David McNamara
David McNamara has taken a unique, yet destined path to real estate in the area. An Ann Arbor kid who grew up working on rental properties, he thought he was destined to follow in his father's and sister’s footsteps in the dental world. Yet he shed the science courses after a few years of undergrad to concentrate on history, all the while holding onto a passion for real estate. While getting his M.A. at Eastern Michigan University, he obtained his real estate license and started to manage properties for a few clients. When his tenants wanted to stop renting, they went to him for help in purchasing a home, thus expanding his sphere in real estate. After working for a small brokerage for many years, David opened up
Foxway Realty and Foxway Property Management. With a few employees, he has created a dynamic company serving his client’s real estate needs all throughout the area.
Christina Kim
Christina Kim is a financial advisor with
Edward Jones Investments in Ann Arbor, where she has worked since returning to the community in 2008. Additionally, she is a member of the Ann Arbor Rotary Club, serves on the Board of the Neutral Zone Teen Center, and volunteers with the Ann Arbor Public Schools Education Foundation, the Next Generation Philanthropists group and the Youth Council through the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation.
Christina is a graduate of the University of Michigan and resides in Ann Arbor with her husband, Charles, and her loveable but dumb golden retriever, Lola. In her spare time she enjoys cooking, spending time with her eclectic group of family and friends, and traveling around the world to sample exotic cuisines, often in the form of street food.
The Real Estate Broker as Peer Guide
By, David McNamara
As we reach or have eclipsed that daunted age of thirty, many of us are still trying to grasp the reality of adulthood and all that this means in the twenty-first century. We no longer have to abide by the traditional rules of society, or follow the normal plan of life. But the benefit of the interconnected society we live in today is our access to resources. Though those resources can be either good or bad, we seem to have access to more of them. In my industry, real estate, I am no longer restricted by just having access to my own brokerage's listings, or just one bank to deal with, or even one city to sell or rent properties in. We have the resources available to expand our horizons. We no longer just have this small interconnected society of people with access to our information, but it has expanded across portals where we can work with buyers from around the world. But still the small interconnected society of Washtenaw County is where I choose to reside, due to the small feeling, nature, and the vast resources available. It is also this small interconnected society where real estate professionals like myself can be a valuable resource to many.
Being a real estate broker as well as a property manager gives me close access to a vast number of people, businesses, and ideas that go outside of the real estate realm. Looking for a good hardwood-floor guy? We work with quite a few, and I am sure we can find a good fit. Need a specific CPA for your taxes? Well then let's talk through your portfolio and I believe we can find a great one that will fit your specific needs. This goes for professionals like painters, plumbers, cleaners, lawyers, and can be as far-reaching as a massage therapist who is a previous client of mine. Because real estate professionals deal with so many different people in a business transaction, we are well equipped to be the guides to our peers in many aspects in life.
I'm not sure about my associates in the field, but I typically want to be the first phone call or email when my friends and clients are looking for something specific in their life, and many of those items don't deal specifically with real estate. We deal with good and bad people, and can usually learn a lot about them in our transactions. We can then guide others to their businesses, or even friendships, with a pretty good certainty of the end result. In that area, real estate professionals are not always proficient in all areas, and it behooves our clients to also question and interview us. We know a lot of areas pretty well, but there are also areas in our business where it would be better for us to refer the job out. Some real estate professionals know a lot about leases and income properties; others haven't the knowledge in this area to help their clients. Some other professionals can tell you the ins and outs of a horse farm, yet most of us cannot even ride a horse. That is to say, as a client, also do your due diligence in making sure a professional will work for you as well.
A home may be where the heart is, but it is also where we get to grow our roots. A neighborhood community with interconnected neighbors and friendships which develop over years is something to be cherished. I'm not saying that home ownership is the right decision for everyone, because it just isn't. But if you are going to be in a place for an extended period of time, it makes sense to at least look into the opportunity to purchase. The benefits, both financially and emotionally, can often make the process quite enjoyable.
One of the amazing things about Washtenaw County is the fact that we do have a somewhat transient base of people living among us who will also need good places to live. Being a landlord and property owner may not be for everyone, but it can be an amazing financial tool for many who use it. Purchased and managed properly, this asset can make you money while you sleep. Sure there can be some headaches and strain, but if you think that you can have someone else paying your mortgage over the foreseeable time period, it makes most of those headaches worthwhile. Plus, who better to be a landlord than a group of people who just finished renting? I can tell you horror stories of my previous landlords, so I approach being a property owner in a much more tenant-friendly fashion. In doing this, we have better tenants, better maintained properties, and an overall better experience.
I choose to live and work here in the area, and could not imagine living anywhere else. The connections I have made in my lifetime here are those I would not change for anything.
Your Money, Tomorrow
By, Christina Kim
When Omari Rush asked me to be a part of the ‘shur series I jumped at the opportunity. As someone who grew up in the Ann Arbor community, left for a few years and decided to come back, I truly appreciate any chance to feel more engaged and encouraged to develop roots here. We are both privileged and cursed to have several universities in the area which brings us interesting people from all over the world who often then turn around and leave after a few years. Creating opportunities like ‘shur is a great way to get folks to think differently about their personal development and also how it relates to the world around them.
My portion of the series was focused on personal finance, specifically how to get started and what we can do to take control of our financial health and to create opportunities to live, work and play successfully. In my business clients often come to me when they are starting to think about retiring, or are retired, and they are concerned about whether or not they have been saving enough and are going to run out of money. Although it is wonderful that they are getting professional guidance, it would have been that much more impactful had they started earlier. While I do have some young professionals come in, there are several "excuses" I hear again and again for putting off these decisions, such as: "I don't make enough money to be saving," or "only people who have considerable wealth need a financial advisor," or "I can worry about that later." None of these are good reasons to avoid taking charge of your financial future. So where to begin?
Where are you today?
Before you start thinking about your financial goals, it is important to get a sense of where you stand. Getting down to basics, make a list of all of your assets and all of your debt. You should also establish a budget to see how you are spending your earnings every month. As this number can fluctuate it's advisable to look at several months to establish an average.
Where do you want to be?
Start to think about short-term and long-term financial goals. Be specific about these and put deadlines on them. For instance, creating the goal of "I want to retire" isn't as helpful as "I want to retire at age 62 and plan to spend $5,000 per month after taxes." Short-term goals often include things such as establishing an emergency fund, paying off debt, and saving for a house or other large purchase. I usually think of long-term goals as being anything past ten years.
How can I get there?
Now that you know where you are and where you are heading you need to start thinking about strategies to achieve your goals. This is where a financial advisor can be helpful in making sure that the goals are realistic and achievable, as well as putting a personalized plan in place. Every person's situation is different, so it's important that your advisor knows as much about you as possible to provide you with the best advice. There are different types of investments, accounts, and other tools that can sometimes provide tax advantages but aren't always available to every client. When searching for someone to help you be sure to find someone you feel comfortable working with. It's also important that you fully understand how that person is compensated and what types of licenses they have. Don't hesitate to ask if that information isn't offered.
Am I on track?
Regularly reviewing your plan is the part that is neglected most often. Now that you have this great plan in place, you need to sit down to review it to monitor your progress and make changes as needed. Any time you have a major life event: marriage, job change, new baby, etc. is a good time to reevaluate your goals and check on where you are. If you are working with a professional, you should sit down with them at least once a year, though some clients do this as often as monthly.
The goal in introducing this topic was to get people thinking about taking control of their financial health. Throughout the ‘shur series we have looked at self-improvement. Our hope is that by exploring these topics the participants will be inspired to learn more and to ask more of our community.