All Forum Posts by: Thomas Caridi

Hi @Fatima Champagne, did you end up buying the property? I'm a new investor in Philly interested in purchasing a multi-family with existing tenants near Norris Square where I live so I'm curious how it all went.

Hey @Charles Prem what did you end up doing? I'm interested in doing a cash-out refi on my home in West Kensington at some point this year so I'm curious what your experience was like.

@Jae Hee Hwang My friend's brother is a contractor so I've been working with him. There are obvious pros and cons to this scenario though. The main pro is he's doing a 1600 sq ft renovation for $60k which isn't bad, but he has a full time job so he's only able to work on my house an evening or two during the week and weekends. It's also a bit more difficult to have those tough conversations when he makes mistakes or is taking too long to finish something.

Either way, it's been a great learning experience that'll help me make more informed decisions on the next one.

@Jae Hee Hwang Yeah that additional lot definitely makes it a great deal! Lots of potential there. To give you some perspective on rents in the area, my girlfriend lived right in front of Norris Square on Hancock St in a 2 BR/2 bath apartment with a roommate until August of last year and they paid $1800/month, so for a large 4BR home nearby you could probably be charging at least $2k+.

I bought a 1600 sq ft 3 BR/2 bath fixer upper in May of last year and did (edit: still doing) a full renovation. It's my primary residence at the moment. I paid $134k with a low down payment conventional mortgage and got a 2nd mortgage through a credit union for $60k for the renovation. It's about 85% complete, we just need to finish the first floor full bath and 3rd bedroom, put in a new privacy fence, and hopefully add central AC in the spring. Our plan is to do a cash-out refinance when there's a solid pool of comps sold in the area and use that money towards a multi-family or a SFH that we can Airbnb.

Congrats @Jae Hee Hwang! I bought my first property a few blocks north of yours and I'm seeing more and more rehabbed comps and more new construction, so it's a great area to invest in.

Just curious, how is your cash flow with the amount of rent you're charging?

Pretty sure you'll need to apply for a zoning variance with the city: http://phillyzoning.com/obtaining-a-zoning-variance/

I'm not too experienced with this sort of thing but my guess is the city could hit you with a zoning violation for not applying for the variance prior to converting it to a triplex.

@Dustin Figenscher Congrats on your 2 houses! I'm interested to see more responses as I'm in a similar boat. I bought my first house-hack property in Philly that I'm renovating now and will want to purchase my 2nd after doing a cash-out refi, but even that will be a year of waiting before I can make any more moves. I'm willing to be patient if that's my only option, but would love to keep things progressing if there's a way to do so.

Thanks @Zack Hawkins! 19122 definitely seems to be a prime area right now. The house I'm potentially buying is further north in 19133 but the block is nice and I see the potential. The only problem is that the numbers are looking tight with all the work it needs, so I'm in the process of deciding whether to pull the trigger or not. Actually, I need to decide today after getting a sewer inspection : |

Hi all, I ended up making an offer on a 1575 sq ft 3 BR/2 bath fixer upper in West Kensington that seems to have good bones but needs TLC (paint, floors - hopefully can restore original hardwood, kitchen, update baths, central AC). The seller wanted cash so was not open to 203k or Homestyle loans, but was open to a conventional loan. My mortgage broker recommended a 3% down conventional loan and put me in contact with Renofi who will be assessing the ARV to determine how much they can lend me for the renovation costs.

I have inspections scheduled for this Saturday and have a few contractors coming out to estimate the job. If any major issues are found that will make this a six figure project, I'll have to reassess moving forward since the loan from Renofi may not be more than $40k. I may also consider fixing the major things with the Renofi loan then taking on some DIY projects while living there and house hacking with a roommate. My ultimate goal here is to cash-out refinance after the renovation so I can invest in another property.

@Mel Haggerty if you're still looking for a lender, my mortgage broker David Roomberg out of Paoli is great. Send me a PM if you want his contact info.

@Matt I. Definitely! Will shoot you a PM.