All Forum Posts by: Zachary Sexton

My wife and I started house hacking our basement in March 2020. We are in White City (an enclave of Sandy). 

It currently pays for about 60% of our mortgage. The plan is to adjust our prices up a bit during ski season.

Here's our listing: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/4...

Happy to answer any questions you may have. 

@Amy Kendall do you have a handyman referral you'd be willing to offer? I'm in my first house hack in Sandy and realize I am much less interested in swinging a hammer than I thought I would be ;-P

Current to-do list: 

• remove swamp cooler and patch roof
• replace front door
• build a floating deck for our backyard
• replacing carpet with engineered hardwood
• install fan and sconces in the master bedroom

Nothing is urgent as we are living in our house, but I'd like to start knocking some things out and a reliable handyman would help me keep things moving.  

Jealous! Indy seems like a great place to house hack. What neighborhood is the property in?

I was approved for a 3.5% FHA loan on a duplex in Austin, TX. Although, it was being sold together. Does the property have a single owner? If so, maybe they'd be willing to sell both units as a single listing. Also, what does your lender say? They are going to more of an expert in this area than your agent.

Welcome, @Erik Henderson! Love the books and the plans. BRRRR is next on my reading list.

@Scott Smith That you for the link.

• https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2006/11/16/real-estate-partnership-questions/

I think that is the perfect place to start. I also just went back and downloaded your BP episode. Can't wait to hear all the ways I'll be sued ;-)

@Kris Wong "It will likely be more straightforward to create an OK entity, but you should consider your mid to long term plans and goals."<= this is good food for thought. The way I hear guests on the BP podcast talk about partnerships makes it feel like an easy process... seems like we are going to have to dig a bit deeper to avoid potential pitfalls.  

@Weston Couch Thank you!

I'm not sure if this will be a one-off partnership or something we do multiple times. I can talk to my wife and the other partner about that. But, honestly, we probably won't know until we are through the other side. 

My goal for now is to structure our first deal in a reasonably safe and fair way. If that means 10 + hours of working with an attorney, @Scott England is probably right. Setting up that kind of entity/contract isn't worth it at our level.

If there is an RE Parnter LLC template we can riff off of and the consult an attorney to cross all of the i's and dot the t's, then that route would seem to make sense to me :-)

@Brian Olencki "If more funds need to be used, how will this work?" <= Great question!

My wife and I have some friends that want to partner on a BRRRR deal in Tulsa, OK. They are an unmarried couple that used to live in that city. They currently have more market knowledge/connections. We currently have more of the funds. All of us live and work in Austin, TX.

It seems like everyone comes with their own strengths:

• me: negotiating, planning and organizing
• wife: vision for the remodel
• male partner: hustle and deal analysis  
• female partner: connection to city 

Partnering would also give us:

• a bigger budget
• a sounding board for ideas/plans
• shared due diligence
• accountability 

My question is, how do we legally structure this deal?

I'd like to create a contract and/or entity that will allow us to:

• define the equity split 
• ensure my original funds are returned upon sale or refinance
• hold funds for capex and repairs
• distribute positive cash flow on an annual basis
• decide buyout clause in advance

Where should we start on making this happen? Do we need a lawyer? If so, should they be from TX or OK? Do we need to form an LLC? Do we need to get a business bank account to put the funds into? Should we be using the same real estate agent? Should we outline buying criteria in the contract? Should we outline roles and responsibilities for buying and managing the property?

I like the idea of doing my first deal with a partner, but I've got no clue where to start. Thanks in advance for any wisdom, resources and advice y'all are willing to give.

Zack 

@Lisa Williams Thanks for the insights! Just hanging out with a couple last night that used to live there and is also interested in investing. We are even talking about going in on a deal together which would increase our budget (we have more funds, but they have more market knowledge).

I’d love to talk more and figure out ways we could help each other. I just sent a connection request so we can get into the details via messenger/phone.