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The Watermark story began a decade ago. Coming out of the global financial crisis in 2009, the single-family home rental space was just starting to form into an institutionalized asset class. Eric Theisen and Freddy Ellis left corporate positions to help launch a real estate development company with an inner city faith based High School, Chicago Hope Academy, to help the school cover their operating deficit.
Supplying newly formed institutional buyers with rental homes, they redeveloped communities and forged the beginnings of this new, rapidly growing asset class. As single-family homes for rent became more prominent and consumer demand continued to surge, Eric & Freddy started Watermark to capitalize on the next level of opportunity – building single-family communities designated specifically for rent.
We exist to give – to cultivate. To create a new brand of real estate that gives residents a better place to live. A place to call home. To develop a new, wholistic standard of living. To not just fill units with tenants, but to cultivate a better life for residents.
Since 2013, Watermark Properties have been proud partners of the Chicago Hope Academy, a private, preparatory high school on Chicago’s near west side.
Our financial models may communicate how we best serve our stakeholders, but it is our actions that communicate how we actively seek and serve others in the communities in which we operate. If all else changes, Watermark will always remain committed to our greatest calling – serving people.
