Back in 2018, I jumped on the Airbnb train. Hard. We launched properties in Idaho, Indianapolis, Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina. At one point, I was juggling over 30 Airbnbs—owning and managing the entire fleet. And honestly? It was amazing… at first.
The Golden Years of Short-Term Rentals
When Airbnb was new and hot, returns were through the roof. We were pulling in 20% to 50% higher revenue than if we’d rented to traditional long-term tenants. One property in Indianapolis went from $1,500/month on a standard 12-month lease to netting over $2,400/month once we furnished it and listed it as a short-term rental. It was a landlord’s dream.
But dreams fade.
From Property Manager to Problem Solver
I’ve been in the real estate investing game for 25 years. My company manages over 3,500 doors across six markets. We’ve seen it all—flips, BRRRRs, luxury, workforce housing, Section 8, you name it. I know what a good deal looks like, and I also know when something stops working.
Airbnb started becoming a grind. More regulations. More parties. More wear and tear. More competition. Lower margins. The math stopped mathing.
Enter PadSplit: The “New School” Boarding House
In 2021, a friend tipped me off to PadSplit. He described it as a modern take on the old-school boarding house—except digital and streamlined. I’d worked with investors in the UK pre-COVID, where boarding houses (called “HMOs”—Houses in Multiple Occupation) are everywhere, especially in cities like London with insane rent prices.
What surprised me most was that PadSplit was taking off in cities like Atlanta. I never saw Atlanta as having the kind of rent pressure or density that screams “boarders wanted.” But I was wrong.
The Affordable Housing Crunch Is Real
We are in the middle of the worst housing shortage in American history. Prices have gone parabolic since COVID. Interest rates are still painful. Homeownership is out of reach for millions. And rental options under $1,000/month? Practically extinct.
Most of the demand today is for affordable housing. And PadSplit is right in the middle of that bullseye.
Real Numbers, Real Results
Let me give you a real example. I had a tiny two-bed, one-bath house in a working-class neighborhood in Indianapolis. Nothing fancy—used to rent it for $800/month. PadSplit advised me to carve out two more bedrooms from the living space (we’re talking under 1,000 sq ft total). That turned it into a 4-bedroom, 1-bath setup.
Then they listed it at $175/week per room.
I was skeptical… until I started cashing checks for over $3,000/month.
Sure, I still paid utilities, landscaping, and scheduled quarterly cleanings. But even with those costs, the returns smoked my Airbnb income—and I wasn’t replacing furniture every six months or chasing guest reviews. Even better? The tenants were local. Not weekend partiers trashing my house. These were hardworking people who needed clean, private, affordable places to stay.
Who Lives in a PadSplit?
The tenant base is wide and real:
- Recent college grads
- People rebuilding after divorce
- Remote workers
- Traveling professionals
- Workers who just need a clean place with no drama
It’s not for families. No pets. One person per room. But the demand is huge.
One tenant told me, “Aaron, I make $800 a week. I like that my $175/week covers everything. I don’t have to think. It just works.”
Making the Shift—Ethically and Economically
I’m now converting all of my short-term rentals into PadSplits. Not just because the returns are better (they are), but because I believe in the mission. Unlike Airbnb, where I was unintentionally contributing to the affordability crisis by taking homes off the long-term market, PadSplit helps solve the problem.
The typical lease is 12 weeks, so I’m also sidestepping most short-term rental bans popping up in cities. It’s legal, it’s stable, and it’s scalable.
Thinking Bigger: Manufactured Housing + PadSplit
We’re now exploring development projects that combine PadSplit’s model with manufactured housing. Why not solve the affordable housing problem at scale by pairing efficiency with cost-effective construction?
We don’t need more luxury condos. We need housing that works for real people.
Join the Movement
We host weekly and monthly trainings on exactly this—what we’re testing, what’s working, and how you can apply it to your own investing strategy. If you’re tired of the Airbnb hustle or just want to learn how to generate consistent, meaningful returns and do some good in the process, come join us.
TL;DR:
I used to run over 30 Airbnbs and made great money—until the game changed. PadSplit has now become my go-to strategy. Higher returns. Better tenants. And a real solution to America’s housing crisis. If you’re in real estate, stop thinking small. The future is shared housing done right.
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