We do qualify to refi without adding but we are then paying the mortgage out of pocket.Our thoughts are to use the existing infrastructure to build out the 5 bedroom house, then house hack.

Re knowing the market, which is one of the reasons (I've read up on that) you'd want a RE agent, esp if not from the area, which I am not, my agent is from about 2 hours away and as the listing is an existing Airbnb for 3 years, I see the prior numbers, and based on that, reviews, and market data, have made an estimate of what I believe it will make under my ownership.

No amount of money is worth sacrificing your peace of mind.

Should we just call up every builder and ask them to quote on a job that does not exist yet?

And people refuted me when I said racism and discrimination in housing doesn't exist.

Yes, inventory is ultra-low and discounts are almost non-existent.

So if you could gc them yourself, you could force some equity on the new construction deals and the new construction ones might be a no brainer.The other question I'd have is whether you're getting deals on the pre-existing homes.Ultimately, its going to be real tough to scale either one if you're paying retail because if you're buying 250k homes and putting down 20 to 25%, you'll run out of cash real quick. 

I guess I see the value in it if its not the highest and best use of ones time to trudge out to the CC office and spend hours searching through who has property and who doesnt but that value doesnt exist for me.

As a first time investor, I'm thinking to replicate those existing houses (with little bit of my touch) but wanted to ask what would be the pros and cons in terms of competing with existing STR's in the community?

Hi Hana,We are a direct lender, not a broker and have aggressive DSCR interest rates and can use your existing appraisal.