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Show Summary
In this episode, real estate expert Callie Loewen shares her journey from flipping houses to managing high-net-worth client portfolios, emphasizing regional market focus, strategic diversification, and building a legacy brand in real estate.
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Callie Loewen (00:00)
That’s a very good question, Scott, and I would say it may not be exactly one system, it’s a process, and it’s having those internal KPIs. And however you track them, I’m personally a very low-tech individual. I have spreadsheets and I have paper lists, but what I’ve done, and this is what my partners have done as well, is we’ve established at what point in each process we’re going to have the communication and what that’s going to look like.
Scott Bursey (01:59)
Welcome back to the real estate pros podcast. I’m your host Scott Bursey. And today we have a distinguished guest who bridges high level investment strategy with localized market expertise. We’re sitting down with Callie Loewen, a leader behind both Southern legacy companies and oyster real estate advisors. Callie, welcome to the show.
Callie Loewen (02:20)
Scott, thank you so much for having me. Love jumping on to visit and talk all things real estate.
Scott Bursey (02:25)
It is just wonderful having you here. And before we dive into the how, I wanna know about the who. For those of meeting you or may not be familiar with your world, can you tell us about your path? How did you start your career and where are you now?
Callie Loewen (02:40)
Absolutely. So I grew up in Northwest Arkansas, went to school for speech language pathology, studied communication sciences, and got my degree in Central Arkansas. My husband and I started dating at the age of 18 while at that school, and on our first date we said, wow, it would be really cool to flip a house. And so if you fast forward 10 years, we had moved to Nashville on a whim.
learned about flipping through a radio ad, went to one of those paid weekend courses, bought the course, and within two years had flipped our first house. And then reflecting back on our first date, it was cool. And so we caught the bug. So we went from flipping the one house, had a joint venture partner, and it got to where we were flipping 10 to 15 homes, and from there moving into new construction.
was really the next step. So we continued keeping that 10 to 15 semi-custom homes or high-end rehabs going at a time. Natural progression, we brought in a general contracting company. So that’s Southern Legacy, which combines the general contracting as well as our investments. And then as things grew, we realized, well, I should get my real estate license. We’re using those services. So I did.
which led us to develop with another business partner, Oyster Real Estate Advisors, our boutique brokerage right here in Nashville. And then we’ve started investing in multifamily and commercial properties as well.
Scott Bursey (04:11)
What a way to begin a relationship. Did you say it was at the first date?
Callie Loewen (04:16)
It was our first date. We had been friends for several years, started dating, and you know, I think most kids are talking about what tests they’re going to take or what they’re going to do on the weekends, and Josh and I just went right in. Let’s flip a home.
Scott Bursey (04:18)
⁓ wow!
That is awesome, Callie. And Callie, got to ask you, Southern Legacy Company suggests deep regional focus. What is the single most critical factor, I guess, for investors to assess when evaluating long-term value and stability in a specific regional market, ⁓ kind of like where you’re at there in Nashville, particularly in the South?
Callie Loewen (04:57)
Yeah.
Yeah, great question. So while we are spread throughout the southeast, a lot of our flipping and development is focused right in Nashville. And I think the key thing is knowing your market and knowing your numbers. And it’s not just about for us knowing Nashville because each zip code has its own nuances. And not only that, each neighborhood and sometimes even down to each street.
You’re going to look at different comps. You’re going to look at finishes differently. You’re going to look at different value just based on that exact pinpointed location. And so I think that that’s something that’s easy to miss and easy to overlook, especially early on when you’re just wanting that deal, wanting that deal. There are such small nuances and small details that shouldn’t be overlooked and those can make or break your deals.
Scott Bursey (06:32)
absolutely. Couldn’t agree more. That’s key insight right there. Sorting demographic shifts and economic diversification over short-term yield chasing is fundamental to true legacy investing. And Callie.
This has been on my mind for a bit now, ever since we booked you actually as a leader of oyster real estate advisors, you work with high net worth clients. What is one non-negotiable strategy every real estate pro must adapt when managing high value client portfolios?
Callie Loewen (07:06)
you’ve got to understand what’s important to your client. Putting aside my own investment opinions and preferences, I need to know what does that client want? How do they structure deals? Is it more important to them to have cash flow or is it more important that they have long-term equity play? And so understanding their strategy and prioritizing that over my own opinions is key.
Scott Bursey (07:30)
⁓ absolutely. Moving beyond transaction-based relationships to providing continuous, discrete advisory services is how you secure that high-end business. And interested to know, in today’s rapidly changing environment, how can a real estate company effectively build and maintain a legacy brand that withstands market volatility and competition?
Callie Loewen (07:57)
think first of all it starts with integrity. So we work with equity partners, other companies may work with investors, and putting people first is the ultimate non-negotiable. If that means that I lose a little bit more or that I take on a little bit more stress, my partners and I have signed up for this and number one is to protect our partners and investors. And then number two, and as we’re evaluating those deals, we’re gonna wanna make sure that we have that cushion in there
Scott Bursey (08:20)
Hey.
Callie Loewen (08:27)
for them as well as considering multiple exit strategies. That’s something that you and I were talking about earlier and understanding that we need to be able to have that flexibility in this market ever changing to pivot and do what is best by our partners.
Scott Bursey (08:43)
Those are two brilliant points. Building a legacy hinges on authentic market presence and delivering consistently exceptional client experience across all cycles. Couldn’t agree with you more.
and for investors looking to optimize their capital dealing this year. What specific alternative asset class within real estate beyond traditional residential or commercial are you seeing the most opportunity in right now I guess.
Callie Loewen (09:47)
That is a great question. So it’s something that we’ve been actively exploring because things aren’t as they were five, eight, 10 years ago. So we’d actually been looking ourselves at cash flowing businesses that support the real estate industry. So thinking outside the box a little, which is where we’ve kind of developed our knack for operations, bringing in that general contracting company. That’s a way to one, have the most control over our projects.
And we can also help other investors and individuals with their needs. And then we’re also taking on a property management division. both of those services that we’ve already been using and paying for, we’ve seen weak spots when we’ve used others. And so we’ve really perfected those to what serves the investors and the clients the best because we’re both.
Scott Bursey (10:38)
Callie, that’s a sharp pivot right there. Specialized sectors like short-term rentals or essential service industrial spaces often provide the necessary cushion in uncertain times. And very curious on this one, based on your advisory experience, what is the one habit or system that top performing real estate professionals implement that separates them from the rest?
Callie Loewen (11:08)
That’s a very good question, Scott, and I would say it may not be exactly one system, it’s a process, and it’s having those internal KPIs. And however you track them, I’m personally a very low-tech individual. I have spreadsheets and I have paper lists, but what I’ve done, and this is what my partners have done as well, is we’ve established at what point in each process we’re going to have the communication and what that’s going to look like.
So for me personally, it might be that I get a lead and my KPI is that I’m responding to that within one business day. And then next trigger point is if I don’t hear back from them within 48 hours, then it’s a different method of communication. And so just having that trail that you always follow and those checkpoints and the analogy I like to say is it’s like I’m playing volleyball or hot potato. When something comes to me, I want to hold it.
only as long as I need to hold it. Let me get what I need done and then I want to immediately pass that back so that no point in the process is something waiting on me.
Scott Bursey (12:11)
Perfect advice, that daily discipline around managing time as a fixed resource, especially through rigorous scheduling and protecting deep work blocks, drives the highest results. Callie, there anything that you would like our audience to know, some key points, golden nuggets ⁓ regarding your operation?
Callie Loewen (12:25)
That was an excellent way of saying it.
Sure, so as far as general contracting, again, that focus on communication and doing things the way we would want them done. Laying everything out, sitting down with the client, sometimes a new investor will come to us and we’re helping them through not just getting the work itself done, but the strategy behind that because we’ve been there, we’ve been the new investors, we’ve benefited from others who have taken the time to offer that mentorship to us and so we’re so pleased.
to pass that on. really, think in short, it’s stewarding the knowledge that we have and the resources that we’ve been given.
Scott Bursey (13:55)
doing unto others as you want done to you. Callie, that’s outstanding. And we’ve covered a lot of ground here today. I know people are going to want to tap into your brain specifically. For the listeners who want to follow you, to collaborate with you, what’s the best way for them to reach you?
Callie Loewen (14:16)
Absolutely, you can find me on Instagram @calliewalkerloewen, same on Facebook, and you are always welcome to send me an email at [email protected]
Scott Bursey (14:27)
Awesome. Callie, thank you for joining us today. Your expertise was invaluable.
Callie Loewen (14:33)
Well, Scott, thank you. appreciate the opportunity. Thank you so much.
Scott Bursey (14:36)
And for our listeners, appreciate you. If you got value from today’s episode, please subscribe. We have more conversations coming up with exceptional operators, just like Callie. Until next time, keep your standards high and your vision clear. We’ll see you in the next episode, everyone.
