Hi everyone!
I’m a foreigner who had to relocate from Ukraine to the US a year ago. I’m 38, with a background in law and finance, and I’ve spent my whole life working in business and real estate. I still own a portfolio of 10+ commercial and residential properties in Ukraine, along with several business assets.

In my first year in the US, I got my real estate broker’s license, even though I never really wanted to be just a regular sales agent. I also completed my first house flip here – it hit the market this Monday and we’re currently waiting for the first offer.

On top of that, I’ve built a small car fleet that I rent out on Turo (16 cars at the moment) just to keep things afloat, because in reality everything related to real estate here moves very slowly compared to what I’m used to back home. Due to the language barrier, limited local knowledge, and very different legal/regulatory framework, I’m finding it challenging to negotiate deal terms with potential partners and to source interesting opportunities.

I’ve always been more focused on commercial real estate, but so far I haven’t been able to find anyone in this space who is open to partnership. I have extensive entrepreneurial experience, but commercial real estate here has its own specifics, so I really need people who already have some experience in this market and would be interested in doing joint projects.

I’d be very happy to connect with people who are interested in commercial or investment residential real estate in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina. If anyone here has ever been in my shoes – coming to this country as a complete newcomer with a “suitcase” full of experience, trying to rebuild everything from absolute zero – I’d really appreciate any advice or pointers you can share.

My goal is to build my own real estate portfolio that I can manage myself, generate rental income from, and partially use for my own business in the automotive and children’s entertainment space.