Originally published: bizjournals.com

Dave Enslow, co-principal of Timberlane Partners, grew up on a small farm in Sumner where his family harvested corn and pumpkins and raised beef cattle.

Though farming was a “tough way to make a buck,” it was also representative of the American dream, Enslow says.

“Running a farm is about tending the fields, and in many ways that translates into what I’m doing today,” he says.

Since 2011, Seattle-based Timberlane Partners has built or acquired more than $1 billion in multifamily real estate in the West Coast and Mountain West regions.

Enslow recently talked about his professional journey with the Business Journal.

About Dave

• Age: 46
• Hometown: Sumner
• Residence: Capitol Hill, Seattle
• Family: Margaret, wife; children DJ, 12, Nora, 10, and Charlie, 9; and black lab, Mochi
• Education: Sumner High School; bachelor’s from University of Washington

Day in the life

We asked Dave to break down his typical workday:

• 6-7:15 a.m.: Wake up, get kids ready for school, check emails and the day’s activities 
• 7:30 a.m.: Work out 
• 8:30 a.m.: Walk to work 
• 9 a.m.: Arrive at the office for meetings in the a.m. and creative in the p.m.  
• 4:30 p.m.: Respond to emails  
• 5 p.m.: Walk home, take kids to practices or attend community functions 
• 8:30 p.m.: Check email, spend time with wife
• 9:30 p.m.: Begin to wind down  

How did your family’s farming business turn into a career in commercial real estate?

I grew up in Sumner, Washington, on a small farm, so we were self-starters always adapting to changing economic and environmental conditions. I think that background has helped me to be centered in growing a firm that is grounded and nimble. We don’t pause because there is always more to do. Farming is a tough business and we had to make ends meet. So, my folks became involved in rental housing, and the income from that helped make the farm business work. I helped renovate and show the units, so I became familiar with the real estate business.

When did you turn real estate into your profession?

I bought my first rental in 1998 when I was attending the University of Washington. I owned it for 10 years. I also worked as a small-scale general contractor where I learned a lot about customer service.

How did the business start?

I met my current business partner, John Chaffetz, in 2008. We went in on a 150-unit multifamily in Des Moines in 2011. Our business went fast from there. We’ve built all different types of housing from three-story walk-ups to garden-style communities to a 31-story multifamily high-rise. While I love building new housing stock, the bulk of our business remains renovating existing housing units and always looking for opportunities to make those communities better. Someone reminded me recently that the greenest building already exists and updating our existing housing stock not only helps maintain affordability but promotes sustainability.

In addition to Washington, you have projects in California, Utah, Illinois and Colorado. How did you go about growing your company to the regional level?

Some of our partners were interested in the Salt Lake City market around 2013, so we looked into it. We ended up doing 10 larger-scale projects there over the course of several years.

What prompted you then to expand into the Los Angeles-area market?

We entered the LA market in 2014. We felt like the Seattle market was getting “frothy” by 2015, meaning the prices were getting high. So we shifted our focus to the LA and Salt Lake market. We even entered into the hotel market in Los Angeles.

What factors are behind your decisions to invest in those various markets?

Our investment decisions are driven, in large part, by our partners’ desire to be in certain geographic locations. All the markets behave differently at any given time, and there are also political considerations. For example, when Amazon is hot here, that affects the housing market. The silicon industry folks in Salt Lake affected the market during the Covid pandemic. A lot of our decisions are based on how populations move and where people want to be.

How do you and your firm manage the changing market dynamics?

This is my third market cycle, third market downturn I’ve gone through. History doesn’t exactly repeat itself, but it does rhyme. The best strategy is to know there is still opportunity out there.

What’s the best advice you give?

Tell partners about bad news immediately and good news quarterly. I spend a lot of time thinking about how to communicate my ideas and strategies while also sharing what variables we have some control over and what variables are out of our control. I think that helps to maintain alignment in any context and assists everyone to navigate whatever challenges inevitably arise.

What’s next?

My dad, who was not only a farmer but also the mayor of Sumner and sat on the Sound Transit board, instilled in me a sense of community activism. So, while our emphasis during the current market has been acquisitions, we are also launching a $50 million development fund focused in Seattle. … The lack of new construction in our city’s pipeline is not good for pricing stability and affordability.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.