Advice on obtaining the second investment or optimizing the first

[Jaston Robinson]

Hi all! I closed on my first house hack in Oct 2020. I now live for free and cash flow $100 a month. I purchased a triplex with an FHA loan and combined it with a first-time home buyer down payment assistance program. I brought a check for $1,600 to the closing table and received a check for $4,400 from the seller (for security deposits & prorated rates). Even though, I have my first property I bring this question before you. Should I optimize my current property (i.e. rehab it to its full potential) or use that capital to purchase my second investment property? I'd love to hear anyone's opinion on this. Let me know what you'd do and why. Thanks in advance

[Anthony Thompson]

@Jaston Robinson I would focus on your current property for now. You haven't had it long enough to experience the kind of... surprises you can get with rental property.

It sounds like, if you went for your second property now, you'd be stretching yourself pretty thin. If it were me, I wouldn't want to do that at this phase of the market.

For the same reason, I wouldn't necessarily go all-out with the rehab on your current property. I would upgrade units as they become vacant or you otherwise get the opportunity, rather than pumping most/all available funds into a larger rehab project.

Having lived through the last cycle, that is what I would do if I were in your position, this time around. YMMV of course.