Notebook
Essays for real STR operators.
Tax-season prep, turnover ops, dynamic pricing math, acquisition underwriting, and the quiet operational fixes that compound across a portfolio. No listicles, no fluff.
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2026-05-23 · 7 min
Schedule E vs Schedule C for your Airbnb: it's not a preference, it's a test
Most STR owners default to Schedule E because that's what real estate uses. For a lot of short-term rentals, that's wrong — and the IRS test that decides isn't subtle.
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2026-05-23 · 6 min
Cost segregation on an STR: when the study actually pays for itself
A working operator's break-even on cost seg — what it costs, what it accelerates, and the property size where the math finally beats the engineer's invoice.
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2026-05-23 · 5 min
1099-NEC for your cleaner: the $600 line and the trap most STR hosts walk into
Who gets a 1099 from your STR, how the $600 threshold actually works, and the W-9 step that has to happen before you pay the first invoice — not after.
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2026-05-22 · 6 min
STR mileage: what actually counts (and what your CPA will throw out)
A working operator's read on which drives are deductible against your STR — turnovers, supply runs, owner meetings — and which ones won't survive an audit.
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2026-05-20 · 5 min
The cleaner-turnover checklist that actually runs in 90 minutes
Most turnover lists are aspirational. This is the working one — what to cut, what to keep, and the three checks that catch 80% of bad reviews.
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2026-05-10 · 2 min
Welcome to The STR Ledger blog
Notes from operators running real STR portfolios. Tax, ops, pricing, acquisition — no fluff.
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