First Co-Living Acquisition: Strategy & Mistakes

In this episode of The Co-Living Show, Craig Curelop and Miller McSwain sit down with Caitlyn Verdugo — aka Co-Living Cait — an Atlanta-based co-living agent, investor, operator, capital raiser, and coach who’s been in the space since the early PadSplit days.

Atlanta is one of the most mature co-living ecosystems in the U.S., and Caitlyn has seen the model evolve from “rent-by-the-room” experiments into a real operating business. She shares what she’s learned from acquiring and running co-living homes, how she approaches conversions (including garage builds), and why she intentionally designs each house to feel like a home — not a template.

This conversation is packed with operator-level nuance: screening beyond platform checks, searching local eviction records, managing resident conflict without becoming a mediator, and how to build systems that protect your time while improving resident experience.

In This Episode, We Cover:

• Caitlyn’s origin story: real estate agent → house hacker → co-living operator
• How she used her real estate commission creatively to reduce money needed to buy
• Why Atlanta’s market maturity makes PadSplit a major factor in marketing + leasing
• Lessons from her first co-living conversion (capital gaps, holding costs, and what she’d do differently)
• What she looks for in co-living properties: layouts, vintage builds, no HOA, conversion potential
• Garage conversions: HVAC strategies, insulation, code risks, and payback vs. “ROI” framing
• Her signature approach: naming houses + themed rooms to enhance resident experience
• The screening stack: forms, interviews, and why she checks eviction records manually
• How she prevents resident conflict with boundaries, addendums, and expectations
• Handling tenant-landlord conflict fast (and why respect is non-negotiable)
• Women in co-living: safety realities, contractor dynamics, and solving problems differently
• Building She Leads Co-Living / Wealth By The Room to support women operators
• How to find operators in your market (Facebook groups, meetups, and “search within groups” strategy)
• The Big 3: a tenant horror story, her first house rule, and her most valuable operating system

Follow the Hosts

Miller McSwain: www.instagram.com/millermcswain
Craig Curelop: www.instagram.com/craigcurelop

Join our FREE Community: www.millermcswain.com/community

Guest: Caitlyn “CoLiving Cait” Verdugo

Find her as CoLiving Cait across social platforms and check out her community:

• She Leads Co-Living (women-focused events + network)
• Wealth By The Room (education + coaching series)
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/colivingcait