Creative intro to house hacking strategies? RV, ADU, ROOM RENTALS

[Caleb Scott]

Hey! Thanks for your time, I'm looking to kick off into the industry with a house hack to get me started. The only issue is after running the numbers and including not just the mortgage, but cap X, repairs, PMI, P&I, ETC... every deal seems to run flat with normal "rent one side of a duplex and live in the other, even with a roommate" type equations, so my question is this:

1) say i find a cheaper 5 bedroom house with a good location near a university. Im in my early 20s myself, so I could see renting by the room to college kids, but my dad is of the opinion i'll spend all my days chasing down rent and preventing property damaging parties, or catching people doing hard drugs. Does anyone have experience renting by the room enough to tell me if proper screening could prevent this? Often times its the only way many deals look half descent. (I think it would not be as bad as he thinks).

3) any other ideas how I can make these deals better?

2) Where could I check to see if its legal in my area to say build a tin parking structure and live in an RV full time in the backyard, after all I only plan on making it my primary residence for one year, and my job is online so location doesn't matter much to me and I end up traveling between cities often to spend time with family and friends. Or would it be better to build a simple ADU on the property for me to stay in, maybe renovating an old shed or pool house, then that's just one more room to rent once i move?

I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts or ideas who may have more experience, as I am new to all this. Thank you all so much for the time!

[Bryan Balducki]

@Caleb Scott rent by the room works great where I am in Denver, and with a 5-6 bed, one can still cash flow. Renting by the room tends to exceed the cash flow of a duplex. I don’t know what state you are in, but I have had great experience with it and the tenants are great.

You could also considering short term rental in one side or splitting up a single family home into 2 units. This will also depend on if you are looking in a STR friendly area.

ADU could work but it would be more difficult to get a loan and funding it with cash may not make sense.

If comfortable living in an RV and renting out the whole house, that would work great. If you’re looking for an RV spot, then I would keep your eyes out for large lots and RV storage spots, or large driveways.

Good luck and go get it!