Today we’d like to introduce you to Larry Whitaker III.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m from Bartlett, Illinois, and I attended Washington and Lee University in Lexington Virginia. Immediately out of college I was working in corporate America, frustrated by the system in place. The idea struck my partners (Martin Crowley and Mitchell Fernandez) and me as we started to see the rise of the shared economy. They both had already entered the entrepreneurial world, so my transition was all but inevitable.
We all found it fascinating that people could now improve their lives simply by taking advantage of things they already owned. With apps like Lyft, Airbnb, and Turo people were finding ways to put a little extra money in their pockets. We wanted to help facilitate those opportunities, so today we take the stress out of running a successful Airbnb property.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Like any start-up, we have faced challenges along the way. The most daunting of which, would have to have been the legislation that was hanging over our heads prior to March 16, 2017. Frankly, we had no idea how it was going to affect our business. Luckily, thanks to some great non-profit organizations, the legislation that has not kept us from providing value for our customers.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about HomeTree – what should we know?
We are a property management company specializing in short term rentals. We provide a number of services aimed at optimizing an Airbnb property. We handle cleanings/turnovers, guest communication, key exchanges, and dynamic pricing – everything our customers don’t have time to do. Many of them have found that taking care of all of this work themselves amounted to an unwanted part time job.
HomeTree, as a company, takes pride in relieving that stress. Our clients are able to sit back and relax while we handle the stressful side of managing an Airbnb property.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I feel like perseverance has been my most valuable characteristic. Any entrepreneur will tell you, it’s not always a smooth ride and being able to push through that is key to anyone’s success.
Contact Info:
- Address: 20 W Kinzie St
Suite 1700
Chicago, IL - Website: hometree.io
- Phone: (773) 234-0884
- Email: info@hometree.io
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HomeTreeProperties/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/hometreeprop
Image Credit:
Lance H Whitaker
lanceharvey.smugmug.com
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