Closing The Deal: Sheek Louch Gives Tips To Real Estate Success
This feature is in our Dec. "Creative Arts" Issue. Click here to subscribe.
Sheek Louch (@sheeklouch) is a bona fide hip-hop legend who’s becoming a force in the real estate business. The artist and his fellow The LOX members (Jadakiss and Styles P) helped redefine what it means to be a rap group thanks to their undying loyalty and shared determination to create a legacy outside of their music careers with their business acumen.
Those qualities have made Louch (born Sean Divine Jacobs) a star, and now he’s bringing that success into the real estate industry. Louch’s journey into real estate wasn’t planned; his late mother prepared him for the role.
Sheek Louch PHOTO COURTESY OF ROC NATION
Louch’s mother had already been immersed in real estate for over 15 years and knew she would have to eventually pass the business down to her son. Little by little, she showed him the ropes.
“After she passed from cancer [in 2015], I really got into real estate more,” says Louch. “She would slowly bring me in, like, ‘Here’s the keys to this house, here’s who you need to talk to, here’s where the envelopes go.’ All I was planning to do was continue giving her money, and we keep rocking, but that’s how they set you up [laughs].”
According to Louch, the allure of the real estate industry is the idea of making slow and steady money. The 46-year-old knows exactly how much money he’s putting into a property and how much he’ll make over time that’s guaranteed.
PHOTO COURTESY OF ROC NATION
“I JUST WANT TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS AND INVESTMENTS, AND I COULD JUST LEAVE IT WITH MY FAMILY AND THEN THEY COULD DECIDE WHATEVER THEY WANT TO DO, AS LONG AS EVERYBODY’S SET UP.” -SHEEK LOUCH
“A guaranteed set amount of money is coming, period,” he says. “Real estate is something you can keep doing. You can move one family from a property, and another one is waiting right behind to take that spot at whatever price. That flow can continue where you’re selling in the millions now.”
As great as real estate is, it’s a tricky business with its fair share of issues. There’s the possibility of tenants who won’t exit a property or leave garbage behind, and there’s the issue of having a load of properties that can be too much to handle. Louch has seen it all in the business, but he hasn’t been deterred from making his presence felt.
“I’m not into the big investments like some people who have 100 homes. I just have certain properties and managers that deal with the stuff that I can’t. I’m old, man,” he says with a laugh. “So it’s hard balancing everything out.
Doing real estate is not easy.” For those looking to dive into real estate, Louch has some advice to help them get off to a strong start. According to him, as with any business, people have to know what they’re getting themselves into, and real estate is no different.
“Man, you have to be ready for it,” says Louch. “Don’t jump out the window without knowing where you’re gonna fall. You have to read, learn and ask questions about the business, because 90% of the time, it won’t go well at first. I almost f–ked the whole thing up by almost selling a place too early. Now, that property is, like, $980,000, and I don’t know why I was trying to just cash out at the time. Don’t try to cash out so early by being thirsty. Also, save your money because you’re doing things right once you start using your capital.”
As for his future in the real estate business, Louch just wants to make sure he has enough property that his family can take on from him when it’s time for him to bow out.
“I just want to buy a bunch more, invest and leave it to the family,” he says. “I want to have an incredible portfolio; that’s about it. I’m not going to be this guy who owns a shopping mall with retail shops inside. Nah, man, I just want to make the right decisions and investments, and I could just leave it with my family and then they could decide whatever they want to do, as long as everybody’s set up.”