First Purchase and House Hack

[Eric T.]

Investment Info:

Townhouse buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $212,500
Cash invested: $13,310

My first purchase was a townhouse that I lived in during Navy training in Charleston. It started as a house hack with 2 roommates, and now it's a long-term rental.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I was told time and time again to buy instead of rent. I set my sights on buying long before reporting to Charleston, and when the opportunity came up I took it.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

My parents were helping me search, and found the deal on Zillow. We had our realtor walk us through the property on FaceTime, and decided to make an offer at the asking price. Everything went smoothly.

How did you finance this deal?

I used a conventional loan with 5% down.

How did you add value to the deal?

We started with some fresh paint, and I installed remote controlled blinds on the giant window on the front, which faces West and gets really bright in the evening. Not much else was necessary, and it was easy to rent from the beginning.

What was the outcome?

I lived alone for a little while, then started listening to the BP podcast more, and decided to sacrifice a little privacy for some cash flow. I eventually found two roommates, we all had the same job and got along well, and it was great.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I didn't know much when I bought the place, I just signed a bunch of documents... When I saw the value appreciate significantly, I wondered what I had done. I started listening to BP more often and became a realtor because I didn't want to make money by mistake, I wanted it to be intentional. The entire process has taught me a ton and made me a better investor.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I worked with Carolina One for this transaction, and they provided me with an excellent agent and loan officer. I had a really great experience and later decided to become a realtor and hang my license with Carolina One.