I've been a single-family and multi-family home investor and self-managing landlord since 2004. I am a military spouse and mother of two young kids.
I grew up in Hawaii, watching my single mom help first-time home buyers. I soaked up all the information I could by listening in on her calls, planning her routes for showings, and assisting with property management paperwork in her boss's office.
With this knowledge, I went on to buy my first house in Southern California at the age of 21. I house-hacked while working full-time and attending college. This was not my best financial investment; however, it was the one I learned the most from.
I then moved on to purchasing single-family homes and 4-plexus with VA Loans or conventional loans with down payment assistance in the Phoenix market. I house-hacked those till I found the next property. I was still working full-time and doing much of the renovations myself.
At 30, I left my full-time job and lived off the rental income. I moved back to Hawaii and hosted a shared home Airbnb till I met my husband and had our first child.
Being a military spouse was never the plan. But real estate was. It's my passion and my hobby. I love to learn and analyze properties for fun.
Even with a family of four and an English bulldog, I am still house-hacking out of a duplex here in Colorado Springs while my husband finishes his military career at Fort Carson. I am a STR host, but MTRs are my favorite. Digital nomads and military relocations are my specialties as a host.
Most people do not get exposure to real estate and investing like I did as a child. I want to help others build generational wealth through real estate while doing the same for my family.
