Live in flip financing advice

[Michael Orlando]

Hello, I am thinking about changing my real estate strategy for my next property. I currently house hack a duplex. I bought it in 2021 with a conventional loan 20% down. It will cash flow around 1200-1300 once I move out. I also renovated the bathrooms and one of the kitchens. 

I think doing a live in flip will help me get more funds to hopefully house hack in a nicer area than I am now. 

My questions is what kind of financing do you suggest I look into. Will it be hard to get a hard money loan if I never flipped a house before?  Would you do a refinance on my current duplex?  I’m not sure how refinancing works but I’m hesitant to mess with my cash flow for that property. I also have a 3.5 interest rate. If I refinanced will I be able to keep the 3.5 interest rate?  Thank you for your time. 

[Jonathan Greene]

Betting on a live-in flip to get more money for your next deal is not a great idea if your house hack was your first investment. Are you going to try to DIY the flip also? The financing is not as important as your strategy and why you think this will work in your market. What's your flipping skill set?

I like a long-term flip, like buying a house to live in as a primary and slowly over time, making it nicer while it appreciates, but you are seemingly trying to move too quickly to get to the next house hack. I would stay in this house hack until you have enough equity, with savings, to leave and go into the next one.