First Home Turned Accidental House-Hack

[Jennifer Searcy]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $206,200
Cash invested: $2,000

As a recent college grad with no handy skills or fix-it experience, I chose to buy a solid, well maintained brick ranch for my first home. I hadn't heard of BiggerPockets or even house-hacking, but I knew I didn't want to be throwing my money away on rent. I convinced my three roommates at the time to move into the house for very cheap rent (they were being my guinea pigs after all). I spent about $2,000 on an electrician and drywall guy to finish a fourth bedroom that my dad helped me frame in the unfinished basement. Although the house wasn't cash-flowing, I was able to live in a house rent-free, build equity, and gain experience as a landlord with roommates that I trusted and enjoyed having around. I have since gotten married and all the roommates except one have moved out. Now that my husband and I have discovered the possibility of early retirement through real estate investing, we are excited about looking for ways to make this property propel us forward in that venture. With a second driveway and private entry to the basement, we plan to finish it out as a separate unit so that it will cashflow when we buy our next property.