Can't find good fourplex... should I build one instead?

[Roshan K.]

Hey BP!

So I live in OKC and I am in a conundrum. I want to househack, but I am having three issues. 

1) Very few fourplexes are on sale in OKC. I can generally find only 1 to 3 in a 50 mile radius.

2) Of those 1 to 3 fourplexes, I have never seen one that I would actually want to live in. Budget is not an issue, rather supply. I actually search with no upper limit on prices to ensure I don't miss any opportunity.

3) All of the fourplexes seem like they were made 30+ years ago and deferred maintenance is a huge problem here. 

In this scenario, would anyone know the pros/cons of building my own fourplex? I don't even know where I would get started. 

Thank you!

Roshan

[Andrew Johnson]

@Roshan K. So I'll just throw out the simple answer:  "No, don't do it, you're crazy."

The reason is simple, you're not a contractor.  The other issue is just one of pragmatism.  It's your first deal, you don't have a contracting network, you don't have an architect, you've likely never go through a permitting process, if 4-plexes are impossible to find it might have to do with restrictive zoning, etc.  In short, everything is going to take longer and be more expensive because it's your first time.  Just think through the carrying costs on a piece of vacant land after your buy it.  Have you researched how long it takes and how much it costs to turn a piece of raw-land into a shovel-ready project?  I have no idea but I know in San Diego most people will say: "12 months and $100K".  I doubt it's that long or that expensive in OKC but it's likely also not instant or free.

Now, let's say you do go through this process and work through the hiccups, bumps, frustrations, etc.  How will you monetize those lessons that you learned?  Do you want to build another 4-plex right after?  Do you want to become a developer?  If the answer is "yes" I can rationalize going through the headache and financial cost of embarking on something like this.  But I can't imagine how it pencils out if you're an amateur one-time developer.  

But maybe I'm just overly negative :-)