Is this house hack worth it?

[Corey Stevens]

Would doing a house hack where only 2/3 of the monthly mortgage payment is covered be worth it? Mortgage payment being $1500 and it rents for $1000.

I always hear of people getting their mortgage fully covered and living for free, but is it still worth it to still pay $500/month out of pocket to still get the appreciation, equity, tax benefits, and possibility to use it as a long term 2 unit rental?

Just want to make sure I’m not missing something! Thinking of doing new construction of a duplex in a nice area versus a house hack in a more “sketchy” area to say the least. I understand cash flow can be higher rehabbing an existing place. The problem I’m running into is duplexes for sale in my town are in worse locations. Unfortunately, those look like my only 2 options at this point.