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In this episode of Living Off Rentals, host Kirby Atwell sits down with Stephen Arnaud, an engineer, W-2 employee, and father of three, who's intentionally building his path out of the 9-to-5 through short-term rentals.
Stephen shares why, even though he enjoys his career, the demands of a W-2 job started to conflict with family life and long-term freedom. Like many high-performing professionals, he realized that traditional investing alone wasn't going to give him the flexibility he wanted anytime soon. That realization led him to short-term rentals.
If you are still working a 9-to-5 but thinking seriously about building income outside of it and a pathway to financial independence, this episode offers a realistic roadmap. Listen and enjoy!
Key Takeaways:
[00:00] Introducing Stephen Arnaud and his background
[02:21] Getting into the real estate through short-term rental
[06:33] The moment he realized short-term rentals could replace earned income
[09:45] How Stephen picked his market
[11:59] Deciding on the properties that he purchased
[13:43] Details on Stephen's first two STR properties and why he targeted larger homes
[16:25] Financing with conventional loans as a W-2 investor
[17:18] Using IRA funds strategically for down payments and furnishings
[18:12] Stephen's perspective on retirement accounts vs. building income today
[21:08] Building a reliable cleaning and support team
[23:36] The biggest challenge on the flip side: Neighbors
[25:30] Screening guests and avoiding party issues
[28:15] Balancing a W-2 job with managing STRs during the early stages
[31:38] How virtual assistants can outperform owner-operators with the right systems
[34:24] Stephen's advice for people wanting to exit their 9-5 and get into short-term rentals
[37:55] A real mistake with scheduling cleaners and how communication saved the situation
[39:52] Outro
Guest Links:
Website: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1389202306719070032
Show Links:
Living Off Rentals YouTube Channel – youtube.com/c/LivingOffRentals
Living Off Rentals YouTube Podcast Channel - youtube.com/c/LivingOffRentalsPodcast
Living Off Rentals Facebook Group – facebook.com/groups/livingoffrentals
Living Off Rentals Website – https://www.livingoffrentals.com/
Living Off Rentals Instagram – instagram.com/livingoffrentals
Living Off Rentals TikTok – tiktok.com/@livingoffrentals
By Kirby Atwell4.9
8181 ratings
In this episode of Living Off Rentals, host Kirby Atwell sits down with Stephen Arnaud, an engineer, W-2 employee, and father of three, who's intentionally building his path out of the 9-to-5 through short-term rentals.
Stephen shares why, even though he enjoys his career, the demands of a W-2 job started to conflict with family life and long-term freedom. Like many high-performing professionals, he realized that traditional investing alone wasn't going to give him the flexibility he wanted anytime soon. That realization led him to short-term rentals.
If you are still working a 9-to-5 but thinking seriously about building income outside of it and a pathway to financial independence, this episode offers a realistic roadmap. Listen and enjoy!
Key Takeaways:
[00:00] Introducing Stephen Arnaud and his background
[02:21] Getting into the real estate through short-term rental
[06:33] The moment he realized short-term rentals could replace earned income
[09:45] How Stephen picked his market
[11:59] Deciding on the properties that he purchased
[13:43] Details on Stephen's first two STR properties and why he targeted larger homes
[16:25] Financing with conventional loans as a W-2 investor
[17:18] Using IRA funds strategically for down payments and furnishings
[18:12] Stephen's perspective on retirement accounts vs. building income today
[21:08] Building a reliable cleaning and support team
[23:36] The biggest challenge on the flip side: Neighbors
[25:30] Screening guests and avoiding party issues
[28:15] Balancing a W-2 job with managing STRs during the early stages
[31:38] How virtual assistants can outperform owner-operators with the right systems
[34:24] Stephen's advice for people wanting to exit their 9-5 and get into short-term rentals
[37:55] A real mistake with scheduling cleaners and how communication saved the situation
[39:52] Outro
Guest Links:
Website: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1389202306719070032
Show Links:
Living Off Rentals YouTube Channel – youtube.com/c/LivingOffRentals
Living Off Rentals YouTube Podcast Channel - youtube.com/c/LivingOffRentalsPodcast
Living Off Rentals Facebook Group – facebook.com/groups/livingoffrentals
Living Off Rentals Website – https://www.livingoffrentals.com/
Living Off Rentals Instagram – instagram.com/livingoffrentals
Living Off Rentals TikTok – tiktok.com/@livingoffrentals

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