As an entrepreneur and one half of the Wealth Twins, Nadia is not a stranger to earning money creatively. With that, she decided that house hacking was a good opportunity for her. A multi-family building with a storefront unit in Brooklyn was her way to house hack with a family. Today we will take a closer look at Nadia’s house hacking journey.

Housing hacking is a growing trend sweeping the nation and transforming finances everywhere. Through house hacking, homeowners are able to live for free! You can tap into this life-changing strategy completely legally! Grab a FREE copy of our House Hacking Quick Start Guide to get started – it can save you thousands with specialized information you won’t find anywhere else. 

House Hacking Case Study

Nadia discovered that house hacking was a common real estate strategy in a book after using it herself for many years. In fact, she completed her house hack in 2013 in Brooklyn, New York.

Before undertaking her house hacking journey, Nadia and her husband were renting an apartment for 14 years in New York City. The rent was surprisingly reasonable and allowed them to build up their savings. When they were ready, Nadia and her husband looked for a multi-family property to buy as their first home.

The House Hack

Nadia and her husband chose to buy a small multi-family building with a storefront on the ground floor. The building has three apartments in addition to the storefront.

The goal of house hacking was to have the other units cover the mortgage so that Nadia and her husband wouldn’t have to worry about the financial consequences of changing careers.

After making some significant renovations to the entire building, Nadia and her family moved into one of the apartments. They were able to rent the other two apartments quickly. Nadia chose to use the storefront space to run her own business.

Nadia’s building.

Updating The Units

The updates to this property were significant. In fact, it cost around $500,000 to complete the entire process. The building needed new plumbing and electricity, a new roof, new floors, new windows, new walls, and more. It was a complete remodel of a large building.

Tenants

Once the units were ready to be rented, Nadia started using a broker and other friends to find tenants. She manages the tenants herself.

The Numbers of the Deal

It’s time to find out exactly how profitable this house hacking strategy was!

Financing

Nadia took out a loan to finance the purchase and renovations of this property. She was able to obtain a 30 year fixed mortgage through the NACA program. The Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of American fights for economic justice by providing very affordable mortgages.

With this mortgage, the total monthly cost for Nadia is $3,000. That includes principal, interest, taxes, and insurance.

Rental Income

Nadia rents out two of the apartments in her building for a total of $4,500 per month.

Let’s take a closer look at these numbers:

  • Monthly housing expenses before house hacking: $1,250
  • Gross Rent: $4,500
  • Mortgage payment: $3,000
  • Cashflow before maintenance and vacancies: $1,500
  • Housing savings: $2,750

It is clear that Nadia is enjoying a very successful house hack. Not only is she able to live with her family in the building for free and run a business in the storefront, but also pocket an additional $1,500 per month!

Want to get paid to live in your home? Dive into housing hacking with our House Hacking Quick Start Guide. 

The Learning Curve

Looking back, Nadia wishes that she had been able to work with better contractors during the renovation process. It would have likely been less of a hassle if they had chosen to gut the entire building instead of trying to preserve some of the original infrastructure.

However, she would definitely go through the whole process again. In fact, she plans on doing another house hack in the future.

Get In Touch

If you are interested in learning more about Nadia’s experience, then check out her full YouTube video. You can also connect with her on her website, The Wealth Twins. Or reach out on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @wealthtwins.

The Bottom Line

Nadia shows that her unconventional house hack was a big success. She is able to live and work in her building while bringing in additional income. Although the start-up costs were large, Nadia believes that she made the right decision. Could house hacking be a good choice for your life?

Be sure to check out next week’s house hacking case study featuring Brendan.

If you are interested in creating your own house hacking story, then check out our ultimate guide, listen to our house hacking podcast, or read more case studies for inspiration. You never know how dramatically your life can change through this one choice!

If you choose to pursue a house hack of your own, then please share your story with us! We would love to showcase your success.