I cannot afford another above the $16,000 which is why I told her $15,000 was the budget.I also stated to let me know of any extra charges that come up so I can watch the number.

-A water heater issue resulted in repeated mismanagement—confusing unit assignments—leading to extra costs to fix the same issue 3 times and on each occasion "more fixes" needed to the water heaters that I plumber said was needed.

I think the big question is how badly do you want to keep the extra $50k liquid?

Is it worth the extra work?

Interested in getting some extra income with converting the extra space in the basement into a rentable unit.Basements in a one-family home can be lawfully rented only if the following conditions are met:Compliance with the Housing Maintenance Code for minimum room size.There is a minimum ceiling height of 7 ft.The walls, as high as ground level, must be damp- and water-proofed if HPD determines that subsoil conditions on the lot require it.The basement is occupied by one family and does not include boarders.Every room must have at least one window.The bottom of any yard or other required open space cannot be higher than six inches below the window sill of any required window in the room.

It may sound nice to pay a 6% management fee but the extra fees can add up to be more than the other company that charges 10% with no additional fees.

That would be a helpful addition to your plan as you would further reduce your cost of living.Also don’t forget from that $600 you are planning on getting in cash flow you have taxes, insurance, maintenance, capex, and vacancy to consider.With two homes, you may want to keep that extra $20k as an emergency fund rather than spending it on a third property and then be left with no emergency funds.

Our current mortgage terms include a late fee after 5 days, so they’re already paying extra each month and have to split the total monthly payment up between 2-3 payments when they get their pay check.

Question that the “believers” don’t ask is “how much could I earn on the extra money I’m spending to pay down the loan faster?  

This would obviously reduce my cash flow on both properties, as I would be paying the minimum HELOC payment plus extra towards the principal to pay it off quickly.