House Hacking Cashflow

[Patrick Pierre]

Hello all, I'm looking at 3 Duplex properties and running the numbers using the Biggerpockets rental calculator.

The rent from unit 1 doesn't cashflow by itself after running the numbers. But if I add the rent from unit 2 then it will cashflow.

But the problem is if I want to house hack I would have to live in one of the units. And if I live in one of the units then there's no rent coming in from the unit I'm living in, therefore no cashflow.

Would you still house hack even though it doesn't cashflow? Once I add my job income into the mix then I'd be okay. Just wondering for those who house hacked before, how did you cashflow when you only had income coming in from only from one unit?

Thanks.

[Scott Passman]

While the ideal house hack would generate enough income from your tenants to cover all your expenses, the reality is many times (especially in a duplex) your rental income will not cover the entire mortgage + expenses.  However, that income will still significantly reduce the amount out of your pocket to cover the mortgage so you could still save money on living expenses while your tenant helps pay down the loan.  Best part is, you get all the tax advantages and the experience of owning and managing a property.  

Having said that, there are properties out there that will cash flow positive while house hacking so if your goal is to have all expenses covered and still cash flow then keep looking and running numbers until you find one