All Forum Posts by: Eric Samuels

Hey everyone,

First time house hacker here.

I closed on a duplex in Philly end of September and once it got cold I realized the living room and medium sized bedroom in one of the units were not warming up as much as other areas of the unit. I'm considering cutting rent $50/mo for the remaining 3 months for the tenant in that room. Is this a smart move?

Living room (fl 2) has one supply and one return vent, medium sized bed room (fl 3) has one supply vent that isn't pushing as much hot air as other supply vents. As mentioned, I have one tenant in the medium sized room and I'm in the master bedroom (fl 3) in the same unit currently, which has a supply and a return and heats up just fine.

Measuring the temperatures with central heat on a cold day at 70 degrees on the thermostat it can heat the medium br to 65 and the living room to 68. I bought a space heater for the tenant's room and another for the living room to buy some time. Space heaters + central heat can heat the living room to 70 and the bedroom well above 70. I basically told the tenant that if I could not figure out the heat situation within a reasonable time (he moved in on nov 15th and is on a 6 mo lease) then I would get baseboard heaters for both living room and his bedroom as a workaround. I've been told this is a very expensive workaround solution by some contractors after I had already told my tenant this.

So far I've had several HVAC people out. One company said to do some mastic and foil tape sealing in the ducts in the basement to fix. Did that and didn't change drastically. It has also been recommended by another company that I tear down drywall to assess the issue with my confirmed flex duct system and potentially add extra supply ducts. This seems like a super expensive solution I'm not willing to entertain at this moment. Still planning on addressing the root issue of course but losing $150 instead of potentially paying over a grand to update my service panel and purchase baseboard heaters on top of the increased electric bill does not seem feasible as a short term solution.

Would love some advice!

Thanks,

Hey everyone,

So I closed on this duplex in Philly end of September and I am house hacking. I’ve already spent a significant amount of money on fixes. Some fixes I knew about before closing and some that I was unaware of. Mold was present in the basement upon inspection and there was some pooling water. As most Philly homes, it is very old. Foundation has settled a bit but structurally ok. Regardless, i’ve been advised to get some more first floor joists support via jackposts installation in basement to prevent any further foundation issues. For mold remediation (air quality test in livable areas came back acceptable), sump pump/french drain, vapor barrier and some jack post installation, it’s going to cost me between 12k-16k. I have already needed to spend 50% of my reserve on a sewer line replacement and a chimney lining and there are still a few other fixes to make. My current reserve as is could cover 2.5 months worth of rent but I do have a full time job and am getting rent (not at full occupancy). I inherited a tenant on the 1/1 and am living in the renovated 3/1 with another tenant.

Would anyone advise taking out a loan with 0% interest on first year to get this work done at this moment or should I wait until I bring back up my reserve? Personally I’d like to address immediately because even though air quality is acceptable I want to make sure mold is not an issue whatsoever. I’ve already temporarily addressed the leaking issue (crack in side walk and clogged rain leader pouring water into it) but could work on doing more external sealing work around house but the basement is a big pain point for me right now.

My contractor is urging me just to get a dehumidifier in the basement, open up these cemented in windows in basement for some air flow and put bleach on walls for mold but we didn’t discuss the foundation.

Would appreciate some advice.

Thanks and happy holidays!

Got you thanks for the insight. I was originally hearing $2000. Not sure if any materials have gone up in prices since you lined yours. Also not sure if there's a price difference between Hanover PA vs Philly. I actually thought I was in the Philly forum when asking this question but I'm sure it's pretty similar. I'm expecting to get some more quotes early this week.

Thank you,

Awesome thanks so much @Kevin Sobilo! And do you have any rough idea of how much that should cost? Does $3800 sound reasonable?

@Kevin Sobilo This is an old home and PGW came out to address a leak with one of the stove ranges yesterday. During their review in the basement they pointed out the flue used for CO2 to escape has some brick debris inside and that the chimney will need to be cleaned and lined. I had to clean it out with a wet dry vac and hvac has tested the pull doing the match test and it seems to be fine for now. I also have carbon monoxide detectors in both units and there's no trace of increased CO2 but I'd still like to address asap.

Hey everyone,

Does anyone have any rough estimates for a chimney cleaning and lining? My chimney supports two furnaces and two water heaters in the basement of a 2 story building. I just had someone take a look at my chimney/flue for my furnaces and water heaters in the basement of my duplex and he was urging me to act quickly which I will but didn’t want to just go with him when I haven’t gotten quotes from anyone else. It’s Sunday today so I’m going to call several others tomorrow for quotes and also put out an inquiry on Angi’s list which is how they got to take a look first. Said I’d pay $3300 if I acted today and $3800 if afterwards. Would appreciate the help. Thanks!!

Hey everyone,

So I closed on my first duplex, 1br/1ba 3br/1ba split. If I decide to rent the 3/1 by the room how difficult will it be to switch to the full unit? It’s most profitable renting by the room but the 3/1 is more like a 2/1 with a laundry unit and no closet in the 3rd so it’s easiest to rent out the whole unit. Id of course like to rent out the place asap but fear if I rush into a rent by the room I’ll have difficulty switching over to renting out the full unit. Any advice?

Thanks!

@Rich O'Neill Hey Rich, can you also send me your lawyer?

I’m about to close on a home and may need to file ASAP after closing. I close on 9/29 and deadline to submit appeal is 10/3

Hey everyone,

I’m looking to house hack a multi family but would want it to be turnkey ideally so I’d love to get in contact with some flippers in the area. Main areas I’m looking to invest are Point Breeze, East Kensington, Port Richmond, Brewerytown, East Passyunk and Grays Ferry. Would love to connect with anyone is interested!

@Alex M. Do you happen to have info on how much pricing for a zoning lawyer would be in a situation like this? I’m potentially looking to rezone because I need the loan to come through so the budget is the issue in my case and I assume the majority of other people inquiring about the same thing.