WE FIRED TWO TRADES THIS WEEK
I'm going to be honest.
When I started posting on social media and writing this newsletter, I promised I'd always be transparent about what actually goes on behind the scenes.
And the last few newsletters have probably sounded pretty negative.
We've had tools stolen, trades not turning up, unexpected costs, delays and plenty of things not going to plan.
But the funny thing is, I don't actually feel negative about it.
When there's a problem, I want to solve it.
And this week we had another one.
We fired our plasterer and our joiner, not because they didn't turn up, not because they were too expensive.
Simply because the standard of their work wasn't good enough.
And ultimately, their work has our name attached to it.
ITS ABOUT MORE THAN PROFIT
Firing two trades this week wasn't a decision we took lightly.
Replacing people costs money. Putting work right costs money. Delays cost money.
It would be much easier to accept work that's ‘good enough’, get the house finished and get it on the market.
But that's not why we started Asset Collective.
We set out to build a business that creates value.
For us, that means three things:
We make a profit.
Our investors make a return.
We create a great home for someone to live in.
And the three actually work together.
Ultimately, we're selling a house. But a house is still a product and the best product should sell for the most money.
If we build the best house on the street, we should achieve a better sale price, sell it quicker and ultimately make more profit.
But there's also a person on the other side of that sale.
Someone is going to walk through that front door, spend their savings on it and call it home.
I want us to be proud of what we're handing over.
So if something isn't up to the standard we expect, we're going to put it right.
Even when that decision costs us money short term.
That's the kind of business I want Asset Collective to become.
PROJECT ONE
Project One should be nearly finished by now.
But after looking properly at some of the work this week, it simply isn't up to the standard we expect.
Thankfully, we've caught it at the right time, so we can put it right without causing any major delays.
Our vision is simple: build the best house on the street.
Right now, Project One isn't achieving that.
But I won't stop until it does.
PROJECT TWO
Project Two has had a good week.
First fix electrics are complete, first fix plumbing is around 80% done, and the windows and doors are being fitted next week.
Once they're in, we're ready to start plastering.
INVESTOR UPDATE
We've had another positive week on the investment side.
We now have verbal commitments from investors which, once confirmed, should see Project Two fully funded by the end of August.
That means we can start turning our attention towards funding Project Three and continuing to grow the pipeline.
If you're interested in investing with Asset Collective and want to understand how it works, just reply to this email and I'll send over some more information.
COME AND HEAR OUR STORY
This Wednesday I'm speaking at Property & Poppadoms.
I'll be sharing how we got started, the mistakes we've made, what we've learned and where we're taking Asset Collective next.
Putting the talk together has actually been a good opportunity to look back at the last three years and realise how far we've come.
If you're there on Wednesday, come over and say hello.
Grab your tickets below:
Did You Know?
Leaving your money in the bank right now is likely earning you less than inflation, meaning your cash is actually losing value over time.
Till next time,