Fork in the Road: House-Hack or Long Distance Investment

[Mack K Everly]

Hey, everyone.  I'm new to the world of real estate investment and am still in the education phase of my journey.  Definitely been frustrating to realize at the age of 32 that I've been taught all the wrong things about how to make my money work for me.  Anyways, everyday I try to look at the multi-family listings in my area mostly for practice in trying to evaluate properties, but also for the off-chance that I find a good opportunity.  I am at a bit of a fork in the road though and I'm curious on others' thoughts/advice.  Basically, I'm trying to decide between continuing my search for a house-hack close to home here in Columbus (feels impossible right now) or doing a long(ish) distance investment in another area (still in-state) where there are actually duplexes that would cashflow right away.  

I've got a good friend who works as a realtor in an area about an hour away from me.  He let me know about a duplex he's got listed for <$200k (unheard of the Columbus areas I want) that is pretty much turnkey.  On top of that, he's offered to be my property manager while I stay in Columbus.  I'm still figuring out how to analyze deals, but from what I can tell the property would cashflow about $400-$500 right off the bat once both sides are rented out.  The only real downside I can see right now is that I would still be renting my current place, so I still wouldn't be "living for free"... but like I said, a "living for free" house-hack is feeling pretty impossible in Columbus right now.  It would at least pay for about 40% of my current rent.  Honestly, even if I don't pull the trigger on this one, a glance at the market in that area shows MUCH more affordable multi-family investment opportunities... so I will come back to this fork in the road if I don't figure out how to deal with it now.

Has anyone else wrestled with this dilemma? How did you solve it? What pushed you over the edge on one side or the other? 

I'm very much stuck in "analysis paralysis" right now despite warnings from BiggerPockets and Rich Dad books and podcasts…

*Note: Moving to this duplex to house-hack it is unfortunately not possible due to my W-2 job. Otherwise, I would gladly just move to the property and house-hack it as even that would give me some small cashflow.*

Thanks in advance for your collective thoughts!

[Tim Johnson]

Hi @Mack K Everly,

- 32 years-old is a great age to learn about investing..... younger than many who have succeeded wildly.

- a <200K turnkey duplex that will cash flow immediately at $400-$500 a month while being managed by a good friend - wow, doesn't sound like too tough a decision. This would not be a fork in the road for me.... (assuming you have the funds to move on this....)

- sure, you want to get out of renting....but there's nothing wrong with traveling a step at a time. With smart decisions, the pace will pick up, believe me.