Real estate for rent as a way of business

Running a company in the real estate industry usually requires considerable financial outlays, but it turns out that the topic can be approached differently. The company Baransu  chooses, and then prepares the property for their clients.

In this case, the investor makes the purchase of the premises, while Baransu proposes changes, renovates and home staging. Marta Bocheńska-Pachuta talks about how to run such a business.

We invested in real estate ourselves and obtained very nice effects. We thought that we could do it "after hours", especially since we always liked to do it. We love to create interiors and even renovate them. Over time, this changed into a full-time job.

How much time passed from the idea to the start?

The idea germinated for about half a year. We set up a website, started writing a blog, and that's how it started. At the beginning we didn't have a specific plan. It was amazing for me that when I started writing a blog and looking for materials related to real estate, I learned many interesting things that we could use both in our own investments and later, in the investments of our clients.

See this: 5 rules to make customers want to buy

You worked full time at the time, so abandoning your safe job could seem risky ...

That's why at the beginning I acted in two ways, not giving up my full-time job. After years of working for someone, it was not an easy decision. The fact that I have two children means that flexibility is very important to me, which unfortunately does not give me full-time employment. In addition, I love creating something new and I value independence. That is why own company turned out to be a good idea. 

Can you describe your beginnings?

First of all, we started to invest and prepare our own projects, thus acquiring knowledge and experience. Further customers are our friends, and later, thanks to recommendations, also their friends. After them, however, people who were completely unrelated to them began to report to us and learned about what we were doing, e.g. from social media. We currently have almost 20 completed projects.

How do you assess the situation now - from the perspective of these few years.Did something look different in practice than you thought? 

I actually entered this business without expectations, which was very nice. We just watched what would happen and how it would develop.

Do you think that such a business could also be successful outside of Warsaw?

Sure, I know people who do it in other cities, especially if they live there. From my perspective, "your horse's eye is fat", which is good if we have real estate close by and we can look after them.

Do you see any chances for the company's development - e.g. employment of employees, extension of activity to other cities? Or maybe you do not see such a need?

This is the dilemma that every entrepreneur faces at some point. Grow well, but on the other hand real estate has allowed us to achieve financial freedom, thanks to which we do not have so much pressure when it comes to new customers.

Comfort of work and free time are important to me. On the other hand, the business I do is not so easily scalable. This is specialized consultancy based on experience and it is not easy to find employees who could replace you.

When you enter a property bought by the customer, your task is to arrange it in such a way that it is attractive to tenants. However, this is not your place, so you still have to convince the owners of your concept. How do they react when they find out that you intend to almost level their premises with the ground, rearrange the walls, or build a mezzanine?

Fortunately, I work with clients who want to rent an apartment, so they don't look at it from their angle. And then it is easier for them to make bold decisions.

We justify each cost decision in terms of revenue, indicating specific numbers. And then it is much easier to convince the investor.

In addition, our cooperation with clients is very close and based on trust. Very often investors themselves do not participate in the design of the apartment. You can say that "they come ready". They have a lot of their own classes, and by ordering the whole project, they save time.

Photos are also important in the success of rental properties. You work with a photographer - Paweł Martyniuk. How did your cooperation start? 

Mr. Paweł is a professional, he works with great passion and is constantly developing. I am very happy that I met him at the beginning of my journey. He wasn't even a photographer by recommendation - we found his offer on the internet. Pictures from Mr. Paweł are largely the success of Barans, beautifully present the properties prepared by us and significantly increase their value.

I heard that you are going to write a book about home-staging. Can you reveal something more about it?

Yes, the book goes with me - for now it is losing to other things that are happening in Baransu. The subject of the book will not only be home staging. The book is to talk more broadly about how to increase the value of real estate and how to discover its potential.I have such an ambition to teach Poles aesthetics, because we have a lot to catch up on in this field.

The traditional question: what would you advise people who are just wanting to start their own business? What should they prepare for?

For the necessity of making decisions. This is probably the most difficult in business. You can take care of many things, but at some point we have to choose something, decide on something, and then face the consequences of our choices.

Is it worth to link your business with the subject of real estate?

Real estate is a profitable business, although it is not easy. In addition, it is very cross-sectional - it requires knowledge from various fields, and also business intuition.

However, the topic is so wide that everyone will find something for themselves. For example, we like renovations, we like to see how space changes. But there are, for example, people who are interested in sales and negotiations - they buy cheap and then sell more expensive. 

What are you most proud of when you think about Barans?

From the fact that we are developing and we have new ideas. But above all of our implementations. From this difference, which can be seen when we compare apartments before renovation, with what they look like now. And, consequently, that investors and tenants are satisfied.