2024 Men of the Year: Austin Miller

"I am a doer,” Austin Miller, owner of Wise Built Custom Homes, says. “I’m simply not afraid of going out and shaking up the waters.”

This philosophy has guided him through multiple ventures, from writing an e-book on real estate investment to developing a cost calculator for home construction and assuming pivotal leadership roles in the community.

Miller sees innovation as a key leadership skill and used that to develop a cost calculator tool for potential homebuilders, addressing the frequently asked but difficult-to-answer question of building costs. After facing technical hurdles, he took the initiative to create the tool himself, creating an online quiz and offering a free resource to both his clients and peers in the industry. “I have even had other builders from other markets reach out to me and ask me how to do it for their market,” he says.

Miller’s impact stretches beyond the confines of his business. His leadership as the president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield since 2022 has been pivotal. Under his guidance, the association has seen significant growth, from increased board membership to substantial budget enhancements. “We found two ways to increase the budget by $20,000 in revenue just by taking advantage of some easy opportunities,” he says.

Miller has also dedicated time to volunteering with various community groups, including teaching aspiring real estate investors in the Beginners’ Group through Springfield’s Real Estate Investor Group. He says his aim was to pave their path to financial freedom.

“It was a blast. Teaching was fun, but what is most rewarding is hearing a student come back and tell you they successfully put your methods into place and built wealth for their family,” he says. He also wrote and published “Free Houses: How To Build Your Real Estate Investment Portfolio With No Money” in 2018, an achievement he says he is particularly proud of, as it earned him guest spots on rental income podcasts across the nation.

“I had so many great mentors teach me things along the way that I knew if I wrote a book it could be a powerful guide to helping others start on their journey to build wealth and establish financial freedom,” he says.

In addition, Miller’s involvement in initiatives like the Springfield Mayor’s Commission on Human Rights and Community Relations’ Universal Design Task Force and the SW Missouri HOME Team underscores a deep-seated belief in the necessity of inclusive living spaces.

“As a builder, my contribution was to incorporate more accessible housing concepts to the Springfield community,” he says.

Miller has another accomplishment he’s proud of: being a musician.

“If my book isn’t my most proud accomplishment, I would say that it was co-writing and recording two full-length bluegrass albums with my dad, Guy Miller,” he says. “The second album is a gospel album, and since my dad and myself wrote it together, we labeled it ‘A Father, A Son, and The Holy Spirit.’ It’s a tremendous amount of time and effort that we set out to do together.”