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Updated over 7 years ago on . Most recent reply

Positioning myself for first investment purchase
Currently I am house hacking my primary residence. I bought my house just before discovering the endless possibilities of real estate investing. I am now trying to get myself into a good position to secure a 2nd property, preferably a 3-4 unit multi. In order to do this, I have discovered I should still be able to use the VA home loan for an additional property because I only used about 1/3 of my entitlements on this first home.
To show that I am able to handle the multiple mortgages, I have rented out my basement to a full time roommate, and turned both of my upstairs bedrooms into Airbnb that are doing surprisingly well for the market in Cedar Rapids. I have a substantially sized shop for a backyard and have turned a room in it into my living quarters. I also have a 42k/year full time job, army reserves that brings in approximately $250/month, and am starting a part-time job next week that should bring in about $750/month extra as well.
I do have some bad debt that I am getting paid down in order to make sure my back-debt ratio is good to go as well.
Is there anything else that I can do to help my chances? Also any recommendations on the house hacking front? Any feedback or pointers is greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Most Popular Reply

Sounds like you're maximizing your income the best you can with the house hacking! Good job on working the bad debt angle; that will help a lot.
At this point going forward, you need to keep good records of what that income is so when you speak with a lender you will have that backup. Usually the lenders want to see a couple of years of tax returns in order to see your income history. Try contacting a few mortgage brokers and explain where you are and if they can help. I was working overseas for a construction company and didn't have the standard W-2 forms, but the broker had worked with someone in my position and had connections to make the mortgage happen. That being said, I'm sure there is a broker out there who can give you more details on their minimum requirements (i.e. documentation) to answer your question better.