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Operational Businesses with Chris Larsen
In this episode of the Short Term Show, Avery interviews Chris Larsen, the founder of Next Level Income. Chris shares his journey into real estate, starting at 21 years old, his pivot from single-family homes to commercial real estate, and his experience managing short-term rentals in Asheville. He also discusses his background in the medical device industry and how real estate became his full-time focus after the pandemic.
Avery: Hey guys, welcome back to the Short Term Show. Today we have a super cool guest.
Chris: Thanks for having me.
Avery: Chris Larsen is the founder and principal of Next Level Income and the author of a book by the same name. He’s been investing and managing real estate for over 20 years. He’s seen a lot, and I’m sure you’ve asked him a lot of questions about that. He’s done a lot of things—short-term rentals, commercial office building investing, car washes. So, Chris, let’s get started! How’s it going?
Chris: I’m great, Avery. Good to see you today.
Avery: Good to see you too! Thanks for being on.
Chris: Absolutely. My pleasure.
Avery: So let’s start off with telling our listeners a little bit about yourself and how you got into real estate.
Chris: Yeah, so I bought my first property at age 21. I’m a little older than that now, as you kind of alluded to.
Avery: laughs Thank you very much!
Chris: Yeah, I don’t know if I’ve seen it all, but I’ve seen a lot. Part of the reason is when I was younger, my parents were both in the real estate industry. My father was a contractor, and my mother worked for a construction company called JD Construction, which was Jimmy Dean’s business.
Avery: People my age might remember Jimmy Dean sausage!
Chris: laughs Exactly. I distinctly remember the Savings and Loan Crisis in the early 90s. I saw my parents lose their jobs during that period. There was another slowdown after 9/11. I had a portfolio of single-family homes going into the Great Recession, and I figured out how to revamp my portfolio and optimize it. That’s when I got into commercial real estate about 10 years ago.
Avery: Wow. That’s an incredible journey.
Chris: Yeah, along the way, I grew my capital and started acquiring more assets. I spent 18 years in the medical device industry while investing on the side. I did that for almost two decades, and then a few years ago, right after COVID, I decided that this would be my full-time endeavor. I have two young boys, and I wanted to spend more time with them. I spent 12 years of my life calling on the medical device industry, and that was enough for me.
Avery: So you’ve been in just about everything in the real estate space.
Chris: I won’t say everything, but pretty close!
Avery: Since this is the Short Term Show, you’re in Asheville, right? You’ve got two short-term rentals there, right?
Chris: Yeah, we bought a piece of land about nine years ago. I did some research on short-term rentals. Airbnb was just starting to take off, and I thought it would be a good way to supplement our income.
Avery: Asheville is a great spot for short-term rentals!
Chris: Oh yeah, people love to visit Asheville. We love it here as well. My wife’s an architect, so when we built our house, we actually moved into it ourselves. Over the last two years, we’ve added two short-term rentals on the property. The short-term rentals pay for all the expenses, which is great.
Avery: That’s amazing!
Chris: Yeah, we incorporated the rentals so that our best friends have a place to stay when they visit. It’s nice to have that space, and it provides a great financial cushion too.
