Bellevue 4-Plex House Hack

[Milton Johnson]

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $263,000
Cash invested: $6,966

This is a House Hack deal. First ever investment. 4-unit, single family home conversion in Bellevue near the military base. 3 units rented and I am living in one for the first year.

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

I felt that House Hacking was a good way to get into the world of real estate - learn the ins & outs of what is needed to manage a property - while living free of housing expenses.

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

This was an FSBO deal that I found through Zillow. End up submitting an offer slightly over asking due to multiple offers - all of which were better than mine but the owner previously worked with my agent's spouse and the note that my agent sent set it over the top.

How did you finance this deal?

I used a VA Loan, got a good rate on the mortgage, and paid a little less than $7K in closing cost (only cash in deal).

How did you add value to the deal?

All units were fully rented except the one I moved into, so not much to do to the property yet. The unit that I am in will have a full remodel when I move out and one other unit could use a small rehab when the tenant vacates.

What was the outcome?

Will likely do a forum post of the outcome when I move out and make all necessary updates to the property.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Learned: To make an offer! I didn't make outrageous offers and stayed within my analysis. This was the second property that I was able to get under contract (the first one fell through when the seller would not negotiate after inspection findings). Even in a hot market where everyone is a cash buyer paying significantly over asking, there are still deals to be made.

Challenges: I initially had a hard time getting the seller to fix all inspection findings, but in the end all items were fixed

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

Tabitha Cooper with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices as the Buyer Agent. Steve Kucirek with West Gate Bank on financing.