My First House Hack!

[Alex Nelson]

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $170,000
Cash invested: $31,600

2Br 1Ba each side, 1650 sq/ft duplex in the heart of Arlington. 5 minutes from UTA, 8 minutes from AT&T Stadium, and 15 minutes from Six Flags. This unit is set to be my first house hack / AirBnB.

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

I'm looking to start my investing career and a house hack is the best way to do that in my opinion.

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

I found this deal on the MLS. This was listed at 157k but i knew this is a hot market so i bid well over at 170k. I didn't get the deal at first. About 2 weeks later i got a call that the buyer pulled out without doing any inspection or anything. I took the deal. Ended up going through almost 5 month under contact due to multiple IRS liens on the property.

How did you finance this deal?

I used a conventional 15% down Fannie Mae Owner Occupant loan that I got through Redfin Mortgage with an interest rate of 4.25%

How did you add value to the deal?

(planning to as i haven't moved in quite yet) remove popcorn ceilings, repaint all interior walls and exterior facade, new LVT flooring, new cabinet doors on all kitchen cabinets as well as repainting cabinets. Update appliances throughout. New tile and vanities in both bathrooms.

What was the outcome?

As i have not yet done the renovation and subsequent renting of the unit, i can not say the outcome of this quite yet.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Always check the title before committing large amounts of money to the deal.
Make sure that any tenants leases are turned over to title prior to closing.
Stay with it, especially with the IRS. They are a pain to work with.