All Forum Posts by: Kimberly Gomez

Yes! Really loved our home inspector Rod Gomez at SoCal Home Inspector. 1-888-34-Inspect. Or you can DM him via Insta @socal_homeinspector. His Insta is a great way to see his work. If you hit him up, I would really appreciate it if you let him know that Su Pak (Claremont) referred you. Thanks and good luck! 

If you are using an agent they should have a few for you to reach out to

Investing in Los Angeles is a long term game. I've house hacked two properties now in Los Angeles. it is unlikely to make financial sense in the beginning.

Renting by the room is easier than you think. I have a client doing it now and got them rented quickly.

If your Realtor is sending you single family homes with no strategy behind it, then you need to set that expectation or find someone else to work with. In this market, you have to constantly pivot.

Yes, many are tenant occupied, but you can ask if the Seller is willing to have it vacated prior to the close of escrow. If you don't ask you don't know. I just spent this morning reaching out to every multifamily listing within my clients criteria asking the agents this. You never know, especially if they are motivated to sell.

With the rehabs, can you finance it? I did an FHA 203(k) loan and it worked out well.

I wouldn't be discouraged, but I would be patient, flexible, and open to new ideas and strategies. 

Hi @Kimberly Gomez here's a Loan Hack. I know you have your heart set on a duplex however the SFH may be the best option for the long term.

The reason I say this is because when you house hack a room and record that rental income on Schedule E of your taxes for 1 year or greater, the next property you purchase (if it's a multifamily) you can use the projected rents to help you qualify for the loan. The SFH is a stepping stone into the next property. Also, LA is an expensive, competitive market

Let's do an example:

- You purchase a SFH on Jan 1st of 2022
- In 2023 you do your taxes and put that you received rental income for all of 2022 (365 days) for your 2022 taxes.
- Since you've lived in the home for 1 year and demonstrated your ability to be a landlord, you can now use the subject property's current leases to help you qualify for more
- Your W2 job brings in $5000/month
- The subject property's leases brings in $3000/month
- Your combined purchasing power ($5000 + $3000) totals $8000/month

This means that you can afford more home for your next purchase that may allow for you to pick up a multifamily at a more desirable price range.

This is for Fannie Mae only (conventional purchases). If you have either FHA or VA, you must follow a different set of guidelines.

For anyone else that is considering something like this, you really need to have these discussion with a lender that understands your ultimate goal and familiar with investor strategy. Any lender will qualify you for an investment loan, however not all lenders know how to invest - choose wisely. That way, you can work as a team to develop a gameplan. 

Fannie Mae's Guideline

Hi @Kimberly Gomez,

Thank you for sharing your situation. It is still a hard market to find vacant duplexes. I imagine you're seeing that prices have steadily come up over the last 5-6 months. It sounds like you're open to most areas of Los Angeles which is great. @Jeff Schemmel has a good regarding cash for keys if you have some capital available. The big issue we are still negotiating is the extended moratorium in Los Angeles. It doesn't mean you can't negotiate to get tenants out, but given the market change sellers have been open to exploring these options. I do have a few follow up questions for you, if you're willing to share:

What type of loan are you qualified for?

Where have you been looking?

How long do you plan on living in this property?

Hope this helps!

This is the hardest part of starting your house hack journey. I think before you consider SFH house hacking you need to ask yourself this question: "Am I OK sharing a living space with someone I don't know, like, and trust?" if the is answer is yes, then you will do what it takes to find tenants - just make sure you buy in an area where there is proven long-term rental demand. If the answer is NO, then ask yourself "Do I know like and trust anyone who would room with me and is interested in that now? if you've got a friend or two or three that are OK with a shared living situation then that could be an opportunity. This is how I went about my first house hack, as I had a similar issue.

Just be clear with your agent about what you're open to and not open to, there shouldn't be any pressure there - it's about helping you be successful with what you want to do.  

As alternatives to deal with the tenant-occupied issue, you could offer cash for keys or look for month-to-month tenants and ask the current owner to non-renew as part of the purchase agreement if your state allows that within the timeline you need to owner occupy.  Cash for Keys comes with some risk and extra cost and if that's not something you can stomach you may just have to keep trying.  Is your agent calling off-market for you?  That can be a long shot, but it's worth it if it gets you seeing more options.