Women Leaders Of Real Estate: Carmen da Silva of SHARE On The 5 Things You Need To Succeed In The Real Estate Industry

An Interview With Jason Hartman

It is important to create an ownership mentality and encourage leadership roles at all levels of management. Beyond that, leaders should also prioritize giving their teams recognition for going above and beyond. This can be done through spotlights, monetary rewards and/or promotions, based on the impact it has on the company’s growth metrics, whether it be due to lead conversions, increased revenue, reduction in expenses, operational efficiencies, client satisfaction and retention or morale-boosting ideas.

As a part of my series about strong women leaders of the Real Estate industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Carmen da Silva.

Carmen Da Silva is a Co-founder and CFO of Share. She is a CPA in both Canada and the USA. She articled with Price Waterhouse Cooper specializing in corporate and cross-border tax. Carmen built an IaaS (Ins as a Service) platform that allows boutique investment brokers to sell tax-sheltered insurance using Family Office Teams. She generated in excess of 500M AUM in just 5 years then sold it for early retirement, giving her firsthand experience in US Single Family Rentals (SFR). Currently, Carmen is passionate about changing the way individuals own SFR, eager to simplify the process while reaping the rewards of positive cash flow.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to the Real Estate industry?

Luck is when opportunity and preparedness meet. I guess I just got lucky! Just before the Real Estate crash of 2008, I had sold my investment business in Toronto to move to Florida so that I could enjoy more time with my young family. As a way of replacing the monthly income from my investment AUM, I used the capital from the sale of my business to purchase a portfolio of Single-Family Rentals (SFR) in St. Petersburg Florida. This gave me the taste of consistent monthly cash flow that I had not experienced with paper assets. For the first time, my investment income felt like a paycheck as I watched the net rents being deposited into my bank account month after month, by the property management team. It gave me the pleasant feeling of early retirement income all while my principal was protected in a secure RE asset.

Can you share with our readers the most interesting or amusing story that occurred to you in your career so far? Can you share the lesson or take away you took out of that story?

I played a game by Robert Kiyosaki with a group of friends, family members and occasionally with clients called “Rich Dad CashFlow” — an educational board game to teach the concept of investing in real estate, stock and business building. During one of my first games, I drew an occupation card as an auto mechanic earning a low wage, the person to the right of me was a teacher also earning a low wage and the person to my left was a pilot with a great salary whom we all thought would win the game.

But here is how the game and the story unfolded: the teacher got a market card to buy unlimited stock for a penny and she took all her savings to purchase the stock. Later she drew a market card giving her the ability to sell the same stock at $1000 per stock which provided her liquidity and capital to purchase rental properties allowing her to ultimately win the game.

To my surprise, but reflective of real-life situations, was the situation of the pilot to the left of me. He had a great salary. However, he kept drawing cards that increased the number of children he had, which increased his expenses. He then lost his job, which reduced his income, and in turn, he lost his spirit to even continue the game. He lost sight of the opportunities presented and you know the end of that story!

The lesson or takeaway for me and others is to be prepared to take opportunities that come our way, as too many of us lose sight of opportunities when they arise or are unprepared to take action. The second lesson is to start early as you don’t know what will come up in the future, however even when things are down, don’t give up hope, and continue on with small steps in the right direction. Great mentors lead by example, surround yourself with successful people who inspire and encourage your success personally and financially.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

My dream has always been to change the siloed financial service industry by integrating products and services for the consumer through tax planning, technology and a team-based approach. So, after many years of integrating tax and insurance products into the investment brokerage offices across Canada, it was finally time to bring alternative asset classes like Real Estate into the fold. As I started to introduce US-based SFRs to past clients, I realized how much was involved before and after the purchase, from setting up US bank accounts, financing the purchase, managing properties and finally annual tax filing.

Building a trusted platform for investors to seamlessly access this asset class and experience long-term positive cash flow and returns became a reality in 2020 when I co-founded SHARE with a brilliant team of individuals who were just as passionate as I was.

SHARE makes investing in and owning real estate as easy as purchasing stocks or mutual funds, by enabling investors to reap the benefits of real estate ownership without the burden of full-time landlord duties, all while providing upfront guarantees to ensure a balance between risks and returns.

I am proud to say that the platform helps individuals build wealth through SFRs, getting them to retirement earlier. Once they become financially secure, investors are able to change career paths, have a better work/life balance, or just work on projects they are passionate about.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

The idea of investing in SFR in another country can be daunting however with SHARE we’ve streamlined the process so you can buy and manage high-return US-based SFR portfolios online within a few weeks.

As asset managers, we help with all aspects of building a real estate portfolio one asset at a time. Our partners are there before and after the ownership of rental properties to handle all the administrative and management aspects so that investors can focus on other aspects of their lives.

A story that comes to mind is when we helped an existing real estate investor, refinance and purchase a portfolio of SFRs. The investor chose the purchase price, type, and location of the properties. SHARE facilitated the entity creation, banking, financing, leasing & management agreements for the portfolio. This saved the investor time on research, saved them money not only on the purchase price but also insurance and management fees and made the processes easy as it was all organized for them.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I would credit my success to both my parents equally. My mother always acknowledged my successes and constantly told me that I was a bold, independent risk-taker. Her confidence and affirmation encouraged me to excel academically and professionally. My father believed in education but put more emphasis on developing an entrepreneurial mindset. “What you conceive you can achieve” was his motto. He left a successful business in Mumbai to move to Canada with 6 children, all of whom were under 7 years old, just to give his son and 5 daughters a better chance to succeed in business. After I got married, I joined the family business in financial planning, leaving a multinational CPA firm where I specialized in tax planning. Working with him gave me the drive, mission and passion to change the legacy financial service industry my family grew up in.

Ok. Thank you for all that. Let’s now jump to the main core of our interview. The Real Estate industry, like the Veterinarian, Nursing and Public Relations fields, is a women dominated industry. Yet despite this, less than 20 percent of senior positions in Real Estate companies are held by women. In your opinion or experience, what do you think is the cause of this imbalance?

I believe the biggest cause of gender inequality is the systemic gender bias that exists in corporate culture. Men are still often seen as bigger risk-takers and more competent even if women have shown successful leadership skills, experience, and education. Women are still perceived to be responsible for family even if they have a work-life balance with partners taking a more active role in the home.

What 3 things can be done by a) individuals b) companies and/or c) society to support greater gender balance going forward?

At the individual level, women must OWN the title they are seeking to advance to and advocate for themselves. Never assume results speak for themselves. Track and voice milestones and achievements in anticipation of advancement and network with like-minded women who want to accelerate to senior positions.

At the corporate level, a governance that promotes gender equality is needed. Also, accelerator and mentorship programs for women to help overcome these barriers of entry, so they can achieve the position they are striving for.

Finally, society at large must put pressure on corporate governance in this area and change the way corporations perceive and develop executive roles with gender equality in mind. Giving both high-achieving male and female employees the equivalent pay, training, skills and mindset for leadership roles and navigation skills to overcome any gender biases they encounter.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by women executives that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

Perception of strengths and weakness based on gender. For example, strong, assertive women need to be mindful of their tone as their strength can be seen as a weakness, perceived as pushy, arrogant or rude while men do not face this as much as their women counterparts as it is sometimes seen in a more positively light, good to be assertive, strong and persistent.

Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the Real Estate industry?

• Ease of entry: Real estate investments are accessible to anyone, so there is no need to be a resident of a country and no need for a work visa to own SFRs as investments.
• Low capital required: For those who have good income and credit history, you need as little as a $25,000 down payment to purchase an SFR in the US
• Trusted end- to-end platforms available for “out of State/Province” or “out of country” investors: Companies have set up trusted contractors and management teams nationally to give investors the ability to expand their portfolio and buy out of State/Province or out of country if they wish.

Can you share 3 things that most concern you about the industry? If you had the ability to implement 3 ways to reform or improve the industry, what would you suggest?

• Concern #1: The retail real estate industry hasn’t embraced technology at the same speed of change as other industries have. Solution: SHARE is a real estate technology company that streamlines the end-to-end process of buying, leasing and managing high-return SFR homes on behalf of investors, providing retail clients with the tools currently only available to institutional clients.
• Concern #2: Real estate licensing is overly restricted to those within the investment industry. I would say that the solution here is to allow individuals who are mutual funds or full securities licensed to get real estate licenses if they wish to promote real estate as an investment for wealth building.
• Concern #3: The need for foreign nationals to have a physical presence in the US during the closing process for financed properties. I would say that the solution here is that as the industry moves more and more to digital signatures, they should advocate more consistency throughout the process for real estate transactions made by foreign nationals such as digital notary services in one’s home country.

What advice would you give to other leaders to help their team to thrive?

It is important to create an ownership mentality and encourage leadership roles at all levels of management. Beyond that, leaders should also prioritize giving their teams recognition for going above and beyond. This can be done through spotlights, monetary rewards and/or promotions, based on the impact it has on the company’s growth metrics, whether it be due to lead conversions, increased revenue, reduction in expenses, operational efficiencies, client satisfaction and retention or morale-boosting ideas.

Ok, here is the main question of our interview. You are a “Real Estate Insider”. If you had to advise someone about 5 non intuitive things one should know to succeed in the Real Estate industry, what would you say? Can you please give a story or an example for each?

• Begin with entry-level SFRs as a foundation: You don’t need a lot of capital to enter the SFR investment market. For example, if you are employed with good credit history all you need is a $25,000 (25% down payment on a $100K property). Start early to retire early!
• Stretch your investment dollar: When purchasing an SFR as an investment alternative, look at “Out of State/Province” or “Out of Country” for better purchase price and rental income opportunities with the same capital outlay. With technology, you can go beyond your local area due to virtual tours, local construction and trusted management teams. For example, you can purchase a property in the US for as little as $50K which is not even a down payment in most major metros.
• Don’t time the market: Always buy low but continue to buy in all market cycles as the values don’t fluctuate as much in the entry-level SFR market. There is usually a higher demand for rental homes, making the entry-level SFR market resilient in market downturns.
• Diversify in SFR geographically and by the types of properties: For example, a mix of high cash flow/moderate appreciation and high appreciation/moderate cash flow will balance the portfolio especially as RE values and rental income fluctuate over time.
• Purchase fractional properties: To help build wealth with a real estate portfolio and for compounding effects on your rate of return, purchase a portion of an SFR. For example, you can re-invest your rental income into a portion of an SFR along with a few of your friends.

Because of your position, you are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I would like to inspire a movement that would help individuals track their wealth, not by assets or income but by how many months of cash flow they have. An approach that promotes “action” on what you “know” by creating a VISION of future desires to make it a reality, one step at a time.

The biggest challenge is that people’s behaviour doesn’t match their knowledge and skills. Habits are created when knowledge, skills and DESIRE intersect.

If you have a “Why” the “How” and “What” to do will soon follow. Wealth coaches can be formed virtually through mastermind groups of like-minded men or women helping and inspiring each other to reach a goal with rewards for milestones. Not much different than tracking your steps or calories in the health space.

How can our readers follow you online?

They can find me on LinkedIn or follow us on SHARE’s various social media platforms. We are active and would love to hear from interested parties or those who are curious about the US SFR space!

Thank you for your time, and your excellent insights!

About The Interviewer: Jason Hartman is the Founder and CEO of Empowered Investor. Jason has been involved in several thousand real estate transactions and has owned income properties in 11 states and 17 cities. Empowered Investor helps people achieve The American Dream of financial freedom by purchasing income property in prudent markets nationwide. Jason’s Complete Solution for Real Estate Investors™ is a comprehensive system providing real estate investors with education, research, resources and technology to deal with all areas of their income property investment needs. Through Jason’s podcasts, educational events, referrals, mentoring and software to track your investments, investors can easily locate, finance and purchase properties in these exceptional markets with confidence and peace of mind.

Starting with very little, Jason, while still in college at the age of 19, embarked on a career in real estate. While brokering properties for clients, he was investing in his own portfolio along the way. Through creativity, persistence and hard work, he earned a number of prestigious industry awards and became a young multi-millionaire. Jason purchased a California real estate brokerage firm that was later acquired by Coldwell Banker. He combined his dedication and business talents to become a successful entrepreneur, public speaker, author, and media personality. Over the years he developed his Complete Solution for Real Estate Investors™ where his innovative firm educates and assists investors in acquiring prudent investments nationwide for their portfolio. Jason’s sought after educational events, speaking engagements, and his popular “Creating Wealth Podcast” inspire and empower hundreds of thousands of people in 189 countries worldwide.

While running his successful real estate and media businesses, Jason also believes that giving back to the community plays an important role in building strong personal relationships. He established The Jason Hartman Foundation in 2005 to provide financial literacy education to young adults providing the all-important real world skills not taught in school which are the key to the financial stability and success of future generations. We’re in a global monetary crisis caused by decades of misguided policies and the cycle of financial dependence has to be broken, literacy and self-reliance are a good start. Visit JasonHartman.com for free materials and resources.