Welcome to a new mini-series here on the blog, all about hosting your own vacation rental property! While I’m normally all about DIY Projects, Crafts, and Flipping Houses, today I’m kicking off a new series that goes along with my latest project outside the blog. But first, a little background information. Let me tell you a little story about how I accidentally became a landlord. As you may know, my design partner Jana and I flip houses as a little side business. I say “little” because we’re not a big operation like the HGTV gurus who do dozens of homes a year. We don’t have a lot of time or… Keep Reading
Flip House Hattie’s Big Reveal
It’s here… Reveal Day! I love a good makeover, don’t you? Our current flip house, named Hattie, seemed like she didn’t need much, but in reality all the little changes added up to a full remodel. This was the kind of house that just needed a few of the right touches to bring it up to date. And while that’s not as exciting a makeover as some of the falling-down houses I’ve seen, the overall effect turned out to be really satisfying. But enough of my musing, let’s get to the pictures, shall we? Hattie Before her Makeover Here are a few “Before” shots of our beloved Hattie, to remind… Keep Reading
Small Changes Add up to Big Change at the Flip House
I love a good “before” and “after,” don’t you? Well, my apologies because today is all about the “during.” When we started the makeover on our new flip house, “Hattie,” I was a little disappointed because she just wasn’t very ugly to begin with. I mean, I really love to get into a horrible rundown mess of a house and bring it back from the brink of city condemnation. Let’s rip out some walls. Let’s carry out the grossness with shovels. Let’s back up a dump truck into the driveway and fill it with terrible old cabinets and tiles and (gasp!) sludgy toilets! (I know, I’m a little bit of… Keep Reading
A New Flip House Named Hattie
Ladies and Gentlemen, I’d like you to meet Hattie, our latest flip house adventure. Yes, I know it’s probably weird to give people’s names to our houses, but we need a way to keep track of them and I get so attached to each one that it’s as if they have their own personality. I like to think of it as a term of endearment, rather than naming a natural disaster. Although to be honest, I’m sure both have an element of truth. If you’re just joining, you can check out our first flip here, and our second flip here. Back to Hattie. She’s a wonderful, stately lady, full of dignity… Keep Reading
I Love the After: The Big Reveal of our Latest Flip
I have good news and bad news. The bad news is I’m not writing a progress post on our flip house like I had planned for this week. The good news is because it’s turned into a reveal post! Yep, we’re done. This sweet little home is on the market, ready and waiting for its next family. I loved working on our first flip house, but this one has brought me even more creative joy than that one did. I don’t know why, but some houses just capture your heart, and this one did just that. Maybe it was the moment my daughter christened it “The Birthday Cake House” (y’all… Keep Reading
Our New Flip House Gets a Fresh Start
We had so much fun renovating our first flip house that we couldn’t wait to do it again. Except it turns out finding the right opportunity sometimes takes a little patience. So after a few months of itching to get our hands on a new project, we finally found one that fit the bill. Introducing our new flip house… My daughter calls it the birthday cake house because she thinks it looks like a yellow birthday cake. I think that’s a pretty happy thought, so for now that will be its official name. This house just needs a few cosmetic upgrades (and a good cleaning!) and it will be a… Keep Reading
Home Staging 101
Thank you so much for all your questions after last week’s post on home staging! We talked about whether it’s worth it to stage your home to sell, using our Flip House as a case study. I heard from several of you here and on Instagram, and I’m thrilled to share more information with you now about how to actually accomplish the staging. So we’ve established what home staging is and why it’s important when you’re selling your house. (If you missed that post, check out To Stage or Not to Stage.) Now, what do you do about it? Do you hire a professional home stager? I actually think that’s a… Keep Reading
To Stage or Not to Stage
Is Home Staging really worth the investment? So you’re selling your house. You’ve got all the repairs made, the baseboards dusted, the welcome mat laid out. The question is, do you really need to “stage” it to be able to sell it? (If you aren’t familiar with the term “home staging” it refers to a type of decorating, specifically for the purpose of showing prospective home buyers that your house could work for them.) Staging sounds expensive, in the midst of a time when you’re already hemorrhaging cash. The costs associated with selling a house are painful, encompassing everything from getting the heater fixed so it will pass inspection, to… Keep Reading
The Flip House is Finally Finished!
This flip house has been such a fun project that I almost hate to see it come to an end. Then I remember that it’s not all about the fun decorating, it’s mostly about the fun profits! *She thought, offering up a quick prayer for those profits to actually happen.* We set out to do a 6 week flip, and of course it turned into about 9 weeks. But we learned a lot along the way. Mostly what we learned was how to stay out of our contractor’s way so he could do his job. (If you’re in Albuquerque and looking for a good contractor, message me. I have the… Keep Reading
Progress at the Flip House, and Sometimes Less is More
I’m thrilled to be back this week to report our progress on “The Flip House.” If you’ll remember from some of my earlier “before” pictures, this house started with every color of the rainbow on the walls and in the carpet. Sadly, all those colors came out of a seventies palette that hasn’t quite come back into vogue yet. So we’ve decided to go with a “less is more” approach with the colors throughout the house. Now, you know that I love color. I can’t get enough of it in every area of my life. But I do recognize that not everyone feels the same, and when you’re trying to design a… Keep Reading