How much money did you start off with?

[Juan Alvarez]

How much money did you have before financing your first property? My Goal for this year was to acquire a multi family home to start house hacking. One thing let to another so I’m having to postpone that goal for another 3-6 months due to lack of funds. I started trading stocks and I’ve made decent money doing so. Was able to pay off my debit card completely off, so now I have more cash flow to put in my savings. I’m a little nervous on the amount of money that I will need. I currently do qualify for a conventional loan (home possible) but I know it’s kinda like a car Loan, almost anyone can qualify but paying for it is the problem. I have enough for a 3.5-5% down payment but my concerns come with repair/rehab cost.

If you guys don’t mind me asking at what point did you feel comfortable enough financially to pull the trigger ? Thank you.

[Danielle Wolter]

@Juan Alvarez I don't know if this will be helpful or not, and others may have differing opinions. Personally, I like to keep at least 6 months of living expenses in cash reserves, so I made sure I had that first. Things come up that you don't expect, you know? If you plan on house hacking, 3.5-5% should be plenty for a down payment if you qualify for an FHA loan. If you're worried about your ability to pay, you don't have enough saved yet. As far as rehab costs go, you can get zero interest credit cards, but that is a slippery slope, especially if you're already concerned about your ability to pay for the mortgage.

I was comfortable when I knew that if a property went vacant, I could continue to pay on it for at least 6 months, as well as continue to pay my every day living expense. And I always enures I have a way to recover rehab costs, whether it be through rents, flipping, refi, etc. And always be conservative. My estimates are always very conservative so I've accounted for everything (I hope) that could happen.