In 2004, Liz Faircloth and her husband, Matt, bought their first investment property — a dilapidated duplex outside Philadelphia. Since then, they’ve grown their business, The DeRosa Group, to about 1,500 units they control and manage in partnership with investors.  

Along the way, Faircloth sought opportunities to connect with other investors, including Andresa Guidelli, who became a friend and partner on deals. They formed a mastermind group with four other women investors. 

When they went to industry events and conferences, “so many were so male-dominated,” Faircloth says. So she and Guidelli launched a network designed to help other women find similar support — The Real Estate InvestHER — a community with 17,000 members attending more than 50 Meetup groups across North America. They host a podcast, virtual and in-person events and a 11,000-member Facebook group. 

“We wanted to create an environment that would be a safe space for women, where we’d have each other’s backs,” she says. “When the contractor takes your money or a deal falls through, you have other women to support you and cheer you on, versus telling you, ‘You should’ve known that.’” 

Faircloth spoke with Story by J.P. Morgan about her investing journey and lessons she’s learned along the way.  

Q: How has your approach to investing evolved over your career?

A: Initially we focused on dilapidated properties that needed a lot of work in Trenton, New Jersey. It was cheaper than other areas, and we thought it would be great to create an impact, taking dilapidated properties and creating livable spaces for people. 

At first my husband and I bought things with friends and family, just piecing money together. Then you get to the point where you plateau. We started looking at working with investors, and if you’re raising money, you need to get certain returns. The Northeast is tough. More people are leaving the state of New Jersey than coming in. That’s how we evolved to looking at other states and larger multifamily deals involving 100 or more units. 

Q: You hear about a new real estate investment opportunity. What’s your first question for the broker or seller?

A: If someone brings us a deal, the biggest question for us is: Does it meet our deal criteria? For us, the deal criteria has to do with the asset class, the size and the type of market it’s in. 

What’s a good deal to you is different to me, and vice versa. It’s so easy when you start and you’re scaling to take whatever you can get, especially in this market, because it’s very competitive. We often make excuses, or say we can compromise on this or make this work, but people are overpaying. 

People need to get clear on their deal criteria and then the brokers and people looking for deals can help you, because you’re specific. 

Q: Have you had any mentors as you’ve grown your business?

A: We did, and we should have worked with more mentors along the way. I think that’s part of why Andresa and I are so passionate about what we’re doing with InvestHER. We’re creating things we wish we had. 

I think scaling up took a long time for me and my husband because we tried to figure it out ourselves. It wasn’t like we’re the smartest or fastest or had the most money; we just didn’t give up. So over time, we made it. But I did have a couple mentors early on, and then we started working with Joe Fairless (co-founder of Ashcroft Capital and creator of the Best Real Estate Investing Advice Ever podcast) when we decided to move beyond New Jersey and start investing in larger multifamily properties. It really propelled our thinking toward underwriting bigger deals, and he was a great mentor. 

Even now I’m part of a couple different coaching programs where I get support. I should have done more of that earlier on.