Road to Realty

Remember when I wrote about our tax plan not going as planned in this post? Yeah… that $12,000 reminder was a hard way to learn that even the best spreadsheets can’t fix a system that’s a little off.For those who missed that one and don’t want to click on the link above: we took a…

A couple of weeks ago, I shared how important systems are in real estate investing. At the time, I was focused on building processes that could help me manage properties and future deals without losing my mind. But lately, I’ve found myself circling back to Gary Keller’s book The One Thing. The reminder is simple…

A lot of the books on REI I’ve been reading lately make the same point: your network is everything. The people you surround yourself with can shape how you think, what you learn, and even how far you go. That idea has really been on my mind, so we’ve been making a larger effort to…

Most people think of a side hustle as one extra thing. For me, it’s a couple of them stacked on top of each other. I have a full-time job, I’m a mom (with all that entails), and then on the side I’m a real estate investor, an agent, a blogger… and now I’m figuring out…

I’ve been learning a lot about tax strategies lately. The kind that aren’t exactly dinner party conversation (unless you’re at our house), but can make a huge difference when investing in real estate. I thought I had 1031 exchanges figured out pretty well. You exchange one property for another, defer the capital gains tax. Simple…

“Work smarter, not harder.” It’s something I tell myself often—usually when I find a better way to tackle daily life. I’ve gotten pretty good at streamlining chores and everyday tasks, but I realized this week that I haven’t brought that same energy to my businesses. Last week was a whirlwind, personally and professionally. Between my…

Until recently, Ken and I both just had the standard life insurance through work. It felt like enough at the time—basic coverage we never really questioned. But once we started thinking long term (especially with kids, real estate, and future goals in the picture), we realized it might not be. We each ended up adding…

Ken and I have made the decision to not purchase a third investment property this year. It is disappointing because it definitely does not align with our goal of 10 properties in 5 years. However, we hope to set ourselves up for more success in 2026. Ken mentioned in the last post how we would…

Our current real estate portfolio, excluding our primary, still stands at two properties in Ohio.  The primary source of resistance is still with the property management company, but that seems to be a recurring theme in the industry.  Today, we discovered that we were double charged for marketing fees for a vacancy we had with…

Let’s talk about a dirty little word in real estate investing: *vacancy*.Right now, one of our properties is just… sitting. Empty. Quiet. Unrented. And while some people might enjoy peace and quiet, we prefer the sound of rent hitting our account on the first of the month. Instead, this place is giving us the silent…