When small businesses succeed, everyone benefits.

Westchester Realty

Lewis Tillman had been an executive at Motown Records for 15 years when he decided to return home to North Carolina for a career switch into real estate. Though many told him he’d have to spend years learning the ropes at an agency, Lewis had his own idea. He wanted to start his own agency, and he had a new model that he wanted to implement. Rather than having agents pay a percentage of sale to the agency, he only required a flat fee—no matter how much they sold, or what the price was. This allowed him to attract talented agents to grow his business. To further his financial stability, Lewis wanted to purchase the building he was operating in. But getting a bank loan proved difficult, and he was turned down despite showing over 12 years of profits and stability. He turned to the Small Business Administration, and was referred to Carolina Small Business where he was able to get the financing he needed to purchase the building.