This was my first STR purchase. I decided to split it up in a partnership to leverage OPM (other people's money) to accelerate my growth. One of the partners is a physician and essentially a passive partner, so we were able to purchase this under his name with the Physician's Loan, which is a loan offered by a few banks. The loan is nice in that you can buy a second home for only 10% down with no PMI at all and with a solid rate (low 4%).

The passive partner brought 60% of funds for the purchase/closing and my local partner and I brought 40%. Despite the offset in capital invested, we all own one-third of the cash flow and equity. --> I was trying to earn as much sweat equity as possible and only invested about $25,000 into the deal to make that happen.

The house is a three-story cash machine. It sleeps 14 guests, which is in line with Destin's regulations. It's almost 3000 sq ft with 5 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, two living rooms (first and third floors), and a wet bar on every floor.

The nice thing about these larger vacation rentals is that they typically come furnished. This property is also part of an HOA that provides a shuttle service for my guests to the beach along with a massive resort-style pool. Both of those features definitely attract more guests.

As far as numbers, we grossed $73,000 in our first year, over $90,000 in our second year, and easy potential for $100K+ in our third year. Total expenses and debt servicing was about $50,000, which gave us an annual cash flow of about $23K, $40K, etc. We rolled profits from the first year into a second, smaller condo ($170K purchase) that will bring in $50K gross this year with stellar cash flow. We used cash flow from the second year for some cosmetic upgrades (new flooring, upgraded balconies, etc.)

I do self-manage. I do not clean. 90% of the management is automated (currently using iGMS, Pricelabs, and Hostfully), and I actually haven't seen the house in a few months even though I'm local -- My goal is for most of my investments is to make them as hands-off as possible; I do not want to just create a second job for myself. It is definitely possible to manage these things remotely. I only utilize AirBnB and VRBO. I don't deal with Booking.com or an individual website.

We were presented with an off-market offer recently for $940,000. Initially, I was hesitant to accept due to the cash flow that this property provided; however, a very tempting value-add RV park also popped up simultaneously with this off-market offer on the house.

As a true entrepreneur, I decided to accept the offer and chase the shinier penny (and accelerate my capital even faster). We decided to roll all the profits into a 1031-exchange to delay paying any taxes on the gains, and we're set to close on this value-add 60-unit RV/MH Park next week. Purchase price is $2,000,000 for the park (no banks, just seller financing), and I believe we have the potential to force appreciation up to above $3,000,000 for this new venture.

It's crazy to think that the initial $25,000 investment could grow into so much in just two years! Think about it....that $25,000 investment turned into over $100,000 in cash flow over two years, buying an additional condo with no cash out of pocket, and transitioning the $400,000 profits into a ownership of a $2MM RV/MH Park! Granted, I'm only a 33% owner in these properties and profits, but it's pretty massive to look back and see the growth!

I've always been a massive proponent of leveraging what you need through partnerships to continue growing. Whether it's money, time, or knowledge, you can always make up for the lack. This deal was a great example of the power of partnerships for me!

Wish me luck with this RV/MH Park!!

Condo: