First-time investor in SF Bay Area

[Anya Klymenko]

Hi Everyone!

I am very happy to have found BiggerPockets community! I am ready to make a first step and purchase our first investment property.

Would greatly appreciate your advice.

Areas of interest: San Francisco and Bay Area, possibly Napa area or Santa Cruz/Monterey

Idea is to start with house-hacking.

The price range we are looking for is between $1.3-$2M. (Duplex, triplex: with at least one 2-bd unit for us)

Naturally, I have lots of questions and hope to get some insights here.

I apologize if these questions are naive, trying to figure things out…

1. Is it realistic to have positive cash flow given the prices on properties?

2. Does anyone have good experience in successful house hacking in SF bay? Would love to know your experience and maybe math.

3. How do you see SF Bay during/after COVID - is rental income under risk?

4. How do Napa or Santa Cruz/Monterey compare to SF Bay in regards to occupancy, does it make sense even to look there?

5. Is it even possible to find good deals in the current market?

Thank you!