All Forum Posts by: Collin Hays

 That's some big words. Can you scale it down for me?

Nice find! 

You can spend from a few thousand to a hundred thousand, depending on the look and feel you are trying to achieve. We manage log cabins primarily, so a used log bed is as good as a new one.  A vintage hickory dining set found on FB Marketplace is far better than a fake set from the furniture store. A gently used Ralph Lauren leather sofa is far better than a new one from Ashley Furniture.  An antique persian rug made of wool is vastly superior to a nylon one from Lowe's.  

We do lots of gathering of nice items from FB Marketplace.  

We drain our hot tubs between guests. That takes all of the fuss out of it.

 You are right. I bought my first cabin in 2005. Negative cash flow for several years. Then the financial crisis, and the value of it dropped in half. But here I am, the thing is paid off and lots of cash flow, worth 3X what I paid.

I don't know that it is "losing money".  A 401K isn't producing any monthly cashflow, yet we dutifully dump $1,000 a month in it for 30 years, hoping there is a pot at the end of the rainbow.  Never think twice about it.

If we are making some or all of a mortgage payment for a few years on a vacation rental, it's only the interest that is lost - the rest is paying off the asset, all while the asset continues to go up in value through the years.

I got a chance to read this over lunch today, and it really hit home some excellent points about investing in real estate.  Thought I would pass it along.

The Myth of Cash Flow

 It might cost what the lawyer would charge to fire off a couple of demand letters.  The OP hasn't responded to anything. Maybe (s)he just wanted to blow off some steam.

At some point, I discovered that if I stay there when it could have been rented, it isn't free.  ;)

I'm not sure I understand correctly.  Are these windows Pella?  Are these casement, single hung, or double hung?  Wood, fiber, vinyl, or aluminum? If they are Pella, I would have a Pella rep come out. Pella has a reputation for standing behind their products.  If it's a membrane, seems like the entire window isn't sealed correctly. That's an easy fix. But the Pella rep will know. I doubt Pella windows are failing. They are legendary, and expensive.  You just have the seal around the window and the window itself. If the window is sealed correctly, and the window is of decent quality, I'm not sure what else could be failing that would make it leak - it's not that complicated.

On the other hand, if these are builders grade windows, they could have slapped anything in there, and the windows could indeed be failing. Some of the windows builders put in houses are just atrocious quality, but many buyers haven't the slightest clue.