Looking to buy my first house hack and get some skin in the game

[Adam Belal]

Hi everyone! I'm a 20 year old realtor here in Orlando and I've decided that I don't want to wait on the sidelines for much longer. I'd like to buy a condo and use it as a house hack. Even if the deal isn't the best possible, I just want to get stared. I've found an opportunity that looks decent in my eyes but since I still have a lot to learn I'm pretty unsure about it. Here are the numbers:

2b 2bth condo, Asking price: $149,000- at a 4% rate for 30 years the math comes out to around $711 per month

HOA fee is $369 per month

I could put down 3.5% so that's $5,215 but I'm assuming I can apply my 3% commission towards the down payment. Closing costs at 3% of the purchase price would come out to about $4,470.

As far as what I can rent it out for, I checked craigslist and I see vastly different numbers for various rooms. Some are asking $800 but I see most hovering around $600 to $650. I'll just go with $625 for this.

Total Monthly Payment would be $1,080

I would rent both rooms at $625 each so that's $1,250.

1,250-1080 = $170 in cash flow

I know there are also utilities but I would add on a utilities charge to the rent. Overall I suppose that I can live for free here or at least pay maybe $200 or less a month to live which is pretty good imo.

Here are my concerns:

1. I feel like the real estate market will crash pretty soon and I'd feel pretty dumb if this condo plummets in value mere months after I purchase it. Of course I'd be holding long term but it still doesn't feel smart to be in a hurry to buy when I anticipate a crash.

2. What if i can't find tenants? I see so many rooms posted on Craigslist and I have no idea if these people are successful in getting them rented out. I even see some rooms posted at $500 per month and If I can't get the rooms rented out then I'll be in hot water.

I really appreciate everyone's time and input!