. Right. So that’s what we want to prevent the future. You know, any future mishaps as well.Dylan Silver (08:10)
Yeah.So the specialty really there is with that land risk, right? And I think that’s something that often gets overlooked, especially when you’re talking about new construction, right? You could have the foundation settle and now you’ve got a crack running upside the home and that’s a risk whenever you’re doing a new construction, right?
Jamie And Felecia Brown (08:31)
Yes, especially when you’re spending millions of dollars to build, you know, a luxury home. We have heard of a person being close to finishing and because they didn’t the company didn’t do the due diligence for the land, they actually had to start over and we don’t want that. I mean, even if someone has the financial ability, that doesn’t mean they want their money wasted. Right. Of course.Dylan Silver (08:58)
Now, if we can, know, when folks are reaching out to you both, are they in the process of ⁓ purchasing the land or have they already purchased it and are saying, hey, is this something that we can build on? I think a lot of times, and I’m speaking with lot of investors who will do this, they’ll have already bought the land and it may actually be in a situation where, you know, this isn’t really an ideal property for you to build on, even though you already bought it.Jamie And Felecia Brown (10:00)
So for us, I mean, we try to eliminate that. I mean, as a customer, we prefer.them to actually look for the land and then we can just do the research first on the land before they even purchase. like you said, ⁓ you do run that risk for the project that what you’re trying to put on that land, it doesn’t work out. So we prefer that before you purchase the land, let’s do the research on the land first. Let’s find out the history of the land. Make sure that the soil is not toxic, it’s not eroding.
is whatever you try to put on it is going to work. Now we’re definitely gonna let you know if it’s not gonna work. So we definitely do not want you to waste your money in this process. I mean, that’s why I say we big on trying to get this due diligence part done first. Yeah, and we’ve had customers who have not bought the land and they actually want us to look in the area. So they’ll say we want land in the southwest part of Charlotte. So we’ll go look for land in that area.
⁓
Rarely do we have clients that say, I’ve already bought the land and I need someone to do the due diligence. because that’s almost, for us, it’s almost like kind of like working backwards. you’re praying that this land is actually going to work now because if you bought the land and there’s an issue with the land, now you’re sitting with a piece of property that you can’t finish your project now. It’s like, I’m going to do with this land now ⁓
Dylan Silver (11:19)
Yeah.Jamie And Felecia Brown (11:34)
because this land is, I can’t use it for this project.Don’t be afraid to say no if the land is not going to work. We’ll find the land, but don’t just take it because on the outside is where you want it. Or it looks great.
Dylan Silver (11:52)
Now I’m looking at the buyer pool out there and I’m imagining that these are a lot of people who this is going to be their forever home potentially, right? If you’re building a high end custom home, then this is something where you’re going to be planning on living there a very long period of time. Are these mostly that type of buyer, someone who this is their dream home basically that they’re planning on building?Jamie And Felecia Brown (12:19)
Yes, I would say yes. mean, definitely not a starter, start a home, which we have no problem with that as well, working for clients who want to start a home. But mostly, yeah, those who are looking to settle, build something, legacy, leaving it to their children if they have children. So I would say yes.Dylan Silver (12:42)
Now, if we can pivot a bit here, I would like to ask you about how investors play a role in this. So, you know, when folks are looking for their forever home, they’re also maybe going to be considering, hey, do I want to go custom and do I want to go high on luxury or do I want to go with, you know, a property that may be rehabbed at a lower price point, but that is a pre-existing structure? Or do I want to rehab a property myself? And then also, too, I know as well, you’ve got lots ofyou know, new subdivisions being built throughout the country. And I believe in the Carolinas as well. So when folks are looking at their options, you know, custom ground up construction being one of them, are they also looking at some of these other, you know, segments of real estate, including potentially buying a pre-owned home and then rehabbing it? Or do they tend to shy away from that? Because that seems like maybe something that maybe a potential headache or something that they wouldn’t feel comfortable.
Jamie And Felecia Brown (13:40)
think the key word, like you said, is investor. If they’re looking to invest, they probably would build more of a rehab. ⁓ I don’t foresee any investor just investing in a custom-built home just to put somebody else in it or to rent it out unless they want to use it as a venue ⁓ or high-end venue for weddings or something like that. But typically, it’s for those who actually wantmoving the property. So when it comes to investing investors, I would say we really don’t work with a lot of investors on that end of the spectrum. ⁓ And so yeah, so yeah, I mean, it’s not like we’re not open to it, depending on what they their goal is. Does that make sense to us?
Dylan Silver (14:14)
Right.Ram.
Now from no
absolutely absolutely and thank you for for you know mentioning that if we’re looking at timelines here from the moment someone is you know potentially looking at land right they don’t have anything under contract to hey they’re moving into the home what is it I know it’s going to range based on exactly where they’re looking for and you know the degree maybe to ⁓
⁓ of the home itself, do they want like an HGTV level home, right? Versus something that may be, ⁓ you know, less high finishes per se. what is the typical timeline that folks can be expecting?
Jamie And Felecia Brown (15:48)
⁓we actually have that broken out in our tier, in our pricing tier. So just the land part can be at least six to eight weeks, if not three months, because you definitely don’t want to rush it. And then you talk about the home piece. So I mean, a custom built home could be six months. It could be a year. It just depends on, like you said, whether they want an HDTV, HDT home or if they just want the,
It’s not really too, they don’t have too many specialties or anything like that. So I would say at least six months we know, and excuse me for saying this, like the cookie cutter homes, they’re built in like three months. Three to four months and that’s it. Three four months. You’re talking about custom build where they want the floor a certain way. They want this type of material. Right. Right. They may want a hidden door. They’re really specifying what’s
Dylan Silver (16:35)
Yeah.Jamie And Felecia Brown (16:47)
they want. Definitely specialize. Yeah. ⁓Dylan Silver (16:51)
You know what? It’s interesting because you mentioned cookie cutter, right? And these are really two distinct segments, know, luxury custom high end home versus, you know, if a national corporate builder is putting up lots of home somewhere. But because of that timeline, I can imagine folks may be thinking, well, you know, are we going to be able to wait? Right. Versus, you know, should we just move in someplace, you know, maybe even for now? Do folks evermake it part of their plan to say, we’re building this custom home over here, but we would like to move over there. Maybe we buy a cookie cutter home and have this for two, three years while we’re looking at building the custom home. Does that ever happen or if that was the case, are they just gonna rent?
Jamie And Felecia Brown (17:38)
It really depends.on the client customer, ⁓ what their goals are, what they’re looking to do in regards to that. mean, yeah, I mean, could they rent to be closer because they want to move in this area? Yes. ⁓ But most of time, they’re more likely going to go ahead and build that home and live where they living at first, you know, as the process goes and then they’ll move. I mean, even, you know what I’m saying? They prefer
to go ahead and have the house built and then move. so just go ahead moving into the area and then having an additional cost of renting or even buying another home.
Dylan Silver (18:13)
Right.Jamie And Felecia Brown (18:22)
Yeah. you know, they we have, I’m sorry. And we have like some people that they may move into a starter home, like especially if they want to be like we mentioned investors, but they have their custom home in mind. So they don’t mind staying in an area because their thought process or their vision is like, OK, we’re building the custom home. Right. So they’re staying there. And then they would turn that into like a rentalDylan Silver (18:24)
So these are… Go ahead.Jamie And Felecia Brown (18:52)
So that’s kind of where investing, you know, an investor type situation would be involved. But most of the time, yeah, they’ll they’re willing to stay in like a rental home or I mean, even in a hotel if they can afford it because they know the end result is going to be, you know, what they envision their home, you know, so but answer your question. It really depends on actually the client. It’s really a case by case basis on each person.Dylan Silver (19:21)
Now, if we if we’re talking about the resale value of these of these homes, if we just take right now, it’s March 2026. If we’re talking, you know, high end luxury custom built home, ⁓ what’s the typical resale value for one of these homes if it’s listed on the market right now? I know there’s going to be a range, but what is that that range?Jamie And Felecia Brown (19:42)
mean, on the high end, you’re starting off at half a million. with the, you said the value, right? Like kind of like the escrow that would be built.Dylan Silver (19:53)
Right.Jamie And Felecia Brown (19:55)
I mean, it depends on the area. Right. Especially if they’re in an area, even, you know, that is starting to grow and a lot of things starting to move out that way definitely is going to be significantly increased in value based upon that. Yeah. Yeah. So it’s like I it’s coming. It’s kind of hard to say at the moment, depending on this, depending on where the home is. Right.Dylan Silver (20:20)
area, know, the finishings of the home.OK, yeah, I hear it. hundred thousand might be that kind of entry point for when it starts to be considered, you know, higher end. That makes sense. We are coming up on time here, though. Any new projects that you’re working on and then as well, what’s the best way for folks to reach out to you?
Jamie And Felecia Brown (20:29)
I yeah, we’re up for two million.Currently we don’t have any new projects at the moment, but you know we’re looking to For customers and clients that reach out to us and then we can compensate with them We do have like said we have a website and we do have a checklist on that website and all the things that we do offer and Pretty much getting to that checklist it does get us to get to know who they know who our potential customers are you know and along with what they’re looking to accomplish when they
when we are working together. So that’s one thing about us. We definitely in this process is just, it’s a journey. And one thing about it is that, I mean, when we come together, we pretty much are like a family. Just like, cause they pretty much at one point have given us a lot of things about them, and they’re entrusting a lot in us.
Because of their doing that, know, we know we’re all willing to work as hard as we can to help them get to their goal. So they want to reach us. can go to jfbandcompany.com You spell out and so JFB, jfbandcompany.com info at jfbandcompany.com. We’re on LinkedIn, jfbandcompany the Ampersons. So and we’re also on Instagram.
So there are plenty of ways ⁓ to reach us.
But yeah, so like you said, we don’t have any new projects. We’re currently looking at some land actually for us personally. ⁓ But we’re definitely welcoming anyone. And like my husband said, we actually do the work. We get down and dirty with it.
Dylan Silver (22:30)
Well, thank you bothfor coming on the show here today. Thank you for joining us. Thanks for taking the time.
Jamie And Felecia Brown (22:36)
Thank you for having us.
