I'm not going to give you the "visionary leader" bio. I don't have a corner office and I hate the label "entrepreneur". I'm a developer because I like solving problems that come with dirt attached.
I sat behind a desk for 16 years staring at spreadsheets, adjusting QC metrics and participating in government audits. I learned the money side of real estate, but it was all on paper. I started ORREO because I wanted to create things that my kids could see and appreciate. And because I like cookies.
First, I bought and sold over 60 single family foreclosures. Then I built an apartment. One thing lead to another and I found myself in development. Now the same truths apply from the desk job: risk assessment isn't glamorous and due diligence isn't sexy. But they're the difference between a building and a bankruptcy.
My friends say I play Monopoly in real life. I'll take it. The game rewards patience, math, and knowing when to build — not just knowing when to buy. Most people forget that part. Plus, sometimes it all comes down to luck.
The projects I take on range from market-rate housing to subsidized affordable developments, from historic adaptive reuse to straightforward land divisions. They don't all make headlines but they all make cents.
While I have mostly done projects for my only-child self, I have always enjoyed helping others be successful. If you've got an idea and you're not sure if it works, that's exactly where I start.