House hacking strategies for newbies

[Spencer L.]

Hi there!

I am new to real estate investing, and I have lots of questions:) Here is come context on my current situation. I don't have a lot of money saved up yet (I just graduated from college in August), but I have a solid W2 income (about $9500/mo before taxes). I just bought my first house (2 bd, 2 bath), and I am renting out one of the rooms to offset the cost of the mortgage.

I was hoping to get some advice on strategies I can use when I am one of the residents of my rental property. Specifically, I have the following questions:

Should I transfer ownership of the property to an LLC? Besides liability, what benefits would this have for me?

What expenses can be written off (closing costs, utilities, common area furnishings, etc.)? Does the 20% pass through credit apply in this situation? 

What other tax strategies can I employ so I can pay less in taxes on my rental/W2 income?

Would it be worth hiring a CPA at this point if this is the only property I currently have and it might be a little bit before I can save up enough to purchage my next investment?

Thanks in advance for answers to these questions or any other tips you want to give me!

Also, if anyone in the Madison area or abroad is looking for super cheap help with anything real estate/accounting related, I would be interested in volunteering my time in exchange for training and experience. I work a 9-5, but I am happy to work in-person in the Madison area or virtually in the evenings or on the weekends. I am young and excited about building my own real estate portfolio and just need to learn how. Please feel free to contact me!

Thanks again,

Spencer

[William Sing]

As for the LLCs, I think this episode nails a lot of them - 

If you have a separate bank account and everything for your home and are paying your "rent" through that and it is fair market value you might be able to write that off as well. Also if you work from home a home office would also be an option. 

I think a CPA would be good for setting up your books initially. They would be able to let you know a bit more about the other options. 

Hope this helps!