Investor · Allentown, PA · Member since 2018 · 6 posts · 2 votes
First-time poster in a while, a lot has changed in my situation since I was last active here. I’ve built up a surplus of cash to put toward my first property, and I’m in a much stronger position financially than when I first started following this space.
My plan is to house hack my first property using an FHA loan, targeting the Easton, Bangor, and surrounding Lehigh Valley, PA areas.
For those who have house hacked or are currently doing it - how has your experience been? A few things I’d love input on:
• What should I be prioritizing when evaluating a potential house hack (property type, location factors, etc.)?
• What’s a realistic/good cap rate to target in today’s market?
• I’ve been out of the investing loop since around 2019 — beyond this forum, where do you all go to stay sharp and keep learning (podcasts, books, communities, etc.)?
Appreciate any insight from people further along this path than I am.
Real Estate Agent · West Chester, PA · Member since 2017 · 266 posts · 94 votes
2w
I help a lot of people do house hacks and live-in flips in south eastern PA, basically the Philly suburbs. I started with a live-in flip myself, partly due to my family situation.
One of the challenges with house hacks is the lack of multifamily inventory and sometimes it's trading at cap rates that don't really make any sense.I do like to start with a live-in flip and build a strong equity position. It's much easier to force appreciation and you can also rent out the rooms just like a house hack.
At least in my market it's not that hard to make $100,000 in appreciation from a good house hack/live-in flip.