All Forum Posts by: Anthony Swain

Hey everyone,

I wanted to share numbers from my wife and I's 1st house hack. I know a-lot of people talk about house hacking, but not always about the numbers. My goal for this post was to give some transparency for anyone that is considering this approach. 

Full Brick Detached Duplex in Optimist Park (4 Bd/2 Ba) 1610 sq feet

PP: $565k                                                                                            

DP: $28k                                                                                              

Closing Costs: $0 ($15k seller credits)                                            

*Used to cover CC & Buy Down Rate

Renovations & Furnishings (MTR/STR): $47k

Cash Invested: $75k

ARV: $675k-$700k



Just a quick aside, I think right now is a great time for an investor, because there are a lot more people on the "side line". I'm willing to bet if rates went down significantly than getting this property under contract would have had even more competition. With rates higher, the seller was more inclined to take less than listing price and was willing to provide additional seller credits. 

Rent                $2,600/month as MTR                           

Vac (5%)         -$130                                                                                                  

Main. (5%)     -$130                                                                                        Insurance  $97

Cap Ex (10%) -$260                                                                                                Taxes $240

Utilities           -$175                                

NOI $1,905

PITI+PMI= $3,846

Net Income as HH (aka our cost per month)= 

$1,905 - $3,846 = -$1,941      

My wife and I essentially split $1,941/month to live in our duplex in one of our favorite neighborhoods.

So you may ask, "What about your ROI?!"

Well, here is where things get better! IMO every house hacker should include all of these numbers into their overall decision/calculations. 

Cost Per Year to Live: -$23,292

             Amortization: +5,648.46    (aka loan paydown)    

    Appreciation (4%): +$27,200    

                         ROI= $9,556/$75k= ( 12.7%)

ROI is pretty good by itself, but you can add in one more figure. Your housing expense savings.

Our prior rent was $2,300 for a so-so furnished unit in Charlotte.

Plus, we paid $1,000 per month to maintain our tax home as travel nurses.

Total we paid $3,330 per month as our housing expense.                                                                     

Our housing expense saved is $1,359 or $16,308 per year

This makes our Total Net-worth ROI (NROI) much higher.

NROI= ($9,556+$16,308)

                   $75k

NROI= ~34.4%

These numbers will only get better if/when we are able to refinance to a lower rate and more principle pay down.

Any other successful house hackers out there? How are things going for you?

Hi Zachary, 

You're in the right place. Take the time to learn and educate yourself. Go to meet-ups, keep in the forums, find a mentor, read the books, etc.

Real generational wealth is built for the long-term. 

If you're interested in starting in real estate, then house hacking is a great option in my opinion. You will learn alot of lessons quickly, build wealth, and potentially lower your cost of living. From there, you can use that first property to springboard to your next investments. 

Hey Jacob, 

Good luck with your house hacking endeavors. My wife and I are on the same path right now.

I say those are solid conservative numbers when analyzing. If they end up being less then its a nice surprise, but you won't be in for a shock if you estimate too low. 

I agree with Jessie. As a house hacker, you have to account for your lowered cost of living i.e. instead of renting a 2 bedroom apartment for $2200, you're house hacking with a leftover cost of $1500 after all costs. Your adjusted returns would be higher because you're saving $700/month on your housing expense. This doesn't even take into account the leverage you can utilize, appreciation, amortization, etc. 

Good luck! Hopefully you find a good deal soon!

 Hey Jon, 

Thanks for the thoughtful response! I appreciate the insight from a lender's perspective. 

1) Yeah. I thought about that too. If we're going to eventually refinance for (hopefully) a better rate, then I'll need to do it again for that anyway. Great thinking "Knock two out with 1 stone".

2) That wasn't something I thought about, but it makes a ton of sense. More LTV, more favorable rates. Waiting and holding, we will benefit from some appreciation, and small but some amortization. Plus, that $71/month is not killing us. Barely more than internet haha.

Thank you for your reply!

Hey BP community! 

First off. Thank you for anyone that takes the time to read this and give me their thoughts.

My wife and I bought a duplex to house hack at the tail end of last year. 

We did purchase the duplex with the new conventional Fannie Mae 5% loan and it came with PMI of $71/month. Since then, we have
done significant renovations and turned the other unit into a "Mid-Term Rental" getting our first guests at a favorable rate, nearly 1.5x the previous rents combined.

During our initial appraisal, the closest comp was valued significantly higher, but was completely renovated. Now, ours is completely renovated with more square footage, on a larger lot, and closer to light-rail. That property was purchased April 2023, so I'm assuming it wouldn't be used anymore after this April. 

Is it worth getting another appraisal to potentially have lender remove PMI based on renovations? Or is the tax implications of higher valuations cancel the positive effect?

P.S. Our plan is to house hack this property for the next 2-3 years at least, then evaluate selling or just holding long-term and renting both units once we buy a new property to live in. 

Any advice or similar experiences is appreciated :)

Hey Jeff, 

I was just in a similar position with my wife (looking to house hack), but knew she wouldnt be down to share our space. We ended up buying a duplex in Charlotte. The market is scarce, but they are not impossible to find. I actually know of a few that you can get for sub $400k. With the new 5% Fannie Mae loan, you may need less than $20k as a down payment. 

 Dead at that answer lol

@Ryan Gardner Interested to how this turned out for you! I actually just closed on duplex in Charlotte with the 5% Fannie Mae conventional loan. I would love to stay in touch to see how it goes for one another. Good luck!

Great story! I'm sure you learned alot of lessons from that time, so in the grand scheme of things it gave you the experience to correct course for the future. Congrats on the recent accomplishments!

My wife and I are looking to purchase a property to house hack (hopefully soon). Most likely a duplex/triplex or primary with ADU. Any suggestions to streamline the process to get other unit set up for MTR/STR? Also, most important things to do before listing and anything that should not be missed?

Thank you for any advice or recommendations. Also, I'd be happy to buy anyone a coffee in the area if they had success with this strategy here or nearby areas.