Renovations while house hacking

[Leonard Sanford Jr]

Hello All!

Brand new REI here and I am looking to acquire my first house hack. Everything about the property fits my criteria, and I am optimistic that my offer will be accepted!

During an initial showing, I noticed that the bathroom in the unit I’d be occupying is pretty outdated, has a 1970’s vibe according to my dad :) That being said, I am wondering if anyone has any tips for success with performing renovations on your existing living space in a house hack? Would it be best to pay for these renovations out of my own pocket? Or seek a renovation loan or personal loan from a lender? Thank you all in advance for taking time to read this post!

[Jonathan Greene]

For repairs or upgrades like that on a house hack, you will probably need to come out of pocket. Since it's a rental unit for the future after you move, you don't want to go too high end to please yourself and not get the value out of it on the other end when you leave. I agree with @Alan Feldman, if it's working I would just move in. If your bathroom has a 1970s vibe, who cares as long as it works for now? You can live in it a while and then decide to get it redone when you will be gone for a week or something.