When Deary, Idaho native Isaac French’s dad saw an abandoned train car on a neighbor’s farm, he knew there was potential for something great.

The car, built in the 1900s, had been sitting in the same spot for decades. The wood was rotting, algae was growing and there were about 20 cats living inside, French, 27, tells CNBC Make It.

Train car number 306 originally ran on the Washington Idaho & Montana Railway from 1909 until the 1950s.

It took several years, but in 2020 the family purchased the train car for just $3,000.

″[My dad] had the faith and the vision for it and I’m so glad he did,” French says. “There’s something so rewarding about taking an old structure that was so lovingly built, and breathing life back into it.”

It also took quite a bit of time for the family to find someone willing to move the 61-feet-long structure to their 145-acre piece of land.

“It’s just a beautiful, secluded place in nature,” French says. “We chose the highest point on our property so that we could capture these epic views.”

The move cost around $10,000.

The family then spent $137,000 and six months renovating the structure that they intended to use as an Airbnb. Expenses included building a platform, refurbishing the floors, adding a bathroom, landscaping, and furniture.

French, his parents and his siblings did most of the work themselves, restoring the train car to mimic the original design. They hired subcontractor friends for the HVAC and electrical work.

French hand-painted the lettering on the exterior of the car based on an old photo they found. The train car even has its original windows.

“In the summer, we open these up, let the breeze blow through the car. It’s just beautiful. In hay season, you smell the rye grass wafting through the car,” French says.

To make the train car livable, French and his family converted the passenger room into a sitting area, added a kitchenette, and a gas potbelly stove.

They built a bathroom with a barn door and outfitted the train car’s former mailroom into a bedroom with a king-sized bed.

“Our guests absolutely love it. They wake up in the morning and look straight out onto these beautiful panoramic views of the countryside. It’s a really epic place to sleep,” French says.

To enhance the experience, they added a mirrored sauna, hot tub and firepit right outside.

“The idea is to reflect the nature surroundings. Since we had these beautiful pine trees and this spectacular view, we thought it would be a cool juxtaposition of new and old,” French says.

Despite being in the middle of nowhere, the train car was an instant hit on Airbnb. The listing became one of the most successful Airbnb locations in the country, according to Fast Company.

It costs between $325 and $350 a night to stay in the Restored 1909 Train Carriage.

“What I love about it the most is that there is a sense of history and a story that’s already built in,” French says.

In the first year, the train car had 90% occupancy and $14,179 in revenue. Since then, revenue has increased to between $75,000 and $90,000 a year, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. This year, French says it’s projected to bring in $105,000.

In 2023, the train car was booked for 231 nights on Airbnb. It has about a 65% profit margin, with 30 to 35% of overall revenue going towards cleaning costs, ongoing small maintenance and repairs, property taxes, and insurance.

The family knows they could raise the price per night of the train car’s stay, but French says they don’t plan on doing that because they find it fulfilling to play hosts to people from all over who want to experience a piece of history.

“How many old buildings and old stories and old train cars are just sitting out there waiting to be discovered and loved,” French says. “And I think that’s the key. You have to have some love and some inspiration to participate in a project like this and breathe new life into it.”

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Forget a Kitchen-Aid mixer. Snoop Dogg surprised his daughter, Cori Broadus, with a $1 million gift ahead of her upcoming wedding, the rapper said during a recent appearance on “The Jennifer Hudson Show.”

Snoop Dogg explained how he would take advantage of the gift if the roles were reversed. “If it was me, my wedding would have been $100 [thousand], and $900 [thousand] would have went in my pocket,” he said.

Although a seven-figure wedding gift isn’t in the cards for most of us, Snoop Dogg’s suggestion for handling a financial windfall — spending 10% on fun and saving 90% for the future — checks out, financial experts say. 

“Snoop Dogg’s comment highlights the importance of prioritizing long-term financial stability over immediate gratification, which is solid advice,” says Maria Castillo Dominguez, a certified financial planner and founder of Valoria Wealth Management. 

That goes for anyone who comes into any unexpected sum of money, she says, no matter the size of the windfall. 

If you receive money unexpectedly, it can be tempting to envision yourself spending on a whole new lifestyle. In reality, you’d be better off putting money toward your long established goals, experts say.

So before you do anything with your money, experts advise that you first give yourself a moment.

“Take a pause before making any decisions,” says Catherine Valega, a CFP and founder of Green Bee Advisory. “Don’t do anything rash,” such as buying your “long-lost cousin a new car when they come out of the woodwork to ask for it,” if word gets around that you’ve come into extra cash.

Once you’ve composed yourself, Dominguez suggests asking yourself a simple question: What have I been wanting to do if I had more money? For many, it’s buying a home, paying off your mortgage, starting an emergency fund or getting out of credit card debt. 

By carefully thinking through your next steps, you can make the most of your extra money.

“Setting clear goals and even consulting a financial planner can help ensure the windfall works for you over the long term,” says Dominguez. With the right guidance, a windfall can be an opportunity to generate even more money for yourself and build happiness that lasts. 

A financial planner can take your specific situation and design an individualized plan for your extra cash. 

“Everybody should work with a financial planner,” says Valega. “We know how to prioritize your extra funds.”

Whether it’s in the form of a tax refund, a holiday bonus or an unexpected lottery jackpot, a windfall can provide a huge boost to our bottom line when we least expect it. And the ability to use that money to make a better life for yourself is cause for celebration, says Dominguez.

After you’ve identified your goals, using a portion of your extra money to treat yourself is within reason. Having a plan for your money can help make sure you keep your celebratory spending reasonable, she says. After all, treating yourself shouldn’t infringe on the success of your long-term plans. 

“It’s important to strike a balance,” Dominguez says. “Celebrating life’s milestones is valuable, but aligning spending with overall financial goals ensures sustainability.”

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If you’ve been in the market for a house over the past few years, you’ve likely kept an eye on interest rates — and for good reason. A few points one way or the other on your mortgage rate can translate to a difference of tens of thousands of dollars in buying power.

But looking ahead, it may be important for homeowners and prospective buyers alike to focus on another factor, at least according to Mark Cuban.

“Home insurance in areas hit by repetitive disasters is going to be the number one housing affordability issue over the next 4 years. And possibly going into the midterms. More so than interest rates,” the billionaire entrepreneur and investor recently posted on Bluesky. “Florida in particular is going to have huge problems.”

While insurance experts may quibble with his certainty, they say it’s hard to argue with the overall sentiment. “I think it’s safe to say that that’s an accurate statement,” says Shannon Martin, an insurance analyst at Bankrate.

While you can legally own a home without a homeowners policy, financial institutions — such as your mortgage lender — generally require you to have coverage. You’re typically insured for damage to your dwelling, related structures, personal property and liability, in case someone is injured or their property is damaged at your house.

On average, you’ll pay $2,304 per year for a policy with $300,000 in dwelling coverage, according to Bankrate, a 17% increase from January 2022. Certain individual factors tend to drive up costs. You’ll pay more if you have a trampoline or a pool, for instance, both of which boost the odds of injury at your home.

You’ll pay more if there is a higher likelihood that you’ll make a claim to repair a home damaged by weather. Hurricane-prone Florida residents pay an average of $5,527 per year for $300,000 in dwelling coverage, according to Bankrate, second only to windy Nebraska.

The situation is only going to get more expensive for those who live in disaster-prone areas, experts say. For one, insurance companies are getting better at understanding extreme weather risk, says Martin.

“More insurance companies have been using technology and AI to get into predict-and-prevent mode instead of a reactive mode,” she says. “They’re starting to be able to pinpoint what homes are really at the higher risk, narrow it down.”

While that may be good news for people who live in the low-risk areas of high-risk states, homeowners in disaster-prone areas “may see rates go up drastically,” Martin says.

Should proposed policies such as a regime of tariffs on foreign materials come to pass under the upcoming Presidential administration, building costs are likely to go up, too, experts say. That’s bad news for policyholders, who bear the cost of what it would take to rebuild a damaged home.

“Houses cost more to build, which makes them more expensive to buy and more expensive to insure,” says Leslie Kasperowicz, managing editor and insurance expert for Insurance.com. “Add in a high-risk location, and you have a recipe for a crisis.”

It’s not hard to see how rising homeowners premiums could price families out of homes they could otherwise afford — especially if spreading climate disasters continue to put more and more homes at risk. After all, the difference between the typical annual cost in Florida and the national average is more than $2,000 a year.

Here’s what experts say you can do to keep costs down.

If you already own a home

Only about 7% of homeowners say they’ve moved to areas with lower risk of extreme weather over the last five years, according to Bankrate. If you’re staying put, taking measures to protect your home against weather damage can drive down your insurance costs.

“Making changes and upgrades to your home to reduce the risk of damage can really drop rates,” says Kasperowicz. “In Florida, insurance companies are required to provide a discount for wind mitigation efforts; the same applies to wildfire mitigation in California. But no matter where you live, a new roof will always make a huge dent in your rates.”

If you’re intent on living in a high-risk area, you’d be wise to move such projects up your list of priorities when it comes to spending on your home.

“My best advice for the average homeowner that feels kind of tired and financially tapped out is to understand that extreme weather happens year-round, and it’s an ongoing plan,” says Martin.

That means if you’re considering painting or adding new carpet this year, you might be better off upgrading your storm shutters or removing a damaged tree from your property.

If you’re shopping for homes

If you have some flexibility in terms of location, factor in home insurance costs early in your search, experts say.

“Start by looking at average rates in the areas you’re considering. While that won’t tell you what you’ll pay, it will give you an idea of how various areas compare at a high level,” says Kasperowicz. “Choosing to live a little further from the source of the risk can make a huge difference. That’s especially true when considering distance from the coast.”

Martin recommends using online tools — such as the one available through the First Street Foundation – to determine if a particular location may have significant future climate change risk. Ideally, she says, you want to be able to buy a home with the knowledge that you can be financially secure and physically safe, wherever you choose to put down roots.

Once you decide on an area, start asking your local real estate agent about insurance costs to give yourself a full picture of what you’ll be paying on a monthly basis.

“You can and should get quotes before you get too far into the buying process,” Kasperowicz says. “You don’t want to be near closing and find out the insurance is unaffordable.”

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As parents, we often wonder if we’re doing the right thing for our children. No one is immune to that kind of thinking.

I have interviewed hundreds of young entrepreneurs and their parents to learn how they were raised. Most parents who raised highly successful adults did a great job.

What surprised me is that many parents admitted that there were a few things they would have done differently, if they could go back in time. 

These were the top regrets they had in common:

Many future successful entrepreneurs were great students and breezed through top universities. Some finished, but were miserable. Others dropped out of college or didn’t go at all. 

While education is important, it has to be a good fit. Looking back, some parents realized they would have preferred that their kids thrive, perhaps in an untraditional environment, rather than slog through an expensive, unhappy four years. 

Similarly, many parents recalled pushing their children to spend less time doing what they loved, and more time studying or doing an activity that would make them more appealing to a top school.

In hindsight, the parents now realize that when their children put in the 10,000 hours to gain a skill in what they loved — even though the parents may have thought it was a waste of time — it proved to be more useful as they began their career.

Of course we want to keep our children safe — but holding on too tightly can prevent them from flying.

I don’t often hear parents say they wish they had given their children less freedom. Instead, it’s the opposite: “Why didn’t I let them go off on their own more?” or “I feel bad they never had any independence until they went to college. I should have started letting them do things on their own earlier.”

There are a few terms for over involved parents: helicopter parents, who hover over their children and intervene in their decisions; snowplow parents, who move obstacles and challenges out of the way. 

Even parents who only did that some of the time regret it. They tell me, “I shouldn’t have fixed things for them; I shouldn’t have made their path so easy. They needed to learn how to solve problems on their own.” 

Looking back, they tell me they understand now that resilience is key to success.

My personal regret, which I heard from many others, is that I didn’t give our children enough chores. They had to make their bed and keep their room clean. But I never asked them to do their laundry; I never asked them to help me in the garden; and except on rare occasions, I didn’t ask them to help me cook. 

I did these tasks myself because they were so busy and I didn’t want to over-burden them. 

Ironically, they now tell me they wish they had learned those skills in high school! Giving our children more chores not only helps them become responsible, it teaches them useful skills for when they’re on their own.

Many parents told me they urged their kids to be cautious, to take the “safe” approach. They told them to take the practical route that “works more often.” 

When they watched their children take big risks to start a new venture, or sell something they started, or pivot in a new direction, or not take a job with a guaranteed paycheck to pursue their dream, they were proud of them.

But they wondered, “Did I make them fearful? Would it have been easier for them if I had told them more often to go for it?”

Or if they scolded them when they failed — for getting a bad grade, or not scoring a goal — and made their children nervous about taking risks. They now understand that you can’t innovate if you’re afraid to take risks. And you’re only not afraid to take risks, if you’re not afraid to fail.

Even if they did feel this regret, many of these parents also said they often told their kids how proud they were of their hard work, no matter the outcome.

Ultimately, I want to remind us all: Nobody is perfect. We all do the best we can, and as long as our children know we love them, and that we tried our best, they will be fine.

Margot Machol Bisnow is a writer, mom and parenting expert. She spent 20 years in government, including as an FTC Commissioner and Chief of Staff of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, has spent the last 10 years speaking to parent groups about raising fearless, creative, confident, resilient, entrepreneurial children who are filled with joy and purpose, and is the author of “Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams.” Follow her on Instagram @margotbisnow.

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A crypto millionaire has hidden millions of dollars worth of treasure across the United States — and published a book on how to find it.

Jon Collins-Black revealed last month that he concealed valuables ranging from Olympic gold medals and rare trading cards to historical artifacts and crypto in five puzzle boxes. In his new book, “There’s Treasure Inside,” Collins-Black writes about the pricey objects he hid and gives clues to determine their locations.

The boxes, which he said aren’t buried, are each located on public property within three miles of a public road.

Collins-Black said he doesn’t know the real value of the treasure, but noted that “I personally spent well over two million dollars on this treasure.” And with Bitcoin’s 140% rally this year — the token was sitting at more than $100,000 early Thursday afternoon — the value of the treasure is only going up.

“I wanted to put more value in a treasure chest than ever before,” he told CNN earlier this month.

Putting the hunt together took “the better part of five years,” Collins-Black says on his website, adding that he designed it for anyone to whom “the idea of solving clues, being in nature, or finding a hidden treasure sounds appealing.”

Items in the in the hidden treasure chests include:

• A gold medal won by the Nigerian men at the 1996 Olympics
• Multiple bitcoin
• A rare, holographic Pokémon card
• A glass once owned by George Washington
• A moon rock
• A 21-ounce California gold nugget
• An ancient Chinese jade bracelet from 3000-4000 BC

He was inspired by a 2010 treasure hunt launched by Forrest Fenn and which took 10 years to find. Fenn’s treasure was so difficult to find that multiple people died in the process.

Collins-Black’s treasure hunt is meant to be difficult, but not dangerous.

“All the boxes are located in safe places that are not dangerous to get to,” he writes on his website. “Anyone of average health should be fine. An entire section of the book is dedicated to explain how to ensure your treasure hunting experience is a safe and fun one!”

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