INDIANAPOLIS — Growing up on Indy’s west side, Terone Johnson and Omari Heflin never thought about a future career in real estate.
“I didn't even know about it,” Johnson said. “Just because there wasn't people in front of us that was doing it, that looked like us.”
Johnson was into music and sports. He played basketball at North Central High School, Purdue University and eventually overseas.
His goal was always to get back home and give back to the community.
Johnson and Heflin are now both co-owners of Legacy Home Buyers, a real estate investment company.
“It's good and bad every day,” Heflin said. “It's business, it's real business, but we love it. We beautify our communities.”
Heflin grew up near 16th Street and Tibbs Avenue and graduated from Ben Davis High School.
“Just last week, bought a property over in the area, a street from where we grew up at and it's just like surreal, the same street we used to go down,” Heflin said.
Legacy Home Buyers now owns 60 rental properties across Indianapolis. They also fix properties up and sell them.
“Our general focus is areas where there is gentrification because that is where the city or where investors are kind of pushing those areas, those markets,” Heflin said. “So we come in and we try to take those different properties that are still opportunities for us. We fix those up, but it's still affordable usually within the $100,000-$200,000 price range, which is typically a first-time homeowner or buyer.”
After starting their business in 2019, Johnson and Heflin are seeing success and want to share their knowledge with the community.
“Homeownership should be more accessible. People should understand it and people should have it,” Heflin said. “That's why we have different events and education to help people get into real estate investing, or at least bare minimum homeownership.”
Legacy Home Buyers next networking event is November 15 from 6 - 9:30 p.m. at the Skyline Club. It is free but you must RSVP. The event will include a live Q&A session with Johnson and Heflin. It will also serve as a chance to meet and network with real estate professionals in the area and grow your business.
“I’m talking to people that are just now getting into the business, I'm talking to people that have been in over 20 years,” Johnson said. “We are now in those communities, we’re able to ask different questions, run deals by each other, and help people… so that's huge.”
