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Updated over 5 years ago on . Most recent reply

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Sahir Noorani
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Moving to the Bay Area | How reasonable is house hacking?

Sahir Noorani
Posted

I'm new to real estate and recently got a new job in the Bay Area that pays really well.  I've always wanted to get into real estate and figured this new job will give me the right income to get into it and really help me start building wealth and earn cash flow on the side. 

I wanted to get a better understanding of what the market looks like down in the bay area and California in general.  I'm open to house hacking or finding an investment property that's a few hours out that I could reasonably manage by putting in time on the weekends or getting a property manager.  From what I've looked at on Redfin, there aren't too many opportunities to house hack since the property prices are insane so I'm leaning towards finding an investment property maybe outside of the Bay and more near Fresno or up north in Sacramento. 

Would appreciate some ideas/input from someone who knows the area and has experience!

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Matt K.
  • Walnut Creek, CA
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Matt K.
  • Walnut Creek, CA
Replied

Def rent, you can find solid deals on Craigslist or hotpads that at far cheaper than what a mortgage would be....

and then invest out of state.... But don't pick your investment off numbers alone. Being a landlord even with a property manager isn't some faceless spreadsheet, it's actual people. Find something where people want to actually live, actually have good jobs, and a sense of community.... These places will vary greatly based off budget but they exsist all over.

Become the expert of the areas you're investing in. In a sense you want to act like you're moving there...you'll know the good /bad deals and areas. Understand where the good jobs are and where those people work/commute from. If you want to mix it up, same goes for schools but that's harder. You need to look at the news and community sites for that info...

The side benefit to this is you'll be able to sort through the all noise and know what rents should be vs what they're listed for when hunting deals. Also helps find a property manager who aligns well with you and your property type, they are not all the same no matter what your spreadsheet tells you.

Lastly, consider travel/flight times... And Go check out the area before you make offers. Put your research to the test and drive through the spots you looked at to see if they still "work" but listen to your gut. They'll always be deals if you can pick and area and focus.

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