How to House Hack Your Way to Financial Freedom

By Braxton Futrell

"Ninety percent of all millionaires become so through owning real estate." -Andrew Carnegie

The Road to Financial Freedom

Whether we like it or not, money moves the world. It doesn’t necessarily create happiness, but it does provide options and the freedom to take advantage of those options; hence the term financial freedom! The more affluent we become, the less our choices will be reliant on money, and more reliant on our values. When our finances don’t influence our decisions, we feel more comfortable spending time with family, friends, traveling, or relaxing for a day, knowing our time doesn’t equal money. 

What does this have to do with real estate? Here is a short but powerful statistic to show how real estate affects wealth: on average, a homeowner’s net worth is $195,400, while a renter’s net worth is just $5,400! I would feel much more freedom and peace of mind with assets of $195,400 rather than $5,400. This difference in wealth is easy to understand when you realize that renters are permanently losing their monthly payment, while homeowners build equity in their property and utilize any appreciation to the home’s value. With the average American spending 33% of their income on either rent or a mortgage, you can see how financial security and a value-based life depend on homeownership.

Owning real estate is a no brainer for most people, but the question is: how can you buy a home without risking a “crash”, afford anything more than a hole in the wall, and not break the bank, all while paying less to own the property then you would pay to rent it? This short guide will answer those questions and give you the tools you need to begin reaping the benefits of homeownership and real estate investing.

You’ll Need to Live Somewhere, Right? 

For simplicity’s sake, there are three ways you can live in a property. The first option is to rent. In this situation you aren’t responsible for most of the maintenance of the property and can usually live in a place for a short period of time. However, there are some extreme disadvantages to this situation. First, you will never see your rent payment again. Though some of your money may be returned in the form of maintenance or amenities, as soon as it is given to the landlord you will never have that cash back. Also, you will not enjoy any appreciation the property goes through while you live there, even though your rent will likely rise every year.

The second option is to simply buy a home as a personal residence. This is actually the most difficult form of living in today’s market. In this scenario, you will be realizing the benefits of appreciation and a portion of your mortgage payments will be used to pay down the principal in a type of “forced savings”. On the other hand, it could be difficult to afford the size or location of home you desire. Also, the mortgage payments could prove to be overwhelming, possibly resulting in you selling the home and reverting to renting.

The third alternative is termed “house hacking”. This type of ownership entails the purchase of a 1-4 unit property, living in it, and renting out the other bedrooms or units. It’s that simple. Or is it? I’d like to show you how house hacking can solve any of the mentioned downsides to renting or home ownership, as well as provide more benefits than either option. Whether you’ve never bought a home, are beginning your career in real estate investing, or own a home and would like to live for less, this is an essential guide to one of the easiest first steps to financial freedom.

Benefits of House Hacking

Starting out as a real estate investor can be a risky and daunting endeavor. It requires market knowledge, time, thorough due diligence, connections, and capital. Here’s some good news, house hacking eliminates many of the barriers of getting into real estate investing. 

Here are the issues an investor may deal with:

• High cost of entry
• Remote investment location
• Unsupervised tenants
• Property Management
• Low cash flow

How House Hacking solves these issues

• Low upfront costs

Since a typical investor’s property is not owner occupied, they will need 20-25% of the property value as a down payment. Since you will live in the property, you could qualify for an FHA or first-time home buyer assistance program which only requires 3.5-5% down. Not only that, but there are many other programs available to help pay for a down payment and closing costs, reducing your upfront costs substantially.

• You live at the location

If investors self-manage an investment property, the travel time back and forth can be a hassle. They also need to stay on top of market trends and changes in the area they invest. As a live-in owner, you will be aware of any changes in the market as well as have no travel time for management.

• Tenants know they are living with the landlord

It’s likely that tenants will take care of the property better if they know the landlord lives in the next door or bedroom over!

• You manage it yourself

Vetting a property management company can be an arduous process. Picking a bad company could mean overpaying for irresponsible service, while their fees cut into important cash flow for investors. Luckily, you will be the on-sight manager, keeping a close eye on the property’s maintenance. 

• You don’t need to worry about cash flow

Though bringing in extra income after paying the mortgage is realistic, the purpose of this purchase is for you to own a home for less than you would to rent. If that is achieved, then you are already recognizing the benefits of this area of real estate ownership.

MARKET CRASH

One thing a savvy real estate owner and investor always keeps in mind is the state of the market. In fact, as you may have seen in 2008-2011, the health of the market could make a huge impact on someone's financial freedom. Prices dropped almost 14% and many families lost their homes. Though prices are not expected to slow down anytime soon, let alone drop like they did, it is still a good idea to keep this possibility in mind. 

Since rental income will be paying a significant portion if not all your mortgage, that should be the market you watch the closest. During the crash, rents did not take a hit anywhere close to how home prices did. If you think about it, when those families lost their homes, they still needed a place to stay. The demand in the rental market rose, keeping rates quite even. This is just another reason to understand the job and rental market you are buying in. 

LET’S LOOK AT SOME EXAMPLES

Overview of Property Types

There are three types of properties available for house hacking:

• Small multi-family properties (2-4 units)
• A single-family home with an accessory apartment
• A single-family home with more bedrooms than you personally need

The decision of which property to use will be based on a few factors. The first being your area or market of interest. The supply and demand of real estate can vary from city to city, and sometimes even block to block. It is essential that you know what type of housing is needed in the area you are considering. I will go over the importance of a real estate professional’s assistance regarding this topic later.

The second factor you’ll need to be mindful of is your need for personal space. Each type of property has a different level of privacy. Multi-family properties typically have individual units with little to no shared space other than maybe a driveway and yard.

Homes with an accessory apartment will also provide an adequate amount of privacy. If the apartment is attached to the home, typically there will be a separate entrance/exit from the side or back of the home. However, this entry space may be shared between the two living spaces.

Lastly, you will have the most interaction with your tenants in a single-family home rented by the bedroom. This option is usually best for singles or students, though there are always multiple creative ways to make a real estate deal work! In this situation, you will live in a room of the property and rent out each room to tenants. You MUST live in the property at least initially to take advantage of special benefits I’ll get to later, so be aware of how many people you are comfortable to live with. 

Also, each city has different regulations for rentals, so check with a real estate professional or the zoning division to find out how many renters you can have, as well as what your specified property could be zoned for (accessory apartment, duplex, etc..)

CASE STUDIES

RENT BY THE ROOM

Let’s look at a real-life example. When I was going to college, I moved into a home near campus that an investor bought as a place for his son to live and then rent out the other bedrooms. He paid about $258,000 for the home, generating a monthly mortgage of $1,200. He had six tenants living there including his son and me. His son didn’t pay rent so the five of us paid a total of $1,930 with my portion being $450. After subtracting his mortgage, vacancy, and operating expenses he would have been making over $350 a month in cash flow! Now, let’s say I bought that property. Since I would be using an FHA loan, my mortgage payment would be $1,455 per month including Private Mortgage Insurance. Since his son would now be paying rent and I wouldn’t, the total rental income would still be $1,930. After the mortgage, vacancy and expenses, instead of paying $450 to live there I would be paid $475 (before vacancy and operating expenses) to own it!

Here’s the easy math broken down:

Rent Income $1,930

-Mortgage $1,455

Rental Income $475 

Fortunately, this home was near a major university which made renting by the room a normal expectation for students. This method of house hacking can be the most lucrative, if you have friends that will rent from you, live near a campus, and/or are willing to share living space.

ACCESSORY APARTMENT/DUPLEX

Here we will look at the scenario of buying a property with an accessory apartment. There is a home in my area that recently sold for $465,000 and has a basement apartment with 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom. With an FHA loan, the mortgage on this home would be about $2,220 while the apartment would rent for about $1,600. Leaving you to pay only $620/month. On the other hand, if you lived in the basement, the first floor would rent for about $1,950. Now you could own the entire property for only $270/month.

Mortgage $2,220

-Rent Income $1,950

Your payment $   270

FOURPLEX

Our third example will be of a fourplex that recently sold for $810,000 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Each unit had 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, and were being rented for $1,200 each. Using an FHA loan, your mortgage would be $3,915. The other three units would bring in $3,600 per month, letting you own the property for $315 per month!

Mortgage           $3,915

-Rent Income         ($1,200x3)$3,600

Your payment                   $315

A couple other alternatives to what we have mentioned is the BRRRR method and short-term rental. BRRRR stands for Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. This type mainly differs from options we have discussed in that you rehabilitate the properties in a way that adds 20-25% of the home’s value in order to quickly refinance to a conventional loan. If you initially buy with an FHA loan you will still need to live in the property for a year. This is a great option for those who have experience in fixing and flipping homes (not just watching HGTV).

Short term rentals are also a viable option for many house hackers. In fact, this could turn out to be the most profitable type of homeownership. However, as we’ve seen in the recent Covid-19 shutdown, it is likely the riskiest as well. The hospitality industry is tightly tied to the health of the economy. If incomes begin to dip, the first properties to take a hit will be vacation rentals. Also, there is little to no screening process for these temporary tenants, which can leave you and your property in a dangerous situation. Most cities have restrictions on Airbnb style rentals and many don’t even allow it. So, while nightly rents can bring considerable returns, bad tenants and recessive markets can come back to bite. If this seems like the kind of rental that is right for you, be sure to work with an experienced real estate professional who knows that specific market well.

Financing

How you finance your purchase is essential to know how your rental income will affect your mortgage payment. Here I will touch on three types of financing provided by institutional investors. Most of these are available for 1-4 unit properties so they will apply to your house hacking situation. Since I am not a lending officer, this is just a general overview of the options available. You should shop around with multiple institutions to decide which loan type can be provided and is best for you.

FRM or ARM

Before we jump into the three types of loans, it would be beneficial to mention the difference between fixed rate mortgages (FRM) and adjustable rate mortgages (ARM). With an FRM you are quoted an interest rate by your lender and as soon as you lock it in it remains unchanged over the life of the loan. Interests rates change almost daily, so if rates are currently low, it would be wise to lock that in for 30 years. 

The other option is an ARM. As you might expect, this loan’s interest rates will fluctuate with the given financial index. These will be presented to you preceded by a couple numbers such as 5/1 ARM. This means that the interest rate will be fixed for 5 years, and after that it will be changed 1 time per year. The initial interest rates on these loans will usually be lower than a fixed rate mortgage. However, you are risking the possibility that rates will rise, and possibly raising your monthly payment to an unaffordable price. These loans are unpredictable and a contributing factor to the last market crash. Be sure to have them explained thoroughly by your lender and use them wisely.

Conventional

This type of loan will typically offer the lowest interest rates and best terms (no mortgage insurance). They will also have higher loan limits than other types as well as having the steepest requirements. A strict conventional loan with no first-time home buyer assistance will require 20-25% down and a credit score of 620. Debt-to-Income limits are 45-50% depending on your credit score or cash reserves. Considering this, if you make $5,000 per month, your total debt payments could not exceed $2,500. So, if you have a car payment of $250 and a credit card bill of $100, you would be limited to a max mortgage payment of $2,150. This is the type of loan that most small, non owner occupied real estate investors use because they have the capital to meet the down payment. 

First Time Home Buyer Programs

In The Benefits of House Hacking  section, I mentioned a “low up front cost” to this type of investing. To recap, you can get into a home for 3.5-5% down compared to an investor’s 20-25%. These loans are assistance programs offered by the government and other Corporations to help people buy their first home. Though a few loans are offered nationwide such as USDA for rural properties and VA for veterans, there are different programs provided by each state and sometimes different counties. Here are a couple offered in Utah: 

HomeReady

This loan can only be used for a single-family residence and has a credit limit of 620. Also, your income cannot exceed 80% of the area’s median income and has a DTI ratio of 50%. However, you can put as little as 3% down and there is reduced mortgage insurance depending on your credit. 

Home Possible 

You can purchase a 1-4 unit property with this loan with as little as 5% down and reduced mortgage insurance. On the other hand, your credit score must be 720 or higher and have a DTI ratio of no more than 45%.

There are many other programs that are similar with small variances in credit required, DTI, mortgage insurance, and property type qualifications. If this is your first home purchase, or you have not owned property for the last three years, I suggest looking into these.

FHA

With an FHA loan, you can put as little as 3.5% down with a credit score of at least 580. It can also be used for a 1-4 unit property. 

In the last two options I mentioned mortgage insurance (PMI), I’ll explain what that is here. These loans will usually require 1.75% of the loan amount up front and 0.85% of the loan amount paid yearly (wrapped into your mortgage). For example, you buy a home and borrow $300,000. You will need $5,125 (300,000 X 0.0175) up front and will pay $212.50 ((300,000 X .0085)/12) every month in PMI.

These costs may not seem worth the use of one of these loans, but let’s dive into the benefits of an FHA loan…

Say you buy a house hack property for $500,000.  Your initial cost will be about $30,000 (down payment, closing costs, and upfront PMI). You move out after a year, rent out your space, and buy another property for the same cost. You repeat this process the next year as well. You have now spent $90,000 in up-front costs to own three properties. The typical investor would need over $100,000 in a down payment and closing costs to buy that same $500,000 property. In short, you now have THREE rentals in your portfolio for less than it would cost another investor to buy ONE.

Tip: if you analyze both the expected rental income and your mortgage payment, you will be able to factor in the PMI, effectively eliminating that extra expense compared to a conventional loan.

There is one essential differences between an FHA loan and one of those first-time home buyer programs: you can use an FHA loan as often as you’d like but can only have one at a time. In the example above you would move out after each one-year period. The reason is FHA guidelines state you MUST live in the property for at least one year. So, once you have lived in the property for a year, you can move out, refinance to a conventional loan, and take out another FHA loan on another property. The only requirement is you will need to have built up 25% of the home’s equity in that year either through loan principal payments or value add rehab projects, otherwise known as “forced appreciation”.

A Quick Word on Taxes

You’re probably thinking “this seems a little too perfect, what’s the catch?” Well, though it isn’t a detrimental issue, there is one aspect of house hacking that is “the catch” in most real estate deals-TAXES.

Before I get into this, I am not an accountant and suggest you talk to one about this aspect of real estate. Now, back to your favorite topic.

If you opted to not use an FHA loan and sell your property in less than a year, you are subject to “short term capital gains tax”. This rate is aligned with your personal income tax bracket. In short, any gains from the sale you receive after that year, minus selling costs, will be taxed like it is your normal income.

For the second scenario, let’s say you used any loan type and live in the property for more than a year, specifically two years out of the last five. If you decide to sell the property at this point, you would be able to take advantage of Section 121 of the tax law, which allows you to exclude $250,000 if single and $500,000 if married of your capital gains from “capital gains tax”. However, you are only allowed to exclude your PERSONAL RESIDENCE percentage of the property. If you live in one unit of a duplex, then you will only be able to exclude your personal residence percentage, in this case 50%. It would be 25% if you lived in a fourplex. Make sense?

Here’s an example:

You buy a property for $500,000 and sell it for $560,000 after two years. You can subtract any costs associated with the sale, in this case we’ll say is $30,000 leaving you with $30,000 in capital gains. Since 50% of the property is your personal residence you can divide that by 2 and end up with $17,500 of taxable gains.

Selling Price        $560,000

Loan Payoff         $-500,000

Selling Costs       $-30,000

$30,000

$30,000/2=$15,000

The federal rate for “long term capital gains” is 20.60% as of this writing. Each state has its own capital gains tax rate as well, here in Utah it is 4.95%. So that is a combined rate of 25.55%.

   
            15,000

 X        0.2555

3,832.50

With this example, that is over $1,500 per year you’d be paying in taxes compared to $0 if you simply bought a single-family home and used the entire property as your personal residence. Before you scrap the whole idea of “house hacking” for good, let me suggest one other alternative.

1031 EXCHANGE

I mentioned earlier that house hacking is a great way to get in real estate investing. If you treat that property as an investment rather than a personal residence, you can take advantage of the tools available for investors to avoid those capital gains taxes

If you move out of the property after one year and continue to use it as a rental for at least another year, you can then use a 1031 exchange to sell your property. A 1031 exchange allows you to sell your property and buy another one and defer all capital gains tax. This comes with a few requirements:

1. 
   The first property must be used as an investment. After you move out, you would need to use it as an investment property for at least another year.
2. You will need to identify another property to purchase within 45 days of the sale.
3. You will need to have the purchase completed and capital gains rolled into the property within 6 months of the sale.
4. The new property must be of “like kind”. This would mean intended for the same use as the property you sell. The guidelines for what “like kind” properties are quite broad. For example, a duplex could be exchanged for an office building, a shopping center, and even raw land.
5. The second property must be of equal or greater value.

Once it is time to sell your property and you are considering using this type of exchange, I would suggest finding a Real Estate attorney that specializes in 1031 exchanges. If any of the guidelines are not executed properly you could end up paying an unwanted tax.

Getting Started

Alright, now that you have all this information, what are you going to do with it?

The good news is you have already completed the first step. You have decided that house hacking is the right track toward your financial independence! It only gets easier from here, because from now on you’ll have help.

STEP 2: Find a Real Estate Investing Specialist

It is essential that you now find a professional who is familiar with your goals and will help you achieve them. This person will likely be an investor friendly Realtor. However, a local investor, or a friend or family member who has experience in house hacking may also be reliable resources.

The easiest way to find an investor friendly Realtor who is knowledgeable about this process is to contact a local real estate brokerage. Give them a call or send an email and ask to get in contact with someone who is familiar with your needs. You will need to ask this agent a few important questions.

1. How long have you worked in this market?
2. Do you have clients you have helped start house hacking?
3. What kind of rentals are popular in this market?
4. Do they own any rental properties?

None of the answers to these questions are deal killers by themselves but compare answers and pick the agent that you feel will best understand your needs. They should also explain how to successfully get you to the closing table. An experienced investor Realtor will likely go over these next steps with you, but it is still important for you to be knowledgeable of the process from the start.

STEP 3: Find an Experienced Lender

This will be the second most important person on your team. Your Realtor will likely have a couple referrals for you, but it is a good idea to check with your bank, and another credit union to compare interest rates and terms. Be sure to explain clearly what you plan to do with the property you own and that you will live in it for at least a year. They will likely ask for your income amount and type (hourly, commission, salary, seasonal) to determine what type of paperwork they send to you. They will also want to see your W2’s or 1099’s, federal tax reports and will pull your credit report. If your credit is lower than you’d like, talk to them about options to raise it. This conversation is essential to understand how soon you can buy a property and which price point you can afford.

STEP 4: Determine Your Criteria

With your price range decided, now you can narrow down other important criteria such as:

• Location: the old maxim in real estate, “location, location, location” directly applies to house hacking. First, you’ll need to decide how far you are willing to travel for other facets of your life like work, school, and family. From here you can explore what types and sizes of property fit in your price range and location preference.
• 
  Type: Other than your need for personal space, the type of property you choose will largely depend on what properties are available and rentable in your chosen location. For instance, fourplexes and multi-bedroom rentals will be closer to college campuses while accessory apartments will be more prevalent in areas with single family residences.
• 
  Unit configuration: this will factor into market rent and your rental income. Renting on a “per-bedroom” basis will typically bring in more rental income than renting out a one-bedroom unit in a duplex to a young couple. Conversely, rents would be higher for a three-bedroom unit rented to a small family. It is essential to determine market rent for a given property to understand how much of the mortgage will be paid by you.

An investment savvy Realtor should be able to help you decide which type of property would work for you and give you an idea of expected rental income. 

STEP 5: Locate and Tour Properties

Now it is time to search for your property. There are countless home search sites that you will be able to plug your criteria into. However, not all websites provide accurate information. I personally recommend searching on your local Multiple Listing Service.

Here is the link to the MLS used in Utah. This site is where all residential Realtors post their listings with accurate and up-to-date information. Your Realtor should also be searching for you and sending you properties that will fit your criteria.

Once you have narrowed your search to a select few, have your Realtor schedule a time to tour these properties. It is important that you tour properties that fit your price range and location to help prevent you from creating unrealistic expectations or false comparisons. Touring properties will help you become familiar with exactly what kind of features, size and condition you and your tenants will be living in.

STEP 6: Contract to Close

If you and your real estate specialist search for and tour the right properties, you will be able to find the right property in a relatively short amount of time. Once you have decided on a property that will fit your lifestyle, budget and rental expectations, it is then time to write an offer!

Most real estate purchase contracts are standard with a few items up for negotiation. These points will be:

• Earnest Money
• Included and Excluded Items
• Purchase Price
• Transfer of Possession
• HOA Transfer Fees
• Seller’s Home Warranty
• Inspection and Appraisal Condition
• Contributions to Closing Costs
• Deadlines

There are clearly many ways to purchase a property that is beneficial to both parties. Your Realtor will explain market standards for these options and how they affect you.

Acceptance

Acceptance occurs when you and the seller agree upon the terms of the offer and all final documents are signed. From here there will be deadlines that must be met in order to continue with the purchase of the property.

The first deadline is your earnest money deposit. This is a small deposit anywhere between $1,000 to 2% of the purchase price and is basically a sign to the sellers letting them know you are serious about buying the property. The earnest money MUST be deposited either in your agent’s brokerage account or an escrow account within 4 days of the offer acceptance. Though this money will be directed towards your closing costs at the closing of the home, you will receive it back if  you cancel the offer at any time before the finance and appraisal deadline.

The next deadline is the seller’s disclosures. Seller’s will have a certain amount of time (usually 5-7 days) to provide you with any and all information they know about the property. This could include renovations, repairs, and ongoing issues with the property. The document they provide should be a legal, signed document. Though they may not know everything about the property, if there are any obvious issues that aren’t stated, the sellers will be held liable and the contract is voidable.

If there are no impending problems with the property that are disclosed, you will now need to perform your own due diligence. You will typically have 2-3 weeks from acceptance for your due diligence deadline. I suggest you hire a reputable inspector who is familiar with your specific type of property to do a thorough inspection. You should attend this inspection to understand exactly what may be going on with the property. The inspector will then produce a detailed report of the property and should provide advice or insight about the problem. You can use these details to negotiate repairs made by the seller or concessions in price. If the seller refuses to negotiate on these fronts or if the damages are of too much concern, your purchase contract will contain provisions allowing you to back out of the sale.

The fourth deadline you will have is your financing and appraisal deadline. This date should be worked out with your lender to ensure they have ample time to provide the funds necessary for the purchase. You will need to work with your Realtor and lender to schedule a certified appraiser to visit the property and determine the actual value of the home. This value will affect your lender's ability to lend funds on the property. If the appraisal comes back equal to, or above the agreed upon purchase price, then usually no further action will be taken. However, if the appraisal comes back low, you may be denied funding unless you are able to negotiate with the sellers a lower purchase price or provide cash to pay for the difference. If you come to a sales price that is conducive to the appraised value, then your lender should provide you with documents stating exactly what your loan and monthly payment will entail. Again, if any aspect of the appraisal or your mortgage is not agreeable to you, then you will be able to cancel the purchase. Keep in mind, after this deadline date, you likely will not have the privilege of voiding the contract without losing your earnest money unless the seller commits a violation of the terms. So make sure all your boxes are checked!

Settlement

The last deadline to be met is the settlement deadline. At this point, your lender and title company will be gathering all the required documentation and funds to complete the sale.

Closing

Within a week before closing, you should do one final walk through of the property to be sure that it is still in the same condition as it was during the inspection. If anything is in a different condition than it was during the inspection, you will still have the right to cancel the purchase. (If you haven’t noticed already, you are excessively protected throughout the entire purchase process). If everything checks out, you are clear to close. You will schedule a time to meet with your Realtor and title officer to finalize the documents. Bring your favorite pen because you will be doing a lot of signing. The most important thing at the closing table is to make sure the purchase terms and mortgage are the same as what you agreed to earlier. If there is a change in prior information, be sure to clear things up before the title company funds and records the sale.

Once you’ve signed all the documents and the title and loan officers record the transaction, you can now receive the keys and the property is yours! One last note on this: though it may be tempting to ask for access to the property before closing, there is a high risk that something can go wrong and make the deal fall apart. You’re almost there, just be safe and wait.

CONCLUSION

Congrats! You now have “hacked” your way into your first rental property and finished the initial steps to financial freedom. This manual is meant to give you a brief overview of how to get into your first rental property with the least amount of headache. In order to achieve that I won’t be covering topics such as rehab and screening tenants.  These are both important topics which I encourage you to conduct further research into. A few sources I suggest are:

Set for Life by Scott Trench

The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs by J Scott

The Book on Managing Rental Properties by Brandon & Heather Turner

Fortunately, we live in a content saturated time so there are endless videos, articles, and podcasts associated with rehab, tenants, and any other topic discussed in this guide. However, it is easy to get immersed into these resources and find yourself in “analysis paralysis”. This occurs when you absorb so much information you don’t know where to start. Fear then takes over and you never actually TAKE ACTION. I highly encourage you to go back to STEP 2 in Getting Started  and find a Real Estate Investing Specialist. If you are thinking about house hacking in the Utah Valley, you can schedule a live call with me using this link. I’d be honored to be a partner in your path to financial freedom.

I appreciate you spending a little bit of your valuable time reading this short guide and investing in YOURSELF before anything else. Now it’s time to launch your strategy toward financial freedom. I hope this has accomplished the goal of giving you the confidence and the tools you will need in your first House Hacking purchase and I wish you success in the exciting world of Real Estate!