Friends,
It’s been a bit of a hellacious struggle these past few weeks. The last time I was here with you all, I touched on the challenges I was working through with my current flips and rental properties, which you can revisit here should you desire a good dramatic read LOL.
Well, the sagas are far from over, but for the first time in what feels like over 6 weeks, I can see a glimmer of light as things begin to take shape.
Today, I want to share some of the solutions and positive things that have transpired amidst the pile I shit I’ve been sitting in. 💩
First, if you haven’t kept up with me on IG/FB, I got my first short-term rental under contract! It’s been such a fun process from the crafting of a strong offer, the anticipation of getting it under contract, visiting the property and touching it with my very own hands (most, if not all, of my deals to date have been done sight-unseen!), experiencing the community of South Bend, negotiating terms during the due diligence period, building new relationships with potential capital partners AND, last but not least, receiving a solid appraisal that will secure more favorable terms than originally anticipated. Like, can I get HELL YEA! 🙌
Honestly, this whole short-term rental experience has been incredibly more fulfilling than any other project I’ve been involved with to date. It hasn’t been without its hiccups, but the positivity surrounding this project and the idea of curating an amazing experience for South Bend travelers has me on a high.
Moreover, my business partner and I made some final decisions regarding our flip in Homewood, IL. Yesterday, I shared in a post a bit of what we’ve been going through.
Long story short, our contractor went silent. With the property far from complete, and a large portion of the funds already dispersed, we found ourselves in a really bad position.
However, we didn’t let the uncertainty of our situation deter us from moving forward. Each day, we put one foot in front of the other, and devised various solutions.
As of last week, we made the final decision to move forward with the renovation of the property with a new contractor. He came highly recommended from another industry professional that I've worked with a handful of times. Note, my BEST team members have come from recommendations from industry PROFESSIONALS.
And with that, I’m happy to report that after a month of stagnation, progress is once again being made against our flip property in Homewood! While our final profit (or loss, which is likely) in the deal is still a large unknown, it’s the risk we’ve assumed and vetted as the lesser of two evils. I look forward to sharing the updates with you soon!
Furthermore, renovations continue to take place over at the 7-unit building. And honestly, while I feel like the project is a bit of money pit, I’m holding on tight with long-term returns in mind. In the past 4 weeks I’ll have spent over 40k in unanticipated capital expenditures.
Does that make you want to puke? 🤮 Yea, tell me about it.
But ya know what?
I’m grateful that I had the 40k in reserves and credit lines to absorb it. Remember that 60k credit line I literally just got approved for? Talk about impeccable timing…
But, beyond the money, my tenants have been incredibly gracious throughout all the hiccups. You take on additional risks when you invest in low-income housing neighborhoods like this. That said, I find myself incredibly blessed with the group of people who have chosen to call my building home. I’m quite grateful for how accommodating they’ve been throughout the process and handled the unexpected discomforts.
To wrap things up, I’m taking some time here today to recognize the good things that are happening around me. More importantly, I’m feeling gratitude for the journey. I’ll admit, it’s hard to do when you feel in a state of arrest, which is where I’ve been for the past few weeks.
Believe it or not, what prompted me to write this very post was an activity my 5YO daughter was assigned this week. She was sent home with a gratitude journal. A letter accompanied the journal, and made a brilliant distinction between thankfulness and gratitude, which I’ll leave you with here:
“When something good or exciting happens, it’s easy to be thankful. We appreciate the warm feelings that come with gifts or happy news. Thankfulness involves how we feel in the moment, and like all feelings, eventually, it fades. Thankfulness is a temporary emotional response to a temporary circumstance.
Where thankfulness is an emotion, gratitude is an ATTITUDE of appreciation under any circumstance. Gratitude is about being content physically and mentally with the state of your life. You may not always be happy, but you can still practice gratitude. In fact, practicing gratitude is not only good for you, but for your relationships as well.”
So, here’s to practicing the attitude of GRATITUDE. 🙏
