You pour your blood, sweat, and tears into this awesome rental you just purchased, and then suddenly, the HOA wants to shut down your Airbnb. What do you do?

Most people don't like to talk about the deals gone wrong, but I want to because I think that it's important to talk about an exit strategy when it all goes to sh*t. In this episode, real estate investor, project manager, and designer Joe Ballard joins me to talk about his experiences in the flipping and STR markets, the 'swirliness' factor, and how even an experienced property investor can make 'rookie mistakes'.

Joe started in the flipping business back in Minnesota, and made a whopping $146K profit in his first flip, erasing all of his and his wife's student debt! As a successful house flipper, he explains his strategy to 'sniff' good properties and how to get a buyer's offer above asking price in just one hour.

Joe is also a talented designer and Airbnb host, and so I asked him to share his tips on how to create a property that 'pops', when it's time to splurge, and when to do the job yourself. We got to discuss the importance of researching and doing your due diligence, even if you know 'everyone is doing short term rentals' in the complex, and what to consider when the HOA is doing everything in their power to shut down YOUR Airbnb.

In short, ALWAYS read the HOA's fine print to assess if a short term rental is legal or not in that complex!

Key takeaways from this episode:
-Do your due diligence when you're buying a property, and never take someone's word for something even if it's your own realtor.
-House flipping is about appeasing the market, following the trends, but Airbnb is all about adding character, and uniqueness to catch people's attention. It's about creating an environment that they would never do in their own home, but that grabs their attention.
-Consider creating 'impact factors' to wow potential buyers when you're working on a flip.
-Consider if the money is worth the stress: you should enjoy the process of owning an Airbnb, not dread all that comes with it.
-Enjoy the process of renovating and using free tools like Youtube: even if you don't make a profit on a property, you developed more skills that you can always use in your next investment!

State Eye Charts:
https://www.instagram.com/constructedmatter/
https://www.constructedmatter.com/products/petite-eye-charts

Joe Ballard's uniquely designed properties:
https://www.constructedmatter.com/work

For show notes please visit:
http://flippinwendy.design/blog/podcast-episode-6