Meet Lauren Davila | Real Estate Investor & Property Manager

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lauren Davila and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lauren, how has your background shaped the person you are today?

California born and raised, mostly by a single mother to a large extent, whose roots go back to the mid-west, South Dakota, where her side of our family is from and still ranch and farm to this day.  A very tough breed, both physically and mentally of the type of people it takes not only to live that life but love it as well.

I spent two years in South Dakota, 5th and 6th grade, and it definitely had an impact on me, showing me the real worth, emotionally and mentally more so than anything, of hard work, perseverance, and true grit.

The winters are harsh, your livelihood is cattle raising or farming, you rely on this crazy unpredictable weather for both, and hope to God (very literally, we’re in bible belt territory there after all) for them not to decimate your livestock or crop.  Each year is a gamble, every day you put in work, there are no days off and there many times is little to no reward, at least not seen immediately.
This was the environment and social norm my mother was raised in, and many of her guiding principles came through in her raising of me and my younger sister.

Thus becoming a large part of my founding principles as well, both in life and business and what I think one also finds in many entrepreneurs out there today, those being…

You take risks, there is no reward without them, you put yourself out there over and over again, if something is not working, if a situation is not working, a career choice, a relationship choice, you step back, you re-evaluate and you pivot or change your strategies accordingly, but you’re always moving, always working towards those immediate goals and the long term ones that will, in turn, be supported by the shorter-term ones, and always gambling to a certain extent.

This work ethic was further compounded by a stepfather who was a workaholic/alcoholic, perfectionist in his labors, who while doing very little in the “parenting” sector of my life, certainly instilled in it a sense of pride in the work he did and what those in the community had to say about him and that work ethic. That resonated with me.  There was pride for him that came from that and I realized the power of that pride once harnessed to the right goal could be extremely valuable.

The encouragement to explore and find and know myself earlier on in life (please, don’t wait until college to do so, many times it’s actually too late then) came from my mother. She wasn’t going to push a career path, a college plan, a sport, or anything like that on me and my sister growing up, rather she encouraged us to try all sorts of things and then focus on which ones enlivened us, that we were passionate about, and gave us deeper energy from within.  Because once you find that passion, you have the energy to work it like no one else out there.  You can work every single day and not become exhausted or overwrought, it’s really a magical thing, almost a superpower if you will.

All the right ingredients have to come from within though, that’s a big point here and that I have learned so far about myself and in my journey, they don’t need to mean the right degree (hell, they don’t need to mean a degree at all), they don’t need to mean the right house or outfit or partner, they come from within you, what you pride yourself in, what you’re passionate about, what you value most in life and want out of it, and then forming all of those inner powers and energies into a business or career plan from there.

Those were some of the key background points I have come to recognize in my upbringing that truly impacted not only who I am today, but what I do each and every day, and most importantly why I’m doing it.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

What sets me and the business I am currently running, Village Property Management apart is passion and pride.

The desire and passion, even in the smallest way, to want to be better in this industry than the competition, the pride in knowing the difference I am making in this industry and seeing it and hearing it from others I serve or work directly with, and lastly the fearlessness to try different approaches, knowing some will work and some will not, but that fear has no stake on me whatsoever to try something different when approaching the same business idea or model as everyone else out there.

I’m excited to be on my own course and adventure in investment real estate as well because practicing what you preach (or sell, or advocate for) is possibly more important than the work itself many times.  By doing it, you not only have an inner working knowledge but believing in it yourself does most of the sales work for you.

I somehow, it seems many times, landed in this profession almost by magic, I believe the real M-word is “manifestation” however.
Ironically enough I did my high school senior project on real estate, shadowing a combo real estate agent and property manager here in my hometown of Fallbrook.  I remember in my final conclusion writing “while exciting and fun, I did not think real estate was for me and would carry on with my professional ambitions in likely a different area of business”.  Little did I know!

So for the next 10+ years, my 20s, I jumped around from different jobs, all sorts, banking, shoe sales, bookkeeping, customer service, administrative assistant positions in offices, an office manager, all while going to school part-time, getting general education requirements out of the way for less money at Palomar Jr College, moving slowly towards a degree in business and taking all the business courses I could while there as well.

Spoiler alert: never got a degree, not so much as an AA even, just took the courses and learned nevertheless.  Learned what I liked and just as importantly what I did not like.

As life does, it throws you curveballs, and at 27 I found myself at what seemed at first a promising “job” but that had turned into a dead-end, getting divorced, and not sure what to do next or where to go. What I didn’t fully realize then, the way I am sure so many in their 20s and even beyond do not, is that life was happening to me, and not the other way around, I was not in the driver’s seat or making the calls or taking charge, it was all happening to me and I was letting it.

I took the next 2 years to re-group, kept working, but did some traveling for perspective, did some healing for the ability to truly move forward from there, and took a hard look at what the goals (now that it was just me) were going to be.

I had no one else to blame or excuse for me, and that was Huge.  It may just have been everything in fact.  I don’t think I could stress now to anyone younger (or even older in life) how important it is to be solid and right and good both with and about yourself, before bringing in a partner.  Both in life and business.  And no one or any one thing, no matter what, is ever your excuse for where you are or where you want to be.

So I decided as a 30-year-old woman, with no college degree, no husband, and no idea what was to come, to go back to the drawing board with some of my newly gained perspective, healed heart, and most importantly Goals, and see what life could be if I was the one designing it for myself.

I got my real estate license and went to one brokerage in town, and one only, Coldwell Banker Village Properties, the only one I interviewed with, and that was at the top of my list. The interview turned more into a conversation, went for about 2 hours, and I had the invite in, but also the prospect of something else that had just recently come about within their office.

They had a property management firm, started in 2008, run by one sole property manager, who had just given her 60 days’ notice, and no prospects of who would want to come in and take it over. It was mine if I wanted to give it a shot, no expectations, the real estate agent position was there should I change my mind.  But here was something that was its own niche and far less competition overall and would be all mine.  All my odd jobs and positions in the past were perfectly in line with what this job entailed and would require, the office manager, the detailed admin asst, the bookkeeper, customer service, even the shoe sales, and of course the banking background, all added up to this moment and this opportunity.  I took it.

I received approx 6 weeks with the manager who was on her way out, we ran through everything once with her showing me how it was done, and a second time (my one and only time with her) of me doing it myself, and that was it, she was gone, no more mistakes or mishaps possible now, no one there to watch over your shoulder or double-check your work, it was all on me and all mine to take from there.

It was extremely difficult, daunting, and beyond challenging.  And yes there were mistakes, a lot of them, but they were addressed head-on, with all that grit I’d learned early on as a kid, they were handled with all the office managerial poise I had learned later on in my odd jobs, and they were overcome by the fearlessness to not give up, no matter what.

This was mine, I knew what it could be and more importantly what I wanted it to be and that’s all there ever was about that. Nothing but moving forward and up from there, there was no going back to a normal, regular job, and failure or giving up would not be an option, this was about more than the job and the income, it was about me.

As I learned more, year after year, not only did the business grow, but I grew.  I grew in knowledge, expertise, and passion.  When I had the opportunity to listen to or speak with investor owners who had been doing their own rentals for years or had investment property for years, I took it.  When I had the opportunity to take classes and certifications in my field of property management or investment real estate, I took them.  And when one of my owner clients decided to sell their rental property, I bought it.

It was just 4 years in and I had grown the business to include two more leasing agents and myself, tripled the business from where it was when I was first given it, and finally purchased my first and very own investment rental property.  I was on my way and never looking back.

That’s what I hope and wish for everyone, find and know yourself, then find your passion, translate it into a business or income-producing venture, and no matter the curveballs or failures, never look back, just keep pushing forward and upward.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

I love how the question first started with eat, then drink, then visit, hang out. Because it would definitely be about the food as my top priority as well!

Some amazing seafood and views would be first up on the list, Chart House in Cardiff or Bali Hai on Shelter Island, great food and drinks alike, with views that never get old!

Of course, The World Famous San Diego Zoo, Safari Park, or any of our countless amazing museums in San Diego (especially in the Beautiful Balboa Park setting) would definitely be some of the places to visit.

The beach is a given, but one of my favorite places to walk is the San Diego Botanic Garden in Encinitas or around the Botanical Building & Lily Pond in Balboa Park (getting dinner at The Prado while visiting there, of course always makes the day perfect!)

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

First and foremost, my mother, a strong, independent, business thinking individual who taught me to think first for myself before all else. “And try not to outsmart your own common sense”. Thank you, Mom~

All the authors out there, I’ve read and read, all my life, both as a very young child on up. I love to read.
And while the reading has certainly changed, Robert Kiyosaki, Napoleon Hill, Jordan Peterson, as of late, the thanks has not, to all the authors who whether in fiction or investment gave me perspective, insight, and knowledge, if not in the world in which we live but the one I want to live in and create for myself, Thank you~

Website: www.vpmhomes.com

Instagram: @lauren_n_davila

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-davila/

Facebook: @vpmhomes

Yelp: www.yelp.com/biz/village-property-management-bonsall

Other: @vpmhomes