Newbie diving in with a house hack / STR!

[Cassandra M Stanton]

Hello all! Not COMPLETELY new to REI - but new to the Bigger Pockets life.

I've had a LTR in Virginia for about 5 years and am getting into house hacking + STRs for the first time. I LOVE my neighborhood of St. Pete and am scheduled to close on my 2nd property in about a week!! I'm so nervous and excited. Looking to buy another multi-family in the next year or so (doesn't have to be a STR).

I'm an active duty Marine Officer with about 2 years left before I can retire, so I absolutely want to maximize my W2s while I can.  I also want to take advantage of all the veteran's assistance programs out there.  Ideally I'd like to stop HAVING to work in about 10 years and just live off of my REIs...

Looking forward to connecting with other like-minded investors and hopefully find a mentor or two...I'd really love to expand into other markets (I love Tampa, but it ain't the cheapest)!

Looking forward to meeting future friends on here!

[Amber Stout]

Welcome Cassandra. I'm in St.Pete as well - we have the BEST community. I started out house hacking too (still do) and now I’m a mortgage broker helping others create financial freedom through real estate here in Tampa/St. Pete.

If you’re planning another multi next year, definitely use that W2 while you’ve got it — HUGE advantage before you retire out of the Marine Corps. Also, thank you for your service. 

There's some great meetups in the area, happy to share those with you if you're interested! 

Congrats on closing your second property — that’s a big deal. Excited to see where you take things.