Courtesy of Isaac French
This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Isaac French, 27, about selling his Texas-based micro-resort in 2023. Business Insider has verified the sale of the property with documentation. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
I had a dream to create a village of Nordic-inspired cabins in the heart of Texas.
I found a five-acre parcel of land in Waco on Zillow, just a few miles from my home. In March 2021, I purchased the land using a short-term loan and personal savings for $138,000.
In nine and a half months, I managed the design and construction of a seven-unit micro-resort with an immersive natural setting. I financed the build with a construction loan from a local community bank and through raising equity from friends and family. It cost $2.5 million to build, including a container pool and hot tubs, which we added later on.
We launched in January 2022. A travel influencer who marketed the resort on Instagram helped us go viral and generate a huge number of bookings. It was like an instant goldmine.
We went all in on Instagram, growing the brand through creating content and partnering with influencers. Some of our early guests became superfans, coming back multiple times a year and bringing others with them. In our first 12 months of being open, we brought in $860,000 in bookings.
The entire time we operated the business, I kept in mind that if someone came and offered the right price and terms, I'd consider selling it. I believe that every material possession should have a price tag attached to it.
I sold the property, called Live Oak Lake, for $7 million in October 2023. I learned a lot about securing a deal, including the value of having a good broker and attorneys.
Live Oak Lake was like my baby. I built it from the ground up.
The first three months after we opened were challenging. I was learning how to integrate property management software, and my wife was doing the cleaning.
We hired a part-time cleaning and guest communications manager and a part-time operations manager, who then ran the property after the first few months.
I was then spending around five to 10 hours a week on the business, mostly doing marketing. Because you're open for business 24/7 in hospitality, some of those hours were late at night when guests were arriving late. I was doing personal branding and coaching alongside the hotel. My wife and I also did mission work with our church.
Part of the reason I considered selling Live Oak Lake was because of the stress of running it. Even though I automated elements for efficiency, in hospitality, the guest experience is paramount. I was focused on blowing guests away and wanted to look at every single review. It was hard to unplug from the business.
We listed Live Oak Lake for sale in the summer of 2022. Several parties were interested, but we felt the property was worth more. We removed that listing and raised the price by $1 million when we next listed in January 2023.
A broker who specialized in outdoor hospitality reached out and helped me from there. When we relisted the property, the broker helped vet the interested parties.
We were about to close on a deal for $6.5 million, but the buyers backed out the day before we were set to close. It was an emotional roller coaster.
A few days later, we received another offer for $7 million from a private group of investors, which we were able to close on. The property is being run similarly to before, and some of my friends who I hired to manage things on the ground still work there.
I think the uniqueness and novelty of the property, the audience we built, and the quality of the hospitality we offered helped us sell for that price.
We weren't in a hurry to sell, but $7 million was a lot of money. Plus, I hit it off with the buyer and liked their vision. I felt they understood what made us special, like our social media following, direct bookings, and unique experience.
One thing I learned from the selling process was the importance of having good attorneys and a great broker.
Our broker was local, which was a huge help. There were a lot of property inspections and meetings with prospective buyers. He could help with those things without me having to drop everything.
He alleviated my emotional volatility and attachment to the property because I didn't have to be involved in every interaction. I'm a very detail-oriented person who likes to micromanage things. I needed to trust other people, like my attorneys and the broker, who could take my hands off of the selling process.
I'd highly recommend getting a broker to anyone selling a property.
I think I sold Live Oak Lake at the right time. I held the property just long enough to gain thorough experience operating a micro-resort and build it to a point where it was really valuable.
Selling has alleviated stress in my life. I have an office and art studio in my backyard, where I can now work on other ventures as and when I want. I consult with other micro-resort developers, which is how I'm funding my lifestyle now.
I think I would own and operate another project, but I'd want to hire a full-time manager that I could train to manage our operations.
The Live Oak Lake project was an amazing project, a baptism by fire in the realms of real estate, marketing, and hospitality. The price was right, so it made sense to sell it.
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