House hack (First investment)

[Jaston Robinson]

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $260,000
Cash invested: $5,000

My first investment property is a 3 unit house hack that I bought via FHA 3.5% down ($9,100). Since it was my first property I was eligible for a first time home buyers assistance of $7,500 towards the down payment. It was an amazing experience to purchase an entire home for less than $2k!

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

While working as a part of the frontline mid pandemic my housing situation fell through. Thankfully, for about 1 year and a half prior to this I spent a lot of my time researching, reading, listening to podcasts & educating myself in real estate. When the combination of education, opportunity and being backed into a corner. I jumped into action. A house hack was the perfect entry way into real estate.

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

I found this deal through a great investor realtor named Marc Santos located in Rhode Island. He helped secure the property with a competitive offer. I remember him stating " The goal is to control the property, you start by doing that with a competitive offer."

How did you finance this deal?

I financed this property with a 3.5% FHA loan.

How did you add value to the deal?

I'm currently doing a live in rehab.

What was the outcome?

The outcome has by far exceeded all of my expectations. I currently cash flow $100 per month after expenses and I live rent free. Living rent free is also giving me the opportunity to save 40% of my income towards my second property.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I learned to have laser force during the inspection. Major things like foundation, electrically and plumbing issues were not included in our inspection report. However, I take full responsibility because I should have known better because of my education.

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

I worked with an amazing attentive team to close this deal. First, was my investor realtor named Marc Santos who helped find and secure the deal. Second, was my loan officer named Joe & Zach at Anchor Financial located in Pawtucket, RI. Lastly, was my girlfriend Alexia who also partnered with me.