Why Buy Just One… By Larry Hudson
Anthony Chara made an important discovery during the course of his real estate 
investing career. The Denver-area man had invested in single-family houses – beginning in 1993 when he moved to a newer and larger house and converted the old one to a rental. The revelation came at a networking meeting – where he met a man who controlled 450 apartment units. Not only was the concept of buying more than one unit at once intriguing to Chara, the cash flow his new investor friend was collecting each month ($150,000) provided great inspiration, too. Chara learned the details when he invited the apartment investor to lunch. All of that was several years ago – and the inspiration led to action. Today Anthony Chara holds ownership interest in more than 1,800 apartment units – including several in Ohio. Over the course of his visit to Greater Dayton REIA, he explained that each of the apartment unit purchases involved partners. Beginning in 2004, Chara said, he found money partners, credit partners and – in the beginning, experience partners to complete apartment investments. “Every one of the eighteen-hundred units I’ve purchased, I’ve partnered with other investors on every single deal,” Chara said. “If you’re in the position where you have no money, you have no experience and you have no time – that doesn’t mean you can’t buy apartment buildings.” In his own case, he said, he has put very little money into purchase deals –and avoided personally signing mortgage documents altogether. In each case, he said, he’s been able to find investors who are willing to sign for the financing as a way to get a “piece of the deal.” During his talk, Chara explained that the object of the apartment game is to buy existing businesses (apartment buildings) that may be undervalued – but make money every month. He revealed several sources to find answers about local economies and rental markets, and demonstrated that there is extensive research available to compare rental markets to find the strongest ones. In one case, that research led to the purchase of 100+ apartment units in Dayton a few years back. He was surprised recently, Chara said, when his Dayton partners notified him they were exercising a clause in their partnership agreement – buying him out. “I had to re-read the documents,” Chara said. “I guess I did agree to that.”