How This Founder Is Turning Small Town Rentals Into Big Time Returns

From Cold Calls to 400+ Units

Jake Whitney did not wait for the perfect deal to come to him. He picked up the phone.

After flipping houses in Tennessee, he began calling brokers every day. Eventually, those calls led to a few small multifamily deals, which turned into larger acquisitions, repeat capital, and an in-house management company.

Today, Onarock focuses on 50 to 100 unit properties in landlord-friendly markets where competition is lower and cash flow is stronger. They self-manage. They raise from a tight group of LPs. And Jake still talks to 30 to 40 people a day to keep the pipeline full.

It’s not a magic formula. It’s grit, consistency, and a clear investment thesis.

The Play: Flip Value-Add Assets in Small Markets and Buy at Tax Auctions

Jake isn’t chasing Sunbelt multifamily or large institutional deals. He’s doing something smarter: going where the numbers work and where the competition isn’t.

His team looks for:

• Sixplexes and small multifamily in tertiary markets

• Mobile home parks with strong cash flow

• Office buildings with upside via new tenants

• Single-family flips sourced through tax auctions

The strategy? Flip or force appreciation in 12 to 24 months, and only pursue deals where the backup plan is still profitable — like strong cash flow or rental demand.

Why This Works

1. Two Paths to Profit
Jake only buys if there are two ways to win. Appreciation plus cash flow. Flip potential plus rental upside. If one fails, the other protects the downside.

2. Buy Where the Big Guys Won’t
Most sponsors skip over Missouri or New Mexico. But that’s where the yield lives. One sixplex he bought sold in 40 days — in a rural market most people never look at.

3. Tax Auction Arbitrage
In New Mexico, tax sales transfer full title on day one. That means no waiting for redemption periods or liens to season. Jake finds undervalued homes this way, renovates them, and sells at a profit — sometimes rolling that into the next deal with his LPs.

The Risks (And How He Avoids Them)

Old Utilities:
His first major lesson: inspect the plumbing and wiring early. On one deal, they had to cut through the parking lot and redo all the piping just to get water back on.

Rural Buyer Pools:
Rural markets move slower. So Jake buys assets with strong rental demand or value add upside that give him time flexibility if exit timing doesn’t go as planned.

Deal Fatigue:
He spent 40 to 60 hours a week early on scouring Zillow, Redfin, and PropStream before landing his first few deals. He built his own calculator and refined filters to move faster.

What You Can Learn (and Steal)

1. You Don’t Need to Syndicate First
Jake started with small personal deals, gained reps, and then opened syndications and funds. His early LPs now roll profits forward into new deals.

2. Pick Up the Phone
Most sponsors pay quarterly. TR3 pays monthly. It’s harder operationally, but easier on His partner is a real estate attorney. Jake is the boots-on-the-ground operator, deal hunter, and closer. The system works because they each focus on their strengths.

3. Tell a Values-Based Story
Jake leads with mission. His first inspiration was his grandfather, a schoolteacher who built a small portfolio during the Great Depression. Now Jake is building something his kids can see too — and that matters to his investors.

Listen to the full episode

🎙 Groundbreakers with Jake Whitney

In it, we cover:

• How Jake transitioned from tech marketing to full-time investing

• Why his first big win came from a mobile home park in New Mexico

• How he uses tax auctions to find overlooked SFR deals

• The plumbing nightmare that almost tanked a flip

• His long-term plan to reach $100M in AUM with impact in mind