Main Street House

It’s possible to grow wealth with real estate without actually owning any real estate yourself! Being a money partner aka private lender to active real estate investors allows the lender to make totally passive income through real estate!

Tired of searching through leftover properties online? Check out my Perfect Property Finder Program where I find off market deals that match a buyer’s exact criteria! The best part is my buyers get to see these properties before anyone else knows they’re for sale!

Are you thinking of applying for a mortgage? You can’t just roll in and get approved… there’s quite a bit of paperwork the lender will require from you. Here’s list of the most common documents a lender will want to see.

A question I get asked often what makes a good mid-term rental market and how did I choose one to get started in. The short answer to that is I didn’t! When I first got […]

The Pros and Cons of Hosting on Airbnb (or VRBO, booking.com etc) In November of 2021 I decided to convert our long term rentals into medium and short term rentals and MAN do I love […]

The first thing to note is that it likely won’t make sense to automate every aspect of your Airbnb business until you have a few units up and running – mainly due to the costs […]

January 2022 we bought a triplex and I’m sharing all the fun details – the numbers and the before pictures!! Check it out and let me know what you think!

Some were brave enough to ask so here it is… the flip house numbers! Purchase price, ARV, budget and profit. Read what we paid, what we expect to sell for, what our budget entails and how much we plan to make (or lose!)

After 3 HELOCs and a refinance into a long term debt, I’ve learned a few things about home equity lines of credit.

I’ve written about the “brrrr” real estate strategy and the live in flip strategy… but there is also another AMAZEballs real estate strategy that I think new real estate entrepreneurs should take advantage of and […]

You guys asked questions, I answered!! Here’s the post I’ve been promising for days about how to do due diligence on a property. You’re going to be shocked about what we found in our most recent due diligence search.

You might be wondering to yourself, or out loud to google, ‘what’s the difference between pre-approval and pre-qualification?’ And it’s not a bad question to have seeing as though most people use the words pre-approval […]

Looking for how to get a good deal on a house through the MLS? Perfect! Because today’s blog post is all about just that. There are so many more ways to find a house other […]

This post, how to buy a rental property, has been a long time in the making. The kick in the butt I needed to get this finished and posted was from a friend who became […]

Driving for dollars is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to find distressed seller leads! Here’s what to look for and what to do with the information after driving for dollars.

I’ve always wanted to make a DIY lighted bottle for my home decor! I finally made one and love the way it turned out. It’s so easy you probably don’t need a tutorial, but here’s a quick one.

I am such a nerd. I cracked myself up when I came up with the title hair today gone tomorrow. Even though it definitely won’t help me “rank in google” I think you get the […]

There are an infinite number of ways to get started in real estate investing. Here are 7 strategies you can use to get started, some you may have never even thought of!

I’ve talked about the brrrr strategy before but in this post I go over each step in detail and go through the details of exactly how we used the brrrr strategy.

Is 2019 your year? Is this THE year you thrive? Is it the year you learn how to get started flipping houses and then take action and actually do something about it? Recently I’ve been […]

Well it actually happened folks. We closed on the house of loyal socks and renovations have already started! Well, the demo has already started and all the carpeting, tack strips and staples are removed as […]

If you’ve been following along on Instagram or Facebook you’d know we still haven’t closed on our newest flip, the house of loyal socks. We’re definitely not surprised that we’re closing a week late, mainly […]

Hello and welcome guys! This is my first post in what will be the start of our newest flip house project! Now that we’re 90% sure we’ve secured another house to flip I’ve decided to […]

Have you guys heard of the live in flip concept? You know, where you buy a home that’s in need of repairs and/or cosmetic upgrades, fix it up over the course of 2 years (time […]

I have squirrel brain (also known as monkey mind.) I get distracted by shiny objects. I always think the grass is greener on the other side. And I get bored with projects and leave them […]

A verrrryyyy long time ago a fellow blogger and friend, Melanie, from Londageathome.com asked me about bank owned properties, how they work and how to put an offer in on one. I told her a blog […]

Hey there guys!!! As you probably know, Todd and I have been on the hunt for a house to flip for a long (long long long) time now. Recently we’ve been encountering house after house […]

I’ve heard the term “investor friendly real estate agent” thrown around in the real estate world for as long as I can remember. I never really understood why an agent would have to specifically state […]

A friend of mine is currently in the process of house searching and recently asked if I liked my kitchen faucet. She’s not buying a kitchen faucet quite yet but thought she’d start the hunt. […]

As you may or may not know, we’re converting our attic space into a master bedroom and bathroom. It’s extremely slow going but we’re getting there! And guess what? It’s almost time to pick out […]

I updated this post 9/17/18 and wanted you all to know that option #1, the ACV and saran wrap is by far the best remedy for how to naturally get rid of fruit flies. Why […]

I hate to see someone go through heartache and money when it comes to buying a house! It’s fairly common for deals to fall apart at the very end because of items found on an […]

I get asked a lot of questions, whether it be through email, DM, or FB chat… One question I get asked a lot about, especially after I posted this post, is “what exactly is a […]

It’s official guys. I’m allowed to go around and call myself a real estate agent again!! What? You thought I was already an agent? Well I was, technically, but I accidentally let my license expire […]

We have 2 and half weeks until Todd’s sister and her family comes in from Montana!! I’ve definitely given up hope that we’ll be totally done renovating our attic into a master suite by the […]

Hey there friends!!! You may or may not know that we’ve been on the hunt for another investment property, whether it be a flip or a property we can use the brrrr strategy on we […]

Hey there! If you’ve been following me on Instagram or Facebook you’d know that we’re finally getting around to finishing our master suite addition. We’re having Todd’s family visit at the end of August and […]

Last week I revealed the patio we created for our fire pit and our $200 patio furniture find! But soon after we finished the patio area we were already wishing we had shrubbery or a fence […]

Hey there folks! Some of you may have noticed that a post hasn’t gone up in TWO whole weeks!! I don’t have much of an excuse for this past Saturday, but last Saturday we were […]

A client of ours recently wanted to mix in open shelving with their regular kitchen cabinetry. While we never wound up doing this particular project, I had put together a list of open shelving ideas […]

Between Todd and myself we've remodeled more bathrooms than we can count. So when it comes to knowing what to know before a bathroom remodel... we're experts. Even more so, we've renovated many a tiny [...]

If I were looking for lighted pot racks these are the lighted pot racks I’d buy… I’m not out searching for lighted pot racks (yet anyway!) However, by nature I get distracted. These beautiful pot […]

You probably came here looking for an answer to how much does it cost to make your own concrete countertops. So guess what, I'm not going to make you read through this entire post for [...]

I’m a millennial. I guess that also means I’m lazy, narcissistic, selfish, uninvolved, and unmotivated. That’s the reputation people born between 1981-1996 are dealing with. Is this accurate? I for one highly disagree. Just like […]

If you're looking for high end countertops you've come to the right place! You're in the wrong place if you're looking for laminate counters or some type of paint to cover up existing counters. Although [...]

Hey there guys!! Happy Saturday!! This week  I'm sharing this post where I've rounded up some of the coolest paper towel holders out there, Mainly because I didn't get a chance to sit down and [...]

Natural Glass Cleaner Recipe As The Healthy Home Improvement Blogger (you know… the one who brings you the best home improvement tutorials AND teaches you how to live in a healthy home free from chemicals) […]

Do you guys remember how teeny tiny the original bathroom in our fixer upper was? (And Todd constantly saying “I could shit and shower at the same time,” sorry for the visual) It’s still not […]

I bet you guys can barely contain your excitement about our small kitchen remodel before and after pictures. Sense the sarcasm? It's taken me so long to get these pictures onto this blog (if you're [...]

Truthfully, this blog has been losing my attention. When I sat down to write a blog post for you guys today I stared at a blank screen for about 10 minutes before I started writing. […]

The apartment is finally done and I'm ready to share the before and after photos with you! But first, here's a little background on this apartment remodel. The boyfriend and I purchased Main Street House [...]

I am MORE than excited to bring this post to you guys. In this post I'm going to share the costs of our kitchen renovation with you - all the way down to the nitty [...]

Hey there guys!! By now most of you know that I’ve opened and closed an Etsy shop. I had all kinds of fun things in there from lighting to bathroom decor to kitchen paper towel […]

I am so super excited to bring this DIY pipe toilet paper holder post to you guys! (I feel like I say that a lot.) But this time I mean it the mostest. And that’s […]

Update on How to Make Paneling Look Like Drywall 9/17/18 I truly love going back through old posts and revisiting all the hard work we've done in the past! And just like my tutorial on [...]

[Updated 3/21/18] I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that if you have hardwood floors in your home, you probably have a hardwood floor cleaner somewhere in your cabinets. Unless of […]

Interested in how to oil pull? Curious about why oil pulling is great for overall oral health?  Want to hear a first hand account of someone trying it before you do? Well you've come to [...]

Hey there, Kier here. I haven’t posted to this blog in over three weeks! YIKES! I promise that won’t happen again. I’m not going to lay out any excuses for you guys because in today’s […]

General Finishes Gel Stain: 11 Easy Steps for Perfect Cabinets [Updated 3/08/2018] I'm super excited to share this post on general finishes gel stain with you guys! It's a re-created post from the blog I [...]

Hey there friends! Have you been following along with our fixer upper adventure? If so, I’m sure you’ve seen me talking more than once about RTA cabinets. In fact, if you follow my Instagram stories […]

How much do landlords make a year is a tough question to answer. But believe it or not people are asking it all over the internet! In this blog post you’ll come to see that […]

Between myself and Mr. Stone Head, we have refinished a lot of floors. Like a lot. I’ll get straight to the answer to the question “Do You Have to Sand Between Coats of Polyurethane on […]

Heyyyy there guys! Are you ready to get caught up to speed with this fixer upper update? This post is meant to get everyone caught up to speed on 1. our fixer upper, 2. the […]

I get asked a lot of questions. Like a lot (and guys I love it! Keep them coming!!) about flipping houses, being a landlord and about DIY home improvement projects. But the number one question […]

If you missed my last post about the realistic home improvement toys we’ve been looking into buying for our nieces and nephews, well you missed out! (Just kidding, you can check that out by clicking […]

Happy Thanksgiving!!! Are you now stuffed and slouched at your computer, phone or tablet searching for what to buy the kids for christmas? Well this post is all about toy tools for toddlers (try saying […]

With two and half weeks left until the self proclaimed “move in day” – meaning we don’t have to be out of our current living situation or anything… it’s more of a “I’d like to […]

Update 11/11/17: We purchased our faucet! Thank you guys for all of the voting you did over on Instagram!! BUT, we technically wound up purchasing a different faucet than the options I gave below! We […]

I’ve been getting quite a few people checking in on the progress of our fixer upper recently… and that’s probably because everyone knows we would have liked to be moved in by the end of […]

[Updated 4/20/18) First and foremost this is an update because I just went to purchase more brain octane oil and there’s a THREE PACK NOW that makes it like $19 a bottle!! [Here’s the link!!] […]

UPDATE on Vintage Ceilings Fans: 11/2/17 Yesterday we bought one of the fans below thanks to all your feedback here, on Instagram and on Facebook and last night we installed it! To find out which […]

If you follow my Instagram stories, you’d know that we had a hell of a time sanding down the hardwood floors in our fixer upper. What was supposed to be a 3 day, Labor Day […]

As you may know if you follow me here on the blog or on social media, Mr. Stone Head and myself have been hard at work renovating our fixer upper. The sanding fiasco which started […]

I am one of those weird ones that actually likes to paint. However, I’m not a huge fan of painting trim because it’s time consuming and tedious, but entire rooms with huge walls… I’m all […]

This post may contain affiliate links – I haven’t decided how lazy I feel but figured I’d write this first in case there are! I don’t want them coming after me for false advertising! Happy […]

Have you guys been keeping up with progress of our first fixer upper remodel? No!?! Well why do I have a micro-blog series about all the projects going on then? Go ahead, check them out, […]

It’s hard fixing up a home that you don’t plan on living in forever – especially if you plan on renting it out in the future! There’s tons more to think about – things like […]

Bathroom Renovation Mini-Blog Check back often for running updates on this page! Instead of multiple individual posts, I add short blurbs about the progress of the bathroom renovation to this page as they happen. So follow [...]

I’ve done quite a few projects using gel stain… my favorite (and biggest) was the kitchen and bathroom cabinets in the first house we flipped. Even with my gel stain tutorial post, I am still […]

So you landed on this website because you typed into google or pinterest “DIY weed killer” or “how to naturally get rid of weeds” or “homemade weed killer.” No? Damn… …Anyway, unless you’re one of […]

Those pesky ants are everywhere aren’t they!??! We’ve had them in the house, in the driveway and worst of all IN MY SHED!! Okay, maybe the worst place for ants to be isn’t in my […]

Check back often for running updates on this page! Instead of multiple individual posts, I add short blurbs (okay, they aren't always short) about the progress of the various exterior renovations of our Fixer Upper! So follow [...]

Flipping houses is definitely not for the faint of heart or risk averse. While most flippers average a decent salary with flipping houses, there are those outliers who make upwards of $100,000 on a flip […]

I felt the need to share my thoughts on some baker’s scaffolding I purchased back in December… mainly because, well it’s… THE BEST BAKER’S SCAFFOLDING EVER. And no, this post is not sponsored and if […]

Every home owner, contractor and even some renter’s need a drill! Cordless drills are good for just about any task and in most cases can replace the dinky screwdriver. So put away the phillips head […]

We lucked out on our first flip when it came to the floors. The entire first floor had beautiful hardwood that just needed some refinishing for their beauty to shine through. But let me tell […]

Recently, I’ve been finding myself referring to our fixer upper as “the farm.” You might recall this post I wrote about the numerous groundhogs and raccoons we caught and released from the property. Well… they’re baaaaaccckkk. […]

I know I know… you’re shocked by the title 5 reasons why you shouldn’t flip houses. You’re constantly bombarded with people telling you how great flipping houses is. How much money you can make flipping […]

Since we rented out the apartment and then took our first weekend off in 8 months and I immediately went back to renovating the house! I know I know… finally right? We’ve already demoed quite […]

I’ve seen a lot of posts and pins recently about how cheap concrete counters are. And yes, they are cheap but definitely not as cheap as some might believe! When we renovated the apartment above […]

So you’re thinking about staining some concrete huh? Did you land on this little blog because you typed into google “how to stain a concrete countertop?” Or maybe you came from Pinterest or Facebook or […]

*This post was recreated from my original blog about our first flip. The story starts about three months into owning our first fixer upper when we noticed the toilet in the basement backing up as well […]

Even after I posted my FAQ section about my blog I was still getting questions about one thing in particular! You guys want to know even more about how the hosting part of how this blog […]

5 Ways to Find a Cheap House | Been There Done That Who doesn’t want to find a good deal on a home? I watched my parents scour the market for opportunities to get a good […]

Hey there! I’ve been getting the same questions from people so frequently that I decided to write a blog post about it! So if you have any questions contact me (any one of the 489 […]

By now you MUST know that we bought Main Street House. No? Well then you should be following along! Subscribe to get updates when a new blog post is up! I think we got a [...]

“My First Experience As a Bidder By Myself (at a Sheriff Sale)“ I’m usually up by 5:00 am and checking my email by 5:30 am. The other day, at about 5:33 am I was sitting […]

(I feel the need, mainly due to the title, to let you know that I LOVE MY CONCRETE COUNTERS. Yes I will be doing them again. Yes I think the avid DIYer could DIY their […]

Recently, I’ve been getting the dreaded question “why isn’t the apartment remodel ready to be rented yet?” “How long have you owned that place 8 months? You aren’t done yet? What have you been doing?” First, we […]

Below I recount my personal experience with buying a HUD owned home. The short story is this: Buying a HUD owned home was the worst buying experience of my life. My realtor had never seen it before, […]

Kitchen Renovation Micro-Blog Check back often for running updates on this page! Instead of multiple individual posts, I add short blurbs about the progress of the kitchen remodel to this page as they happen. So follow along! [...]

On top of remodeling the apartment above our fixer upper's garage... And on top of all the emergency issues we've fixed... And on top of our full time jobs... we still found time to do [...]

I’ve flipped (and helped flip) quite a few houses in my lifetime. Which means I’ve renovated a lot of kitchens over the years as well so I know how to remodel a kitchen on a budget. I’ve picked […]

If you follow me on social media or here on the blog… Then by now you probably know that Todd and I have completed two, count ’em TWO successful concrete countertop projects! But did you realize […]

So you’re wondering what topcoat to use for gel stain cabinets or furniture? Do you even need a top coat with gel stain? Can you use a water based topcoat over oil based gel stain? […]

The Story Behind this Flip House This was a house I flipped with my parents before the boyfriend and I started working together. It was our Summer 2012 project. OH! You Can Flip Houses for [...]

Our second fixer upper, Main Street House, is currently a 3 bedroom 1 bathroom home, but not for long. Our house has a totally unfinished attic which we plan to turn into a new large [...]

Update 9/7/17: I love re-reading older posts. The apartment we remodeled rented in 3 days and we got our asking rent which was $250 more per month than we originally thought we’d ask! So this […]

For this Dewalt Circular Saw review I was not compensated in any way by DeWALT, but you can bet your ass there are affiliate links here. Circular saws definitely go on the must have tool [...]

Hey there… It’s time for another tutorial! With this one, anyone can learn how to cut a hole and install a door knob! I’d also greatly appreciate if you’d pin this post or share with […]

Updated [2/27/2018]: When I look back on this post, I’m like “damn I should have listened to myself!” Well, 2018 I’m listening to myself and it’s already been a bitchin’ 2018! This post was originally […]

Does your home "improvement to do list" have painting on it? Then you're in the right place.  As a house flipper, landlord, contractor, blogger, and DIYer I am always painting. Like always. I've spent hundreds, [...]

Hey there! It’s that time again. Time for a question and answer post for the series Your Questions My Answers. This question was from a reader specifically asking how I saved enough money to purchase a […]

*I installed vinyl plank flooring as a DIY project. I am not an affiliate with any of the brands listed below, nor are any sponsors apart of this post in any way however this post does […]

I know I said in my last post that hopefully the next post would be titled “apartment update: it’s rented” but I decided to throw one more update in here for you. And it’s all […]

“I love the smell of fresh plumbing” was the first thing I said after we opened the garage door the day after the plumbers finished working on the plumbing for the apartment above the garage. […]

For some reason I don’t feel complete without publishing a post on my many DIY projects. Case in point, we finished the apartment/garage roof weeks ago and I still have yet to post anything about […]

Update 8/9/17: This posy was originally written while I was still doing research about concrete counters. Here’s my post I wrote up after I DIYed my own concrete counters, here’s a post on how I […]

  I usually don’t get to write about “wins” when it comes to renovating. It always seems like one small problem escalates into a bigger one, a much bigger one that winds up costing us time and […]

I don’t know how it slipped my mind… but someone informed me the other day that I never posted any before pictures of the one bedroom apartment above the garage of the most recent house […]

We purchased Main Street House as a long term investment property and a short term place to call home. The renovations we’ve done so far have revealed the fact that groundhogs, raccoons and skunks have taken […]

Remember back in June when I started a series of posts where I answer your questions? Well my last post, How to Find a Fixer Upper, actually generated a lot of questions about something I […]

I thought we had one problem. I thought we had one groundhog problem. After we trapped and released one with one ease, we realized we might have to do it more than once… Turns out […]

My last blog post on Tuesday left you guys wondering what was going to happen next with Main Street House, a house we were supposed to have closed on the Friday before. Were we going […]

To call the buying process of Main Street “a shit show” would be an understatement. I actually left the realtor’s office asking “so did we just close on Main Street House or not?” Even though […]

WARNING: This post has been rated HSP (HIGHLY SARCASTIC POST) Please do not take actually take any of this advice. If I had to give advice based on the hundreds of houses I’ve looked at […]

I’ve been eagerly waiting to sit down and write this post but I didn’t want to jinx anything. If you follow me on social media (which you should be) you saw I posted we put […]

Hey there people! I’m super excited about all the feedback I’ve ben receiving from my new and improved blog. So excited in fact, that I’ve decided to start a series of posts answering your specific […]

I don’t know if I believe in ghosts and paranormal activities and things like that…  But the second we opened the front door of this vacant, estate owned home we were hit with a wave […]

I’ve looked at so many vacant homes over the years that I’m not really surprised by much anymore. So from my personal experience, here’s what to expect when looking at vacant properties. Finding the right […]

Hey there! Welcome or welcome back to my blog! And welcome to my post Flipping Houses :: Before and After Pictures I'm hoping some of you have hung in there long enough to see this blog [...]

Updated 4/18/2018 :: Check out the end for what wound up happening with our second flip. (I’ll give you a hint, we didn’t wind up buying something to flip!) In order to talk about my next […]