Photo provided by Benaisha Poole-Watson.

Correction Feb. 22: This story has been updated to clarify that Prime One Home Loans is a non-depository mortgage bank.

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With rental properties in Lake Highlands, Oak Cliff, Grand Prairie, Mesquite and across the nation, Benaisha Poole-Watson is taking her show on the road.

Watson recently got a TV show on FOX Soul where she’ll cover financial literacy and ways people can become more bankable. Though her time and travel is split between Atlanta and Dallas, the show will both air on TV and stream online. 

“It will be about educating on current housing, real estate experience, both commercial and residential because I handle both,” she says.

Before she got the offer for her own show, however, Watson was named among the top one percent of realtors in the country. Her realty group, Bailey Watson Real Estate, is also minority- and women-owned with licensed realtors across the country.

She had an early start in real estate because she wanted to own a home rather than rent and also provide homes for people who needed a place to stay.

“I got into real estate when I was 19, and I bought my first house,” she says. “By the time I was 26 years old, I owned 20 rental properties. My job would always move me from state to state, so, instead of renting homes I would just buy and lease out the homes.”

In 2021, Watson started her own non-depository mortgage bank, Prime One Home Loans, specializing in a variety of home loans, including FHA and VA loans. Through her real estate experience, she noticed her minority clients had difficulty qualifying for loans and having home loans and mortgage applications denied.

“I noticed they don’t get competitive rates and don’t get the same treatment as other people. So, I really spearheaded my company with the goal of educating minorities and getting them into homes.”

Another way Watson gives back to the community is through a real estate school. The annual scholarship is available to high school students interested in earning a real estate license or pursuing entrepreneurship.