Is That Rental a Good Deal? How to Calculate Cap Rate (With a Calculator)
The cap rate formula in plain English, a worked example, what to leave out of NOI, and a free calculator you can use right on the page.
Apps
I build small iOS apps on nights and weekends and write down what happens: what shipped, what App Store Connect said afterward, which changes helped, and which ones were a waste of a weekend.
60 entries ~221 min of reading
Latest
Nov 10, 2026
2026 60 entries
My Top 5 iPhone Duo Apps After One Week
After a week with the iPhone Duo: the best apps I have found that support it, four of my own, the big apps still missing support, and how the battery is holding up.
Was That Hole Already There? A Move-In and Move-Out Inspection Checklist for Landlords
A room-by-room rental inspection checklist you can print or copy, plus how to document condition so security deposit deductions hold up at move-out.
Do You Owe Your Plumber a 1099? What Landlords Need to Know for 2026
When a landlord has to file a 1099-NEC for a plumber or handyman, the new $2,000 threshold for 2026 payments, the January deadline, and the W-9 habit that makes it easy.
Beige Box: Tiny Retro Computers for iPhone Duo
Meet Beige Box, a coming-soon retro computer app for iPhone Duo, iPhone and iPad, with five original machines, web browsing, BASIC and games.
My First Few Days With the iPhone Duo
Coming from an iPhone 17 Pro Max: using the Duo mostly folded, great battery life, missing the camera zoom at soccer, and building apps with AI.
What Did You Forget to Deduct? A Rental Property Expense Checklist
A checklist of common rental property deductions, the costs that aren't deductible right away, and the records to keep so nothing gets missed at tax time.
Lampleaf Is Live, a New iPhone Tomorrow, and Life at Home
Lampleaf Illustrated Bible is on the App Store, my iPhone Duo arrives tomorrow, and a family update on school, sports, church, and celebrating 75 days of commitment.
Where Did This Year's Numbers Go? How to Fill Out Schedule E for a Rental Property
A plain-English walkthrough of Schedule E Part I for landlords: which numbers go on which line, what trips people up, and how to have them ready before tax season.
Intro Offers vs Win-Back Offers: What I'm Testing on Heirloom
How introductory and win-back offers differ in App Store Connect, the rules Apple sets for each, and the two offers I'm testing on my subscription app Heirloom.
Why App Store Connect Numbers Don't Match (and Which to Trust)
Sales and Trends and Analytics show different numbers for the same day. Why that happens, what each report is for, and how to avoid fake trends in your data.
iPhone Duo Screen Sizes and Layout Notes for Developers
Display sizes in points, safe areas, size classes and fold behavior measured in Apple’s iPhone Duo simulator, plus Apple’s guidance on the fold region and hinge API.
How I Make AI UGC Ads: Real Costs and What Failed
What AI presenter ads cost me with ElevenLabs and fal.ai, how I cut the cost, what broke along the way, and the results so far, including the parts that did not work.
How to Tell If an App Is Ready for the iPhone Duo
Which apps will actually use the iPhone Duo’s two displays? A simple look-at-the-screen test, what to check before you download, and what the three levels of support mean.
RaceJoy vs Strava Beacon vs HypeLap for Race Spectators
How RaceJoy, Strava Beacon and HypeLap differ for friends and family following a runner: what spectators need, what they see and what they can send.
Sousbook Is Live: A Recipe Organizer for iPhone and iPhone Duo
Sousbook is live on the App Store: save and scan recipes, build grocery lists, and cook from your personal cookbook. Our first app with iPhone Duo support.
"No Hot Water": How to Track Maintenance Requests So Nothing Gets Lost
A simple way to log, prioritize and follow up on rental repairs, from the first tenant text to the paid invoice.
Who Was That Plumber Again? How to Keep Track of Rental Contractors
Keep every contractor, job and payment in one list so you can find the right person fast and know what you've paid them.
Halloween & Christmas Conversation Games with While We’re Here
Preview Halloween and Christmas themes for While We’re Here, our conversation card app for church groups and gatherings, inspired by Not Just Sundays.
How Friends and Family Can Track a Runner and Cheer Them On With HypeLap
Follow a runner’s race progress and send cheers with HypeLap. Friends and family watch free in a browser and send messages, sound effects, and voice notes.
How to Keep Track of Service Payments, Invoices, and Receipts Before Year-End
Keep service payments, invoices, and receipts organized before year-end, with examples for Halloween decorating, Thanksgiving cleaning, and Christmas lights.
How to Keep Track of Leases and Late Rent as a Self-Managing Landlord
Know who's paid, who's late and which lease ends next without a spreadsheet or a memory test.
Sousbook for iPhone Duo: Your Personal Recipe Book
A recipe organizer for iPhone Duo: save and scan recipes, build grocery lists, and cook with ingredients beside steps. See Sousbook in the simulator.
How to Track Rental Property Expenses (Without Dreading Tax Time)
A simple routine for logging rental expenses by property, unit and category so you're never hunting for receipts in the spring.
An App Store Review Isn’t a Roadmap. It’s a Clue.
A practical way for indie developers to read App Store reviews, find recurring product issues, respond thoughtfully, and prioritize changes without treating every request as a roadmap.
How to Create AI UGC Ads With ElevenLabs and fal.ai
Create AI UGC-style app ads with ElevenLabs voiceovers, fal.ai lip sync, real product screenshots, and reusable hooks. My Heirloom workflow, with a video example.
Building Since January, Starting to See Traction
Small wins, real downloads, and lessons in value, paywalls, and showing up consistently. Grateful for the progress, and all glory to God.
One App Demo, Three Feeds: A Lightweight Short-Video Workflow for Indie Developers
A repeatable way for indie developers to turn one real app demonstration into distinct, useful short-form videos for TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts.
How I Market Heirloom With UGC, and readheirloom.com Is Now Live
The short-video workflow I use to market Heirloom, the rules that keep it honest, and the new readheirloom.com website that is now online.
A Sunday Check-In: AI, Small-Business Momentum, and Showing Up
A week of experimenting with AI, improving GetMandalo and UseManifest, and making room for the people and community that matter.
A Good Week: Rise & Capy Goes Live and a Few Meaningful Wins
Rise & Capy is now live, Heirloom gained another annual subscriber, church connections are growing, and I placed second in a work innovation challenge.
The App Store Data Problems Indie Developers Learn the Hard Way
App Store Connect shows a download but RevenueCat shows no customer? A pending report isn't a zero. The data mix-ups that make indie app analytics look broken.
A Full Season: San Antonio, App Progress, and What Matters Most
A trip to San Antonio, a great night with Mike, steady app progress, a meaningful Heirloom milestone, and a good season for the family.
Inspired by Not Just Sundays: Building While We’re Here, a Conversation Card App
A physical deck called Not Just Sundays convinced me conversation cards work. While We’re Here is the iOS version I wanted in my pocket — 100 questions, four decks, offline, one payment.
What 47,000 App Store Impressions Taught Me About Conversion
Seven months of daily App Store data across 12 apps shows a 46x gap between my best- and worst-converting listing — and it is not the app people assume.
Using GPT-6 Astra in Codex to Build and Ship Apps
How GPT-6 Astra carries an app from idea to a verified result in Codex: one working session across SwiftUI, App Store metadata, websites and releases.
The Three Playbooks Behind My App Workflow
A small app usually needs more than code. These are the three playbooks I use to move from an idea to a released, measurable product.
The Best App Roadmap Is a Set of Questions
Turn a feature list into a roadmap of questions: tie every change to a user problem, a product question, or a learning goal. A method for small app portfolios.
When to Improve an App—and When to Leave It Alone
A small app portfolio gets stronger when every change is tied to a real user problem, product question, or learning goal.
The Hardest Part of a Small App Portfolio Is Staying Focused
A growing app portfolio needs priorities, boundaries, and shared systems—not equal attention for every product.
A Portfolio of Small Apps Is a Strategy, Not a Collection
Focused apps can compound through shared infrastructure, clearer feedback loops, and disciplined product decisions.
The Part of App Building That Starts After Submission
Heirloom and Fillbook are still awaiting review while the rest of the portfolio keeps learning from users and getting better.
Two New Apps Submitted, and the Portfolio Keeps Getting Better
Heirloom and Fillbook are headed through App Store review while Rally Track, Bean Hunt, and Real Estate Manager continue to improve.
The Small-App Advantage in 2026: Relevance Beats Reach
Small apps do not need to reach everyone. They need to reach the right person at the exact moment a problem becomes urgent.
Pushing More Apps, Learning Ads, and Making Real Progress
What a solo developer learned from shipping more apps and learning distribution: why shipping isn't the finish line, and what early ads and growth data showed.
Birthday at SPI, Fireworks in Corpus, and FamilyStop Goes Live
A birthday weekend at South Padre Island, Fourth of July with family in Corpus Christi, World Cup nights with the in-laws, FamilyStop launching, and a redesigned blog.
Glad to Be Here: Launches, Gratitude, and Another Year Ahead
A work project is live, more apps are published, my birthday is tomorrow, and I am deeply thankful after walking away from a serious accident with no injuries.
Summer Is Here, Square Sweep Is Live, and a Big June Ahead
Kids out of school, a new app shipped, church every Sunday, a go-live date locked in, and a birthday beach trip on the horizon.
I Shipped CapShare: One QR Code for Every Graduation Memory
I launched CapShare, a simple way to collect graduation photos and videos with a single QR code.
Easter at Home, Summer Energy, and Building What’s Next
Easter at home with the family, work and projects moving well, getting more active, the kids counting down to summer, and a new app plus OnCallAgentAdvisorService in progress
Easter Week: Zoo Days, Two Apps Live, and Building Through the Chaos
Family time at the Gladys Porter Zoo, Easter prep with the kids, and celebrating Rally Track and Bean Hunt finally shipping to the App Store
Spring Break: Fishing, Family, and Rally Track Goes Live
Taking a breath during spring break — fishing with the kids, enjoying Tres Lagos, and celebrating Rally Track hitting the App Store
Shipping Season: Bean Hunt and Rally Track Hit the App Store
Two apps submitted, finding balance between work and building, and reflections on a productive but exhausting week
Settling In: Birthday Parties, New Games, and Bean Hunt Begins
Getting comfortable at Tres Lagos, celebrating with family, shipping a new game, and starting work on Bean Hunt — a coffee discovery app
Slopes, Setbacks, and Letting Go: March 2026 Check-in
Moved to Tres Lagos, team ski trip with work, learning to treat anxiety differently, and handling Fillin app setbacks with more grace
Building for Builders
Shipped 3 apps in weeks. Now I am building the tools that help other people ship faster.
Catalyst, Church, and Super Bowl Sunday: February Check-in
Shipped my 3rd iOS app, productive week at work, family time, a church lesson that hit different, and Super Bowl BBQ with the whole crew
Fillin: Building an iOS Portfolio One Game at a Time
Wordle-inspired word game, Figma design workflow, and the portfolio strategy behind shipping apps regularly
I Finally Published Real Estate Manager
After building it over the holidays, my property management app for small landlords is officially out. Here is what it does and why I built it.
Shipping Code, Unclogging Pipes: Late January Check-in
iOS app finally launched on my phone, rental property surprises, and balancing the work grind with ski trip dreams
