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Updated almost 8 years ago, 02/16/2017
House hacking ideas in Northern Virginia
I've got about 20K saved up, I'm looking to house hack in Northern virgnia. However, I am living with my girlfriend and we would rather have some sort of separation between the living spaces. Being that MFH are non-existent here, what options do I have? I am commuting to Tysons so I'd like to keep the commute under an hour. Any ideas?
Some property's may have an extra unit or two that is separate from the main house? There really isn't much wiggle room for the kind of property's that you can house hack with. Keep in mind if you do find a MFR and you house hack it with an FHA loan you will only have to stick it out for a year then you can move out. Just keep looking at your market and get pre-approved so you can pull the trigger if you find something that will work. MFH might just be more rare in your market. But all that means is that if one pops up you want to act fast.
From a Northern Virginian's standpoint there isn't much of MFH in this area. I wonder what people in this area do?
My guess is they either buy a house and rent out the extra rooms, buy a house that has the ability to cut off a portion and create an extra unit, or buy SFH and rent it. Not every strategy works in every market. Yours might be a stronger SFH market so you must adapt. If it seems like you cant make anything work with your 20k then just wait and keep saving until you have enough to get started. Or find a partner.
Id look into buying a townhouse in Northern Virginia here the bottom level is above ground, and has a full bathroom. Then you can rent out the basement.
- Russell Brazil
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- Podcast Guest on Show #192
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- Falls Church
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@Ahsan Lake the 1st step would be to find out what price range you are shopping in. Then I could provide some more specific insight.
We would like to be way below our price range which tops out at around 600K. We have always targeted a much lower home price to not stretch our budget and allow plenty of money to save for investments and building long-term wealth. A more expensive property would not be out of the question if we can recoup a lot of the costs in house hacking.
Do you see these townhouses as almost separate units when it comes down to renting a basement? Our comfort level with renting to other people would break if they were sharing a kitchen with us or anything other than laundry in the end. I've always liked the idea of a MFH when it came down to having very little interaction with the tenant other than being their landlord. Less of a roomate vibe and more of a tenant.
No they would not be separate units. MFH is only a possibility in this area if you are willing to live in Trinidad, Deanwood or Anacostia, or you are able to go up to the 650k price range to get a fixer upper in Bloomingdale/Eckington, or the 700k price point in Petworth.
- Russell Brazil
- [email protected]
- (301) 893-4635
- Podcast Guest on Show #192
So it looks like our type of house hacking isn't a reality in Northern Virginia. From the little I've read so far, I am getting the impression that my area of Northern Virginia is not a good area to start for real estate investing. Do you see beginners with less money in the bank starting out further into Virginia/MD? I could very well be wrong, it's just my very impressions when looking into what we can do starting out.
In Vancouver, where I am, most house-hacking is done by making either the upstairs or the downstairs into a suite - so you look for a single family home that has separate access, windows above ground on both floors, ideally a bathroom on both floors (you don't really want to start from scratch when it comes to bathrooms - kitchens, yes). If it's more upscale, separate laundry. If you're near a university, charge per student.
Good luck Ahsan!
Thanks for the input, it looks like what you and Russell are suggesting in terms of renting out a lower level is the prevailing option in the area.
Cross of the impossible and do what's left but never give up!
Looking for a residence that's 'subdividable' makes you look at the places you're touring in a whole new way. It gives you a WAY better idea of what to buy. A mother-in-law suite or 'mortgage helper' is a great way to kick off your real estate investing career and you'll learn about renovating too. Seeing as there is just the two of you, you could buy a place that's older and add a quite nice suite that YOU could live in (it'll be new once you renovate it - smaller but new and functional) while you rent out the rest of the house for a quite nice boost to your income.
Buy the ugliest house on the nicest block and make sure parking won't be a problem. Parking is the #1 reason your neighbours might not be happy about you having a suite. Put the money in your suite and the exterior and you'll be laughing all the way to the bank. You'll add resale value like crazy because - who DOESN'T need a mortgage helper!
That's a pretty great idea, I've been searching the area based on those requirements. I'm interested to know what the legal standard is for the Northern Virginia area when it comes to zoning laws.
Any Real Estate Agents that focus on investments on here that would like to work with me? I've got another project that I have some partnered cash that I'm in the beginning phases of planning out.
Hi Ahsan
To look for wholesalers and realtors, I would start another thread titled "Need realtors and wholesalers near Herndon, Virginia". You'll get realtors who are investor friendly as well as the odd wholesaler.
@Ahsan Lake You can comfortably find what you are looking for within about 1-1:30 hour commute from Tysons. PM me if you'd like.
My team specializes in off market acquisitions for investors...there are multi families in falls church and Arlington under 4 units, i.e. Residential, message me if you want to talk further.
Thanks for reaching out. I will message you.
I've been able to locate a number of properties in the surrounding areas, eg. Eastern Panhandle WV, Winchester, and Frederick/Hagerstown. Has anyone explored those markets?
Thanks for the Post! I am also an Investor in Northern Virginia looking to purchase my family's 2 property. My family is growing and we need much more space. I love the idea of house hacking but still having hard time finding the multi-unit properties.
@Ahsan Lake, another option is finding a SFH with an inlaw suite. This is an attached, fully separated suite, that can not be accessed by the primary home. There are a few of these in Fairfax County but you will need to be patient as they don't come on the market frequently. Another option, as was mentioned above, is to find a place well below value, and build one on.
Good luck!