All Forum Posts by: Maggie Blackburn

My biggest thing was the large price tag (compared with other properties upstate) and having to live in a less desirable neighborhood and find a roommate. I now live in Williamsburg with my friend as a roommate, and I wouldn't have been able to afford a 2 bed in WB (was looking in Bed-Stuy before). 

I think it comes down to your personal situation and what lifestyle you want to live, your budget, etc.

I can answer questions async here or you can DM me :) 

I decided not to buy in BK but purchased a house in the Catskills in Oct 2023 and rent it out on Airbnb. It's not the best investment on paper but decided renting in a more desirable neighborhood was better for my lifestyle and now I can go up to the Catskills every so often. 

@Jason Lee Makes sense! This is my plan too (trading up or renting out or 1031 exchange later down the road). I've been also trying to look for opportunities to convert bedrooms, although most look like that will mean no living room or very llimited light in the living space. I'll keep searching and thank you for the advice!

@Nicholas L. Moving out after Year 3 would look like a loss of about $1200 - $2500 per year (-.5% to -1% Cash on Cash Return). I plan to stay in NYC indefinitely but it's hard to predict when or if I'll want to move out of the NY area. I think I'll likely stay at least 5 years but could also be the place I settle down too. Hard to say for certain.

@Eric Hajdu Since I'll be living at the property, I was looking for areas that I'd be willing to live in so the multi-fam in other areas of BK may be too far out. I was also looking in Bed Stuy / Crown Heights due to the fact I could get an Eagle Loan from First Republic who offers a really competitive rate (3.75% and $4000 toward closing costs). Ideally Bed Stuy would be the area closer to Clinton Hill and Crown Heights the area closer to Prospect Park so slightly higher rents than other parts of the neighborhood. I'll message you about the tiny 2 bed condo route. Have some follow up questions!

@Eric Hajdu Thank you for the advice! Ideally I would invest in a multi-family, but looking at prices in the area, I'm not sure I have enough $$. I've been looking at 2 bed condos $900K with 20% down. Looks like multi-family in bed stuy is 1.6M+. I'm willing to invest $200K. Do sellers typically like to see at least 10% down in the Brooklyn area for multi-family? If so, multi-family could work, but I likely won't have enough if 20% down is needed.

If multi-family isn't an option, does the 2 bed condo still seem like a good route to get started in real estate? 

Hi all, I'm looking to house hack in Brooklyn, NY and looking for 2 bedroom condos to rent out the 2nd room. Looking at Bed Stuy / Crown Heights primarily as I can get a 3.75% interest rate from First Republic as it's my first time home. I plan to live in the home for at least 2 years to get the tax benefits but possibly longer, then possibly do a cash out refinance to invest in another property.

Scenario 1: Current Rent

- $3000/month 

Scenario 2: House Hack and rent out spare bedroom

- If I rent out a 2nd bedroom, I'd still likely pay around $2600-3200/month on mortgage, taxes, HOA, CapEx & Maintenance (est. 8-10% depending on age of bldg)

- The properties likely would break even around Year 5 or 6, so I may lose money each month if If I decide to move out before Year 5 or 6

All of the advice I've read on house hacking was it's a good strategy to use if you can reduce your living expenses but a lot of the homes in Brooklyn mean I'd be paying about the same or more on rent each month. I have a stable W2 income so can afford to lose some $$ when I move out, but I also don't know if this is a good financial decision if my longer term goal is financial freedom.

What factors should I consider when investing in a more expensive market? Do you think house hacking still a good idea to try and get tax benefits, potential appreciation, loan pay down, etc? 

@Tim Wolak I was experiencing that same challenge as I started looking at Charlotte! I pivoted to look more toward the suburbs of Charlotte (Gastonia, Concord, etc), but it's still been challenging to find deals that break even or cash flow in this market. Thought I could see a decent split between CF and appreciation in Charlotte, but I may do some more research and pick a market with higher chance of CF based on the prices of housing today. 

@Josh Starner I completely agree! I'm a new investor looking to purchase my first buy & hold out of state in Charlotte, and there's a ton of information out there, some of it seems conflicting. For me right now, the hardest part is building confidence in deal analysis and understanding financing options.

Thank you, @Jay Banerjee! According to my calculations, it's more like I'd need 2K at min for rent to break even on a $300K property w/ a conventional loan of 20-25% down after all the expenses (CapEx, Repairs, PM, Taxes, etc), which could be doable but depends on the neighborhood. Finding off-market deals sounds like the way to go but nervous about the condition and repairs they need.

@Chris Mills I agree with you. Would love to get a minimum of $100/month in CF as a buffer. Do you think that's a decent buffer for a newbie? I'm okay with lower CF in the short-term b/c I think Charlotte has the potential for appreciation with a lot of new jobs and ppl moving there. I also work a full-time job, so I'm not relying on the CF necessarily to live. I guess I hear that you could find a good deal in any market so trying to find something that works! 

@Jay BanerjeeI'm looking for a buy and hold since it's my first deal, and I'm out of state. I'm willing to do cosmetic repairs on the property but not a full flip or rehab as I want to take things one step at a time and get one deal under my belt first :) 

Houses in the $300K+ range seem like they won't break even with rents at $1.5-2K, depending on the neighborhood. I'm wondering if I have to pivot my strategy to find more off-market deals or take on a little more risk by finding houses in need of more repairs. I've been analyzing deals but numbers don't make sense based on rent prices, so I wonder what I'm missing? FWIW my goal isn't massive cash flow as I have a full-time job but do want some CF as a buffer.

Would love your thoughts!