All Forum Posts by: Christina Carroll

Welcome, Dylan! I've lived here for 5 years, currently have one duplex in the Lyncourt neighborhood and am prepping for another. Still a rookie but happy to chat any time. Good luck!

I'm screening tenants for the first time and already in progress using Innago and planning to have tenants pay the background check fee. Unfortunately, I didn't catch that there's a $20 fee limit from NYS - luckily caught my mistake before getting into trouble! I don't mind taking on the cost of doing more detailed background/credit/eviction checks, it's a cost of doing business and getting quality tenants, but I'm trying to find the most efficient way to do so.

Are there any online screening tools you've found that let you charge the applicant a set fee and you cover the rest? I haven't found a service yet that's $20 or less for any substantive information.

NYS landlords, how are you collecting fees and conducting your screenings? Do you collect cash or a check at showings?

@Nicholas Coulter thanks for the support! That's my plan, looking to step up to the better neighborhoods over the next couple of years with this same approach.

@Jordan Murrell so nice to meet a fellow 'Cuse fan!! I rented in Liverpool for a couple years and just moved to this neighborhood closer to the city. So far, it's been a great place to live.

Are you suggesting I charge more because the space is included, or have an optional charge to use more space? Agreed that with some updates I could probably get a little extra out of rent. I am cautious about over-improving...have you had experience doing this in a C+ neighborhood? Any updates your tenants were comfortable paying more for?

I was drawn to househacking to lower our living expenses as well as take my time on improvements. Since I live here, there's more flexibility with when/how I renovate and could definitely see us doing this a few more times. Great learning opportunity as well.

@Jin Lee congrats! What town/area are you in?

Thanks for the feedback, I am definitely doing most of the work myself but haven't considered BRRR or other loan/grant options. For the grants/loans, have you gotten one? What was that experience?

-When did you buy your investment property recently/where (city/state), how much did you pay, how big is it? Nov 2021, a duplex in Syracuse, NY. 1/1 unit upstairs, 2/1 unit downstairs. 1,750 sqft. $154,000.

-How much are you hoping to make on the investment? How much have you made so far? The purpose of this investment was to get ourselves a place to live and lower our living expenses. We are essentially saving $725/mo on our first home. When we move out I expect to make ~$300/mo net. Appreciation will be slow.

- If you are planning to buy an investment property soon, how come? Looking to buy again at the end of the year to start building a portfolio of small multifamily homes. The ultimate goal for myself is financial flexibility, and I see real estate as the best option for my family.

- What are you looking for and how come you think now is a good time? There will always be a challenge waiting for you at some point, so why not now?

- What advice would you give to others thinking about this decision? Anything surprise you? I have been surprised at how straightforward it has been so far. I tell anyone who will listen to consider a house hack for their first home and find a real estate agent with experience as a landlord themselves. It's essential to spend time learning, preparing your finances, etc but there are incredible resources like Bigger Pockets to help you make informed choices and a house hack is one of the safest avenues to get started.

-First/last name, age, profession, city/state where they live-email for follow up questions Christina, 28, Marketing/HR professional, Syracuse NY

Hi all,

Looking for some feedback on our current house-hacking numbers and any recommendations on how to proceed once we move out.

We bought our first property in November 2021 (duplex 1/1 upstairs and 2/1 downstairs, C+ neighborhood). We have an excellent tenant in the 1/1 and opportunity to fix up the 2/1.

$154,000 purchase price, 3.5% down FHA loan @ 2.75%, with high NYS taxes our monthly payment is $1,256. Investing ~$15,000 in fixes this year (bathroom, kitchen, exterior cosmetic and safety improvements). Concerned about roof replacement in 8-10 years and furnace replacement in 3-5.

$725/mo for the 1/1, when we move out I expect $1200/mo for the 2/1. Rent includes water, parking, shared laundry, basement space, garage space, and shared small yard. Tenant is responsible for gas and electric.

Question 1: BP calculator says we'll make $240/mo (8% CoC) when factoring in the potential roof and HVAC replacements and assumed rents. I was hoping for at least 15%. What would you do to in my situation to help hit that number?

Question 2: We'll have $40k by end of this year to invest in another property. Our initial thought is to keep this property, rent it, and purchase another house-hack. Thoughts?

Thank you in advance for any advice!

Congrats to you! You're making a great choice. We are in our first househack as well. Living in a 2bd/1bath apartment below our tenant in a 1bd/1bath in a B-/C+ neighborhood.

At the time we toured the home (actually, all of the homes we looked at), we were less thorough because we weren't confident. As a potential buyer, whether we're newbies or not, we had every right to ask every question, test every light switch, and assert ourselves. In the moment, we went through everything quickly because we were feeling unsure of ourselves. Never again!

I'll also echo a comment from everyone's BP friend Mindy Jensen - don't be afraid of a little dirt. It's amazing how much the place has transformed with some new paint, blinds, clean baseboards, and lighting. My partner spotted this potential right away. When we choose to move out, I fully expect to get the monthly rent we are looking for.

Good luck to you, Austin.

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Syracuse.

Purchase price: $154,000
Cash invested: $20,000

First househack, based in the Lyncort neighborhood. Tenant came with the property and is excellent. It's not making us money for now, but cutting down significantly on our living expenses and setting us up for the next property. Not quite a flip, but we're doing basic repair and updates to clean the place up for higher rents when we move out.

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

This was on the MLS for about 3 days when we toured it. Put in an offer the next morning for asking, and it was accepted the same day. Our realtor was familiar with the seller and the seller's agent, so I think he knew the right buttons to push to make it happen.

How did you finance this deal?

FHA loan, 3.5% down. Saved up the 3.5% and had enough left over for some light renovations (still in progress).

Lessons learned? Challenges?

This is more of a fixer-upper than we originally expected, but we're looking forward to using this property as a learning opportunity. Understanding what types of upgrades and fixes we can handle, learning basic maintenance, managing just one tenant, familiarizing ourselves with the purchasing process, etc.

Here for the moral support! We are closing on our first home (duplex house hack) TOMORROW in Syracuse, NY. It's scary to take that first step, but run your numbers - you might be surprised at what you find. It's not impossible to find a property that fits your needs. My one piece of advice is to make sure you have your capital and parameters clearly defined before you start seriously looking so you're able to move quickly.

As Sean Rooks mentioned, the monthly savings is what convinced my partner this was a good idea. We'll be saving about $600/month.