When Heather Wren bought her first house in her 20s, she didn’t plan on becoming a landlord — much less a pioneer in a new model of affordable housing. But as life unfolded, one decision after another led her down a path that would change not only her financial future but the lives of many people along the way.
On the latest episode of One Room at a Time, Heather, PadSplit’s very first Host, joined CEO Atticus LeBlanc to share her journey from “accidental landlord” to full-time real estate investor and early believer in coliving as a force for good.
The accidental start
Heather laughs when she recalls her first step into housing: buying a small fixer-upper in East Atlanta. “Very quickly, I realized that having a rent and mortgage that are the same does not mean you’re going to make it,” she said. “So I panicked and got on roommates.com.”
That first experience with shared housing planted a seed that would grow years later into something much bigger. Along the way came mistakes, everything from renting to her brother without a lease to accidentally setting her house on fire when fumes from a lawnmower met a pilot light. But each misstep taught her something about how to improve her process.
Building ‘The Wren Escape Plan‘
By 2014, Heather and her husband, Alan, had a clear goal: financial freedom. They sketched it out in a notebook and called it The Wren Escape Plan. “It said, ‘We’re going to have 20 houses by 2023, and that will give us enough money to replace our income,’” she shared.
The couple began buying and holding rental properties in Atlanta, at first through traditional long-term tenants, then through Section 8 vouchers. But even with stable tenants, Heather learned that turnover and vacancy could eat away at profits. “It’s not only the money, it’s also the time,” she explained. “The whole time you’re doing repairs and turnovers, you’re not making any money off it.”
When she met Atticus LeBlanc in 2017 and toured the first PadSplit prototype on Chicamauga Avenue, something clicked. “After the headaches I had dealt with, I thought, alright, I could try this. It’s just one house. How hard could it be?”
That single decision made Heather PadSplit’s first-ever Host — and the first proof that the model could work.
From income to impact
Like many early Hosts, Heather came for the income but stayed for the impact. Her early experiences showed her that PadSplit wasn’t just about maximizing returns.
One of her most powerful memories involves an elderly member who became gravely ill. Despite being “cranky,” his roommates cared for him for months, cleaning up after him and checking on him daily. “They made themselves his family,” Heather recalled. When he passed away, she discovered he had listed her as his next of kin. “There was this whole layer of community building in the house that I didn’t even know existed.”
That kind of unexpected connection is what keeps her invested — not just financially but emotionally. “People think you should never have strangers living together, but I’ve seen the opposite. When people share space, they look out for each other.”
The power of opportunity
Heather also tells the story of Amber, a PadSplit member who once lived in one of her homes. Amber approached her one day and said, “Heather, your cleaners suck.” Then she handed Heather a business card for her brand-new cleaning business.
Heather decided to give her a chance, but only if she formalized the business. “I told her she needed an LLC and liability insurance. Three days later, she emailed me both,” Heather said.
Today, Amber runs a thriving business cleaning more than 100 homes a month and managing more than 20 PadSplits for other Hosts. Before living in a PadSplit, she had been homeless and living in her car. “She started as a PadSplit member and now she’s running her own company,” Heather said proudly.
The freedom to live life on her terms
For Heather, PadSplit was the missing piece that transformed her “escape plan” into reality. “PadSplit made it possible for us to live out our dreams,” she said. “It took something that started as a side hustle and turned it into a lifestyle. Because of it, we’ve been able to live in Spain, travel with our kids, and build a life we only dreamed about. Real estate gave us stability and freedom.”
Lessons from the first host
Heather’s journey is filled with lessons every PadSplit Host—and aspiring Host—can learn from:
- Start small, learn fast. Her first PadSplit began as an experiment, not a grand plan. Each step taught her something new about property management, renovation, and community.
- Balance empathy with boundaries. “Being a landlord gives you a hard heart,” she admits, “but you have to have boundaries or you’ll get taken advantage of.”
- Focus on people, not just profit. From her elderly tenant to Amber’s entrepreneurial rise, Heather has seen that stable housing creates ripple effects far beyond rent checks.
- Plan with purpose. The Wren Escape Plan wasn’t just about money—it was about designing a life of freedom, family, and flexibility.
The legacy of the first host
Eight years after taking a chance on an idea called PadSplit, Heather has hosted hundreds of members and inspired countless others to do the same. Her story embodies what PadSplit is all about: unlocking underused space, expanding access to housing, and helping people transform their lives, one room at a time.
As Heather put it best:
“PadSplit didn’t just change my business, it changed my life.”
🎧 Listen to the full conversation with Heather Wren on the One Room at a Time podcast: padsplit.com/podcast
