FARGO, (AP) - Mike Marcil's company has quickly become one of North Dakota's biggest landlords, and now hopes to expand into neighboring states.

The Fargo-based Marcil Group, which last year moved to North Dakota from California, owns nearly 1,000 housing units and has investments of about $30 million across the state.

Marcil has invested in cities such as Valley City, Jamestown, Wahpeton and Grand Forks, as well as in smaller communities such as Gackle, Zap, Hazen and Beulah.

"Some people think we're crazy for investing in communities like those. But we see opportunities," he said.

Marcil, a Fargo native, moved to California in 1997, where he became a software executive and got involved with real estate investing. When the California real estate market peaked, Marcil saw new opportunities in North Dakota, in part because of rising oil prices. The state also held appeal as a good place to live and raise children. Marcil and his wife, Trish Bothum, have two small children.

Last year, Marcil served as an entrepreneur in residence at the University of North Dakota's Center for Innovation.

"Mike is very opportunity-focused. He's also a doer," said Bruce Gjovig, the center's director.

The Marcil Group has 73 employees, 15 of them in Fargo. Art Rosenberg, who founded Renaissance Ventures, a regional venture capital fund, is the company's president.

"Mike always has 100 projects in mind, and sometimes the rest of us have to hold him back," Rosenberg said.

The Marcil Group has three subsidiaries through which it owns, develops and manages real estate and related businesses. One of the company's main focuses is buying and fixing up old apartments.

"Providing modern living spaces is an important part of economic development," Marcil said.

In Valley City, the Marcil Group recently built a 36-plex apartment building, one of the city's first new moderate-income housing projects in two decades. The 36-plex fills a need for new, affordable housing, said Bobby Koepplin, president of the Valley City-Barnes County Development Corp.

In Jamestown, the company bought several businesses along the city's First Avenue Northwest. In Grand Forks, the Marcil Group owns the building in which Marcil lived while attending UND.

The company hopes to expand into Minnesota and South Dakota. On the wall of Marcil's offices are maps of the two states marking cities in which he's interested.

The Marcil Group also has investments in Houston and Louisiana, and Marcil talks of establishing southern and northern divisions. But for now the company is mostly interested in North Dakota.

"Our investments here can really make a difference," Marcil said.