Meet Matthew Drane

Today we’d like to introduce you to Matthew Drane. 

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Welcome! My name is Matthew, and I’m honored to hold several titles in life. A few of my favorites are husband, dad, brother, friend, real estate executive, and the newest one, rural builder. Real estate and travel are passions of mine. My family and I love to travel and spend time in nature and outdoors. After living in Washington, DC for 15 years, my wife and I moved our family back to our home state of Ohio in 2020. Immediately, we began searching for our family nature retreat and realized others might want to enjoy it as well. This journey has opened my eyes, and I began focusing on raw land and dirt just as much as existing and improved real estate. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
That’s a firm “no.” I was raised by my parents to be creative, resourceful, and passionate. These things ultimately shaped this entrepreneurial by-product who embraces calculated and managed risk! I’ve been investing in real estate since 2005. My parents and grandparents were property owners and at a young age, inspired me to own “a piece of the rock”. Throughout my journey, which started with single-family homes, has now expanded to apartment buildings, mortgage notes, hotels, rural cabin development to a recent acquisition of a farm. Each step of the way, I’ve navigated market cycles, labor and material shortages, financing challenges, theft, and partnership struggles. Access to capital remains a challenge for our business and expansion plan for our portfolio. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a commercial real estate executive, broker, and entrepreneur. I serve as a leader of agents and mentor sales professionals focused on selling commercial real estate. I’ve collaborated with hundreds of investment sales agents and loan originators nationwide, transacting north of $450MM of sales, and has brokered or acquired (directly or indirectly) over 170 real estate transactions. As an entrepreneur and investor, I am actively acquiring and improving existing real estate (commercial and residential), purchasing and brokering mortgage notes, and developing land (urban and rural). 

Drane Cabin Group, a company formed in 2021, focuses on acquiring rural land in the Midwest and Southeast. Our first project, located in Perry County (OH), consists of 14 acres and is home to The Little Red Fox, our first rural development- an affordable, luxury cabin. We intend to develop additional dwellings and amenities on that site. It’s a model that we’ve started to expand to other markets as we purchased vacant land in GA, MO, NC, and several other markets over the past 6 months. 

Although most of my career has focused on income properties and improved assets, land has quickly become our preferred asset class. It’s the foundation for all that comes after it. So, we have resolved to continue buying good deals, but sourcing our own land with future development being a probable outcome. So that’s what makes me different. I’m a city guy, born in Cincinnati and who lived in Washington D.C. for 15 years, who has started a new chapter, sourcing, and playing in the dirt both inside and outside of major cities across the country. 

How do you define success?
Success to me is positively impacting my household and community, physically through my presence and time spent, as well as financially by generating resources and capital that will endure beyond my lifetime. I also believe that my ability to teach, transfer and empower others to do the same will be a trademark of my legacy. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dranecabingroup.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/MDrane1911/
• Facebook: https://www.fouronecapital.com/
• Other: https://linktr.ee/MDrane1911

Image Credits
JehanLLC