Milestone Investments

Owners:   Penelope Pennington
Founded:  2008

Penelope (and husband Darrell) Pennington came to the SBDC on June 12, 2008 seeking advice regarding their business plan focused on property investment.  Their plan was in essence buying distressed ad undervalued houses, rehabbing them, and maintaining them for an investment portfolio.  Having begun their business in 2007, they sought advice for the long term viability of the business and met with Kim Howard who agreed with their approach and was also able to bring in someone who had recently been in that business who added additional insight.  This additional insight confirmed their thought process and contributed to their resolve to continue buying undervalued real estate, making improvements and renting it at exceptional NOI levels.  They eventually purchased 49 units and have generated annual incomes of $12,500 in 2007, $84,000 in 2008 and more than $215,000 in 2009.

With this direction in mind Kim suggested several local bankers to help with financing and also made introductory visits with them to Evansville City officials to determine if a mutually beneficial partnership could be developed. Throughout the process, Kim provided insight and access to key individuals offering a broader scope of thought, encouragement to envision ancillary business opportunities and suggestions on how to implement future phases of their plan.

In 2009, Penelope acted on this encouragement and expanded her business model by becoming a Licensed General Contractor focused on providing others with the service she seldom received from contractors on her own properties.  Throughout her time in developing her property investment company, she frequently was disappointed with the lack of service, commitment, follow-thru and understanding of investment property rehabilitation.  This frustration allowed her to identify a need in the community for a service oriented general contractor that was able to transform customer needs into reality and making it a pleasurable process for the customer.  Her background as a degreed Interior Designer combined with her project management skills in rehabbing distressed properties provides her with a unique skill set not offered by any other local general contractor and has fueled her commitment of developing a general contracting company and business model that serves the varied needs of property investors and homeowners alike by providing unparalleled service, cutting edge design, and a focus on the individual not offered by the 'traditional' general contractor.

Interesting story...Penelope is a Western Kentucky University graduate, with a degree in Interior Design.  During college she started a design company focused on providing residents with products and materials unique to the area.  Upon relocation to Evansville, Penelope worked as a kitchen and bath designer for a local firm.  As she developed ideas for her next business venture, her husband encouraged her to investigate real estate investment.  During her research, she inspected hundreds of properties and was disheartened with the conditions renters were living in.  This fueled an emotional response that committed her to providing quality homes for renters that are safe, functional, and affordable.

"Sometimes it's hard to think out of the box...coming to you encouraged us to think broader and focus on additional opportunities beyond our initial conception of the business" said Penelope.