All Forum Posts by: Jeremy Taggart

@Mikey Bentivegna House hack if you can. Best way to get into investing and kills two birds with one stone since you need a place to live anyways. I'm a fan of the 2-4 units to get started as well. Cash flow better than single family and we have quite a good supply of them in the Pittsburgh area. Outside of that just look at listings on the daily so you can start to learn the market and what rents/prices are in the different areas. Also do some self education on real estate investing in general to sharpen the ax. 

@Niall Clancey those neighborhoods are all pretty management intensive. Primarily lower income renters and typically higher risk. Numbers look good on paper but a lot of times don't translate to real life. House hacks I've done were in Ambridge, Aliquippa, Stowe Twp, Windgap, Millvale, and South Side. Went from cheaper/more cash flow focused at the beginning so I could leave my day job and go full time as an agent, then gradually shifted to more expensive areas that I thought would have good rent growth/appreciation over the long term. Tend to favor the more expensive areas for house hacks though nowadays knowing what I know now and in this new market where cash flow is tougher to come by. And to best utilize the leverage of the low down payment loans you can get with house hacking. Everything I've house hacked has gotten crazy returns because you have to put such little down. 

@Niall Clancey here in Pittsburgh $50k is plenty to get into basically any 2-4 unit with 3.5% down. Once you go above about $150k/unit here is where the numbers start to not make sense. I've house hacked 6 times now and my advice for your first one would be to max out the FHA loan with as high of a purchase price you can get while still meeting the self sufficiency test. This will ensure you will be at least break even on the cash flow side, and the higher purchase price will increase your overall ROI thru more principal paydown/appreciation with the higher price compared to something cheaper. Also look to get the 6% sellers assist to cover all of your closing costs so you only have to bring 3.5% down. I would shoot for a 3-4 unit since duplexes are getting tougher nowadays with the higher rates and prices. You could also consider an FHA 203k loan if a property makes sense for it. If you can find a fixer that'll give you a better chance at cash flow once it's all said and done, and likely be able to get some equity as well.

@Ian Zuber having done 6 house hacks myself now at this point in the Pittsburgh area, IMO the move right now with the FHA loan is getting a 3-4 unit property as high priced as you can while still hitting the self sufficiency test. This will basically make sure it's at least break even from a cash flow perspective after you move out, while taking advantage of the low down payment leverage of the FHA loan. The days of significant cash flow from day 1 using an FHA loan might not be coming back so the focus shifts to principal paydown, appreciation, and depreciation/tax benefits. Looking at the overall ROI of all 4 wealth generators of real estate compared to the low down payment this will typically give you the highest ROI. Have to think more long term than day 1 cash flow now that even the lower income areas aren't really cash flowing that much more than the more desirable areas.

This goes for properties on the market. If you can do some off market lead gen and find a home run deal, then you very will might be able to get significant cash flow. But that's going to require more work obviously. I am just speaking from an agent/investor point of view working with clients to help them buy on the market and buying house hacks myself. 

@Shawn Williams depends on your goals. I personally would use that money to BRRRR, but that's just me. That'll obviously require more up front work.

If you want to maximize day 1 cash flow, I'd go outside Allegheny County and get a duplex for that budget. Will get you a nicer property in a better area compared to that budget in and around the city.

In and around the city for 150k, probably want to stick to a single family home in an up and coming area. Duplexes in that price range you are getting into more management intensive neighborhoods or non turnkey properties. Being closer to the city will also probably give you more appreciation/rent growth long term especially if you can get into the right area.

Areas like (not an exhaustive list) Beechview, Southside Slopes, better sections of Carrick, Westwood, Oakwood, Crafton Heights, nicer parts of Sheraden up the hill, Brighton Heights, Coraopolis, Troy Hill, Millvale, Etna, Munhall, better sections of Homestead, better sections of Swissvale, Ambridge, Verona, better neighborhoods in Penn Hills could all be potential options for you. Some of these might have to settle for a 2BR but can still be under 150k.

@Bagus A. 100k won't get you much anymore unless it's a fixer or in a rough neighborhood. The "cash flow" it might seem like you'll get in that lower end price range usually doesn't materialize on paper. At least if you are anywhere close to a decent sized city. I'd maybe consider increasing that budget a bit to get you something more quality. 

Outside of that though I love investing in Pittsburgh. It has treated me well over the last 7 years I have been buying here. Great combination of cash flow and future upside IMO. Areas here that will work for any strategy. 

@Jim K. Definitely agree on the REI opportunities. If you know the area/s and property types you invest in here like the back of your hand with all their intricacies there's a ton of opportunity to make great money and build a portfolio that can give you financial freedom sooner rather than later if you put effort into it. Not a city where a hedge fund can just come in and make a ton of money because it's a complicated and unique city in many aspects.

Outside of that I think it's gotta be towards the top of the list for  best "bang for your buck" cities to live in the US.  Average home price in the low 200's and get all the amenities we have here I'll take all day compared to cost of living in some of the other bigger cities in the country. Cost of living in general way cheaper as well compared to some of the more expensive cities. 

@Irvin Grant S&T Bank and Northwest bank both do 5% down 2-4 unit conventional loans on owner occupied here in Pittsburgh. Can do as many as you want outside of the FHA so it's a good alternative especially at the cheaper price points knowing you can only have 1 FHA at a time. Typically recommend saving the FHA for the higher priced house hack and using the 5% down on the cheaper ones, if planning on doing more than one house hack.

@Mat Yuriditsky Pittsburgh area can still work for it. Generally more opportunities to get equity on single family homes compared to multi, but have to stay under about 250k ARV to still at least break even on the back end cash flow wise with where mortgage rates are now. Purchase+Rehab 75-80% of ARV is doable on the market still. Don't expect a ton of cash flow after though if getting that much equity. Gone are the days where you can get both to a significant degree on a single family home. If you can find a 2-4 unit or ideally a 5+ unit multifamily it's possible to get both but those opportunities are harder to come by on the market.

@Matt VanGorder  College Hill is nice in Beaver Falls. Downtown some of the sections closer to the river and a few various blocks can be pretty run down. I have heard code enforcement can be tough there but I don't own anything there to be able to speak on specifics as far as that goes. Have leased some units there in downtown and they took a little longer to lease but were able to get decent tenants if the section surrounding the property is nice.