All Forum Posts by: Christopher Morris

I tried looking into this from a few avenues and haven't come to a conclusion. 

I started my first FHA house hack back in November 2023. Being that my year living here is coming up, I was hoping to refinance into conventional and buy again with the 5% Fannie Mae.

But... I started looking into the FHA streamline product and spoke to my lender about it. Roughly, it seems I could save $350-500 a month in payments with the current interest rates using this FHA streamline. (going from 6.75 to 5.5-5.75)

What I fear is that this forces me to stay in the property again for another 12 months. Is that true? I was hoping to be onto my second house hack in Q1 of 2025. 

Anyone with the expertise that can help me out with this situation?  

Thank you! 

Help BP! 

Any advice would be helpful here! I am a current house hacker in the northern NJ area in a multifamily home. I am hoping to house hack again either in the same town or one closer to where I work. 

From a capital standpoint, I am comfortable with another down payment on a house hack on a multifamily. The one issue I think I’ll have on my hands is I prefer to house hack again in the same town (appreciation seems to be great along with rental amounts) but I’ll need to refinance my current house hack into a conventional which I doubt is at 20% equity yet since I don’t think I’ll have a valid excuse to have two owner occupied loans in the same town.

Come November, I’ll be in the house for a full year which makes me eligible to move out. I added a decent amount into the house (new paint, new hot water heater, brand new kitchen, better layout) but I’m not sure if that’s enough for me to appraise for 20% equity. 

My dilemma is I really would like to stay in my current town to house hack but I do have a backup town in case I can’t make it work in my current town. Do you think I should wait until I get 20% equity since I am now familiar with this town? Or dive into the other town and learn from scratch all over again on the rental market? 

Let me know your thoughts BP! 

Hello BP! 

There is a large scale project going down that was bought by a Fortune 200 company in my home area that will bring in thousands of jobs and will inevitable make the appreciation skyrocket. Shorter term, it will bring in workers to construct and create this new development - Longer term, it will bring in the likes of famous celebrities from around the country (if not world) to live and stay here short to long term. 

What type of asset class do you think will thrive in a place like this? The appreciation in this area is already booming as it is the top two most expensive counties in the state. Short term deals don't really exist here as they are illegal in the surrounding area for the most part. 

I'm interested in buying single family (even though I hate this idea at a young age) because of the appreciation and low multifamily volume. Although in the next few years I'll be starting a family and will want a single family home, if I put in the work of finding off market / on market multifamily deal the medium term rents could be insane. 

This is still a few years out and there is an estimated 2 billion going into this project. 

Has anyone dealt with a small area that's about to explode like this? 

Happy Friday BP! 

As we all know, Fannie Mae has come out with their 5% down, owner occupied loan for multifamily (2-4) properties. I understand this eliminates the "self sufficiency" test that the FHA requires for 3-4 units - which is great news.

I already own an FHA house-hack in Northern NJ and I'd like to land another one in Q4 2024 which would roughly be a year since closing on my first. Ideally, I'd like to purchase another house-hack in the same town I currently am at, but... I hear that can be difficult securing lending on two owner occupied properties in the same town / area. From what I've heard, you'd basically need a good "excuse" to not live in the first one any longer. Those excuses could be - difficult neighbors, bad neighborhood, too far from job, and others. How true is this? 

What would be the best advice here? I do have other towns in mind as a backup, but my first choice would be to continue investing in the town I already live in. 

Also, does this Fannie Mae 5% down require the owner to live in the house for a certain period of time like the FHA? Any and all information would be greatly appreciated!

Hello BP! 

I have a duplex that has an up/ down set up. The first floor tenant is hearing some noise from the children upstairs. Thankfully, it’s only in one area that happens to be a hallway. 

I’ve looked up any floor materials like those connectable floor mats and thick rugs. Has anyone found those useful? Or have another option to deaden the noise? 

Let me know, thanks! 

@Roy Gottesdiener the point is really to get into real estate especially in a tough market like we are in right now. That’s where house hacking comes in. It’s the quickest way to get in since down payments is only 3.5-5% down payment. 

They always say “it’s not timing the market, it’s time in the market”. Where you really make your money is refinancing into a conventional when it makes sense. House hacking once, twice, helps you begin your portfolio.  

Hey Michael, 

Great idea in starting your real estate journey. First things first, you really need to find your buy box and where rents are at in certain areas. I’d recommend going on Zillow or Redfin and seeing the prices of multi unit properties and then compare them with how much rent you could potentially get per bedroom. 

Once you determine that, start looking for a rockstar team (start with an agent). 

One big mistake people over look is going at it alone. Make sure you utilize your GF’s dad as much as you can while also looking for real estate meet ups in the area. Knowledge is power! 

I think if you can find a deal that has value add, it makes sense. 

Finding a property where you could add a room to a unit and if the rents continue to go up $50 or $100 a year. If you’re willing to stay 2, 3, 4 years then you’re closing that cash flow gap quickly.