Needing to Rent Primary Residence After Job Loss

Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 3 votes

Hi.

Can anyone give some insight... I bought a home, lost my job and have not been able to secure a new job. Trust me, I have tried every given suggestion. To secure our home, I am considering renting it out. Another option is multi-renter approach - I do not know what it is called but one of my neighbor has done this.

We (kid and I) can live in the room downstairs and renters occupy the other two floors. It is a 3-bed, 3.5 bad, 3 floor home in the loop. My first goal is to secure our home. My second goal, if possible, is to secure our home while living in a part of the home.

Is there any investor who does stuff like this? I am not looking to sell our home.

Thank you.

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Janice Carter

Real Estate Broker · Atlanta · Member since 2024 · 1k+ posts · 606 votes

7mo

Ena, I am really sorry you are experiencing this. Your first step should be to contact your lender immediately and ask specifically about hardship programs, forbearance or loan modification options. Many lenders have temporary relief solutions that can buy you time while you secure new employment

What you are describing is commonly known as house hacking where you rent out portions of the property while you continue living in part of the home. With a 3 bedroom, 3.5 bath, 3 level layout that strategy could work well. Just be sure to review any local zoning or HOA restrictions and conduct thorough tenant screening. If structured properly, this approach can help stabilize cash flow without requiring you to sell. If you consult with an investor, some may suggest a "subject-to" strategy. However, I strongly caution against that. In your situation, it is better to work directly with your lender to explore relief options and protect your ownership.

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Janice Carter
Real Estate Broker · Atlanta · Member since 2024 · 1k+ posts · 606 votes
7mo
Ena, I am really sorry you are experiencing this. Your first step should be to contact your lender immediately and ask specifically about hardship programs, forbearance or loan modification options. Many lenders have temporary relief solutions that can buy you time while you secure new employment

What you are describing is commonly known as house hacking where you rent out portions of the property while you continue living in part of the home. With a 3 bedroom, 3.5 bath, 3 level layout that strategy could work well. Just be sure to review any local zoning or HOA restrictions and conduct thorough tenant screening. If structured properly, this approach can help stabilize cash flow without requiring you to sell. If you consult with an investor, some may suggest a "subject-to" strategy. However, I strongly caution against that. In your situation, it is better to work directly with your lender to explore relief options and protect your ownership.

3 Reply
- Ena Okoro
  OP
  Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 3 votes
  7mo
  Quote from @Janice Carter:
  
  Ena, I am really sorry you are experiencing this. Your first step should be to contact your lender immediately and ask specifically about hardship programs, forbearance or loan modification options. Many lenders have temporary relief solutions that can buy you time while you secure new employment
  
  What you are describing is commonly known as house hacking where you rent out portions of the property while you continue living in part of the home. With a 3 bedroom, 3.5 bath, 3 level layout that strategy could work well. Just be sure to review any local zoning or HOA restrictions and conduct thorough tenant screening. If structured properly, this approach can help stabilize cash flow without requiring you to sell. If you consult with an investor, some may suggest a "subject-to" strategy. However, I strongly caution against that. In your situation, it is better to work directly with your lender to explore relief options and protect your ownership.
  
  Thank you very much for your reply. Yes, "House Hacking" must be the phrase I am looking for. I do not think it will be an issue because one of my neighbors rents rooms in their home. Per our HOA guidelines, it is not an issue so I have some place to begin.
  Per your advice, I will call the mortgage company for a start.
  
  Thank you.
  0 Reply
Jeff Roth
Real Estate Consultant · Ann Arbor, MI · Member since 2022 · 466 posts · 257 votes
7mo
Hi Ena from Houston, Texas-
I am sorry to hear you have had a prolonged job loss and are looking to hold on to your house with your son. You are not alone.
If you are thinking about renting rooms or taking on roommates, check to see if you have to register the property to do that locally. Sometimes you do have to register as a rental but many times they understand people rent rooms and the local governments are flexible.
Try to source roommates from your own network, a local church, school, or other local community organization you may belong to. If you cannot find a tenant in your network, try advertising the space on the Nextdoor App for your neighborhood. There are simple applications you can download and sources online for credit and criminal background checks and you will want to verify sources of income.
There may be a local resource for housing in the area with a compliant lease or check with a local title company or real estate office about what is required locally. Keep security deposits in a separate account from your own.
Finally, make sure your house insurance covers having paid roommates or tenants.
To Your Success!
0 Reply
- Ena Okoro
  OP
  Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 3 votes
  7mo
  Quote from @Jeff Roth:
  
  Hi Ena from Houston, Texas-
  I am sorry to hear you have had a prolonged job loss and are looking to hold on to your house with your son. You are not alone.
  If you are thinking about renting rooms or taking on roommates, check to see if you have to register the property to do that locally. Sometimes you do have to register as a rental but many times they understand people rent rooms and the local governments are flexible.
  Try to source roommates from your own network, a local church, school, or other local community organization you may belong to. If you cannot find a tenant in your network, try advertising the space on the Nextdoor App for your neighborhood. There are simple applications you can download and sources online for credit and criminal background checks and you will want to verify sources of income.
  There may be a local resource for housing in the area with a compliant lease or check with a local title company or real estate office about what is required locally. Keep security deposits in a separate account from your own.
  Finally, make sure your house insurance covers having paid roommates or tenants.
  To Your Success!
  
  Thank you for the helpful hints. Will do.
  0 Reply
Twannisha Jackson
Rental Property Investor · Cleves · Member since 2023 · 132 posts · 82 votes
7mo
I house hack & honestly this is perfect. remember to screen! especially with kiddo around. look at fair market rents in ur zip code or browse empty units ready to rent, check those prices. spend some time in the “house hacking” forums. Any other questions? DM me.
0 Reply
- Ena Okoro
  OP
  Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 3 votes
  7mo
  Quote from @Twannisha Jackson:
  
  I house hack & honestly this is perfect. remember to screen! especially with kiddo around. look at fair market rents in ur zip code or browse empty units ready to rent, check those prices. spend some time in the “house hacking” forums. Any other questions? DM me.
  
  Thank you. Will look for those forums.
  0 Reply
Theresa HarrisPro Member
Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
7mo
I agree with others. Talk to your lender and rent out rooms. In the lease, I'd specify that the floor you and your kid are living in is off limits to tenants. I'd also see if there is a way you can put a lock on the door to the basement, so that you can lock it at night.
1 Reply
Henry T.
Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
7mo
Look at sites like Market Place, Craigslist, or Zillow? and see how others are doing it. Look at Terms and going rates in your area. Have a list of rules in your lease so there's no disagreements. For example--No personal items in living room. working cars only. assigned parking, No dirty dishes. No alterations. Whatever you're comfortable with. MOST important is you learn some screening techniques so you get a quality room mate. Read lots of ads and learn.
1 Reply
Drew SygitBusiness Member
Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
7mo
Quote from @Ena Okoro:

Hi.

Can anyone give some insight... I bought a home, lost my job and have not been able to secure a new job. Trust me, I have tried every given suggestion. To secure our home, I am considering renting it out. Another option is multi-renter approach - I do not know what it is called but one of my neighbor has done this.

We (kid and I) can live in the room downstairs and renters occupy the other two floors. It is a 3-bed, 3.5 bad, 3 floor home in the loop. My first goal is to secure our home. My second goal, if possible, is to secure our home while living in a part of the home.

Is there any investor who does stuff like this? I am not looking to sell our home.

Thank you.

Right after college I rented a 4-bed house and then got roommate for the other 3 bedrooms.
Worked out well.
You do have to screen well to keep out weirdos and deadbeats.
You'll also want a great lease!
Check with local municipality if any restictions renting out rooms.
FYI: because you will be living there, Fair Housing laws won't apply:)
[email protected]248-209-6824
Logical Property Management4.9460 Reviews
Website View Page
1 Reply
Alex Forest
Rental Property Investor · Henrico, VA · Member since 2019 · 265 posts · 155 votes
7mo
Quote from @Ena Okoro:

Hi.

Can anyone give some insight... I bought a home, lost my job and have not been able to secure a new job. Trust me, I have tried every given suggestion. To secure our home, I am considering renting it out. Another option is multi-renter approach - I do not know what it is called but one of my neighbor has done this.

We (kid and I) can live in the room downstairs and renters occupy the other two floors. It is a 3-bed, 3.5 bad, 3 floor home in the loop. My first goal is to secure our home. My second goal, if possible, is to secure our home while living in a part of the home.

Is there any investor who does stuff like this? I am not looking to sell our home.

Thank you.

Ena,
Just a few notes, if you haven't already, take a look at Zillow and whatever others may be popular out there like Apartments or Homes dotcom. Your signature says Houston, so took a quick look there. Filter by "room for rent". I do not know Houston, but taking a look at these rent by room listings will give a quick idea of what people are charging in your neighborhood and how they are describing them. You can interview and screen them. Take a look at places like bigger pockets resources or AAOA or other places to get a template lease you can use and fill out (they make state specific leases). Make sure to have that signed by the tenant so rules are clear (where are they allowed to go and not, etc), and if anything goes awry, you have a legal means to have them leave. Consider a month to month lease which will be easier to have them leave without cause if your situation changes or someone turns out to not be good for the space.

1 Reply
Aristotle Kumpis
Specialist · Long Beach, CA · Member since 2011 · 879 posts · 398 votes
7mo
Just be careful to who you rent it out to. You have a kid living in the house. You could look into putting your house on PadSplit. It's where people go to rent rooms in a house
1 Reply
Ying Tang
Member since 2025 · 322 posts · 121 votes
7mo
Padsplit has a high fee but they can place tenants very quickly usually at a higher price.
0 Reply
Robert J. Rhodes
Investor · Houston · Member since 2022 · 56 posts · 27 votes
6mo
@Ena Okoro
Ena, first off, I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. You’re asking the right questions and thinking about this the right way.

A lot of good advice has already been shared around speaking with your lender, house hacking, and making sure you screen carefully and set clear expectations. That foundation is important, especially with a child in the home.

One option I didn’t see mentioned that may be worth considering is using Airbnb as an initial intake channel rather than going straight into traditional leases.

Not necessarily as a full-time short-term rental strategy, but as a way to bring people in for shorter stays first. It gives you the ability to observe behavior, communication, and overall fit before committing to a longer-term arrangement.

It also allows you to clearly define expectations upfront in the listing and require agreement before someone ever enters the home, which can reduce friction later.

From there, if someone is a good fit, you can always transition them into a longer-term lease. If not, you still maintain flexibility and control over the space.

It’s not the only way to do it, but in situations where stability and control both matter, it can be a useful option alongside what others have already suggested.
0 Reply
Ena Okoro
OP
Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 3 votes
6mo
I very much appreciate all of the thoughtful responses. It seemed like I was thrown into the deep end. I might have made it through to the other side. I burnt the candle on both ends this tax season (ending in two days), suspended school and got great interviews. I am expecting an offer any day now and we should be out of the woods soon. Thanks to everyone. Whatever doesn't kill you sure makes you stronger. I just need to make it through the next two days of tax season.
0 Reply
- Robert J. Rhodes
  Investor · Houston · Member since 2022 · 56 posts · 27 votes
  5mo
  Quote from @Ena Okoro:
  
  I very much appreciate all of the thoughtful responses. It seemed like I was thrown into the deep end. I might have made it through to the other side. I burnt the candle on both ends this tax season (ending in two days), suspended school and got great interviews. I am expecting an offer any day now and we should be out of the woods soon. Thanks to everyone. Whatever doesn't kill you sure makes you stronger. I just need to make it through the next two days of tax season.
  
  @Ena Okoro
  Howdy, Ena.
  Just wanted to check back in on you.
  
  That stretch you described sounded like a lot to carry all at once. Hopefully you made it through tax season and things have settled a bit.
  
  For what it’s worth, I’m based in Houston (born and raised). Outside of real estate I work in healthcare, so I tend to pay attention to how people are actually doing, not just the numbers.
  
  I’ve also been operating a house hack using a 7-bedroom coliving setup since the pandemic, so I’ve learned a lot of lessons the hard way.
  
  If you ever want to compare notes or sanity check anything as you get going, I’m happy to help however I can.
  Keep fighting...
  
  2 Reply
- Ena Okoro
  OP
  Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 3 votes
  5mo
  Thank you, Robert, for asking.
  
  I have been blessed by my faith and friends and I am making it through each day. Yes, some days are harder than others but that is life in general.
  
  When we are out of the woods, I definitely remain interested in wealth creation via RE but need to get out of this first. The good thing is, I think we'll make it through. Lots of lessons learned.
  
  Quote from @Robert J. Rhodes:
  
  Quote from @Ena Okoro:
  
  I very much appreciate all of the thoughtful responses. It seemed like I was thrown into the deep end. I might have made it through to the other side. I burnt the candle on both ends this tax season (ending in two days), suspended school and got great interviews. I am expecting an offer any day now and we should be out of the woods soon. Thanks to everyone. Whatever doesn't kill you sure makes you stronger. I just need to make it through the next two days of tax season.
  
  @Ena Okoro
  Howdy, Ena.
  Just wanted to check back in on you.
  
  That stretch you described sounded like a lot to carry all at once. Hopefully you made it through tax season and things have settled a bit.
  
  For what it’s worth, I’m based in Houston (born and raised). Outside of real estate I work in healthcare, so I tend to pay attention to how people are actually doing, not just the numbers.
  
  I’ve also been operating a house hack using a 7-bedroom coliving setup since the pandemic, so I’ve learned a lot of lessons the hard way.
  
  If you ever want to compare notes or sanity check anything as you get going, I’m happy to help however I can.
  Keep fighting...
  
  0 Reply

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