All Forum Posts by: Matthew Porcaro

You want to see that they pay their bills on time, and what their debt to income ratio is. If you see they have say, 8 different credit cards, 4 of which are for clothing stores with $2,500 balances on each, that should raise a red flag. 

If they're renting, they're obviously not the perfect candidate anyway, you're just looking for evidence of lack of dependability. 

Hey @Jared Paul - my family's general contracting company has been in business for over 30 years, and my father has over 40 years of experience. I as well have been involved with projects, both retail and investor side projects for the last 10 years. 

Disclaimer: we are not going to be the cheapest contractor you find, but you can count on us to control the entire construction process start to finish with ease. We have subcontractor relationships lasting over 10 years, which experienced people know goes a long way when you're pressed for time and budget. 

Feel free to contact us with any projects you have available. 

Thanks for the short answer @Edward B. ! That's all I needed to know. I have an accountant and will let her take care of it, I just wanted to know if it was even possible before asking. 

Hi Everyone, I'm close to putting an offer on a duplex that I am looking to 'house hack'. Now, I will need to be living in it for a while, so it will be my primary residence, but the second floor will be rented out to another family. From a tax perspective, am I able to write off the expenses and depreciation of that unit while I'm living there? Are there any tax benefits for house hacking a duplex?

Thanks!

I would say if you have a lot of equity in it already, sell it as is, and use that money to do a 1031 exchange into something bigger, like a multifamily, etc., then collect rentals. 

It also depends on your goals. Are you more interested in a passive income right now, or do you intend to build your portfolio?

@Jonna Weber I do now. It's funny how one little action step can sling shot you into a process. In less than 24 hours I got an agent, pre-approved for a mortgage, and potentially making an offer on it this weekend. 

Trying to manage it as best as possible to ensure I don't miss out any steps. This is extremely exciting yet scary. 

@Jonna Weber thanks for the advice, I was thinking about doing the same thing. I just have never put an offer on a property before, and wasn't sure how specific I can get with my contingencies. 

I know for sure this is a competitive deal that, once investors catch wind of it, will want it. I'm in a unique position where I am a first time home buyer with a construction background and a desire to house hack. This property doesn't fit the typical first time Home Buyer criteria. 

You can use a loan from a private lender, hard money lender, etc to get into a property initially, and then once you have improved the property, you can refinance out into a conventional loan. 

Portfolio lenders, I believe, are just another type of private lender. They're private banks that loan out to you based on experience. 

I'm currently looking at a Fannie Mae foreclosure property that would be a good first buy for me. Looking to rehab/house hack a duplex in my area. The property is currently in the "First Look" phase for 5 more days. I unfortunately won't be able to get into it until Monday, which would be the last day of the First Look.

I'm wondering, say come Monday, I check out the property and it looks good and I offer full ask on the spot, can the bank just wait until the next day to see how many investors/other buyers offer on it?

Any suggestions on how I could handle a situation like this to ensure I have a good chance at snagging this?

Thanks!

Go to your local REIA meetings, and network yourself. Mentors are great, but remember, they're people too with busy schedules. Most are willing to help, but like anyone would want some kind of reciprocation. Think about what you can bring to the table for them, and form a mutually beneficial relationship with these people.