The operators behind the properties.
Blue Key Builds is a boutique development company that designs, builds and operates purpose-built short-term rentals, and shares the results with the investors who fund them.
Built from the ground up, operated for the long run.
Most short-term rentals are ordinary houses that someone decided to rent. Blue Key Builds starts earlier than that. We find the land, design a home for the guest who will stay in it, build it at cost rather than buying at retail, furnish it and then run it ourselves. That order matters: it creates equity at completion, it produces top-of-market nightly rates, and it keeps one accountable team on every property for its whole life.
The company was founded by experienced operators. Between us we bring more than a decade of brokerage and acquisitions, a property management business with over 550 doors across Southern California, and years of designing and coaching short-term rentals that stay booked. Every project is published with its numbers, and every investor is paid from the owner statement each month.
Parks-driven markets with year-round demand.
We build where tourism is the core of the local economy and high-quality inventory is scarce.
Three Rivers, California
Gateway to Sequoia National Park. Two properties, three listings, A-frame running 90% occupancy at $856 a night.
Blue Ridge, Georgia
Drive-to mountain market 90 minutes from Atlanta with 1,496 listings and a strong fall peak. A-frame open and taking guests.
Joshua Tree, California
Campanula, at the edge of Joshua Tree National Park, one of the most photographed desert markets in the country.
Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Gateway to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited national park in the United States.
What a typical project looks like.
A typical Blue Key Builds project starts with around $150,000 in investor capital. That capital pays for the due diligence on the land, acquires it, funds the design and plans, carries construction, furnishes the home and gets it ready to operate. We look for three things before we commit.
Equity
Our total cost has to sit below what we believe the finished property will be worth. On the Three Rivers A-frame that gap was $200,000. On the main house and ADU it is $320,000.
Cash flow
We build specifically for the short-term rental guest and underwrite every project to a minimum of 10 to 20 percent cash-on-cash.
The benefits of owning real estate
Appreciation, depreciation and the tax treatment that comes with ownership, depending on each investor's situation.
Operators first, developers second.
Tom Kadar
A real estate broker for more than ten years across residential and commercial transactions, Tom runs a team of six acquiring off-market deals nationwide for himself and his investors, and is an owner of a property management company with more than 550 doors across Southern California.
Johnny Martinez
A former software engineer turned real estate investor, designer and Airbnb coach. Johnny has worked alongside some of the top operators in short-term rentals and designs the spaces that stop the scroll, attract guests and stay booked from check-in to check-out.
Drew Woods
Drew oversees the design, setup and execution of each property, making sure every home is thoughtfully designed, fully equipped and ready to operate as a high-performing short-term rental on opening day.
Ready to see the current project?
We will send the project summary, the timeline and the numbers, then set up a call with Tom.