All Forum Posts by: Robert Bodmer

Hi Kyle, 

How do you feel the surrounding markets around Lancaster are? Would somewhere close to it potentially be better for an out of state investor? I did a good bit of comparison for the areas surrounding it and Lancaster seemed to have the best growth recently. I'm also considering Harrisburg but the property values have seemed to decrease over the last few years. I would like to hear your opinion on this area as well. 

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Baltimore.

Purchase price: $140,000
Cash invested: $160,000

Hey guys, this is my first investment property which I am using as a house hack in Baltimore City! We are finished rehab and right now waiting on the Refi to go through. It's two units we live in one and renters were placed as of January 1st paying 950 a month. Although it won't fully cover my mortgage, it covers about 90% allowing us to almost live for free. I except it will appraise for about 200k leaving us with about 40k in equity.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This deal fit all of our criteria and is very close to where I work and go to school.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I found it with an agent. I negotiated it from 165 to 140K with no closing costs.

How did you finance this deal?

Private Money

How did you add value to the deal?

Many upgrades mostly paint and carpet with a few big ones such as: new siding on the tenant house, new kitchen, new bath.

What was the outcome?

I almost have my mortgage covered by my tenant.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Rehabs take a lot longer when you are doing the work yourself.

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Baltimore.

Purchase price: $140,000
Cash invested: $160,000

Hey guys, this is my first investment property which I am using as a house hack in Baltimore City! I found this property through an agent and quickly decided it was right for the wife and me. We are finished rehab and right now waiting on the Refi to go through. It's two units we live in one and renters were placed as of January 1st paying 950 a month. Although it wont fully cover my mortgage, it covers about 90% allowing us to almost live for free. I except it will appriase for about 200k leaving us with about 40k in equity.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This deal fit all of our criteria and is very close to where I work and go to school.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I found it with an agent. I negotiated it from 165 to 140K with no closing costs.

How did you finance this deal?

Private Money

How did you add value to the deal?

Many upgrades mostly paint and carpet with a few big ones such as: new siding on the tenant house, new kitchen, new bath.

What was the outcome?

I almost have my mortgage covered by my tenant.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Rehabs take a lot longer when you are doing the work yourself.

Hey BP! 

A quick background on me: I'm currently securing financing for my first deal which is a house hack in Baltimore City (I work and go to school here). Afterward, I want to begin my BRRRR investment strategy and through some background research, it seems that Lancaster, PA might be a good market. It's experienced a lot of economic / income growth over the last few years but the housing market appears to be lagging behind it.

Could someone from around there or who invests give me a better idea of the market up there? Just browsing the MLS it appears that there are a good bit of multifamily units up there. I'm also open to hearing about other markets around the area. My main qualification is that I want it to be within about a 2-hour drive of where I live and be trending up in terms of economic growth.

@Christopher Gray

Frederick is a great area that is developing fast. I grew up around there! Prices are appreciating and there's good, stable income for tenants. Out of curiosity, what neighborhood is it in?

Awesome flip, Ben. Out of curiosity, how long did the rehab take? 

Hello Christopher Gray, I agree with Alexander; no equity doesn't sound like a great way to start. The DC/MD area is very expensive but as you noted, rents match. Between the two I would go with a single family. However, it might be good to go with a single family where you could renovate the basement and make a small in-law suite. This would allow you to generate some income and get some landlording under your belt.

I am in a similar position and have a duplex in Baltimore under contract right now I am looking at house hacking.  You might want to consider going over towards Baltimore. The duplex I'm considering is on the outskirts and not in the high-crime area. 

Hey BP!

I have a property I am considering for a house hack. I want to do a BRRRR investment my main concern is that it is a duplex layout but it is zoned for single family. My hard money lender is willing to finance but will I encounter problems with the refi? The real estate agent said if I take the appliances out of the second I could refi it as a single family. The zoning process would take awhile and cost a lot due to the hard money loan. Any advice would be very much appreciated!

@Darin Gordon, I think your plans sounds fairly solid. You have narrowed down your niche and you have some time to begin planning. I am currently in the military but plan to get out around the May time frame where I will be going back to school in Maryland / College Park. I find it frustrating because I want to jump in to real estate as I have been studying it for a few months but use this time to get as much knowledge as you can on your specific area. Do you find that you want to get started too but just not quite in the position you need to be?

For me I'm using it as time to STUDY STUDY STUDY and save for my first investment. Become specialized in what you want and set a goal in terms of time. I'm looking at my goals constantly that way when I move I am confident that I will be able to pull the trigger. I would say my biggest advice is use this time as a pre-determined study  / saving along with screening potential markets you might move to.

@Cosper Callan I agree with Ryan, we need more information. Don't get discouraged though. Currently I am in Hawaii but will soon be moving back to Maryland so I am in the process for screening for some deals from over almost 5,000 miles. Network with some people and explain you situation i.e. what you are looking for, how much is your budget, what kind of financing. The area (MD/ Washington D.C.) is also an expensive area but there are pockets of cheaper markets. I find focusing on those markets to be helpful as long as they are not real ghetto.

Do what works for but be as specific as possible so BP members can help.