RICHMOND, Va. — A local attorney’s real estate side gig is giving new life to a 19th-century structure in Jackson Ward.
First-time developer Jayan “Jay” Som is converting a mid-1800s stable-turned-garage along North Henry Street into three two-bedroom apartments.
The 2,500-square-foot brick structure is behind a residence at Henry and West Marshall Street that Som rents as a duplex. An in-house attorney for SunTrust Bank, Som purchased the property in 2014 with his wife and fellow attorney Jessica Selway for $320,000, city records show.
Som said they purchased it as an investment while living in Northern Virginia. He said he found the property online after visiting friends in Richmond and seeing potential in the rental market around VCU.
“As we were becoming more acquainted with Richmond, we liked the neighborhood so much we actually just moved down to Jackson Ward and bought our own house too,” said Som, whose residence is a few blocks east.
