All Forum Posts by: Annchen Knodt

 Thanks JOe, these are my concerns also.  Incidentally, there are both tobacco and marijuana smokers in that unit, and only medical MJ is currently legal in MD, which i really doubt is the case here…  I am considering reaching out to an attorney to better understand my options.

THanks for your response!  It's a 1985 wood frame construction, only two floors.  I have wondered about firesafing also, but don't know how the different types of construction affect how this is done.  Is it different for wood frame then?

I just received a long letter from my tenant detailing multiple health issues she is experiencing that are clearly linked to second hand smoke coming from the unit below. I lived in this condo before renting it out and had been aware of the issue and disclosed it on the property tour. I had also spoken to the neighbor who smokes in the below unit and bought an air purifier before moving out - I had noticed clear improvement and the neighbor seemed to be smoking less. I have now written a letter to the smoking neighbor (who is the owner of the below unit, not a tenant) and forwarded the tenant's letter to the HOA, pointing out the clause in the bylaws preventing any "noxious or offensive trade or activity" (there doesn't seem to be anything specific to smoking, but I think this clearly covers it).

If there is no resolution I plan to release the tenant and hope to find one less sensitive to the issue, but this tenant is a dream and I would so love to keep her happy.  Is there anything else I can/should do? The condo is in Maryland, and specifically I'm wondering:

1) Is there any way to thoroughly seal up crevices etc to prevent smoke from getting into my unit?  From what I read online, it's fairly impossible as it can seep through walls, which seems to be the case here.  I'm going to try and call around to HVAC / duct cleaning companies etc to see if they offer any mitigation services, but would love to hear if anyone has had experience with this type of thing.

2) My tenant has reached out to the Department of Health and I'm wondering if anyone has any knowledge of how this or other government agencies might be able to intervene?  Seems unlikely but I'd like to explore all my options.

3) The HOA has declined to act previously but I'm hoping this letter from my tenant will help. As they seem to be my best bet I'm wondering if anyone has suggestions for spurring them to action.

Thanks!

@Kit Serrell @Zambricki Li @Mitch Davidson Thank you all for the insights! We ended up snagging a basic SFH that popped up and seemed like we could get a great deal, but will def be looking to house hack the next one in a year, so I may reach out for further advice on planning. Mitch I definitely know what you mean about loan planning, have started to feel that already and I'm sure I can better optimize!

Hi BP, I'm looking to connect with other investors who have experience converting a walk-out basement in a SFH into an ADU for house-hacking, especially in the Raleigh/Durham areas in NC. I'd love to purchase a house where I can live on the main level and rent out the bottom level / basement, ideally as a short term rental / AirBNB, but also potentially as long- or mid-term rental as backup strategies.

My main questions for this are:

* How do I get all the information that I need on regulations, both for code in converting the basement (e.g. if I need to add a kitchen, move the laundry area, etc) as well as for occupancy (e.g. do i need multifamily zoning etc) and STR regulations. Do I just contact the city?

* Exit strategy: I hope to repeat this process, i.e. move out in a year or so and purchase another house hack while renting the first one out. I'm trying to think about whether it would work best to then rent out the top and bottom units separately via STR and/or LTR, or perhaps rent out the whole house?

* Are there any areas of Durham that are more or less conducive to this strategy? (in particular, STR demand)

Thanks for any advice - always love connecting with other investors!

@Jeff Fountain @Karen Johnson I'm wondering about the Ribbon Home program too - I'm shopping for a primary in Durham NC which has been totally insane and I'm looking into every possible avenue to help me compete, so I've started the process of using Ribbon. I know an agent in Texas who has helped an FHA buyer win a home with it, and she said everything went great. I wish I could find more people who are experienced with it, but if it helps me win a contract then I'll be a guinea pig! Neither my agent nor my lender had heard of them but so far they both don't see any red flags and are happy to work with them.

looks awesome, congrats!!

@Christopher Knibb thanks for starting this thread - it resonates with my concerns and clearly others as well! I additionally wonder about over-saturation in the STR market with SO many people getting into it, but from reading other threads on this forum etc, it seems like there's good reason to believe that demand for STRs will continue to be healthy, and as long as you can work really hard to stand out from the competition you should be ok.

@Scott Ashworth congrats on landing an off-market deal in Cary!  Just curious, how many postcards did you send out? and what type of properties were you targeting?

looks like folks have already covered the importance of the wear layer thickness, so i'll just add that on thing that the total thickness will affect is the level that any imperfections in the subfloor will come through. 4mm is pretty thin so with that you'd probably feel every little bump underneath unless you do very thorough prep work or install a plywood underlayment.