House Hacking in NYC/NJ/CT area

[Jermaine McIntosh]

Hey BP family, I'm new to real estate investing and was interested in starting to invest through house hacking. I currently live in an owner-occupied duplex in NYC and would like to purchase another duplex/triplex as an owner occupant in the NYC/NJ/CT area. My price range at the moment is 400K and would like to know if there are any duplexes/triplexes within the NYC metro area with potential for generous cashflow? If not, does anyone know of other areas outside of NYC with decent duplexes/triplexes?

Thanks BP family

[Aaron Montague]

@Jermaine McIntosh

Isn't Brooklyn the spot to be right now for triplexes that will make you a fortune as flips?

[Jermaine McIntosh]

@Aaron Montague

 I'm not sure if triplexes are in hot commodity for flips in Brooklyn but that's something I'll look into. I wasn't really thinking about flipping a house in Brooklyn but more so leaning towards buy and hold. Like doing some renovations on the triplex and increasing the rent.

[Jerry Padilla]

@Jermaine McIntosh 

Do you currently have an FHA mortgage? To purchase using conventional you will have to still have to put down a significant down payment.

http://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/5110/blog_posts/42789-conventional-financibg-available-for-up-to-ten-properties

[Jermaine McIntosh]

@Jerry Padilla

Yes, the mortgage I currently have is an FHA mortgage. So if it is a conventional loan that I am seeking. it will have to be 20-25% downpayment?

[Jerry Padilla]

@Jermaine McIntosh

For FHA you would most likely not be able to get a second FHA mortgage ..... If you are moving from a multi-family to another multi-family in the same location.

As far as primary conventional you can get into another duplex for as little as 15% following strictly Fannie Mae guidelines. You can get into a three to four-plex with just 20% as a primary following strictly Freddie Mac guidelines.  

Freddie Mac is the only route that allows for a non owner occupying co-signer. Most likely any underwrite will catch on. Your best bet is to applying directly to underwriting for a pre-approval. 

If you have someone willing to go in with you as a co-borrower as an investment property you would have to put 25% down between the both of you. 

Hopefully this helps! Running ideas by everyone is great, but underwriters know most of the tricks to get by purchasing investment properties with little money down. 

[Jermaine McIntosh]

@Jerry Padilla

 Thanks for the insight Jerry!

[Jerry Padilla]

Absolutely @Jermaine McIntosh

[Bernard Klein]

@Jermaine McIntosh

What makes NYC beautiful is that the money is always flowing. Buy a triplex today, sell it tomorrow at a profit. The issue with this may be that these properties in Brooklyn may be slightly above your budget. I would highly recommend checking out East New York, a neighborhood within Brooklyn. This will have properties that will border your price range, although many will still be slightly above.

I hope this helps!

[Adam K.]

@Jermaine McIntosh What neighborhood do you currently live in? It's always best to start with the areas you know the best. As far as a cash-flowing multi-unit for 400K or less --- you're not even going to find those in East New York without stumbling upon a probate/off-market deal. Cash flow is very hard to find in NYC -- maybe deep out in Queens or the Bronx, but the trade-off is that the areas are not as likely to appreciate as quickly. Essentially, you need to choose between cash flow and appreciation potential. I've also heard that you can find deals in north NJ and maybe New Haven, but I haven't done much investigating myself. Good luck!