Jacksonville, Florida market

[Vincent Lattuca]

I am looking to move out of state and house hack a small-multi family as my first property. One of the markets I am thinking about investing in is Jacksonville, FL. I would appreciate any advice about the area and would love to connect with fellow real estate professionals/investors.

[Drew C Grossman]

Quote from @Vincent Lattuca:

I am looking to move out of state and house hack a small-multi family as my first property. One of the markets I am thinking about investing in is Jacksonville, FL. I would appreciate any advice about the area and would love to connect with fellow real estate professionals/investors.

Hi @Vincent Lattuca - I grew up in the Jacksonville area and it’s unique because it covers over 800 square miles making it the largest city land mass wise in the county!

There are an handful of counties and individual  sub mark that make up Jacksonville and with that being said… price points, rents, returns, appreciation will differ tremendously from location to location. 

For example, you can get a 2,000 sqft new construction duplex in 32205 (Duval County) for $400k that rents for $1350 a side. Let’s assume you bought it at 400k and put 10% down…your mortgage would roughly be $2,850 with a 7% interest rate…renting out one side at $1,350 would leave you with paying $1500 a month and coming out of pocket 40k for a down payment vs if you just rented and saved the money!!! For these reasons, this is NOT a good house hack. The only play in this case would be banking on appreciation which is super risky and I personally wouldn’t want to invest in this area 32205 rather look towards the beaches or St John’s County. 

St John’s County is a MUCH better market overall … and with that comes much higher prices….the same product here in this county will cost double …however I don’t have any examples because there isn’t that many small multiple family 2-4 units that exist. Mostly single family on the residential side. 

What attracted you to Jax and what areas have you researched? 

In the ideal world…what are you trying to get out of this house hack?

What are the financial goals associated with this project?

House hacking a small single family or townhome and renting out by the room may be more feasible but I am not sure your comfort level / expectations / quality of living !

I just read another post who said “The more profitable the house hack, the more uncomfortable the living situation”. 

[Vincent Lattuca]

Quote from @Drew C Grossman:

Quote from @Vincent Lattuca:

I am looking to move out of state and house hack a small-multi family as my first property. One of the markets I am thinking about investing in is Jacksonville, FL. I would appreciate any advice about the area and would love to connect with fellow real estate professionals/investors.

Hi @Vincent Lattuca - I grew up in the Jacksonville area and it’s unique because it covers over 800 square miles making it the largest city land mass wise in the county!

There are an handful of counties and individual  sub mark that make up Jacksonville and with that being said… price points, rents, returns, appreciation will differ tremendously from location to location. 

For example, you can get a 2,000 sqft new construction duplex in 32205 (Duval County) for $400k that rents for $1350 a side. Let’s assume you bought it at 400k and put 10% down…your mortgage would roughly be $2,850 with a 7% interest rate…renting out one side at $1,350 would leave you with paying $1500 a month and coming out of pocket 40k for a down payment vs if you just rented and saved the money!!! For these reasons, this is NOT a good house hack. The only play in this case would be banking on appreciation which is super risky and I personally wouldn’t want to invest in this area 32205 rather look towards the beaches or St John’s County. 

St John’s County is a MUCH better market overall … and with that comes much higher prices….the same product here in this county will cost double …however I don’t have any examples because there isn’t that many small multiple family 2-4 units that exist. Mostly single family on the residential side. 

What attracted you to Jax and what areas have you researched? 

In the ideal world…what are you trying to get out of this house hack?

What are the financial goals associated with this project?

House hacking a small single family or townhome and renting out by the room may be more feasible but I am not sure your comfort level / expectations / quality of living !

I just read another post who said “The more profitable the house hack, the more uncomfortable the living situation”. 

Hello Drew! Thank you for your advice. I am an outsider looking in, so I still have a lot to learn about the different counties and sub markets in Jacksonville.

What initially attracted me to Jax was that I have family nearby and it is close to the water. In regards to real estate, the area seemed affordable and I valued the landlord friendly laws in Florida. I  researched Jax as a whole, so I don't have a lot of knowledge about the difference between the sub markets in Jax.

In an ideal situation, I am trying to have a successful first real estate investment. I would define a successful investment as one that cash flows and slowly appreciates. I am hoping to gain experience buying a property, managing it, rehabbing, and setting up good systems in place. Along with buying the property, I would like to network with investors, agents, lenders, and property managers in the area. My end goal would be to 1031 this property to buy a larger multi-family property at some point in the future.

As I mentioned previously, my financial goals are to purchase a property that cash flows each month over the cost of the mortgage and expenses, as well as slowly appreciates over time. If I analyzed the property without me in it, I would like to be making minimum $200-300 net per unit (I realize this amount might have to be larger if I am living in the property and want to cash flow). Initially I was thinking of getting a 4-plex, but I am open to other small multi-family options.

I am looking into getting an FHA loan because I do not have a lot of capital to start. I think this will help me take action and get started in real estate investing. Regarding renting out by the room, I would certainly be open to the idea. If I was living in a unit with an extra empty bedroom, I think that would be a great way to add extra cash flow.

Again, I really appreciate your advice and look forward to connecting with you more!

[Casey CJ Noble]

Hi Vincent!  I’m a local investor and realtor here in Jax and specialize in small multifamily property investments.  It would be great to connect to see how I can help out!  Feel free to shoot me a PM and we can chat soon.