A decent low cost breakfast, luggage storage, safety boxes, daily activities such as bar outings, outgoing staff to engage with the guests, and a good cleaning department will have you as top hostel on Hostelworld in no time.

I also have access to a relatively substantial amount of HELOC money, we keep it as a safety net, but would it be wiser to draw that down and use that for the down payment?   

Learned to be patient, especially during the time of 2007-2009.

"Mental patient released due to Covid terrorizes out of work families barely keeping it together" has to sell somewhere.

Another thought process is that the seller could have simply refused to vacate but instead is willing to give us a safety deposit and a monthly rent and hence is not thinking of staying without our permissions.

I would get patients from all areas of Decatur township. 

Now, a lot of these guys are retired or been around for awhile and their BIGGEST CONCERN is safety, so you have to convince them of that.

I intend to buy my first house for house hacking in 2021 and I am currently building a safety net for that property.

@Calvin Kwan if your going to buy from Lowe’s or Home Depot, plan one being patient.

They are all competitive markets but deals can be found if you are patient and watch for the opportunity.