House Hacking in the Suburbs around Boston

[Andrew Oram]

Hi all,

New member here and looking to get some advice/insights. I'm looking to house hack a duplex in the suburbs around Boston and I was wondering where people have been finding decent deals? 

Thanks,

Andrew

[Dan K.]

My wife and I are house hacking in Cambridge. The property had a lot of deferred maintenance along with damage from the 2015 snow. We had an inside deal but the price of the property was still very cheap. Within the first few months of acquiring the property we received an unsolicited offer to purchase the property (stemmed from a craigslist posting for a tenant).

A word of advice -- When you are dealing with the big numbers of close to Boston, personal taxes for repairs and other maintenance should be considered. It is important to remember you can only deduct expenses for the units you rent. Other expenses can be depreciated if or when you move.

Additional advice -- Investors routinely target non-resident owners in Cambridge. Many of these owners are long term holders simply throw out the yellow letters. Because of the massive appreciation over the last 20+ years they are holding on to properties in order to give to the heirs with stepped up basis.

Inspection waivers -- I would not recommend completely waiving an inspection, however you can waive 20k, 50k or more in inspector findings. In this market sellers don't want buyers who are going to try and nitpick for small repairs. Every multi-family has dings. Make it clear that you are only looking for major deal killers like knob and tube wiring, serious structural problems, failing foundations, etc.