Our first house hack!

[Micah Carter]

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $148,000
Cash invested: $32,000

My wife & I bought a duplex for our first house hack!! we live in the upstairs unit and just signed a lease for the basement apartment. Both units have 2 BR, kitchen, laundry room, and are about 1000 square feet. We found the deal on Zillow and negotiated our way into a good deal. We put $10k into the renovations and plan to refinance in August. (BRRRR)

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

We didn't want a big monthly mortgage payment. This was a perfect deal for us as we are working towards being financially independent through real estate. We knew what rent would be, know it needed light renovations, had the drive to complete renovations, knew the numbers and went for it!

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

Through Zillow. I have automatic updates for a certain price range set up. This property hit my email inbox, I took a look at the pictures, knew the location and made an offer on it without walking the property. We later had a home inspection along with other inspections and negotiated it down to a price that worked for us using the inspections for leverage.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional financing with a 15% downpayment and another $10k out of pocket for the renovations.

How did you add value to the deal?

New retaining wall, fixed deck, new hardwood flooring in bedrooms, new vinyl flooring in bathrooms, updated downstairs unit bathroom, painted entire house and made a few other minor adjustments.

What was the outcome?

We are planning to refinance after 6 months of the initial purchase date which would be in late July. We hope to refinance and pull our cash out to find another property if our numbers were accurate.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

The whole process is challenging but worth it. It's easy to second guess yourself throughout the deal. We went back and forth whether it was a good deal or if we could afford to buy the house and how we would renovate. We spent countless hours on youtube, networked with agents, contractors and friends and pushed through. The renovations moved slower than I thought, I think in large part because it was first attempt and the learning curve is steep but very achievable.