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Updated about 1 month ago on . Most recent reply

House hacking legalites in NY
I recently met a lady who owns 2 house in Brooklyn NY that are completely chopped up inside. She has about 10 bedroom across the 1st fl, 2nd fl, and basement. All vary in sq ft. She rents each room for around $600 - $1000/month each. Her tenant are undocumented folks awaiting citizenship, recently divorce folks and short-term travelers. There's no officially lease, but you have to be referred by someone of trust to rent in one of her houses.
As a new yorker, i have this craving to invest in property here but the inflated home prices never made sense to me. However, with this type of strategy, the cash flow math does. I'm curious to know if this is at all legal. Is this some form of house hacking? Looking for some opinions on this strategy and whether its a feasible investment strategy.
Most Popular Reply

I own several duplexes and 3 families through the years in Nassau County and Queens, and normally, 2 or 3BR rentals should be rented to no more than 2 or 3 unrelated persons. There are issues with housing codes as well. Also, having so many people in each property creates overcrowding situations and parking among other things causing neighbors to file complaints. Such rental situations are hard to hide and keep secret with so many people coming in and out of the property besides taking up available street parking.