All Forum Posts by: Max Vishnev

Congrats again, Steve!  I think you bought the perfect value-add and house-hack, especially given all the new development around the 22nd light rail station in Bayonne.  Now, you just have to get through the next few months of major rehab with your sanity intact ;-)

Hi Nick, I can highly recommend Joseph Castanza at Graziano CPAs right here on Broadway in Bayonne.  Highly experienced CPA who holds a RE license in NY.  PM me for his email.

@Indro Dhar, you can definitely get a two-family in Bayonne for between 400k and 500k, depending on condition, parking, and location.  Inventory is limited right now, and it's gotten more competitive, but the rental market is strong and there is a lot of upside.

Hi @Indro Dhar: Congrats on your first BP post and your plans to do your first BRRRR (I assume). I'm an active, investor-friendly Realtor in Hudson County, with a particular focus on Bayonne (where I'm also a home-owner and landlord). Would be happy to chat with you about prospects here and in other parts of Hudson County.

What is your budget?  Timeframe?  

Well said, @Jason Lee!  Timing the market is a fool's game -- whether it's stocks, commodities, or real estate.  Flippers are most at risk with short term market changes, but buy-and-hold investors or house-hackers should not be as concerned with short-term market swings, since people will always need a place to live and both rents and property values go up over time.

Hi @Justin Suh: I just looked at WNY inventory for 2-family properties with at least 3 bedrooms total and there are only 5 currently on the market, one of which is a short sale.  Median price of these 5 is 499k.

West NY definitely has potential and is attracting more investors as other areas (like most of JC) have become more competitive and expensive, but very limited inventory makes it challenging to find a good house-hack opportunity.  Also, WNY and Bayonne have different demographics and tenant pools (though there is some overlap).

PM me if you want to chat house-hacking offline.

Hi Nolan, my rental income is $1400/m.  My principal and interest payment is around $2200/m (not to mention taxes and insurance).  However, given that I'm a short commute away from Manhattan (Bayonne, NJ), I can't imagine a house-hack situation that completely covers my mortgage.  It would have to be a "rent by the room" situation of some sort.  I think anyone looking to house-hack while still being within an hour commute to NYC has to have realistic expectations.  They will likely LOWER than net overhead as compared to renting in most parts of NYC Metro, but they shouldn't expect to "live for free".  But if you could lower your overhead by house-hacking, not only are you saving the $ difference every month, you're no longer throwing money away on rent, while building equity through loan paydown and property appreciation and taking advantage of rising rental income over time (plus various tax benefits). 

@Chace Fraser I appreciate the kind words, Chace!  And good call on the timeline.  You're right, between getting pre-approved to starting the search, viewing many properties, making offers, getting offers rejected, finally getting one accepted, then having it fall through (after the inspection, for example), then going back to looking at properties, finally getting an offer to stick and taking it to closing (which could take 45 days or longer), then doing the rehab -- it could take a while!  It doesn't hurt to start early.  The early bird eats the worm, right?

Hi Betty, welcome to BP!  As a NJ house-hacker and real estate agent, I would love to help you.  We bought a 2-family in Bayonne last year (check out my blog post on house-hacking) and found great tenants within a week of me listing the rental unit (after we finished renovations).  There are lots of people getting priced out of more expensive neighboring areas looking to rent in parts of Hudson County with a relatively short commute to NYC at a lower cost than Brooklyn, parts of Queens, Downtown Jersey City, etc.  That's part of the reason Bayonne has been booming.  You can still rent a nice 1-bedroom for $1400 or a 2-bed for $1600 (on average).  The kinds of tenants you can attract will be driven by many factors, but the most important, I think, are:

- Condition of the unit (is it old and beat up or renovated?) and amenities provided (i.e. washer/dryer, dishwasher, central air, etc.

- Proximity to public transportation to NYC.

- Block and neighborhood safety and amenities (can they walk to a grocery store, for example).

I don't think you have to limit yourself to "white collar".  You can find some terrific tenants in the healthcare industry, as well as respectable "working class" professionals.  For example, wouldn't it be great to have a tenant who is a licensed plumber or electrician?

Now, as to your other question as far as agents, here is my subjective opinion as an agent:  Make sure you choose an agent that is also an investor (whether house-hacking or owns pure investment properties).  You want an agent on your side that understands the investment side of it.  Secondly, you want an agent that actually wants to help you as a first-time home-buyer.  Some of the "top" agents (i.e. most sales) focus solely or mostly on sellers (aka. listings), so they will simply pass on onto someone else on their team that works with buyers.  Lastly, a great agent will put your interest first, ahead of any possible transaction, and connect you with great professionals to help you with the purchase process (lender, lawyer, inspector, contractors, etc).

The questions you should figure out before starting the search:

- What is your budget?

- Would you rather buy something already renovated or mostly renovated and lose out on most if not all of the "value-add" but not have to deal with permits, contractors, and the cash outlays and stress involved with rehabs, or would you rather buy something that needs work and "make it yours" and deal with renovations?

Happy to chat offline, if you're interested.  Feel free to PM me.

Hi Peter, 

I'm a real estate agent and home owner in Bayonne, NJ.  As you may have read or heard, Bayonne is completing a city-wide tax re-evaluation.  Right now, taxes on single-family homes are in the $6500 to $9,000 range, typically, depending on the size of the home and the current assessed value.  2-family taxes are 10k+.  Newer construction: 15k+  The issue is that we won't know what the new $ tax amount will be (post re-eval) until Q3 of 2020.  That's because the new tax rates won't be published until late summer.  This is all according to the info I've received from the Bayonne Tax Dept.

Of course, tax uncertainty also creates nervous sellers, which means more opportunities for savvy buyers.  PM me if you need more info or want to chat about Bayonne RE in more detail.