Success Stories
SUCCESS STORIES
A $15,000 Investment Grows into an Affordable Housing Empire
In the depths of the 2009 recession, Karen and Nathan Chapman saw an opportunity. Property prices had crashed, but the mother-and-son business partners believed that Tulsa still needed quality, affordable rental housing.
Nathan was in Germany at the time, having moved there after completing graduate school at Cambridge, when he got the idea to buy older homes, rehabilitate, then lease them.
“Hey mom, let’s do this!”
Initially, Karen responded, “No.”
But Nathan convinced her that acquiring properties during a recession would be a great opportunity.
One Foot in Front of the Other
So, Nathan crunched the numbers from Germany while Karen scouted out properties in Tulsa. They started small, buying a $15,000 fixer-upper north of downtown. Slowly but surely, they acquired more distressed properties one by one, rehabbing each into attractive rental units.
“We handle every day as a standalone and just put one foot in front of the other,” says Nathan.
Finding a Reliable Partner
Their strategy focused on pre-WWII bungalows and architectural gems that others overlooked as too much work. As their portfolio grew, their renovation skills sharpened to quickly scope out repair costs.
A turning point came when they partnered with First Oklahoma Bank in 2013. The bank’s responsive service and reliability gave them the confidence to rapidly expand.
“They make it easy to do business,” Nathan states, recounting how during the COVID-19 chaos, First Oklahoma deposited an emergency line of credit worth hundreds of thousands within 30 minutes to ensure they had liquidity.
Making an Impact
Today, the Chapman’s company, Regina Rex Properties, owns 260 rental units across Tulsa, with exciting new projects like renovating historic mansions into event spaces. Their affordable housing impacts are deeply felt.
“It feels good to provide quality housing people are proud to live in,” Karen says, especially in reviving overlooked northside areas.
From their humble $15,000 start, the Chapmans have created community-enriching housing opportunities while building a rental empire.