I have been supplementing my unstable commission based income with mechanical side work and snowplowing.

@Thomas S and @ Amy Beth :Find another job better suited to investing or a parttime job to supplement current.I would opt for the later here because again, lenders like to see longevity so perhaps keep current job just supplement it, especially if you have time with currently working only 30 hours a week.Good luck.Keep that hustle and that hunger, and at the same time, celebrate your wins, you are doing great and an inspiration.Great topic.I learned a lot from this and good to see that I am not alone and also nice to know that the strategies I am using currently are in part what has been suggested here: Refi then do a HELOC.I could have gone with a cash out Refi, but I needed more than what the cashout Refi was going to allow me.Good luck @ Nicholas Weckstein.

A house hack does not necessarily mean you are cash flowing while living in the property rather than supplementing your mortgage substantially.

With conservative underwriting we are still seeing upside in the 8-9 % CoC and 18% IRRs with opportunities for supporting higher returns w/supplemental loans end of yr 2 upon successful re-positions. 

If the contractors estimate is higher, the insurance company may, or may not, supplement the claim. 

Do you want real estate to supplement your income or just handle your loans?

If you are doing this alone, maybe part time to supplement your real estate business, and maybe with relatively low dollar deals, I’d suggest you use your own money on as few project as you can handle.

I am younger and I am looking at this as a way to create additional side income throughout my life, they are looking at it as a supplement for retirement. 

Darren.....we are looking for private investors to supplement the personal funds we have in our flips.

I want to establish an income stream to provide a supplement in case my next posting isn't as lucrative as this one.