HI, I’M KATIE!
Hospitality veteran and short-term rental expert turning vacation homes into wealth-building opportunities.
I love showing people that with the right strategy, your home can become a powerful tool for building real wealth while creating more freedom and flexibility than the conventional approach ever could. This is not your typical real estate advice, and that’s the point. If you’re interested in building wealth differently, you’re in the right place.
At Second Home First, we help you make homeownership not only possible but profitable by turning a vacation home into a short-term rental that works for you. It’s about building wealth for tomorrow while creating a space for you and your loved ones to enjoy today.
If you’re ready to create financial freedom and the kind of lifestyle flexibility you’ve only dreamed of, we guide you every step of the way. You don’t have to feel stuck in a job you don’t love or stretch to the top of your budget just to buy a home. With the right strategy, your next home can cover its costs, build equity, generate income, and even give you a place to vacation for free.
We found a vacation home about three and a half hours outside of the city near Lake George. The difference in cost alone made it feel immediately more accessible, with home prices nearly a million dollars lower than what we were seeing in parts of New York City. What drew us in wasn’t just the price point, but the lifestyle it offered. We wanted a place where we could gather both sides of our family under one roof, spend summer nights around a fire pit, celebrate milestones, and create a space that felt like an escape from the pace of city life.
We also hoped to offset some of the costs by renting it out when we weren’t there. What we didn’t expect was just how well that would work. Within a year, the home was fully booked most weekends from May through September, covering all of our annual costs and generating a profit!
That’s when we realized that this wasn’t a fluke; it was a strategy. We were building equity, owning an appreciating asset, and creating income, while also having a place that allowed us to live fully in the present. It gave us a way to invest in our future without putting our lives on hold.
The truth is, the future isn’t guaranteed. We don’t all get those “golden years.” What started as a financial decision became something deeper, a way to hold both things at once: building for the future while fully living in the present.
My Story
For a long time, I believed owning a second home was something only “rich people” could do. It felt out of reach, like one of those things you hear about and quietly dismiss with a “must be nice.” But in doing that, I was also telling myself it wasn’t an option for me, which meant I never stopped to ask a better question: how did they do it? Or more importantly, how could I?
At the same time, the reality was hard to ignore. Homeownership, especially in major cities, felt increasingly unattainable. After 6 years of living in London, my husband and I decided to move back to New York to be closer to my family following my mom’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis at 59. It was a season of a lot of change. We had just had our daughter, were navigating a big move, and felt the weight of so many unknowns. More than anything, we craved simplicity and flexibility, which led us to rent in Astoria, Queens, a neighborhood we had loved before, rather than rush into buying in a market that felt overwhelming and financially out of reach. Instead, we made an unconventional decision...
We bought our “second home” first.
WAYS WE CAN WORK TOGETHER
Second Home
First Academy
A five-week, guided, community-based program for people who want more income, optionality, and freedom in their lives.
1:1
Consulting
A highly tailored program designed to guide you through buying your second home first, with personalized support along the way.
MY PROPERTIES
Trout Landing
BOLTON LANDING, NY
Trout Landing is a four-bedroom, three-bathroom pet-friendly chalet located in Bolton Landing, New York. The home is set on 6+ serene, wooded acres just minutes from Lake George.
Gallant Fox
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
Gallant Fox is a four-bedroom, two-bathroom pet-friendly home located in the heart of Saratoga Springs, walking distance to beloved local attractions such as Broadway, Beekman and the race track.
The Lazy Oar
LODI, NY
Drive through a vineyard to reach The Lazy Oar, a two-bedroom, one-bathroom waterfront home perched on a cliff above Seneca Lake. Stroll down to your personal lakeside oasis to enjoy 50' of lake frontage.
Press & Media
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Entrepreneur
Why Buying a ‘Second Home’ First is the New Way to Build Wealth — and Enjoy Free Vacations
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Business Insider
We Bought a Rental Property Instead of a ‘Starter Home’. It Pays For Itself, and We Use It Whenever We Want.
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BiggerStays
Insider Strategies From a Former Hotel PR Pro for Airbnb Wins
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Entrepreneur
I Didn’t Think I Could Afford a Vacation Home—But Now It’s My Most Profitable Investment
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KeyCrew Journal
The Strategic Shift from Primary to Secondary Home Investment
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The REI Agent
Building a Legacy Through Hospitality and Heart from London to Lake George with Katie Cline