Large duplex house hack, FSBO, driving for dollars

[Nate Ginsberg]

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $330,000
Cash invested: $11,550

It' a large side-by-side duplex with 3bed/2bath each, modest well-maintained yard, plenty of off-street parking, and in great shape for a property built in 1900! This is our first rental property! We'll be house hacking one side, while renting the other. The current/previous tenants were paying well below market rents and have occupied the place for about 10 years.

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

My wife and I had been searching for a small multi-family property to "house hack" for a couple months. We wanted to find someplace the felt "homey" enough for us to live in comfortably as a family, while also building equity. I also saw it as an opportunity to launch our property management business and begin building a track record of success for future commercial (large residential) deals that I'm interested in.

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

Driving for dollars!

How did you finance this deal?

FHA

How did you add value to the deal?

So far just planning minor bathroom and kitchen upgrades - flooring, appliances, cabinets - but long-term there is potential to convert these large units to condos and sell.

What was the outcome?

In escrow currently!

Lessons learned? Challenges?

This deal was for sale by owner, so working through the closing process was a struggle, since the seller did not want to hire his own attorney.

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

Kayla Nault at Central Mass Real Estate
Christina Lagana at Touchstone Closing and Escrow
Michael Bornstein at NewFed Mortgage
Rocco Castellano at Knight Home Inspections