What happens when you lose everything you've built? Stacey Stewart knows this reality all too well. From climbing the corporate ladder at IBM to building luxury homes and entire subdivisions in Texas, Stacey's property development journey exemplifies both spectacular success and devastating failure.
The 2008 housing crisis struck Stacey particularly hard. With 35 homes in various stages of completion and no buyers in sight, she watched her thriving business crumble into bankruptcy. The aftermath was brutal—depression, divorce, losing custody of her daughter, and ultimately finding herself homeless, living in her repossessed daycare van. "It was very taxing on my mental health," she shares with remarkable candor. "I felt like I wanted to give up."
Yet from this rock bottom emerged an extraordinary comeback story. Through faith, determination, and the crucial support of a friend who believed in her when no one else would, Stacey began rebuilding. Starting with just $5,000 borrowed from a relative and relying on hard money lenders with punishing terms, she fought her way back into the industry she loved. Fifteen years of persistence later, she proudly declares, "I became a multimillionaire all over again. I've been a multimillionaire three times in my life."
Today, Stacey leverages her hard-won wisdom to help others avoid similar pitfalls. Her three essential tips for property developers—get a mentor, educate yourself thoroughly, and build the right support network—come directly from experiences that nearly broke her. "It humbled me," she reflects on her failure. "It made me a better person."
Discover the raw reality of entrepreneurial resilience and the transformative power of perseverance in this compelling conversation that proves failure isn't final—it's formative.
