BF LIVE then LEAVE

[Spencer Dixon]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $165,000
Cash invested: $35,000

That's right. BF it, live in it, then leave it! ***BUT keep it ***
B - Buy it
F - Fix it
Live - Primary Residence it
Leave - Keep it, rent it out, and find a new primary residence

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

Need a home, it needed work, price and location where pretty great. Clear opportunity for improvement

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

on the MLS, I'm a realtor. I actually met with the agent directly as it was his childhood home, and he wanted to know who was going to buy it.

How did you finance this deal?

Traditional 30 year fixed mortgage

How did you add value to the deal?

It all started with removing some interior walls and changing the floor plan, removing a chimney, adding a bedroom and bathroom, installing patio door to the backyard, and completely renovating every other interior element

What was the outcome?

We refinanced and cashed out all our renovation budget plus $5,000 and actually kept monthly payment the same as rates had dropped. It's been a rental for the past 4+ years and makes on average $400-$600/mth

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I had never used a power tool prior. It takes longer than expected when doing most of the renovation yourself. Small demolition projects make massive impacts. So many houses are built the exact same, it gets easier the more homes you get in. Having time to do the work was the biggest benefit. I'm not as good a professional but the work I did was mostly good enough for us to live in, and the small fixes to make it good enough for renters has been worth trying to do it myself.