Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kyle Leighton. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kyle, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s jump right into the heart of things. Outsiders often think businesses or industries have much larger profit margins than they actually do – the reason is that outsiders are often unaware of the biggest challenges to profitability in various industries – what’s the biggest challenge to profitability in your industry?

Right now, rising costs are the biggest challenges effecting profitability. It seems like this year I’ve been mostly playing defense as costs continue to rise on pretty much everything that effects the business. As a result, most of these increased costs have forced me to raise rents and other fees, and also take a harder look at our service providers.

I expect rates to come down and the economy to eventually level out, but for the foreseeable future, inflation and other rising costs in 2022 has had a significant effect on profitability.

Kyle, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I started out my career in lighting and engineering and later reinvested the money I made into real estate. Around 2019, I formed my real estate holdings company, and renamed it Leighton Property Management in 2021. Leighton Property Management specializes in Mid Michigan Property Management for Single Family homes, condominiums, and 2-4 unit apartment buildings.

We consider ourselves the most hardworking, forward-thinking, tech-savvy, ethical and transparent property management companies in Michigan. We make it our goal to always be proactive when it comes to management and have a sense of urgency when it comes to all management related tasks.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

My rental business got started when I reinvested cash from my engineering company. I never intended to be a real estate investor. I never intended to be a landlord either. I never ever wanted to get a real estate license. I still do not have a real estate license to this date, and I likely never will. The idea of being involved in the real estate industry was never attractive to me, and I didn’t really ever know anyone involved in any aspect of the real estate market. However, once my engineering company got moving and profits started rolling in, I had to make a responsible decision on what to do with the cash and I decided that real estate investing was the safest investment.

Ultimately, that’s the difference between earning money and keeping it. I can fail in business. I can fail dozens if not hundreds of times, and get back up and try again. After all, resilience is what the American spirit is built on. But, when I have that money, when I accumulate that money, I can only make one bad choice that sink the entire ship.

To date, Leighton Property Management currently holds a portfolio valued over $2.4 million dollars.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Markets are always shifting. I have to be able to make changes to my business to accommodate a market without comprising the business itself. One thing that I’ve had to do more of this year than any other year is raise rents and re-evaluate our vendor partnerships. There has been a lot rising costs this year for a number of reasons. I want to continue to offer the same level of quality and management that all of my tenants have gotten accustomed to, and in doing so, I’ve had to make some changes.

Overall, it’s worked out really well for everyone.

Contact Info:

• Website: leightonpm.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leightonmanagement/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leightonmgmt
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/leightonmgmt

Image Credits
Leighton Property Management