All Forum Posts by: Sam Conway

@Sam Conway

Hey Sam, this market makes it a little tougher to find, but those deals exist in our area. Don’t hesitate to reach out and I can put you in touch with the right people to make this happen for you!

@Sam Conway Hi, welcome to the forums. I’m in New England so while not the same market, a similar type of situation.

Create postReply to from house hack to 8 unit, good idea or bad ideaYour ReplyOriginally posted by @Alecia Loveless:@Sam Conway Hi, welcome to the forums. I’m in New England so while not the same market, a similar type of situation.My local area is made up of about 6 towns in about a 35 mile area. In May 2019 ICreate postReply to from house hack to 8 unit, good idea or bad ideaYour Reply bought a duplex in my hometown to house hack. I moved into my side and the other side underwent some significant renovations and 8 months later a tenant from another rental I had moved in.In May 2020 before our local market started its hyper appreciation I bought a SFH. It's undergone renovation and was to be a long term rental but now that the incredible appreciation has hit I'm going to sell it and do a 1031.I started looking for larger investments with more units. I came across a gorgeous 4 unit that I bought February 2021.Mid June I expect to close on a 3 unit.I'd certainly consider larger, mid-sized properties if a "nice" one came in the market. We have our fair share of fire traps around that I wouldn't touch. Old 1870s type 3 story buildings with 1 staircase and 10 apartments in them and no fire sprinkler system.I have been enjoying the conventional 30 year mortgages with the low interest rates. My current one is 3.675%. Commercial rates will be a little higher.If you can find the larger 8-10 unit properties and the numbers work I say jump right in. It is a learning experience and you might want to take 4-5 months before buying a second 8-10 unit building while you learn the ropes and get your systems in place. But I feel confident that you can handle it!

My local area is made up of about 6 towns in about a 35 mile area. In May 2019 ICreate postReply to from house hack to 8 unit, good idea or bad ideaYour Reply bought a duplex in my hometown to house hack. I moved into my side and the other side underwent some significant renovations and 8 months later a tenant from another rental I had moved in.

In May 2020 before our local market started its hyper appreciation I bought a SFH. It's undergone renovation and was to be a long term rental but now that the incredible appreciation has hit I'm going to sell it and do a 1031.

I started looking for larger investments with more units. I came across a gorgeous 4 unit that I bought February 2021.

Mid June I expect to close on a 3 unit.

I’d certainly consider larger, mid-sized properties if a “nice” one came in the market. We have our fair share of fire traps around that I wouldn’t touch. Old 1870s type 3 story buildings with 1 staircase and 10 apartments in them and no fire sprinkler system.

I have been enjoying the conventional 30 year mortgages with the low interest rates. My current one is 3.675%. Commercial rates will be a little higher.

If you can find the larger 8-10 unit properties and the numbers work I say jump right in. It is a learning experience and you might want to take 4-5 months before buying a second 8-10 unit building while you learn the ropes and get your systems in place. But I feel confident that you can handle it!

There are city areas called "war zones". Put it this way.  4 am SWAT raids at your houses. There are lots of stories. 

My rentals in East TX aren't in war zones, but the tenants are tenants for a reason. Bad credit, criminal records, trouble holding jobs down, evictions, etc. And that's just the women. Some people aren't cut out to landlord with this kind of crowd.

The Columbus market is the best market. Cincinnati and Cleveland are a close 2nd/3rd

Do be careful about moving to "cheap" markets.  Cheap is cheap for reasons in addition to frequent tenant issues.  Consider the growth prospects.  For example, my father-in-law purchased a house in Toledo Ohio in 1950 for $14,000.  That's the equivalent of about $153,000 in 2020 dollars.  Soaking wet, that house would sell for about $70,000 today, well below the baseline rate of inflation for the past 70 years!  He would have been better off investing in an inflation protected bond by a mile.   A similar house in Marin County California that would have sold for about the same amount of money in 1950 would probably fetch about $1.5 million today.  In choice parts of Santa Clara County (i.e. Silicon Valley) probably $2 million.  The delta in rents follows the same pattern - I was paying about $400 to rent a 2 bedroom apartment outside Toledo in 1985.  Same apartment goes for only $650 today - 35 years later.  It's easy to think you are making money when in fact inflation is eating your lunch.    

Hey Sam, we operate in Savannah and there is a ton of opportunities here. Lots of cash flow and appreciation. I would also suggest Augusta, Macon, and Brunswick, GA. All fantastic markets in our beautiful state. If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to reach out. 

Yes, the cash flow in worse areas is going to look better. On paper. But there's a reason they are cheaper. Lots of tenant problems.

I would stick to 1-4 units so you can leverage 30 year fixed rate debt. Then once you get 10 roofs move onto commercial. That is what I did here in Columbus, Ohio. 

 As a 1st time rental owner I would suggest staying in C class or above neighborhoods. I haven't seen a lot of 6-8 unit inventory available in said areas lately though.

Hi Sam, I’m an investor in Savannah Ga. Where was the duplex or multi family house you were looking at ? I may be able to give you some insight as to the neighborhoods in the area. I just sold a house in Midtown that was IDEAL for a house hack (duplex). I wish I could find one similar for myself to househack where I currently live (Atlanta).