Continue renting after house hack?

Question

I bought my first multi family over the winter that I had planned on house hacking. However, I couldn’t get out of my lease at the apartment I was living in, so I’ve been waiting for that lease to expire. Now, I’m being transferred to a different location for work (about an hour and a half away) and am seeking advice for my situation. Should I find an apartment close to my new work location and rent out both sides of my multi family? Or move in to one side of the duplex, driving a total of 3 hours per work day? I do have a tenant on one side currently, so there is money coming in from the property. I’m just curious if anyone has been in a similar situation before and would be willing to provide some feedback

Theresa Harris · Answer

If your work is 90 minutes away, I would not move into the house and I would rent closer to work.  I can't imagine commuting 3 hours everyday.  Rent out the other half.  If you had a special loan that stated it has to be owner occupied, I believe change in work is a valid reason not to live in it-check with your bank and then rent the other half.  Hopefully your new rental and the rent of the other half of the duplex are comparable (or the duplex rent is higher).

Aaron C. · Answer

It depends on your financing, if it’s conventional and you’re not on an owner occupy loan, then I would rent out the unit, and move close to work, if you ran your numbers then hopefully the cash flow can cover a big portion of your new living expenses near your job.