Our investment strategy has always included the purchase of a second home. However, my incredible friend and I had different opinions on the best type of house to purchase. While I was dreaming of a lodge in the woods, my partner had his sights set on a lakeside retreat. She was set on buying a house in a gated lake community with a HOA because she thought it would be perfect for our family. As the head of the household, I had to concede that this was the best choice. After all, I’ve been married for nearly three decades; I know when to put up a fight and when to just shake my head in agreement. The lake house checked all the right boxes as an investment property, and she was right about that. After my unbelievable friend and I bought it, we had to make some upgrades, one of which was installing a brand new heating and cooling system. Even though the previous owners installed an HVAC system, it had been there for nearly 15 years by the time we moved in. They claimed the part was in perfect condition, but my unbelievable friend and I decided to start over anyway. Therefore, the old HVAC system and other appliances had to be removed. A friend and I discussed renovating the deck to give it a more natural feel in light of its spectacular lakeside setting. My coworker called a local HVAC company, and they sent someone out to inspect the system. After getting a quote from the expert, my incredible friend and I got to work on replacing the antiquated HVAC system in our current lake house.