All Forum Posts by: Benjamin Sulka

Jackson,

I wish I was in your market because I love your story!!! Reminds me of myself in many ways. I'm 22 (23 next month) and looking to do a lot of the same things. 

My why is exactly the same as yours. Looking to win back time that I'd rather be spending with my wife and kids in the future. 

I'm personally looking to start the exact same way as you with a multifamily house hack.

It's great that you already have an idea of how much $ you qualify for so that you know what locations to start looking in. You also know the type of property that you're looking for. I would keep doing what you're doing and network as much as you possibly can. It's clear that is something you're actively doing as well! Network with an agent who has worked with house hackers and start looking at properties and running your numbers. 

You said: "I wouldn't have a what or why at all if I hadn't found BP!!" 

This is the truth. My mindset switch over the last couple years has been incredible and I don't just think that I'm going to achieve FF through real estate and personal finance, I know so.  

All the best to you, Jackson!

Retirement plan question here: 

This question is not real estate related. It's related to retirement plans through your employer (if you're working full time). I just graduated college in May and started working full time in July. My current plan is a 403(b) plan. 

I did some exploration to see what my employer retirement plan is invested in. It's invested solely into target date funds which I've heard pros and cons about. 

The other options that I have to choose from a pretty limited and most are target date funds. However, there are some options to invest in the S&P 500 through index funds like VIIIX (Vanguard Institutional Index Fund) with a focus on tech companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, Nvidia, Tesla, Amazon, etc. Investing in companies like this is more of my inclination but I'm really not sure what to do here. 

Trying to see if anyone has knowledge about target date funds and whether it would make more sense to simply invest in the S&P 500. 

I also plan on opening a Roth IRA and investigating that further.

Thanks so much for any insight! 

-Ben, aspiring rental property owner and financial freedom seeker

I might be 1,000+ miles away from Colorado but these house hacking principles hold true across the country! Great post. 

Larken,

Welcome to house hacking! 

I don't have any insight into section 8 other than I've heard some really good and some really bad. 

Best of luck!

 Will, 

This is awesome man. Kudos to you on getting involved so early!  I found out about RE/FI a couple of years ago when I was a junior in college. Had plans to invest right out of school but life had a different plan, Lol. Going to buy my first house hack in summer of 2024. 

Fantastic advice from Vitaliy above. Another thing on the 5% conventional loan for 2-4 unit properties is that PMI falls off when requested at 80% LTV and automatically at 78%. With FHA, PMI will be on the loan forever unless you refinance. Conventional also provides less hoops for the seller to jump through as FHA has some requirements that can potentially slow things down. Here is some property standards that FHA needs to pass: https://www.investopedia.com/articles/mortgages-real-estate/...

When you're connecting with lenders see if they have any down payment assistance programs for first time home buyers. There are also some national programs to look into/consider as well. This could help you retain even more of your capital.

All the best!

You already got some great insight above but I wanted to say thank you for your service!! 

Luc, 

Even if you don't cashflow, it's a good decision if you're paying less than you would renting. You can get into a property with relatively low money down and turn it into a full time rental after you live there for a year. 

In terms of interest rates, if you buy now and they go up, you'll be glad you bought now. If you buy now and they go down, then you can refi after the seasoning period is over.

Best of luck!

House hack! There is so much info on BP about this strategy and I think you'll become obsessed with it as quickly as I have. So many benefits to starting this way. 

^ Great advice. Check out Facebook Groups or Meetup.com.

Or set up keyword alerts on BiggerPockets for meetups in your local market! You'll definitely be able to find a real estate group and eventually someone who does STRs. 

You got this man!

"Also, something to keep in mind is that when an underwriter is calculating your debt-to-income ratio to qualify you, they will only take into account what's on your credit report, so things like food, entertainment, car insurance, etc. won't affect you."

Glad someone already emphasized this above. This is what I was going to emphasize. 

Start by house hacking. It's what I'm going to do this upcoming year as a newbie. Best strategy for newbies to real estate investing because you can retain much of your capital and learn to be a landlord onsite. It's like on the job training. 

When looking at properties to house hack, first determine how much you qualify for, then what locations and property types you're interested in, and then start your search! Network with as many other investors in your local market as possible as well. 

Definitely consider the implications of selling off some of your stocks to buy real estate. I don't know your market but putting 5% down even on a $200,000 property is $10k out of pocket + closing costs and other fees + initial repairs if necessary. 

Good luck!