For High-Income W-2 and 1099 Earners
Your Best Year Shouldn't Become Your Biggest Tax Bill
30-minute call · No cost · No commitment · Bring your CPA
By the Numbers 2026
$200M+
Assets Managed
300+
Doors across 20+ states
10-14%
Historically targeting avg. annual returns
$200M+
In tax savings for our investors
15 of 15
IRS audits passed
9 Years
Operating history
The Problem
You did everything right. April still takes the biggest bite.
If your CPA is sharp and the check you write every spring is still the biggest one of the year, here's why:
The tax code was built to reward people who own things that make money. Your income shows up as a paycheck, so it gets taxed at the highest rate there is, and it gets taxed before the money ever reaches you. The people paying the least aren't earning less than you. They own something.
And it's never just the money you hand over. It's what that money would have done instead. It's telling yourself "not this year" on the house. "Maybe next year" on the school. "Someday" on the freedom this income was supposed to buy.
Your CPA isn't failing you. A 401(k) shelters a little over twenty thousand dollars. A good CPA might find you another twenty or thirty in write-offs. Against a $200,000 tax bill, that barely moves the needle. The one thing big enough to move your tax bill is owning a business that throws off income and a write-off at the same time - and that has always taken time you don't have.
Your CPA can spot the problem. Very few can hand you the fix.
For High-Income W-2 and 1099 Earners
The Keep-More Method™: How a Rental Cuts the Tax on Your Salary
It isn't a trick and it isn't new.
It lives in Section 469 of the tax code. When you own a property that genuinely runs as a short-term rental, depreciation on that property can come off the income you actually earn - your salary, your bonus, your commissions.
Depreciation is a deduction you take without spending anything, and on the right property most of it lands in the first year. The house isn’t losing money. The loss is on paper. But it still comes off your taxable income, and that’s what shrinks the check you write in April.
That’s it. It’s published in the tax code, it’s been tested in court, and just about every serious real estate owner uses it.
The reason more high earners don’t: it takes owning and running a short-term rental business. Finding it, financing it, renovating it, pricing it, answering guests at eleven at night. That’s a second job, and you’ve already got a demanding first one.
That’s the part we do.
Investor Results
What This Took Off Our Investors’ Tax Bills
Different jobs, different states. Here’s what each one put in, and what they saved.
* Individual results depend on income, tax profile, participation, and the specific deal. Your CPA determines what applies to your return.
That is year one. Before a single rent check. Before a dollar of equity.
In Their Own Words
“
I wrote a $312,000 check to the IRS the year before I met Elk Ridge. The next April I got money back. I didn't buy a house - I bought a tax outcome, and they handled everything else.
Airline Captain · Major Carrier · Chicago, IL
“
My CPA suggested it, Elk Ridge documented every hour. The cost- segregation study laned exactly where they projected. The K-1 was clean, my filing was clean.
Anesthesiologist · Dallas, TX
“
I have no interest in being a landlord. I wanted the depreciation. Seven years from now I want a check at exit. That is exactly what Elk Ridge sold me, and it is exactly what they are delivering.
Tech Executive · Bellevue, WA
30-minute call · No cost · No commitment · Bring your CPA
How It Works
You Make the Decisions. We Run the Property.
Four steps from the first conversation to the first check.
01
We look at your actual numbers.
We look at your income and what you paid in tax last year, because that's the best read on what this year is going to look like. Then we show you how much of that money this method could realistically keep in your pocket instead. Some people who apply aren't a fit, and we say so.
02
We put your money in the right property.
We find off-market homes in places people actually travel to. You see the specific house, the numbers behind it, and the projected write-off before you commit a dollar.
03
We build the business.
We set up the financing, run the renovation, furnish the home, list it, price it, and operate it. An independent firm works out how big your write-off is - not us, so the number holds up if anyone ever asks. Our team handles bookings, guests, maintenance, and the books.
04
You get the benefits.
A write-off your CPA can put on your return. A quarterly check from what the house earns. Equity that keeps building through a seven-year hold, with a plan for selling built in from day one.
Short-term rentals have good months and slow ones. Seasons, markets, a surprise repair. That's our problem to manage, not yours. We only make money when you do.
Real Houses, in Places People Actually Travel To
A few of the homes we own and operate right now.
On the call we walk you through the homes that are open right now, what each one would take, and what it would do to your return.
30-minute call · No cost · No commitment
The Question Everybody Asks
What You Actually Have to Do
The IRS wants owners genuinely involved in the business. For our investors that comes out to about two hours a week - decisions, not chores.
It’s the first thing almost everybody asks: if Elk Ridge runs the property, how is it really my business? Here’s the honest answer.
To put that write-off against your salary, the IRS wants you genuinely involved. Involved doesn’t mean managing the place. It means making the calls an owner makes.
Across a year that lands at about a hundred hours, which is roughly two hours a week.
Every one logged with
a date and time stamp.
What that actually looks like:
Reviewing and approving pricing
Weighing in on design, furnishing, and property standards
Approving repairs and big purchases
Reviewing the monthly and quarterly reports
Setting guest policies and reviewing guest issues
Approving the yearly budget
Deciding when to refinance and when to sell
We built a system around it. It lines up those decisions when they’re due, logs every one with a date and time stamp, and hands you the record at year end. If the IRS ever asks, you’re not rebuilding it from memory.
You do the hours. That part isn’t optional. We make sure every one of them is documented.
No Surprises
You’ll Know Exactly Where Every Dollar Goes
We go through what your money buys, the ownership split, how the property is financed and who carries the debt, how we get paid, the risks, and what happens at he end of the seven-year hold.
What you own is a share of one specific house through a joint venture. Not a slice of a pool, not shares in a fund - a partnership in that physical property, which is what makes the write-off yours in the first place.
You’ll also see the live dashboard our current investors log into, and the exact packet we put together for your CPA.
Bring your CPA. Bring your attorney. Bring your spouse. The investors who ask the hardest questions up front tend to be the ones who stay longest.
You don’t have to take our word on whether it holds up. Fifteen of our investors have been audited. All fifteen cruised through. Nine years in, we’ve never made a capital call - never gone back to an investor asking for more money.
And there are 300 real houses behind this. You can look them up. You can drive to one. A fund can’t offer you that.
Verified Under Scrutiny
Fifteen audits. All fifteen cruised through.
30-minute call · No cost · No commitment
How This Stacks Up Against Your Other Options
Four ways high earners try to cut a big tax bill. Here's what each one actually does.
| 401(k) and CPA planning | A REIT or fund | Run your own short-term rental | Elk Ridge | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cuts The Tax On Your Salary | A little, and capped | No - dividends get taxed | Yes, if you qualify | Yes, and documented for you |
| Your Time | None | None | A second job | About two hours a week |
| What You End Up Owning | A bigger 401(k) balance | Shares in a fund | The house, and every problem in it | Equity in a real house |
| Money Along The Way | Not until you retire | Dividends, taxed as income | Rent, when it's booked | A quarterly check |
The first two are safe and small. Neither one touches the tax on your salary. The third one works, and it costs you your nights and weekends. We built the fourth so you don't have to pick between them.
Who It's For
This isn't for everyone.
Four steps from the first conversation to the first check.
this is probably a fit if
You earn $500,000 or more, or you had a year that spiked well above your normal.
Your tax bill is big enough that another write-off or two won't change how April feels.
You've got money available and you want it working in something you can see.
You're willing to spend about two hours a week making real decisions on a business you own.
You want your CPA involved, and you want documentation that will hold up in an IRS audit.
This is not a fit if
You want to buy something and never think about it again. The participation requirement is real, and we won't pretend otherwise.
You want to be a landlord. That's a different life, and there are better ways to get there.
If you work hard and play by the rules, you shouldn't have to become a landlord to get the benefits the tax code already gives you.
From here, you've got three options.
Only one of them changes what happens next April.
Option One
Do nothing.
Next April shows up exactly like the last one. Same size check going to the IRS. Same things put off another year.
Option Two
Go at it alone.
Find the property. Get the financing. Run the renovation. Furnish it, price it, list it, handle the guests, keep the books, and keep the records the IRS wants. People do this, and some do it well. It's also a second job, and you pay for the learning curve with your time and your money.
Option three
Let us run it for you.
We do all of that. You make the owner decisions, take the write-off, collect the quarterly checks, and hold the equity.
Keep more for the people who matter. Keep more weekends where you're actually there instead of stressed. Keep more of every win, instead of whatever's left after April.
Everything You'd Want Answered Before You Decide
The questions that come up on almost every call.
Can short-term rentals really offset my W-2 income?
Potentially, yes. With a long-term rental, the losses can't touch your salary. Short-term rentals get treated differently under Section 469. When you meet the participation requirements, the write-off may go against the income you earn. Your CPA decides what applies to your return.
How much can I actually save?
It depends on your numbers. In the three above, first-year tax savings ran from about $79,000 to over $142,000. The only way to know yours is to run your income against a specific deal.
Do I have to become a landlord?
No. We handle buying it, financing it, furnishing it, running it, the guests, the books, and planning the sale. You never deal with contractors, cleaners, or guest complaints. You do have to meet the participation requirement, and that's owner decisions, not property management.
Is this IRS compliant?
It's built on rules already in the tax code covering depreciation, real estate ownership, and short-term rentals. Like any tax position, how you do it and how you document it is what matters. That's why we build the record as we go and get your CPA involved from the first conversation.
How do I know you'll still be here in five years?
Nine years operating. More than 300 properties in over 20 states. A check to investors every quarter across that whole stretch, and not one capital call. Fifteen of our investors have been through an IRS audit, and all fifteen cruised through.
How much do I need to invest?
There's no set number, because every deal here is built around one person's tax situation. Yours depends on what you earn, what you paid last year, and what you're trying to keep. Once we look at your numbers on the call, we can tell you the exact amount.
What if my CPA has never heard of this?
That happens a lot, and it isn't a red flag. Most CPAs stick to traditional planning. We give your CPA the code sections, the study, the documentation, and a direct line to our team. Plenty who started out skeptical now send us clients.
Is there still time to get this on my current return?
The house has to be closed on and up and running before year-end for the write-off to count that year. The earlier you start the conversation, the more options you've got.
our founder
Elk Ridge was founded by Lamè Kinikini, who spent years on the same side of this problem. High income, strong years, and a painful amount of it leaving every April instead of going to his family or his future. He built this so other high earners wouldn't have to figure it out the hard way.
Lamè Kinikini · Founder & CEO, Elk Ridge Investments
You Owe It to Yourself to at Least Look at This
Thirty minutes, your real numbers, and a straight answer either way.
This is a real, legal way to keep more of your own money instead of handing it to the IRS. You've worked too hard not to at least find out how much this could keep in your pocket.
There are only so many homes open at any one time. They go first-come, first- served, to investors who qualify. And for the write-off to land on this year's return, the house has to be closed on and running before year-end.
So don't wait. Let's talk about how to keep more of your money in your pocket.
30-minute call · No cost · No commitment · Bring your CPA
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Elk Ridge Investments · 365 South Garden Grove Lane, Suite 200 · Pleasant Grove, Utah 84062
© 2026 Elk Ridge Investments, Inc.
Elk Ridge Investments does not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. All figures are estimates and individual outcomes depend on personal tax circumstances, participation, and the specific investment. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Consult your own advisors before investing.