Andre Merkerson is an American Real Estate professional based out of Covington, Georgia. The successful RE investor started his career in 2004 following the end of his collegiate career as a football player. In a short period of time, Merkerson began buying properties ranging from single family all the way to a 32 unit commercial building. In 2011, Merkerson moved to Georgia & began purchasing real estate within the state — today Merkeson owns 400+ rental properties in the countryside roughly 45 minutes outside of Atlanta.
To learn more about Andre Merkerson, we sat down with him to get an inside scoop on his career in Real Estate & his take of the current Georgia RE market.
The Countryside of Georgia
Merkerson has been able to amass a 400 unit portfolio with mainly C-class buildings in residential markets that are an hour away from major MSA Atlanta. The affordable price range makes it easy to find properties that have tremendous upside in terms of equity growth & also stable enough to rent. Andre understands that within these neighboring towns of ATL, a lot of the workforce is backed by major corporations that are established throughout Georgia making rents more easy to be paid by tenants. By catering to the C-class tenants and flipping properties to other investors, Merkerson has been able to create an impressive portfolio of RE assets.
Upside, Upside, & More Upside
Merkerson wants readers to know how little the competition in his market truly is. Andre went on to say: “When I look at my market, it is safe to say that there isn’t much if any competition. There are great deals ready to be had & made available as we speak.” Through communication & direct marketing, Andre has been able to find amazing off market deals in his community. He recommends that investors interested in the area should get familiar with the area by connecting with people who can mentor them on where the opportunity lies. Merkerson also flips properties to individuals looking to rehab & or rent out single family homes in the area — a way Andre believes is an easy way to get started with RE investing.
The Future for Andre Merkerson
Merkerson has the goal of reaching 1,000 units AUM. Andre has the ambitious goal to reach that height in the next four years, with amazing partnerships and systems in place — it’s safe to say that the investor is well on his way to success. Andre went on to say: “It took me 10 years to reach my first 100 units, if you want to go fast you need to find a mentor. If I had found the right mentor, that first 100 units would have taken me half of the time.”
This post is based on the opinion of writers at Real Estate Today
