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All Forum Posts by: Chris Reichenbach

Chris Reichenbach has started 6 posts and replied 31 times.

Hey Mitchell,

I just bought my first House Hack up in Kannapolis a little over a month ago. Reading is about the best way to go if you don't have a mentor.

The Charlotte area is pretty expensive so you'll definitely have to run your numbers, but don't be afraid to look a bit outside of Charlotte. The Concord area is heavy with Atrium Health and other hospitals which could be a good area for mid-term rentals. Lots of building and growth is planned for lesser known areas right outside of Charlotte as well which could be really good longer term plays.

Definitely lots of options! Good luck!

I'm a little late to the post but I had the same problem when first starting using the calculators. If you sign up for one of the free webinars BP sends out they go in depth showing you how to use them and give some pointers.

I think my favorite advice is to "Take Action" and "Real Estate/Investing is a 'get rich slow' game"

I'm just starting out with a House Hack and have read many of the Bigger Pockets books along with other Self Help and Financial Books. 

A lot of people get stuck in Analysis Paralysis while reading a lot but I've started to think about taking action in another way. A lot of these books have a lot of the same information or general information so for people that are stuck in analysis paralysis, the time to take action is when you start seeing the same things show up in each book. There's no way to know everything but when the same things start showing up, chances are that is pretty good advice and you already have the general knowledge to start.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $157,000
Cash invested: $5,000

This is my first investment property with the intention to House Hack. It's a little bit of a fixer upper that I will be able to refinance sometime in the future and use towards future investments.

I use Avail and that is pretty straight forward for landlord and tenants. Rent Redi was another one I looked into and it's pretty popular with BP users.

Quote from @Greg M.:

HOA fees generally don't go up dramatically. If an extra $50 a month is too big a hit for your cash flow, the property probably wasn't a smart investment to begin with.

And you can and should be charging market rent. If you are and HOA fees suddenly go up $100, you can't suddenly charge market rent + $100. The tenant will leave and no new tenant will pay higher than market rent.

Thanks! I knew HOA's change price but I wasn't sure how dramatic the changes would be if they were $5 or $100 or how often. Just looking at and considering different opportunities but I appreciate the response. 
Quote from @Taylor L.:

I would definitely not do that. If the tenant doesn't pay the fees (it'll happen) it's your problem, not the tenant's. Sure, you'll move forward to evict the tenant, but you'll have the association chasing you down for the money plus fees, or worse.

Thanks! I was just looking for info since I've never dealt with condos before . Just giving me more to think about doing my calculations!

If this is still a cash flowing property then I believe it would make sense to hang onto it and keep building equity rather than try to time the market. This would all depend on how difficult the property is to manage and what your specific area is doing. Hanging onto the property would keep building equity, put money in your pocket if it is cash flowing, and give you an opportunity to sell or 1031 exchange for a multifamily property.

Reading and learning is also a good option too because you might find other options that you like or fit your situation better than what someone else suggests.

Any investors in the Charlotte area or bigger city areas that own and rent condos.

Is there any way to structure a lease that has a set rent amount but the tenants pay the HOA fees so that if the fee were to change or increase it would not hurt the cash flow for the property?

Just looking at different avenues of getting started in real estate investing and working with the higher prices in my area. Thanks for the help!

Randy, I am in the same boat as you looking to buy my first property with about the same money available. Small multifamily has been really tough to find in the Charlotte, NC area and has forced me looking for other ways to house hack. Something to consider would be looking at some houses that need fixed up and trying to get a 203k loan with the 3.5% FHA financing and renting out one of the rooms. Doing that for a year would build some equity in the property and after a year of living there you could do it again for a low money down payment or look for multi-family as the market may be different than it is now.

If you have no idea where to start at all I would suggest reading some of the books that Bigger Pockets which has helped me get more creative in ways of planning what I want to do and how I can do it.

Hope this helps!