Our story

Whiskey Creek was founded by two life-long friends, Eric Meyerowtiz and Phil Carpenter.  They went to school together from kindergarten through high school. They played on the same soccer teams, suffered through the same U.S. history and biology classes, and regularly broke curfew together. In college, Eric gravitated towards architecture and Phil towards business. And as the years went by and their careers progressed, they remained close friends.

After two decades spent developing high-end homes in Los Angeles, Eric moved to Phoenix in 2014. His plan was to develop his own home in Paradise Valley, and then to begin developing and selling spec homes in the area. When Eric finished his home, Phil came to visit and was impressed by the innovative architecture and the way in which Eric had developed a high quality property at reasonable cost. Over the course of a weekend, the two talked over whiskey -- a favorite of Eric’s dad -- about opportunities for real estate development in Phoenix and how they could pursue them together. And by the end of that weekend, Whiskey Creek Properties was born.

 

Whiskey Creek today

Whiskey Creek has developed multiple properties in Phoenix since those early days. And our business model is highly focused. We buy vacant lots or “tear downs” in up-and-coming Phoenix neighborhoods. We have a particular affinity for properties that present architectural challenges or come with development restrictions (e.g. those located in historic districts), as we know how to work well within these parameters and can secure attractive pricing on such properties. We build single family homes or “residential multi-family” properties (2-4 units) on these lots.  We then rent the properties, refinance them, and return capital to our investors, who retain equity and reap substantial benefits over the long term.

Why the “Buy-Build-Rent-Refinance” model?

The BBRR model has substantial advantages over build-and-flip property development:

  • Once a completed property has been leased for 3-6 months, we can refinance and return the cash to investors, a technique which significantly boosts cash-on-cash returns. Investors retain equity in the property, and the cash they receive from the re-fi is tax-free.

  • The properties we develop and lease generate monthly positive cash flow from the rent we collect. This cash flow will increase over time as we use a portion of the rent we receive each month to pay down our loans on the properties.

  • The properties will appreciate over the years as the neighborhoods in which we invest continue to gentrify

  • Investors can write off their portion of a property’s depreciation against their taxes, as well as other items such as interest expense on the loan and the eventual the eventual cost of repairs/improvements

  • Once the properties have accumulated enough equity, we can opt to refinance again -- or ultimately sell (our target hold time for these properties is 7-10 years)

Why single family and residential multi-family rentals?

  • Demand for quality rental properties in Phoenix is high. With the city’s continuing growth, vacancy rates for Phoenix are just 5.81%.

  • In 2019, rents in Phoenix climbed faster than anyplace else in the U.S., so our investors should benefit from solid rent growth as Phoenix continues to expand.

  • In building both single family and residential multi-family, we have inherent diversification and flexibility in our portfolio. We can eventually sell a single family home to either an investor or a family. The residential multi-family properties will appeal to investors -- and the availability of high quality small investment properties in Phoenix is slim. 

Our bios

Featured
Phil Carpenter, Managing Partner
Phil Carpenter, Managing Partner

At Whiskey Creek, Phil is responsible for marketing, legal, investor relations and raising capital. Before co-founding the company, Phil spent his career in marketing and public relations, working both in-house and for agencies. Whiskey Creek is Phil’s sixth start-up, and he is skilled at helping young companies to position themselves distinctively, tell their stories effectively, and scale quickly. Most notably, Phil led marketing for SideStep, the company that created the travel search engine category. SideStep was purchased Kayak -- which was in turn bought by Priceline. Phil has a BA from Stanford and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Outside of work, Phil is an avid sailor and scuba diver. He is also on the board of directors of The Marine Mammal Center, the world’s largest marine mammal hospital.

Eric Meyerowitz, Architect
Eric Meyerowitz, Architect

A Whiskey Creek co-founder, Eric drives the design of our home drawing upon his twenty-five years of experience. Eric is not only creative, he also is cost-conscious, realistic, and attentive to detail -- in short, he is an “investor’s architect,” designing houses that will not only please buyers, but also deliver excellent results for investors. Before moving to Phoenix, Eric spent years designing high-end homes in Los Angeles, first for firms such as Hablinski Architecture and Appleton & Associates, then eventually on his own. Eric has a BS in Design from UC Davis and a Masters of Architecture from the University of Oregon. Beyond work, Eric is an active hiker and regularly explores sites like Camelback Mountain and Pinnacle Peak on his weekends. Eric volunteers regularly as a shift leader for St. Vincent de Paul.