All Forum Posts by: Bradley Dosch

Hey Jake, great post and question here. It is definitely tough making a house hack break even with multifamily or traditional single family. In big markets like Phoenix, multi family tends to be scarce and very expensive. Many successful house hacks are done with large single family homes with separate areas (kitchens, living areas, laundry, entrances, etc). Additionally, creative rental strategies help increase the income - Airbnb, traveling nurses, rent by the room, etc. It's obviously a bit more work but once you get it up and running with systems in place it can be pretty cruise control. Good luck Jake!

Finding roommates for a SFH house hack is pretty easy. I've done it in three different counties and haven't had issues finding tenants. Just make sure you communicate well what the situation is. The lack of employment is too bad but people will still gladly live in a place that suits them well if you provide it for them. Exit strategies are selling and renting it out differently (as one house or airbnb for example)

Hey Andre, your plan sounds excellent. Do it lol. You'll figure out all the details by just doing it and not waiting. That's my advice :)

Hey Callaway, sounds like you have a great plan! I'm not aware of too many limitations regarding those loan programs. Rates are probably a little higher these days. Some of the downsides with FHA are expensive mortgage insurance and more stringent requirements than conventional financing. The FHA 203k loan takes more time and paperwork to close as well but can be a great tool to use for renovations.

Love this analysis spreadsheet! I'd love to hear more about your experience using the Bank of America program. Thanks for sharing Ben!

Hey Courtenay, great question. Without knowing too much about your current situation, I would just give the general blanket recommendation of house hacking. Low down payment, more accessible, less risk, high ROIs. 

Hey Lena, this is a great post! Super cool that you're getting started so young. I think you have an excellent plan! You make a fair point that it will take some time to build up consistent income from selling houses, depending on how effective you are. Your success as an agent aside, you'll have to wait two years (usually, talk with a lender) in order to get two years tax returns of 1099 income to qualify for conventional financing. Of course there are other ways (DSCR, etc) which typically requires more capital - which maybe you could raise if you're a great agent or find someone willing to invest with you. Or maybe you're able to get awesome seller financing terms.

Overall, I think your plan is excellent and I would just go for it! You are young and have plenty of time to try things out and change course as you see fit. Just continue putting in the effort and good things will come. Good luck Lena!

I didn't actually. I thought about it bc that's what I did on my first house but I've come to realize people like and have their own furniture. Good question

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Tacoma.

Purchase price: $490,000
Cash invested: $30,000

This was my second house hack and first property in Wa state. This fit my criteria very well. It's a single family house with a split level. Two separate kitchens, laundry units, entrances, and living areas. I rent this out by the bedroom and I pay for all utilities, including the best wifi possible and monthly cleaning service. The three people upstairs are all in the same industry so they get along well and have something to talk about. I spent $25k renovating the place - new flooring, new bathroom, new sliding glass door, along with a long list of other inspection item corrections. I did none of this work myself. I manage this rent by the room myself using Avail and I rarely go to this house. The tenants seem to like living there and it's honestly my best performing house of the 3 I own so far. Lmk if you have any questions!

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Finding a large single family house with separate entrances and living areas is a very accessible form of house hacking/investing for many people. It can be tough to cash flow with multi family or traditionally renting a SFH. It is not as much work as a STR and gives people more affordable housing because the rent of a bedroom is much lower than that of a studio apt. This fit my criteria very well. This house has two separate kitchens, laundry units, entrances, and living areas.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I found it on the MLS and asked for $10k seller concession instead of price reduction. I was the only interested buyer for some reason.

How did you finance this deal?

I used 3.5% down FHA and got a 3% rate in exchange for a lender credit. I wanted to and recommend that you use 3-5% down conventional financing for SFH house hacking but my DTI was just barely too high for conventional. FHA allowed for my slightly higher DTI. The MIP is very expensive and never drops off but I can always refi later down the road.

How did you add value to the deal?

Added LVP to the entire upper level, got the tenants the best wifi possible (1.2 GBPS), fully renovated upstairs bathroom, replaced broken sliding glass door, and a handful of other inspection items. I spent about $25k on these renovations. I did none of this work myself.

What was the outcome?

Tenants love living there (I ask them often) and it cash flows $700/month even with the high MIP.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

It's painful to spend money on upgrades upfront especially when it's expensive and you just want to start collecting rent money. But... it's so worth it. The hit of the cost wears off over time and your tenants will really appreciate it. If you focus more on giving people a great place to live, you'll have much more success

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Yeah I worked with myself as the agent - great service, couldn't have asked for better. I used Albert Bui as my lender and a handful of tradespeople for the renovations.

Hey Grant, thanks for the engagement. Plans change - especially during the time of the pandemic. Let me know if you have any other questions.