How My House Hack is Opening Up Doors for Me [Part 1]

Question

Hello BP!  In September 2016, I decided to buy a condo in Las Vegas, NV.  After watching a couple of BP podcast videos on YouTube, I believed that house hacking was exactly what I wanted to do with my first purchase.

I found an awesome 2 bed / 2 bath condo in a nice gated, golf-course community next to the Las Vegas strip for $120,000.

Here are the numbers:

Down Payment: $24,000 (20%)

Closing Costs: ~$3,000

Interest Rate: 4.25%

Insurance: $30/month

Property Tax: $50/month

HOA: $344/month

Furniture: ~$1000 total (including tenant's room)

Monthly, my total costs are ~$880.  My roommate pays $700 total (includes electric and highest speed internet) and I've yet to go a month without a roommate.

This has allowed me to increase my income an extra $8400/year which represents ~20% of my w2 income.  The extra cash has now allowed me opportunities to begin my investing career.

Additionally, the Vegas market has been ridiculously hot and the condo has appreciated ~$40k in under 2 years.

I am of the belief that good things happen after good decisions are made. I certainly got fortunate with the appreciation, but I would not be in this position without about 100 'good' decisions that I made before buying this condo, living frugally for multiple years, and working hard to land in a career that pays reasonably well.

I'm very appreciative of this community and will have part 2 coming shortly.

Bill B. · Answer

@Spencer Cornelia

In case no one has said this to you over the last couple years...

WELL DONE!

Maybe some time in the future you can find a second room mate to take your place and buy another one, but until then. Good Job.

-Bill

Spencer Cornelia · Answer

Thanks @Bill Brandt good to see another Vegas resident in here.  The HOA is a little bit of a pain with wanting to move on.  They have a owner occupied % rule where a certain amount of the community must be owner occupied.  Sadly, the list is like 100 people long and it's taken me 1.5 years just to move up 20 spots.  Not until I reach the first spot can I have the option to rent out my condo (and thus making it non owner occupied).

Spencer Cornelia · Answer

@Michael Del-Mundo I actually have mine listed right now so I hope not (which means I sold haha).  Great community and I love living in LVCC, but I have better house hacking alternatives within Vegas that I'll be taking advantage of shortly.

Michael Del-Mundo · Answer

That’s awesome! My family also has a unit in the same complex, hopefully I’ll run into you in the future.

Spencer Cornelia · Answer

@Jon Lee I'll bring it up next time I see you.  I'm not entirely sure I can do this for a couple reasons, but would love to hear your thoughts.

Jon Lee · Answer

Just another thought @Spencer Cornelia...if you want to move on AND you have more equity in the property; you can always creatively seller finance the condo so you don't feel stuck living in it.  That way you get cashflow without the ownership responsibilities and HOA restrictions.  Just a thought...would be happy to discuss further with you if you like.

Jon Lee · Answer

Nice @Spencer Cornelia....good stuff you're sharing here.  See you at the next get together!

How My House Hack is Opening Up Doors for Me [Part 1]

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