Melanie Hartmann is the owner and founder of Creo Home Buyers. A house buying company located in Baltimore, MD that was founded in 2108. In 2021 Creo Home Buyers will be expanding their acquisitions to begin purchasing multi-family rental housing and self-storage facilities nationwide. Here is a link to our website: https://www.creohomesolutions.com/ 

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I was born and raised in Baltimore, MD. I previously worked as a school psychologist for Baltimore City Public Schools but while I loved much of what I did the career was ultimately not a good fit for me. Ultimately, I decided to start a house-buying company in Baltimore, MD to pursue my dreams of financial freedom and to eventually use a portion of our profits to support local charities in Baltimore.

What inspired you to start your business?

Getting into real estate seemed to be the way most individuals gain financial freedom. A way to escape the rat race if you will. 

Where is your business based?

We are currently based in Baltimore, MD with plans to expand to other areas in Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Florida.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I had planned to purchase a rental property but the market had gotten to the point that it didn’t make financial sense to purchase one that was listed on the market in my area. So I researched how other investors purchased their properties and discovered that many buy directly for sellers before their property is ever listed with an agent. 

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Focusing on SEO and social media strategies has been most effective in gaining awareness for the business.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

One of the biggest challenges has been breaking into a market that is highly competitive. We’ve partnered with many other investors in our area to work together to close and share deals so that we can assist a larger portion of sellers who reach out to us to sell their properties. We offer other ways to purchase houses so that sellers can pick which option is best for them, as most homeowners are not able to sell their homes for cash. 

How do you stay focused?

That is a challenge! However, keeping our end goal in mind is what has kept us coming back even when times have been tough.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

Most house buying companies can only buy a house for cash, which may not be the best fit for a seller as they may potentially lose out on a significant portion of their equity. Therefore, we offer to take over mortgage payments or pay sellers over time in order for them to retain more of their equity.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Utilizing SEO strategies has proven to be the most effective marketing strategy to grow our business. When folks search online for house buying companies in their area, our website is often one of the first ones to show up and that is how we obtain the majority of our leads.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

If you are focusing on your passion, make sure there is a need in the market for what you hope to provide, whether it is a product or service. If there is no need for it, can a need be made? If not, then it will be a struggle to gain any sort of success.  

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

One of my more recent favorite books has been, “The One Thing” by Gary Keller. In this book, Keller gets the reader to focus on what is the most important thing. When you focus on what is most important all of the other “noise” and distraction of life will fall by the wayside and you can truly make progress towards your goals. 

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

A favorite business tool of mine that not many may have heard of is “Clockify.” It is a free service that allows me to quickly and easily track my time. This way I can make adjustments as needed and have a better idea of when it may be a good idea to begin hiring out particular tasks.

Who is your business role model? Why?

That’s a great question, especially when there are so many to choose from. I’d say, currently it’s Tim Ferriss as his focus is on living life rather than working to live. So many of us get caught in the golden handcuffs of a secure job or find ourselves working multiple jobs to simply make ends meet. Though, if we simplify our lives and focus on what’s truly important, we will have the time and resources to live our best lives and define our own success. Success does not mean becoming a millionaire or owning a yacht. We define our own success in life, no one else. My main goal is to work less so I can enjoy the people and things that are most important in life, and that does not include owning a yacht!

How do you balance work and life?

Schedule life first and then fit work around it. If you try to fit life around your work, then work will always get out of hand and you’ll never be able to live your life. Scheduling life first forces you to be focused on when working. You spend less time on “busy” tasks that have a less than ideal return on your time invested in them and focus more on the tasks that get you closer to your goals. 

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Reading a good book, playing video games, and spending quality time with my husband and kids.

What do you have planned for the next six months?

Regain focus on my life goals to make sure the business is moving in that direction. In 2020, I found that the business swept me up into something that I wasn’t prepared for and we had to make several adjustments. I realized I want to live a simpler life and we are making the shifts to turn that dream into a reality. We are actually planning to focus on acquiring self-storage units across the nation as well as focus more on acquiring multi-family rental units. Moving away from single-family houses and flips. All in an effort to get more “bang for our buck” in terms of time and money invested into the business. 

How can our readers connect with you?

·       Twitter Profile URL https://twitter.com/CreoInvestments

·       Facebook Page URL https://www.facebook.com/CreoHomeBuyers/

·       Linkedin Company Page URL https://www.linkedin.com/company/creo-home-buyers/

·       Instagram Page URL https://www.instagram.com/creo.home.buyers/

·       Pinterest URL https://www.pinterest.com/creohomebuyers/

·       Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/creo-home-solutions-perry-hall-2?osq=creo+home+solutions

·       YouTube Page URL https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjvwbHyeJCmu0a8Dr5Ms5Jg

·       Linked in Personal Profile https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-hartmann-438784169/