All Forum Posts by: Grace Olinger

Hi Mohammad, 

Good luck on your search! I'm also a new investor/househacker, so I don't have as many insights that others veteran investors may have. 

But I wanted to give you a heads up regarding your AirBnB plan, since I recently purchased a two fam property with FHA loan. I was originally planning on putting extra bedroom/bathroom in the basement to be able to AirBnB, but decided not to because of two pages in the loan closing documents. The FHA loan document package had two almost identical pages from HUD just to let you know that short term rentals under 30 days will be illegal on any part of the property while you have the FHA loan. You should either try to refi out as soon as possible after which you will no longer be bound by this contract or only do long term AirBnB (30+ days). Another option will be to look into Furnished Finder for traveling nurses who will need housing for ~90 days.

As far as the neighborhoods go, I would also check out north of the city (Everett, Malden, and Melrose are all on the Orange Line which should take you straight to Northeastern without a transfer), the properties are more affordable and Everett and Malden are developing quickly. 

Hello,

I am a new landlord of an owner occupied small multifamily property and was hoping to get some advice from more experienced investor/landlords. 

- I will be putting laundry in-unit, but not sure what to look for. Which brands do you prefer for low maintenance and reliability? Some people say LG is reliable, some say it's hard to repair and should go with Whirlpool/GE. Should I go with top loading verses side loading washers? I can't imagine the look/aesthetic of the laundry machines really matter especially when it'll be in a laundry room, what do you think?

- What are your experiences with allowing pets in rental units? As a new landlord and an occupant on the first floor unit, I'm thinking about just not allowing pets, but I understand (as a pet owner) that the demand will be much higher if I allow them. Also, does it affect your homeowner insurance?

- When you started out, how did you draft up rental leases? What are some uncommon items for lease that I should think about adding in (i.e. I heard of people adding all items that tenants are responsible for even as small items as vacuuming common areas). 

- Do you have any other tips for a new landlord? Maybe something that that you found surprising after your first rental unit?

@Jonathan Bombaci It's good to hear from someone from the Greater Boston area! Thank you for answering my questions. The tips on the analyzing house hacking property is a good point and I can see that existing tenant situation is a complex issue that is dependent on the people there. Also, thank you for the tip on CPA as well. 

As for the home inspection contingency, what are some other example contingency that can protect the buyer? 

@Ty Ash Thank you for the encouragement and the information. It's good to hear about how to analyze house hacking deal as it'd be impossible to have positive cash flow or "free rent" in this market. Your comment about the tenant is very helpful as well since that is another thing that I will need to learn during this process.

@Danielle Jackson Thank you for the great advice on things to keep in mind when evaluating a deal, that is a good point and it's been difficult as much of the information out there are talking about strictly rental property rather than specifically for house hacking strategy. Thank you for the advice on the contingency piece as well. There is someone in the family who can help with inspecting the property, so I plan on inviting them to come to open house.

Hello everyone, 

First of all, thank you for all the information that everyone has provided on this forum, it's very helpful for someone like me who is new to real estate investing.

I am a first time homebuyer who only learned about benefits of real estate investment and house hacking within the last two years. I have just taken my first action and got a loan preapproval letter for owner occupied multi family few days ago and was hoping that I could get some advice from people who have been at this position in the past.

1. For house hacking, what would you say are some of the big things to take into consideration when analyzing the property?
2. How have you dealt with tenants that come with the property at the time of purchase?
3. In areas like Greater Boston where it is seller's market, I have heard that it's expected that you do cannot add home inspection contingency, what is the best way to deal with this to make sure that you are not purchasing a property with big issues?
4. What should I look for in a CPA and what kind of fees can I expect to pay? I have always had "easy" tax returns that I could file via Turbo Tax, but since I would like to continue to invest in real estate after the first property and I do not know all the implications of rental income, I was thinking about finding one.
5. (Greater Boston specific) Do you have a CPA that you can recommend to a new investor?