First, this post isn't intended to be a hubris, self-promoting, story. Well, maybe just a little bit of it. I'm proud of my wife and I! I'm not ashamed to say it!

Anyways, me and my wife are a relatively young couple who count ourselves fortunate that we both have stable careers. We've always had that itch you just cant scratch when it came to real estate. After meeting a little over 2 years ago, we decided to get married last year and have had a goal to own a few rental properties before we try for a family. Prior to our marriage, I had decided that purchasing a property through my VA (any Marines in the house?!) loan down here in South Florida. Not knowing much about what I was doing, I purchased a property that was not overpriced, but definitely at the top of the market at the time. Don't get me wrong, this property was freshly renovated, had a new roof, and was definitely the best property we came across while searching.

The odd thing about this property though was that it was your typical 1960's South Florida home (prior Florida room, closed floor plan, and out of date style) but it had been renovated in a way that made it a "4"/1. Now you're probably thinking to yourself... "A 4/1, seems like it's pretty big". Wrong! This property was about 1200 sqft and the "fourth" bedroom was actually a bedroom walking into a bedroom. Yes, you heard me right. You had to walk into a bedroom in order to access the next bedroom. Clearly, not an ideal situation for someone living in that room. That was OK with us though because we new this would not be our forever home and that it had potential to be changed around.

Fast forward 12 months.... We changed the floorplan of the house back into a 3/2, converted that first half of the 2-part bedroom series into a hallway extension with the other side of the wall being a full master bath, and finished the second half of the 2-part bedroom series into a full master bedroom with his and her closets and a rear entrance. We also converted the small closet that was in the original first bedroom into a small kitchenette. A very nice efficiency to say the least!

Long story short, as of yesterday we are now landlords renting out the unit at $1100/mo with utilities included (no separate meters)! For those readers who are new to real estate or who may own a primary residence and are waiting to figure out that next step, this is for you. We absolutely did not intend to rent this property out or convert it into an effective "duplex". After living in the property for a year and realizing we had unused bedroom, the creative juices began to flow and we finally decided to jump in with the investment. Having a partner or spouse who is on the same wavelength as you or at least understands your desires for the future is HUGE! Communication is key!!

For our next investment, we have been putting away savings for the better part of the last year and now have a nice nest egg where we will be looking to invest out of state. Likely in the Montgomery, AL or Birmingham, AL market. We are hoping to do a "full" project on the next investment and accomplish a successful BRRR!

Time will tell if my tenant teaches me some landlording lessons!

Thanks for reading! Please see pictures attached of the after unit. I didnt take any "before" pictures sadly.

Patrick