Meet Jamestown Invest Investors, Chris Schneider and Josephine Miller

February 11, 2022
15 minutes

Tell us about yourselves. What are some of your interests and favorite activities to do together?

Chris: I’m a commercial real estate attorney in private practice, and I also have a real estate brokerage firm. Now that Josie is in college, I’m an empty nester and have more time for entrepreneurial ventures and hobbies. As vice-chair of the Board of Directors of Actor’s Express Theatre and as co-president of the Brown Club of Georgia, I greatly enjoy community engagement and service. I’m an Atlanta native, love our city, and have high hopes for its continued evolution.

Josie: I’m a sophomore at Brown University in Providence, RI, studying theatre and history. I have a vested interest in the Atlanta theatre community and served as the youngest judge for the Suzi Bass Awards for Atlanta theatre during my senior year at The Paideia School. A love of plays, musicals and theatre is an interest that I share with my mother, and we spend a good bit of our shared time engaged in activities involving theatre.

Chris and Josie Schneider

Can you explain your thought process behind investing personally in private real estate through Jamestown Invest, and assisting Josephine with her investment as well?

Chris: I am currently overweight in cash and equities, although I maintain an allocation to public REITs. Real estate allows me to build equity and diversify my portfolio while providing a steady passive income stream. My other real estate investments include a limited partnership interest in a medical office building and direct ownership of family-owned residential rental properties. In addition, I recently managed and sold flex space in Winder, Georgia, for my family’s portfolio. Now, I’m looking for opportunities to find trusted sponsors and invest more in syndication opportunities as more of a hands-off approach. Hence, my interest in Jamestown Invest.

As for my involvement with Josie’s, we are looking to identify income-oriented opportunities. As we all know time is our best friend when it comes to the nature of compounded interest. One of the reasons she has participated in Jamestown Invest is because dividends go directly into her account.

As you contemplate the idea of a balanced portfolio, what about commercial real estate appeals to both of you?

Josie: With a demanding school curriculum and theater, I don’t often have time to think about my investments. However, my mother and I occasionally discuss demand drivers or catalysts before investing in a particular asset. For example, as a product consumer, one investment we identified as having growth potential was SNAP, the parent company behind Snapchat.

I have learned a lot by listening to my mother speak about real estate as we drove through the City. She would frequently point out projects she had worked on or identified neighborhoods with large-scale developments. Because of my mother’s background in real estate, I was comfortable having some of my portfolio allocated to Jamestown Invest.

Jamestown Christine Josie 0050

Having attended The Paideia School in Atlanta for grade school, I know Ponce City Market very well and spent some time at Southern Dairies. This is how I first learned about the properties Jamestown owns. I’ve also spent a little time at Chelsea Market during trips to NYC. I like the fact that real estate is tangible, which makes it unique.

Josephine, as you continue building your investment portfolio, what type of investment opportunities do you see being of most interest to you?

Josie: Since I am only 19, I am not independently directing my investments. My focus is on completing college and pursuing my interest in working as a theatre professional. Although I continue to discuss investment opportunities with my mother, there isn’t one that I’m particularly keen on now. My primary investment goal is to not disturb the investments I currently have in place, so that they can all continue to grow. Additionally, establishing and tracking a prudent discretionary budget is a top priority.

Chris, you made your Jamestown investment through a self-directed IRA. Can you share why you chose to fund your investment through this vehicle?

Chris: A traditional self-directed IRAs is optimal for many investments because they are tax-deferred. I already had established a self-directed IRA with STRATA Trust Company to invest in a venture fund, so it was an easy decision when I saw that I could easily use the custodian for my Jamestown investment. I used sidelined cash sitting in my IRA for this purpose. I won’t be touching retirement funds for some time, so the hold period for the Jamestown investment maps well towards using my self-directed IRA.

Chris and Josie Schneider- Southern Dairies

Chris, what is one financial lesson you wish you learned sooner to help Josephine with her personal finances?

Chris: The most significant gift I am giving Josie, with substantial assistance from her grandparents, is the opportunity to finish her undergraduate work debt-free. This is not easy to accomplish for most families, and I am so thrilled that she will have some financial freedom immediately and be able to work in any profession she chooses without being saddled with educational debt. Starting early with investing, gaining financial independence, and collecting income from multiple investment streams can empower individuals not to worry when a financial crisis occurs.

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