House Hacker and REI Newbie from Silver Spring, Maryland

[Diego Maramba]

Hello, BP Community! I finally found you all! :D

My first (and current) home purchase was a house hack, only I wasn't familiar with the term at the time. We've been homeowners for going on 3 years now and, prior to purchase, we invited a friend to rent the basement of the not-yet-identified house. As luck would have it, he was looking for a place to live. The result: we bought our SF home (mid $600s) and our out-of-pocket mortgage expense is $500/mo less than we were paying to rent a 2 br/2 ba apartment.

I should have realized the power of real estate investing back then. It's taken me some time, but I'm now ready to get in the game. My "why": my kid is now 8-years old and I love being a work-from-home Dad (even pre-pandemic) these last 5 years, I've reconnected with a major passion (acting/writing/storytelling for the stage), my father passed away late last year, and my job with a large, stable IT company is largely just a job. I want to spend the rest of my life focusing on my passions: being the most awesome Dad and partner and creating/telling meaningful stories. That is, for sure, my "why."

I am interested in BRRR-ing SFH in the Silver Spring/Takoma Park/Wheaton area that offer multi-family potential, similar to my current home. Also open to small MF. We have some cash (about $60K) for investing and will likely require additional financing to make that first leap into REI.

Also, I want to quit my job. Ideally by the end of the year. Probably implied above, a lofty goal, and not at all an original thought, but adding for absolute clarity. Asking for help is not always easy for me, but I'm getting much better at it. Thank you in advance for all your help, BP Community!

[Diego Maramba]

Greatly appreciate the direction, Russell! I am really living up to my "newbie" status and loving it, especially when it leads to great advice. You probably just saved me a ton of wasted time and frustration! Thank you so much!