Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity brothers Timothy Webb Jr. and Rashae Bey have began buying property near their alma mater, the University of South Carolina, to combat gentrification in the area. Through their lifestyle brand, More Than a 9 to 5, the duo has purchased two acres of land in Columbia, South Carolina. Together, the two have 26 rental properties combined in Virginia and South Carolina.
"Our goal is to get our hands onto as much real estate in the South Carolina area as possible," Webb Jr. said.
"There is a lot of gentrification by those who don't look like us, and I believe if we want to see change, we need to be the change we want to see."
Moving forward, the two don't just want to buy property for themselves. They hope to educate and encourage others to do the same. Through their growing brand, Webb Jr. hopes to inform others about the real estate business, buying stocks and more.
"I want to change the mindset of people to expand into the unknown of what they may not have been taught," Webb Jr. explained.
"I want to change the generational curses that have been handed down to us and build generational wealth for our bloodlines."
More Than a 9 to 5 lives beyond real estate. Ultimately, the duo hopes to push others to utilize creativity in their prospective fields. Webb Jr. wants others to buy into building a mix of entrepreneurship into whatever it is that they do. In his words, creativity is the key to building up Black communities.
"The world doesn't move without Black creativity, all of us are creative people, and we have to make a decision if our God-given talent is something we can use in entrepreneurship or just a hobby. We are too creative not to use our gifts," Webb Jr. said.
"What I've seen is that you can be a full-blown entrepreneur, do a mix of 9-5 and entrepreneurship, or work so hard in your career that you can build yourself up. My Black is creative, always!"
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