#also the fact that selling your art isnt even close to just that

[knxfesck]

I think there is something to be said about the fact that the expected end of the "popular digital artist who monetizes their work online" pipeline is just. Small business owner/dropshipper. Don't get me wrong there are people who just take commissions but I do think it's kind of suspicious how Peak Popularity is seen as selling 500 keychains of chibi fanart a month through like. Redbubble.

[syrupspinner]

top 10 most anticipated indie games!

in no particular order, not affiliated with any of em, etc etc

of the Devil

so, funny story. i had some fanart of this game set as my phone background when i went to get a new phone. check it out here! anyway, the cleric who only really plays ff14 looked at it and went "woah, what's that? it looks like danganronpa." and i was like. yeah buddy! sure does! then, of course, i began proselytizing, about how the game's demo did an amazing job at establishing not only the game's wonderfully directed art style, with the ui and the music and everything else working together to make a perfectly opressive cyberpunk atmosphere, but how the writing of the mystery and morgans character is so intriguing and compelling and auuuugh i wanna play this fucking game dude. i love morgans smile i hope she makes me eat a bomb

2. UNBEATABLE

so imagine muse dash, but instead of high-contrast anime girls and dubious dlc practices, it's just punk as fuck. theres nothing i can say about the game other than linking the side-story/demo and telling you to just go with the flow and dig the vibes. the soundtrack rocks hard, and the visuals are so well done. everything looks like a poster collage for a garage band youve never heard of. also the trailer for the full game showed off a graffiti mechanic and thats all i need

3. Demonschool

i talked about demonschool a lot back in my nextfest post, and my thoughts havent changed at all. im a slut for strategy rpgs, and a big reason for that is i like planning my moves in advance and seeing what the best use of all my ally's abilities are. so the game's mechanic of the shared ability meter that you use for multiple moves over one turn, plus the ability to rewind moves before committing to them, AND the high level of combo potential in everything's interactivity? pumped as hell. there was recently a dev update about how you can light yourself on fire and spread that damage to the environment with every attack if that helps sell you

4. Roman Sands RE:Build

i dont need to say shit. just look at it. LOOK at it. this is so ridiculously catered to my tastes on presentation alone that i cant even come up with a hyperbolic simile. its y2k dreamcast beach artstyle, its time loop with routing optimization, its arbitrary celestial puzzle with unexplained mechanics, its stupid gomotion noodle people, its abstract nonsense that is actively and literally hostile towards the player for trying to understand it. im gonna CUM dude

5. Sorry We're Closed

how often do you see a fixed-camera shooter about a woman with three eyes? the fucking atmosphere, man. even from the demo i can tell that a la mode knows what theyre doing. i love how there isnt like, a limit or meter on your third eye, thats something i can easily see another game doing. but the downsides of only being able to hurt enemies in range AND having to aim at their weak spots is already a good balance to encourage you to switch it up. its so deliciously frictional that you have to go in first person to attack anything, and theres a delay when you do it so youve gotta be really cautious and defensive. and oh man, the cleaver enemy! that was so tense, and so much of that was from the expert audio design that made it so unclear how close he is or where exactly he is, just that hes getting closer. im gonna lose my shit about this game when the full thing drops. fun fact: this releases tomorrow, so this is literally the last day that i can post this. oops!

6. .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND

how often do you see a fixed-camera shooter about a woman with three eyes? ive never played parasite eve, which this is purported to be a spiritual successor to, but the action seems really interesting. sukeban's website explains it like this: "you move and dodge in real time while you wait for an Action bar to fill at a speed determined by character and weapon stats. Once that’s done you can then stop time and plan your offensive". that sounds stupidly fun. judging by the trailers and shit, theres gonna be a big focus on combo chains and your character having multiple attacks she can switch between, but theres not much i can really say about that until theres a demo or something.

7. YIIK: A Postmodern RPG (Update I.V)

i know an update is cheating a bit, but ackk studios considers it to be a thorough enough reimagining that it almost constitutes a sequel. if you havent played the demo then you should give it a shot. my only experience with yiik before it was secondary, through discussions and lets play compilations, and i was totally blown away. the combat was totally reworked, so instead of those repetitive and drawn-out minigames its a way more engaging system where you can use "karta" as defensive shields with passive buffs or sacrifice them for spells. its one of those things that sounds weird and complicated when you explain it, but in gameplay it just kinda clicks. it also seemed to double down on he surrealism and abstract psychological themes, which is my fucking jam. i think missed potential is the worst flaw something can have, so hearing that yiik is growing into its most flawless form is exciting as hell

8. FreeJack Online

unfortunately, i found out about this game about a month after its last online playtest. the dev's discord says they wont reopen unless they find a publisher, and theyre not sure if thats gonna happen reasonably soon. but secondhand, this game looks like a killer time. you guys know im super into this hip hop skatepunk urban style, so even if the gameplay is total shit ill still be all over the ost and character design. but this gameplay doesnt look like shit! you build up trick combos and that contributes to your speed as you parkour around and try to win races. its been a while since ive sunk myself in a competitive online game and i think thisll be what gets me back into it, someday

9. Hyper Light Breaker

yknow im kinda surprised this list hasnt been more roguelikes considering how much i play em. hlb looks like its aiming for an interesting combo of roguelike and open-world, and im really interested in how that shakes out. the combat looks like a really good transition of the speedy high-stakes fighting from hld into 3d. im really hopeful for this game, especially everything heart machine is going through with gearbox and the fanbase backlash for the delays.

10. The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy-

im saying this counts as indie because im in denial. so, i mentioned how the phone clerk guy was a danganronpa fan, right? he played all the mainline games, and even got into zero escape looking for more (he played VLR before 999? lmao) but he had no idea what too kyo games was. never heard of Death Come True, or Akudama Drive, or World's End Club, or Rain Code, or Tribe Nine. really goes to show how much publicity matters, huh? anyway, in case you couldnt tell, i am a 'fan' of danganronpa. theres a lot you could say about it, like how the writing is juvenile and contrarian and how it consistently struggles to write unpredictable mysteries despite this and also how kodaka just fundamentally fails at writing minorities and the pacing issues and flat characters and... you get it. but its never boring. and considering they officially hired the guy who wrote the spin-off novel where kirigiri gets cloned into a houseplant, i feel like its just gonna get less boring from here

look at this shit. im along for the ride at this point

[beesmygod]

relevant to your hitmen of destiny tweets; any other obscure webcomics that you think are really good and deserve more attention?

there are a lot! to be fair my pulse on what webcomics are good are limited by the fact that i rarely peruse tapas or webtoons bc i think the company are morally bankrupt lol. webtoons more than tapas but seeing western artists do a bad job of trying to make vertical layout comics because its the only free template available now is kind of depressing. i also have no idea what "obscure" is because i post with a ton of people who immediately clocked me as talking about hitmen for destiny before i even mentioned the name so that odesn't strike me as obscure lol. idk i'll just post some i like that still exist as far as i know.

anyway,

harry bogosian created "demon's mirror" and "a better place" . demon's mirror is still on my list to read but i really enjoyed "a better place". i believe both are ended now so you have two complete works to pick at :) i thought the "antagonist" of a better place was well done and presented a legitimately difficult to deal with problem because of who she is and what she's doing and why. just well done honestly. like a satisfying meal for your brain. you finish and you're like "yeah! that was nice!"

read it here

i really doubt simon hanselmann is obscure considering the amount of work he's put out through fantagraphics but his most recent work "CRISIS ZONE" revolving around his repurposed characters from children's literature megg, mogg and owl having to endure a series of 2020 specific nightmares after the lockdown starts. not for the fainthearted or people looking for something uncontroversial. it's hysterical in how close it flies to dealing with taboos by creating a cast of the most deliberately awful people to explore them. here's werewolf jones making an onlyfans to make money during the pandemic.

me too werewolf jones.

simon hanselmann posts his work on instagram. but instagram isnt really conductive to reading comics so you should buy the books.

supermegacomics still updates with total bangers occasionally. featuring a very simple and unpretentious art style, supermegacomics gets you to laugh by being strange yet joyful without forgetting to tell jokes about the absurdity of the behavior of the inhabitants of the sueprmega world. feels like it was created in someone's middle school notebook, but consistently funny.

read it here

also here's the link to "hitmen for destiny" for people who want it. i love this fucking comic. i think it completely re-wired my brain after i read it. im in the middle of re-reading it now and i for real forgot how fucking good it is. this is probably my third time reading it. that's my sell: its probably my absolute favorite webcomic of all time.

here!

drop-out requires a general trigger warning for pretty much everything you can think of, which i'm assuming will put some people off of reading it. however, it is a complicated and painful story that i really appreciate the author creating and sharing with us. its extremely rare for me to read a comic and see my experiences with depression reflected back at me accurately and without trying to shield away or deflect from what. this is an unflinching comic. it took guts to make. and i love it.

read it here

ok thats all for now. im doing that thing where people ask me for recommendations and then i forget everything ive ever liked in my life

[therealestatesparkblog]

How Two 30-Something Twins Achieved FIRE in 5 Years on Rental Income

Spoiler alert: Drew and Scott Hoefler still work today. Except now its by choice. Now in their early 30s, the twins live and invest in the Twin Cities, and a decade ago never even considered a career in real estate. After five years of investing in real estate, they successfully reached financial independence. Heres their story, complete with the mistakes they made along the way. House Hunting, House Hacking In 2013, the twins were single 20-somethings working for agricultural giant Land-O-Lakes, looking to buy their first home. They planned to buy a home with a few bedrooms together, move in, and bring on a roommate or two if the house were big enough. Then, over dinner with their parents one night, their mom offered a better idea: Why dont you buy a two-flat? (Thats Midwest for duplex, FYI.) Teenagers may sneer at every idea their parents have, but in your 20s, you start paying attention once more to your parents advice. We quickly realized that we could live in one side, rent out the other side and cover our mortgage we were all-in. The hunt for the perfect duplex was on!

The (First) Duplex After touring some duds, the twins came across a gem in the Arts District in northeast Minneapolis. They described it as an up and coming neighborhood, which was not a euphemismthe neighborhood was gentrifying with a fun and funky craft beer scene. Then came the first stumbling block. At first look, Drew and I had trouble seeing the lower unit because of issues with the renters. We put our offer in based upon seeing the upstairs unit only. You know where this is going. The downstairs unit needed work, which they discovered after putting the duplex under contract. Luckily, the work was cosmetic, nothing structural or mechanical. Upon buying the property, they non-renewed the tenants, made updates such as removing the drop ceiling, and moved in. The purchase price was $208,000. Our financing was an American Dream program that was an owner-occupied conventional loan financed by U.S. Bank. Great program. We rented the upstairs unit out for $1,300 from day one. That proved enough to cover their mortgage payment. A successful house hack. Nowadays, with further gentrification in the neighborhood, they charge $1,700 for that upstairs unit. Related: Are Your Children Stopping You From Achieving Financial Freedom? Rinsing & Repeating the House Hack When you use owner-occupied financing, you have to live in the property for at least one year. So thats exactly what the Hoefler twins did. Seeing how easy it was to house hack and generate rental income, the twins knew they were onto something. They wanted to expand their portfolio. The first thing they did was look for other ways to lower their expenses, so they could put more of their income aside for their next property. If youve ever read a single sentence about FIRE (financial independence, retiring early), you know that the first rule of FIRE is maximizing your savings and investments. (FIRE Challenge: Start by brainstorming ways to live on half your income!) As they neared the end of their first year of house hacking, they set out to find another multifamily to house hack. They successfully rinsed and repeated this process for several years, living in the property for a year then buying a new multifamily and moving in, with owner-occupied financing. Which is a great way to start, but not a viable long-term strategy. First, its slow. It limits you to a maximum of one property per year. Another problem is that at a certain point, conventional lenders stop lending to you. Most conventional lenders allow a maximum of four mortgages on your credit report. Then theres the fact that you have to move every single year. That gets old, even when youre in your 20sespecially when you get married, and your wife isnt keen to live with your twin brother for the rest of your lives. Which, of course, is exactly what happened. It was around this point that Scott married Jennifer, and this whole hopscotch-investing plan started showing its limitations. Transitions Fortunately for the Hoefler twins, Jennifer instantly saw the appeal of the twins vision. She looked into the FIRE and liked what she saw. With her contributing a third income and the rapidly accruing income from their rentals, Team Hoefler set their sights on 20%-down rental property loans. They picked up two single-family rentals. The first was rented for $1,350, which they bought for $107,000a straightforward enough deal. The second was a small one-bedroom home they picked up for $65,000. Initially, we planned to rent it conventionally at around $900, but while we were doing the turnover updates, we listened to a BiggerPockets episode about Airbnb. Halfway through the hour-long episode I decided to make it into an Urban Cottage and make well over $900/month using the vacation rental platform.

Scaling & Strategy Most of the properties we buy need heavy cosmetic work: paint, cabinets, floors, bathrooms, light fixtures, and so on. We do most of the work ourselves. It helps to be handy! The Hoeflers have also tried their hand at full renovations, though those havent always been smooth (more on that shortly). But typically the Hoeflers follow the BRRRR strategy: buy, renovate, rent, refinance, repeat. They use hard money to finance the acquisition and renovations, then refinance to a 30-year fixed rental property mortgage. Our business model is to find properties that are undervalued from a rental perspective and do heavy cosmetic work to push market value. Or find complete remodels where we can capitalize on the potential ARV (after-repair value). The result? They average around $350-400 monthly net cash flow from each door. Related: Why Financial Freedom Can Be Highly OverratedAnd Not Necessarily Lead to Happiness Missteps Along the Way Our first full remodel was a bust. We had issues with contractors, blew our budget and eventually ended up with an overpriced home that wasnt even completed. We still own the home today, as a rental with minimal cash flow. The good news? Our saving grace is that we went into the project with plenty of backdoor options. The property is in a fantastic neighborhood, which has been seeing solid growth. We knew that the rental market would be strong enough to at least break even. I asked the Hoeflers about what they learned from the experience. The main lesson (among many others) is Do not make decisions based on need. At a certain point we realized we were in over our heads, and we failed to think through our options and the long-term consequences of our decisions. We were making emotional decisions based on our current sense of need. Reaching FIRE & The Ever-After The stability that real estate investing has brought to our lives meant we have been free to change careers, build businesses, travel, and ultimately give back in ways we never thought possible. The twins quit their day jobs, but they found they loved investing in real estate enough to keep going. Today, they sell small multifamily properties to other investors in the Twin Cities, through a company called The Duplex Doctors. Why retire when youre having so much fun making money? Altogether, along with my wife Jenny and my brother Drew, we own eight total properties with 14 doors. We are about to close on another four properties with seven doors. I asked Scott about his final words of advice for anyone looking to reach FIRE through rental properties. Sit down and think through your why for purchasing real estate. Everyone says money at first. But to be truly successful in this industry, you need a deeper reason than just the desire to make money. So? Whats your why, Scott? For me, my time is my most valuable resource. My hope is that real estate will allow me the capacity to give back to this world in ways a standard 9-5 job cant. Its hard to argue with that.

Interested in FIRE from real estate? Whats your why? How are you approaching the journey to FIRE, and what are your questions along the way? Weigh in with a comment! https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/fire-in-5-years-on-rental-income

[artsjournalblog-blog]

In Defence of Nintendo: How it Saved the Video Game Industry

Internet marketing on the fence with the Change. I probably will get one due to the fact I think the an interesting concept, plus Im a huge enthusiast of their first-party franchises and the company itself. Yet I actually still have concerns about how it will eventually perform being a home system, and whether or not its as well bulky to realistically make use of as a hand held. Many of you may share an identical view, plus probably even stronger ones. But before a person keyboard party about how bad a company Manufacturers is (a seriously well toned down version of the tough commentary Ive seen online), it might be good to get a little bit of perspective within the events that changed video gaming forever. Games were inside a state associated with disarray from the early eighties. In a seemingly booming business, investors continuing to pour money directly into consoles plus games which often theywere specific would ensure a profit. The result was inevitably a inundated market. Too many consoles have been on sale, such as the Atari VCS (retrospectively known as the 2600), the 5200, the Colecovision, the Intellivision II, the Magnavox Odyssey 2, Bally Astrocade, typically the Tandyvision, typically the VIC-20you obtain the point. Moreover hundreds of rushed games most of them extremely poor were bought from huge quantities to suppliers, generally costing both parties massive sums of money. One title specifically took the brunt of these awfully made games. After putting your signature on a deal with Steven Spielberg for the privileges to the upcoming E. T film worth a reported $20-25million, Atari CEO Dorrie Ross given a young Howard Scott Warshaw the task of making the successful game in time for Xmas. Considering manufacturing times, this realistically meant the game would have to be completed by earlier September. It had been July. The others, as they say, is usually history.

What followed was the North American video game collision of 1983, or more creatively Atari Surprise! in Japan. Consumers lost all trust in house consoles (computers continued to perform fine during this period, the Commodore 64 being evidence of that) and many thought that they had been just a short fad. Just lately released games with an RRP of thirty were marketing for under five in good deal bins. Suppliers had even more stock as compared to they could ever sell (an amusing sort of this is the circulation of 13 million Pac-Man cartridges for the Atari VCS, when Atari hadnt even sold that numerous units to play it on), so they tried to sell these people back to the particular developers, lots of which got already eliminated bust. It had been a chaotic time in video games, and this isnt just within North America. Currently the USA had been the biggest players in the industry, thus most of the manufacturing around the world originated from there. Things were going to change though, and how drastically they would. Nintendo, a company that began marketing trading cards in 1889, had been building games for consoles and arcade equipment for just under a decade each time a fresh-faced designer was given typically the go-ahead to develop a licensed Popeye game. After having a long lawful battle with Common the concept needed to be changed, thus Popeye had been replaced with a moustachioed, dungaree-wearing plumber called Jumpman, plus the arch nemesis Bluto changed a giant Ruler Kong style gorilla. Within the first ever photo at creating a video game, Shigeru Miyamoto had given life to Mario plus Donkey Kong. Nintendo TOP DOG Hiroshi Yamauchi was impressed enough with all the games accomplishment that he entrusted the design of a fresh home console, the Family Personal computer. Released in Asia in July 1983, typically the Famicom got off to some difficult start. After selling half a million models, the company was made aware of the fault in one of the machines potato chips, affecting every single console marketed up until that period. A decision must be made: keep the customers with defective devices and carry on selling, or recall everything and miss the Xmas period. Every console was recalled and glued. The Famicom would go to sell 2 . not 5 , 000, 000 units one year later. The US would need to wait until March 1985 for the release in the Nintendo Amusement System, or even NES for short. It absolutely was sold gradually in trickles and drabs by wary retailers and sceptical customers. Yet folks soon started to realise that there was a distinction with this residence console compared to the many that drowned a few years prior: Mario.

Nintendos mascot lived in a world that gamers experienced never observed before. Super Mario Bros. introduced smooth side-scrolling, an effect that no other platformer had done during that time. Mario may hold momentum, so his running velocity actually continued but slowed down relatively when the player launched the button. It held mysteries that will begged to be explored; plumbing that could be slid down, vegetation that could be climbed, average-looking obstructs containing cash. It was whilst still being is a work of art, and all arises from the mind of 1 man. Miyamoto is indisputably the most important game designer of all time. It was one thing to break the particular incredulousness in consumers with good components and incredibly thrilling addictive online games, but it has been how Nintendo dealt with third-party developers which often ensured the industry keep in business this time around. One of the main reasons for the overindulgence in online games in the earlier 80s is that anyone created a game for any system. This specific led to developers of all abilities making online games that could be purchased from shops, and also legal copyright issues. Nintendos way close to these was to create 10NES lock-out potato chips in both the cartridges plus consoles, which means if the snacks dont overlap on both then a game don't play. Each third-party developer was also given a total of 5 online games per year for the NES so that you can limit the amount of games in the marketplace, and ensure that will enough time was spent on each and every game to really make it of a high enough standard. In this way all accredited games achieved the Nintendo Seal associated with Quality, and games couldnt be copyrighted and sold as the original (which was a huge problem in Eastern Asia on the time). Obviously this was much to the discontentment of designers, who found Nintendo because dictatorial. One of the most famous situations was if the Atari possessed Tengen began developing unlicensed NES games by generating their own snacks that would circumvent the 10NES. A lawsuit followed that would continue until 94. Nintendo won. Controlling or not, theres no denying of which by limiting the number of games that could be manufactured and wherever they can be played (region locking came because of these issues), Nintendo steadied the industry, in addition to improved its quality consequently. As well all know, Nintendo might not be the only video game giant in the marketplace. Others soon learned from, changed several things in addition to designed hardware and software that could contend. Yet without them, the chances of an individual playing the particular games you own on your gaming systems today usually are slim. They had the business creation, the creative flair and the craft to the video game industry out of the ocean, restore it, and then send this on a 21 mile race; their significance cannot be elegant. They actually fought in a single corner from the ring throughout the console wars, the next famous period in the history of games. But that is a lesson for another day time. Subscribe to the mailing list Have the latest online game reviews, reports, features, plus more straight to your current inbox I want to thank subscribing to Bold Games. Anything went wrong. We respect your level of privacy and take protecting that seriously, We do not pass on or perhaps sell your current details. 46 year old Traditional Asian Medical Practitioner Malcolm Sia from Levis, likes to spend some time pets, Best Word Puzzle Games On Android And IOS … and russian dolls collecting. Enjoys travel and was motivated after visiting Humayun's Tomb.

[therealestatesparkblog]

How Two 30-Something Twins Achieved FIRE in 5 Years on Rental Income

Spoiler alert: Drew and Scott Hoefler still work today. Except now its by choice. Now in their early 30s, the twins live and invest in the Twin Cities, and a decade ago never even considered a career in real estate. After five years of investing in real estate, they successfully reached financial independence. Heres their story, complete with the mistakes they made along the way. House Hunting, House Hacking In 2013, the twins were single 20-somethings working for agricultural giant Land-O-Lakes, looking to buy their first home. They planned to buy a home with a few bedrooms together, move in, and bring on a roommate or two if the house were big enough. Then, over dinner with their parents one night, their mom offered a better idea: Why dont you buy a two-flat? (Thats Midwest for duplex, FYI.) Teenagers may sneer at every idea their parents have, but in your 20s, you start paying attention once more to your parents advice. We quickly realized that we could live in one side, rent out the other side and cover our mortgage we were all-in. The hunt for the perfect duplex was on!

The (First) Duplex After touring some duds, the twins came across a gem in the Arts District in northeast Minneapolis. They described it as an up and coming neighborhood, which was not a euphemismthe neighborhood was gentrifying with a fun and funky craft beer scene. Then came the first stumbling block. At first look, Drew and I had trouble seeing the lower unit because of issues with the renters. We put our offer in based upon seeing the upstairs unit only. You know where this is going. The downstairs unit needed work, which they discovered after putting the duplex under contract. Luckily, the work was cosmetic, nothing structural or mechanical. Upon buying the property, they non-renewed the tenants, made updates such as removing the drop ceiling, and moved in. The purchase price was $208,000. Our financing was an American Dream program that was an owner-occupied conventional loan financed by U.S. Bank. Great program. We rented the upstairs unit out for $1,300 from day one. That proved enough to cover their mortgage payment. A successful house hack. Nowadays, with further gentrification in the neighborhood, they charge $1,700 for that upstairs unit. Related: Are Your Children Stopping You From Achieving Financial Freedom? Rinsing & Repeating the House Hack When you use owner-occupied financing, you have to live in the property for at least one year. So thats exactly what the Hoefler twins did. Seeing how easy it was to house hack and generate rental income, the twins knew they were onto something. They wanted to expand their portfolio. The first thing they did was look for other ways to lower their expenses, so they could put more of their income aside for their next property. If youve ever read a single sentence about FIRE (financial independence, retiring early), you know that the first rule of FIRE is maximizing your savings and investments. (FIRE Challenge: Start by brainstorming ways to live on half your income!) As they neared the end of their first year of house hacking, they set out to find another multifamily to house hack. They successfully rinsed and repeated this process for several years, living in the property for a year then buying a new multifamily and moving in, with owner-occupied financing. Which is a great way to start, but not a viable long-term strategy. First, its slow. It limits you to a maximum of one property per year. Another problem is that at a certain point, conventional lenders stop lending to you. Most conventional lenders allow a maximum of four mortgages on your credit report. Then theres the fact that you have to move every single year. That gets old, even when youre in your 20sespecially when you get married, and your wife isnt keen to live with your twin brother for the rest of your lives. Which, of course, is exactly what happened. It was around this point that Scott married Jennifer, and this whole hopscotch-investing plan started showing its limitations. Transitions Fortunately for the Hoefler twins, Jennifer instantly saw the appeal of the twins vision. She looked into the FIRE and liked what she saw. With her contributing a third income and the rapidly accruing income from their rentals, Team Hoefler set their sights on 20%-down rental property loans. They picked up two single-family rentals. The first was rented for $1,350, which they bought for $107,000a straightforward enough deal. The second was a small one-bedroom home they picked up for $65,000. Initially, we planned to rent it conventionally at around $900, but while we were doing the turnover updates, we listened to a BiggerPockets episode about Airbnb. Halfway through the hour-long episode I decided to make it into an Urban Cottage and make well over $900/month using the vacation rental platform.

Scaling & Strategy Most of the properties we buy need heavy cosmetic work: paint, cabinets, floors, bathrooms, light fixtures, and so on. We do most of the work ourselves. It helps to be handy! The Hoeflers have also tried their hand at full renovations, though those havent always been smooth (more on that shortly). But typically the Hoeflers follow the BRRRR strategy: buy, renovate, rent, refinance, repeat. They use hard money to finance the acquisition and renovations, then refinance to a 30-year fixed rental property mortgage. Our business model is to find properties that are undervalued from a rental perspective and do heavy cosmetic work to push market value. Or find complete remodels where we can capitalize on the potential ARV (after-repair value). The result? They average around $350-400 monthly net cash flow from each door. Related: Why Financial Freedom Can Be Highly OverratedAnd Not Necessarily Lead to Happiness Missteps Along the Way Our first full remodel was a bust. We had issues with contractors, blew our budget and eventually ended up with an overpriced home that wasnt even completed. We still own the home today, as a rental with minimal cash flow. The good news? Our saving grace is that we went into the project with plenty of backdoor options. The property is in a fantastic neighborhood, which has been seeing solid growth. We knew that the rental market would be strong enough to at least break even. I asked the Hoeflers about what they learned from the experience. The main lesson (among many others) is Do not make decisions based on need. At a certain point we realized we were in over our heads, and we failed to think through our options and the long-term consequences of our decisions. We were making emotional decisions based on our current sense of need. Reaching FIRE & The Ever-After The stability that real estate investing has brought to our lives meant we have been free to change careers, build businesses, travel, and ultimately give back in ways we never thought possible. The twins quit their day jobs, but they found they loved investing in real estate enough to keep going. Today, they sell small multifamily properties to other investors in the Twin Cities, through a company called The Duplex Doctors. Why retire when youre having so much fun making money? Altogether, along with my wife Jenny and my brother Drew, we own eight total properties with 14 doors. We are about to close on another four properties with seven doors. I asked Scott about his final words of advice for anyone looking to reach FIRE through rental properties. Sit down and think through your why for purchasing real estate. Everyone says money at first. But to be truly successful in this industry, you need a deeper reason than just the desire to make money. So? Whats your why, Scott? For me, my time is my most valuable resource. My hope is that real estate will allow me the capacity to give back to this world in ways a standard 9-5 job cant. Its hard to argue with that.

Interested in FIRE from real estate? Whats your why? How are you approaching the journey to FIRE, and what are your questions along the way? Weigh in with a comment! https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/fire-in-5-years-on-rental-income