In the competitive Dallas multifamily housing market, founder Barrett Linburg of Savoy Equity Partners demonstrates a remarkable ability to turn single investments into larger opportunities and successfully scale them into profitable ventures.
Just last month, Linburg’s firm announced the completion of three new properties, adding 170 units to the Bishop Ridge area.
The properties, named Burnett Lofts at 512 N Ewing Ave., The Cambridge at 627 N Lancaster Rd., and Ferguson Flats at 624 N Lancaster Rd., represent a significant milestone in the urban transformation of the area.
“This is what meaningful urban transformation looks like,” Linburg stated.
“Five years ago, this area struggled with crime and abandoned properties.
Today, we’re creating vibrant housing that respects existing residents while bringing new life to the community.”
Linburg’s journey in real estate began with a focus on the financial aspects of the industry.
After graduating from Southern Methodist University, he entered the field as a commercial mortgage broker at BMC Capital.
“That’s really how I learned the ins and outs of commercial real estate, by arranging financing,” he shared in an interview with CandysDirt.com.
He underscores that this role is an excellent pathway for young people starting their careers, as it provides insights into the complex math involved and the opportunity to engage with developers, property owners, attorneys, title companies, insurance agents, and other crucial participants in the real estate ecosystem.
With a few years of hands-on experience and an MBA under his belt, Linburg decided to take a risk by investing in himself.
In 2012, he identified an eight-unit apartment building in Oak Lawn, a property built in the 1970s that had yet to be renovated, making it an ideal candidate for a fix-and-flip project.
He and his wife collaborated with his mother-in-law to secure a loan and enter the investment.
“We were able to raise the rents to a market rate based on the upgraded finish and we sold it 366 days later to get long-term capital gains tax treatment,” Linburg explained.
“We more than doubled our money, so it was a big win, which was nice for our first project.”
Using the same successful formula, Linburg repeated the strategy with larger properties, bringing in new investors, including family and friends, for each project along the way.
Today, he oversees Savoy Equity Partners, which has expanded to include a broader network of investors, including larger funds.
“It’s a much wider circle that includes all the original friends and family but also some larger funds that invest with us,” he noted.
Over the past 13 years, Savoy Equity Partners has deployed nearly $150 million in various real estate projects.
Linburg attributes his success to a straightforward strategy: identifying the “low-hanging fruit.”
For him, that means acquiring underutilized properties in established neighborhoods or developing vacant lots where land use is permitted.
“Everyone can get behind renovating the ugliest building in the neighborhood,” he said, emphasizing his firm’s commitment not only to renovations but also to constructing new buildings from the ground up.
In addition to its development efforts, Savoy Equity Partners has also ventured into property management, retaining ownership of numerous units throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth rental market.
The firm has increased its presence in North Oak Cliff, owning 26 buildings in that area alone.
Furthermore, Linburg has adopted a long-term investment strategy by capitalizing on Opportunity Zones created during the Trump administration.
Under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, investors who engage with projects in economically distressed U.S. Census tracts can benefit from reduced tax burdens, potentially paying no taxes on profits if the investment is held for at least ten years.
“There’s no benefit the day you invest; it’s really only when you sell,” Linburg pointed out.
“You don’t pay tax on the appreciation of the property if you hold it for 10 years, so it’s a very long-term patient deal.
We’ve capitalized a whole lot of our projects in that structure over the past five years and plan to continue to do so.”
With a housing shortage becoming increasingly evident in the region, Linburg holds an optimistic outlook for Dallas’s rental market.
He notes that over the last few years, Dallas has experienced a significant influx of individuals aged 25 to 34, outpacing other markets both in percentage growth and absolute numbers.
This demographic is naturally inclined to be renters.
Linburg attributes part of this trend to builders’ struggles to keep up with demand and rising interest rates.
“Those people are renters by necessity today, more than in decades past, so it’s a good market for apartment developers,” he concluded.
image source from：https://candysdirt.com/2025/04/16/with-founder-barrett-linburg-savoy-equity-partners-remains-bullish-on-dallas-housing/
