All Forum Posts by: Richard Phillip Lewis

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $580,000
Cash invested: $150,000

House Hack Duplex using a 203k Loan to Rehab it

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

My goal is to acquire cash-flowing multifamily assets that need renovation to push equity appreciation while also Improving my DTI. This will allow me to acquire more properties in the future when it comes to qualifying for more debt.

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

MLS - I am the real estate agent - We received a $20,000 Seller Credit towards repairs.

How did you finance this deal?

203k Loan - My Cash

How did you add value to the deal?

We took down a wall in the living room that connected to the kitchen. The created one large space to make the 1000 sqft space feel larger. We gutted and renovated the bathroom and the kitchen. We removed and replaced all the insulation and sheetrock.

What was the outcome?

We have a fully updated duplex in a hot rental market that will appreciate over time.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Think carefully when buying property in a flood zone. Get a crawlspace specialist to inspect the crawlspace. Don't rely on the Home Inspection report to catch everything.

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

I am the real estate agent. I worked with Cross Country Mortgage for the 203k loan.

@Andrew Postell I know owner occupied property can be restrictive. It is our plan to move on to something else in 3 years. Maybe we change the financing then?

I spoke with the lender that currently has the debt and he suggested maybe going from FHA to conventional or modifying by some of the terms of the debt to help reduce the payment. The key though is a higher appraisal.

Im in the process of finishing up a 203k House Hack Duplex. I got a good rate of 6.25% on my mortgage given today interest rate environment. I will be living in one side and renting the other side. I would like to refinance out of the FHA 203k 6.25% into a Fixed Rate Interest only mortgage till interest rates come down near or below 5%. Ive been search online for Interest only "Landlord" mortgages, but Im not seeing any available interest only products out there. Ive ready about 10 year Interest only / 20 year Fixed Amortized products, but Im not seeing any products ready to apply for. Where should I be looking?

I’m located at the Jersey Shore. I got my RE License in 2018 to help friends and family, but to primarily do my own RE deals. 

I would like to find a brokerage that is built on a community of RE Investors both agents and clients. 

I’m at a traditional RE Brokerage now and feel like the odd man out since I mostly want to work with investors, however the notable brand has helped my business. 

Thoughts? 

I'm shopping for a HELOC now for a project.
Did you have to be military for the HELOC?

What was the turn around time from applying to funding? 

Hi Brooke, I am in the middle of buying a duplex here in central / Jersey shore. I have a real estate license and would be happy to help. I have already done a number of steps you need or will need to do and have knowledge to happily share. 

Please message me if you would like to work together 😎

Thank you Lawrence for your reply!  Both houses are in good habitable condition and are currently rented.

The houses could be easily subdivided. The space between the houses is about 3-5ft. 

The only construction I would do would be to add a master suite for about 300-400 sqft to one of the houses. 

I guess the basis of my question is that I understand how a town could tell you to make a non conforming duplex that is one structure into a single family home, but what can a town make you do if the “multi family” is two SEPARATE structures? 

Worst I could see is to ask you to tear a house down or not give you a CO?

Even on the CO part I’ve seen people turn a basement of a single family into a rental unit so the town wouldn’t have standing. 

I don’t think they could make you tear a house down because that might be considered an “un due burden” or hardship the property owner would have to bear. 

Hey guys,

I just looked at a property that has two separate single family houses on one plot. Both were about 800 sqft. Our plan was to live in one and rent the other. 

When we were looking at the property the seller let us in even though the agent was present. 

The seller asks what our plans were for the property. We say we want to add on to one of the houses to get more space.

He says “It’s not gonna happen. It’s a non conforming lot”

I say “I know on a duplex or a triplex the town can make these non conforming multi families conform and become one unit structures, but I doubt they can make me demo one of the houses.”  The seller disagreed.

 
So what’s the truth here. If there are two separate houses on one lot and the property is considered a non conforming multi family Can a township make you demo a house to make you make it conform? What else would the township say? Would they just not give you a CO for the other house even though both houses have rental history?

Hey Guys, I’m looking to get some feedback from people that have experience with buying duplex, triplex or quadplex and having to get tenants out. 
All the deals I’m looking at all need work and the sellers won’t get the tenants out. 
I’m in NJ. 

 Very Good Idea @Robert Krieger! Thank you.

It seems most of the multi family properties I’m looking at have tenants that are month to month, so they are ready to give notice to if necessary. 

It does make sense on an owner occupied duplex to close in 60 days and give notice too both tenants 30 days notice for owner occupied unit and 60 days for non owner occupied unit and if all goes well they would be out at closing. Maybe even give one to two months rent to help them motivate and pay for moving truck if necessary?