First House Hack

[Dan Graney]

So I have been renting for the last 12 years paying $650 a month for a 1250 sq ft house. I like the area that I am in but it is not a growth area at all. Plus all of that money is just going to help somebody else's net worth. 

I have been on BiggerPockets for a couple of months now and decided that a good first move would be to do a house hack and live in one half of a duplex.

The area that I am looking in has great schools and is a definitely growing but there are almost no multi-family properties for sale.

I found a place that is only a little bit under market value, not really what could be considered a DEAL by most Bigger Pocket standards but after running the numbers thru the calculator it looks like it would cash flow just under $300 a month. I think I was fairly conservative on the numbers making sure to put in midrange percentages in all of the area like Cap Ex and vacancy.

If I were to live in it, I would be only kicking in like $50 a month towards the expenses so basically that would leave me $600 better off every month.

This still seems like a win to me but I am concerned because it is so close to market value that I really wouldn't have any immediate equity.

On the positive side it is turnkey and needs zero rehab so I can start renting it out immediately.

BP Thoughts?

[John Warren]

@Dan Graney

Congrats on taking action! We are about to house hack as well so definitely I love your strategy.

I am a newer investor as well (own one four unit rental) but I would say that sometimes paying market price is not the end of the world in a good area. I think any of us newbies get too caught up looking for a "steal" when in reality we would win just by paying a fair price for a duplex that works. Just my two cents, but don't let the right place pass you by if the location is right for you!