House Hack Calculations

[Cody Friedrich]

Hi All - I have recently moved to Dallas, Texas and I'm looking to continue my real estate investment journey. I currently own a duplex in Indiana and bought it using a conventional investment loan. I'm now looking to house hack in Dallas or the surrounding areas (likely Arlington) but am a bit stuck on how to run the numbers.

When calculating cash flow on the my duplex in Indiana I took into account PITI, vacancy reserves, maintenance and repairs reserves and utilities to get down to my net cash flow amount.

When running the same calculations using 5% down on the house hack, I find myself quite a bit in the negative. Understood there are other factors to account for including loan pay down, tax benefits, lower rent etc. However, if my goal is to house hack this for a year and then move into another house hack, should I be looking to at least break even accounting for all expenses mentioned above? I just want to make sure I set myself up for a smooth exit into another property. If helpful, I can posit an example of penciled numbers.

Would love to know y'alls thoughts and appreciate any insights!

[Jake Andronico]

@Cody Friedrich

Assuming you bought the duplex in Indiana non-owner occupied, house hacking is a completely different calculation (in my opinion). 

You're also LIVING there when you house hack, so you have to factor in what your "normal" comparable living costs would be. 

If you can own the property and pay a similar amount for a similar lifestyle, it's probably a good decision (assuming you can afford it if it doesn't go perfectly, needs repairs, etc.)

With house hacking the rule of thumb is: The more uncomfortable you're willing to live, the better the numbers will be. The more comfortable you need to live, the worse the numbers will be. 

Hope this helps!