In this episode, Craig Curelop and Miller McSwain sit down with co-living investor Travis Schwartz to talk about one of the biggest debates in the co-living space: Should you self-manage your rooms, or use a platform like PadSplit?

Travis brings a unique perspective. After starting out by building his own systems, managing leads, and filling rooms himself, he eventually moved his portfolio onto PadSplit. That decision helped him simplify operations, cut down on manual lead management, and shift his focus back to acquisitions.

And the results were significant.

Travis bought 12 co-living houses in one year, mostly in the Dallas-Fort Worth market, using a strategy built around high cash flow, aggressive renovations, and long-term holds.

Craig and Miller challenge Travis on the tradeoffs of PadSplit, including fees, platform risk, saturation, and whether it still makes sense at scale. Travis also shares what he has learned from renovations, appraisals, permits, tenant retention, and building software for PadSplit hosts through PadPulse.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How Travis got into co-living after years as an entrepreneur
• Why he bought three houses at once when he started
• His target of under $40,000 per finished room
• Why he focuses on cash flow more than short-term equity
• The hidden risk of negative equity in co-living renovations
• How PadSplit changed his operations
• The pros and cons of relying on a third-party platform
• Why some markets become saturated faster than others
• How to think about amenities, pricing, and tenant retention
• Why offering a discount to a good resident can be cheaper than turnover
• What Travis is building with PadPulse
• His long-term vision for co-living and private equity

Connect with Travis:
PadPulse: padpulse.io
Email: travis@padpulse.io
LinkedIn: Travis Schwartz

Follow the hosts:
Miller McSwain: www.instagram.com/millermcswain
Craig Curelop: www.instagram.com/craigcurelop

Join the free Co-Living Community:
www.millermcswain.com/community

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