DESIGN AS A FINANCIAL STRATEGY
You Underwrite the deal.
why are you guessing on the finishes?
You need to know what’s worth spending on, which materials will hold up, and what your contractor needs to keep moving.
Roundhouse R+R helps rental owners, flippers, and spec builders turn those decisions into a clear plan. Market-appropriate finishes, spending priorities, and contractor-ready selections built around your property and budget.
Free Investor Finish Tracker
Stop managing finish selections through screenshots, browser tabs, and contractor texts.
Get the free Investor Finish Selection & Ordering Tracker. Organize every selection by room, track the budget and actual cost, assign who is ordering, and keep approvals, orders, and delivery dates in one working Google Sheet.
Built from Experience
We’ve made these decisions with our own money on the line.
Every recommendation is shaped by properties we’ve built, owned, operated, and maintained ourselves.
We’re Kate McMinn and Shannon Wintheiser, co-founders of Roundhouse R+R. Together, our experience includes 10 STRs designed and built from the ground up, 1 acquired STR, four spec homes, five mid-term rental units, more than 100 investor transactions, and 16 properties we currently own.
That experience changes how we evaluate finishes. We consider the budget, market position, durability, photography, maintenance, contractor execution, and what happens when a product fails. Then we turn those considerations into clear selections investors can price, order, and build from.
The Problem
The STR market matured. Most investors didn't.
Something changed between 2021 and today. National short term rental occupancy dropped from 65% to roughly 57%. Platforms are crowded. Guests have more options. The properties actually cash flowing — not just surviving — aren't winning because of their location alone. They're winning on design and amenities. We've got you covered on the first pillar. Good STR design starts with good bones: the right architectural features, fireplaces, floors, cabinets, tile, and fixtures. Those decisions get made once, at acquisition or build, and most investors are making them wrong:
Four common design mistakes that cost STR investors later
01
Treating finishes as a flexible line item instead of a fixed one, so the real cost doesn't show up until mid-project, forcing a choice between blowing the budget or cutting the finishes that mattered most.
02
Launching with builder-grade finishes to "upgrade later," then never upgrading — the ADR ceiling is set by what the listing photos show.
03
Spending on premium finishes your market won’t pay a premium for. The renovation/build budget climbs, but the nightly rate your property can command doesn’t climb with it.
04
Treat soft furnishings and decor as an afterthought, and then wonder why they aren't getting the occupancy of other listings in their market.
65% → 57%
National STR occupancy, 2021 peak to today — AirDNA forecasts it holding through 2027
1.73×
Our own Wilder Cabins' occupancy vs. its Hocking Hills market benchmark (58.6% vs. 34.0%)
+11.2%
Price increase supportable per 1-point review-score gain, no drop in bookings — Cornell Center for Hospitality Research
The Offer
Choose the look. Get the entire STR finish plan.
If you’re renovating, building, or furnishing an STR, this is where to start. Each Roundhouse Design Collection gives you a complete, room-by-room finish system, so you can stop piecing the property together one decision at a time.
You avoid starting from a blank page, comparing hundreds of products, and making expensive finish decisions after your contractor already needs the answer.
Choose the aesthetic that fits your property and comp set. Inside, you’ll get coordinated hard and soft finishes, three budget tiers, spending priorities, design rules, and a live shoppable source list. Use it to make the selections yourself or hand the direction to your contractor and move forward.
What's Inside Every STR Collection
- Soft and hard finishes, specified together: not just tile and flooring, but the textiles and furnishings that complete the guest experience
- Budget, mid, and high tiers on every product, so the spec flexes to your renovation budget without you re-deriving it
- A full style guide: room-by-room finish palettes, do's and don'ts, and photorealistic direction so the aesthetic stays consistent start to finish
- An impact-rating grid (upgrade, DIY, cost, ROI) so you know where a dollar spent actually moves your ADR
- A live, always-updated shoppable sheet linked via QR code at the end of the PDF, so pricing and availability stay current without a new download
Vintage Camp
Warm woods, layered Americana patterns, and leather that's earned its patina, paired with a few modern touches like flat-panel cabinetry so it never tips into old-fashioned.
Warm woods. Layered plaid. A stone fireplace guests photograph before they've even set down their bags. Vintage Camp is the look driving bookings right now in cabin, lake, and mountain-adjacent STR markets, and this collection is the finish system behind it: priced by tier, ranked by ROI, and ready to hand to a contractor.
Inside you'll find a room-by-room finish specification for the kitchen, bedroom, living room, and bathroom, anchored by the four elements that define the look: a natural stone fireplace, pine wood paneling and wood beams, cedar shingles with exposed rafter tails, and screened sleeping porches. Every material choice, from the flat panel cabinetry to the leathered granite counters to the penny tile bathroom floor, is picked to hold up under guest turnover and photograph at a rate that supports a premium ADR.
What's inside:
Soft and hard finishes, specified together, not just tile and flooring, but the textiles and furnishings that complete the guest experience.
Budget, mid, and high tiers on every product, so the spec flexes to your renovation budget without you having to re-derive it.
A full style guide: room-by-room finish palettes, do's and don'ts, and photorealistic direction, so the aesthetic stays consistent from start to finish.
An impact-rating grid, upgrade, DIY, cost, and ROI, so you know exactly where a dollar spent actually moves your ADR.
A live, always-updated shoppable sheet, linked by QR code at the end of the PDF, so pricing and availability stay current without a new download.
Professionally styled STR interiors see 10 to 25 percent higher ADR on average, up to 40 to 60 percent for standout properties, with the typical furnishing upgrade paying for itself within 6 to 12 months. This collection gets you there without six more months of Pinterest boards that stall before they become a spec sheet a contractor can build from.
Best fit: STR, MTR, and BRRRR investors whose comp set already skews cozy, rustic, or lake house adjacent. Match the aesthetic to what's already winning bookings in your submarket, not your personal taste.
Instant PDF download after purchase.
Cali Classic
Sun-washed and grounded: white oak and travertine, soft curves and handmade texture, sage and terracotta warmed up with champagne bronze, built for indoor-outdoor living.
Cali Classic Design Collection
Sun-washed, collected, and built to last through every guest turnover. Cali Classic pairs relaxed California living with timeless architecture: soft curves, warm natural materials, and a Mediterranean influence that reads as effortless, not themed. This is the collection for properties where the comp set rewards a lived-in, elevated feel over anything sharp or stark.
What's Inside Every Collection
Soft and hard finishes, specified together, not just tile and flooring, but the textiles and furnishings that complete the guest experience
Budget, mid, and high tiers on every product, so the spec flexes to your renovation budget without you re-deriving it
A full style guide with room-by-room finish palettes, do's and don'ts, and photorealistic direction so the aesthetic stays consistent start to finish
An impact-rating grid (upgrade, DIY, cost, ROI) so you know where a dollar spent actually moves your ADR
A live, always-updated shoppable sheet, linked via QR code at the end of the PDF, so pricing and availability stay current without a new download.
The Cali Classic Look
Warm. Collected. Organic. Grounded.
The palette runs sand, bone, terracotta, and sage, paired with white oak, travertine, linen, and champagne bronze hardware. Soft architectural curves, handcrafted surfaces, and strong indoor-outdoor connection carry the aesthetic through every room, kitchen to primary bath.
Room-by-room breakdown includes kitchen (countertop, backsplash, cabinetry, flooring, open shelving), living room (finish palette, furniture, wall color, lighting), bedroom (styling, flooring, walls, furniture, textiles), and bathroom (fixtures, floating vanity, shower tile, countertop, accessories), plus the design rules for what to layer in and what to leave out so the space stays collected instead of themed.
Match the aesthetic to your comp set, not your personal taste. If the top-performing listings in your submarket already lean warm and California-coastal, this is the collection built to compete there.
Contractor-ready. No mood board guesswork. Hand it straight to your GC.
Instant PDF download after purchase.
Warm blonde oak, soft white quartz, and satin nickel that never fights for attention. Modern Minimalist is the finish system behind that boutique-hotel calm, priced by tier, ranked by ROI, and ready to hand to a contractor.
Inside you'll find a room-by-room finish specification for the kitchen, bedroom, living room, and bathroom, anchored by the elements that define the look: integrated slab cabinetry, fluted or slatted feature walls, waterfall stone, rift cut white oak, and layered lighting. Every material choice, from the flat-front cabinetry to the travertine and satin nickel hardware, is picked to read as quiet and expensive rather than busy, and to hold up under guest turnover without losing that calm.
What's inside:
Soft and hard finishes, specified together, not just tile and flooring, but the textiles and furnishings that complete the guest experience.
Budget, mid, and high tiers on every product, so the spec flexes to your renovation budget without you having to re-derive it.
A full style guide: room-by-room finish palettes, do's and don'ts, and photorealistic direction, so the aesthetic stays consistent from start to finish.
An impact-rating grid, upgrade, DIY, cost, and ROI, so you know exactly where a dollar spent actually moves your ADR.
A live, always-updated shoppable sheet, linked by QR code at the end of the PDF, so pricing and availability stay current without a new download.
Professionally styled STR interiors see 10 to 25 percent higher ADR on average, up to 40 to 60 percent for standout properties, with the typical furnishing upgrade paying for itself within 6 to 12 months. This collection gets you there without six more months of Pinterest boards that stall before they become a spec sheet a contractor can build from.
Best fit: STR, MTR, and BRRRR investors whose comp set already skews clean-lined, contemporary, or boutique-hotel adjacent. Match the aesthetic to what's already winning bookings in your submarket, not your personal taste.
Instant PDF download after purchase.
Modern Minimalist
Warm minimalism, not cold minimalism: flat-front cabinetry in cream and warm oak, Alabaster walls, brushed nickel hardware, and one signature olive accent running through leather, travertine, and art.
What This Is NOT
- Not a generic mood board with "inspo" that doesn't translate to a finish schedule
- Not a decorator's color palette with no connection to ADR, or durability
- Not a course. Not a membership. Not a 12-week program. It's a working document you can hand to a contractor
- Not one kit re-skinned three ways: each collection is its own room-by-room system, built for its own aesthetic
Real Properties, Real Reviews
What Guests Say About the Properties
★★★★★
"Stunning place for a peaceful weekend recharge! The cottage looked even more beautiful in person. Secluded among other cabins and decorated to perfection, Ivy Cottage had all the amenities you could want for a weekend getaway in nature."
Marge · Ivy Cottage, Wilder Cabins
★★★★★
"This was by far the best Airbnb we ever rented. It was adorable and comfy. Everything that we needed to settle in was provided. It was in a perfect location. It was walkable to the main street which has neighborhood shops and great restaurants and bars. It also had convenient parking. It would be a perfect spot for a romantic getaway. We highly recommend it!"
Sue · Losantiville
★★★★★
"Kate's place was fantastic! High ceilings, parking spot off the road, front porch with great sunset view, comfy beds, beautiful kitchen, overall great Airbnb! Location is spot in the middle of everything Cincinnati has to offer! Highly recommend!"
Kelsey · Losantiville
