2024 was the year of meaningful achievements both personally and professionally. It was a year of growth after our best year ever in 2023. We became a family of 4. We bought a new house, launched new businesses and helped over 200 families launch a new chapter in their lives.
My daughter turned 3 and my son turned 1. My dog turned 16! We took our first family vacation in Spain in August and went to the most beautiful wedding at Hotel Cipriani in Venice.
The Venice trip was one time Elizabeth and I got to spent meaningful time alone after becoming parents. Time together away from business and kids is critical to the long term health of your marriage.
In this post, I will outline my businesses and then give a deeper look at what unfolded in 2024— the successes, the challenges, the lessons we’ve gained, and the road ahead.
Our Ventures at a Glance:
- STR Arbitrage: ~30 apartments in Philadelphia, PA under long term leases
- STR Ownership: 7 properties we own in Smoky Mountain, TN and Catskills, NY
- Media Businesess: Personal brand under @michaelchangbnb with 110k followers and 1M+ views in 2024 Education business under STR Like The Best, where we’ve help 200+ families launch their Airbnb businesses.
- Personal Investing: Personal investments outside of short term rentals
- Next 12 Months: What's on my roadmap to maximize 2025
STR Arbitrage Portfolio (30 apartments):
The Good:
- All time high STR portfolio revenue ($1.5MM) across ~30 listings active in 2024
- Excellent free cash flow margins (30%+)
- Less than 2 hrs/ week on business with improved operations (team training, better process, upgraded technology)
The Not-So-Good:
- Slowed down arbitrage unit growth given focus on Media businesses. Several good opportunities were missed
STR Ownership (7 properties)
The Good:
- Acquired a $1M+ ski property in upstate NY in June 2024. Added $200k+ in upgrades within 2.5 months from closing to launching the property. Already $112k+ in revenue in 4 months. On pace to exceed our projections in year 1
- Reduced taxable income by over 6 figures with bonus depreciation and buildout expenses for new property
- Significantly outperformed our competition in Smokies. Below are revenue percentile metrics by property from AirDNA. Extremely proud of these metrics since none of my cabins have amazing long range views or large backyards for outdoor amenities. We are winning with superior design, revenue management, social media marketing, and best in class operations 6BR Cabin #1: 90th 6BR Cabin #2: 80th 5BR Cabin #3: 65th 4BR Cabin #4: 75th 3BR Cabin #5: 85th Pool Cabin #6: 85th
- Portfolio generated significant free cash flow after mortgage payments. Cabins purchased in 2020, 2021, and 2022 continue to benefit from low basis and rates
The Not-So-Good:
- New STR permit regulations in Sevier County, TN will require the most profitable cabin to go offline for 1 month for required modifications
- High operating costs for pool cabin + higher property taxes continues to weigh on profitability
- Increase of supply in Smokies could lower revenue in 2025. TN cabin revenue down 4.9% YoY from 2023
Media Businesses (@michaelchangbnb + STR Like The Best)
The Good:
- Mentored and educated 200+ families and professionals to launch and scale their Airbnb businesses
- Exceeded 7 figures in revenue for the Media business in 2024
- Built the STR Like The Best Podcast to become a Top 10 show with 100k+ downloads and 130+ five start reviews on Apple Podcast and Spotify
- Launched and grew brand partnerships with leading companies in short term rentals including, but not limited to, Booking.com, Hostaway, Beyond Pricing, AirDNA, Turno, and Operto
- Speaker at several STR conferences including IMN Austin, IMN Miami, Hostchella
The Not-So-Good:
- Scaling the content and education businesses absorbed 80%+ of my working hours. Need to continue to invest in people and technology
- Long form writing (like this!) and content took a backseat given the focus of short form content. I want to spend more time writing and creating longer form, 5-10 min long, YouTube videos to provide more context and nuance versus what I can do in 30 seconds on Instagram and TikTok
Personal Investments
The Good:
- My wife Elizabeth and I successfully worked 8 years together on our businesses without a heavy object being thrown at either person! Jokes aside, my most valuable asset is being able to work efficiency and effectively with my wife in a business partnership. There are no Operating Agreements, Ownership splits, etc. We are 2 people, 1 unit working together to grow our net worth.
- Our stock portfolio and retirement accounts increased 30%+ with zero effort! I transfer business profits into Robinhood accounts monthly and have a weekly buy for SPY/QQQ. This takes 5 mins of time monthly and dollar cost average has done much better for me vs spending time on the latest trends and under performing the market. My money continues to grow while we hunt for the new STR real estate acquisitions
- Raising two amazing, young kids in NYC whiile growing 2 business simultaneously. My wife and I have built a life where we have the time and financial freedom to be the parents we want to be without the contraints of a bad boss
The Not-So-Good:
- Lack of focus on my health and wellness. My bad LDL cholesterol level is 156 and I have gout. I have to make better lifestyle changes so I can be the dad and husband that I want to be in my 40s, 50s, and 60s.
- Tennis skills regressed. This is my 1 outside hobby that doesn’t involve work or kids
The Next 12 Months
- Add 10 units to our arbitrage portfolio to increase our cash flow
- Acquire 2 new properties for short term rentals to build our portfolio and minimize taxes
- Help another 200 families build their short term rental real estate business
- 2x engagement on media businesses across new channels and content formats
- Reduce LDL to 100 and no further gout attacks
- Achieve 4.5 rank on my tennis
- Continue 8 year streak of NO heavy objects thrown at or to from my business partner
Hope you got some value out of this post! There are so many people I am thankful for and that have contributed to Elizabeth, Athena, Jackson and myself pursuing our dreams of building the next generation of our family tree on our terms.
None of this would be possible without them. Look forward to sharing more with you throughout this year!
