Investment & multifamily in the Salt Lake Valley
Buy an investment property on the numbers, not the pitch.
A rental only works if it works on paper first. We underwrite every fourplex and small apartment building against real rent comps, real vacancy, and the true cost of keeping it standing, then you decide with the math in front of you. You work with Andrew directly, from the first deal we run to the day you get the keys.
The part the listing photos leave out
A deal that pencils, and one that only looks like it.
Almost every property that turns out to be a mistake looked like a bargain first. The gap is in four places, and a first read of a listing gets all four wrong in the same direction.
The asking price
Looks like a deal
A number that sits below nearby sales reads as instant equity, and sometimes it genuinely is.
Actually pencils
It is only equity if the work behind the discount is cosmetic. A building priced low because the roof, the systems, or the location carry a real problem is priced correctly, not underpriced. We tell you which one you are looking at.
The rent
Looks like a deal
The current rent roll makes the income look settled and the return look easy.
Actually pencils
What matters is market rent against real comparable units, and whether the sitting tenants are under it or over it. We read the leases, not the listing’s projection.
The expenses
Looks like a deal
A slim expense line lifts the cap rate, and a slim line is easy to print.
Actually pencils
Taxes, insurance, vacancy, management, and the maintenance an older building actually needs all belong in the number. We put them back in before we call it a return.
The seller
Looks like a deal
A motivated seller feels like leverage all on its own.
Actually pencils
Motivation only helps if the building works once it is yours. We use it to negotiate the price down, never to talk you into a property the numbers do not support.
Want to see what is on the market right now? Browse current Salt Lake listings, and we will run the numbers on the ones worth running.
Browse Salt Lake listingsHow we underwrite a building before you offer.
A good return is not a feeling about a neighborhood. It is a model, and we build the same one on every property so two very different buildings can be compared honestly.
- Cap rate and NOI
- We start with net operating income, the income minus the real operating costs, and read it against the price as a cap rate. That single pair of numbers tells you what a building earns before financing, and it is where every honest comparison between two properties begins.
- Rent comps, not the pro forma
- A seller’s projected rent is a hope. We price each unit against what comparable units in the area actually lease for today, so the income side of the model is built on the market rather than on the listing.
- The expense ratio
- Older buildings cost more to run than their listings admit. We estimate operating expenses as a share of income using real figures for taxes, insurance, utilities, and management, so the return you see survives the first year of ownership.
- Vacancy, priced in
- No building stays full forever. We build a realistic vacancy rate into the model up front, because a return that only works at full occupancy is not a return, it is a coincidence waiting to end.
- The true cost of maintenance
- Roofs, furnaces, water heaters, and parking lots all age on a schedule. We account for what a building of its age and condition will actually need, not just what broke last, so one capital expense does not erase two years of cash flow.
- Financing against the return
- The loan terms move a deal as much as the price does. We look at what a lender will require for the property type and how the payment sits against the income, so you know the building cash flows after the mortgage, not only before it.
House-hacking: let three tenants help buy your first building.
If you are buying your first investment property, a fourplex you live in is often the most forgiving way in. With an FHA loan you can buy a small multifamily building as an owner-occupant, move into one unit, and rent the other three. The rent from your tenants goes to work against the mortgage from the first month you own it.
It is a real strategy with real requirements, not a loophole. You have to occupy one of the units, the building has to appraise and inspect, and the rents still have to pencil. We walk you through the lender’s owner-occupancy rules, read the existing leases, and check that the rented units carry the building the way the plan assumes before you commit to it.
Done right, it sets a first-time investor up to cash flow early and to move on to the next building later with a year of landlording already behind them. Andrew has closed these, and he will tell you plainly when a particular fourplex makes a good first one and when it does not.
How house-hacking works
- Buy a two-to-four-unit building with an FHA loan as an owner-occupant.
- Move into one unit and make it your primary residence.
- Rent the remaining units to tenants.
- Their rent offsets your mortgage while you build equity.
FHA owner-occupancy and property rules apply. We confirm you qualify, and that the rents carry the building, before you write an offer.
What we handle, from the first offer to the keys.
Underwriting tells you whether to buy. Everything after that is the work of actually getting the building, and it is the work you get Andrew for.
- Finding the off-market ones
- The strongest small multifamily rarely reaches the open market in good shape. Andrew works his network across Salt Lake County to surface buildings before they list, and to reach owners who are ready to sell but have not put up a sign yet.
- Reading the inspection and the rent roll
- We go through the inspection with you and match it against the rent roll and the leases, so you know what you are buying, what the tenants are paying, and which items are a price negotiation rather than a surprise after closing.
- The lender’s requirements
- Investment and multifamily loans ask for more than a standard purchase, from reserves to unit counts to occupancy rules. We line up what your lender needs early, so financing is not the thing that stalls the deal.
- Negotiating the price that pencils
- Once we know the real numbers, we negotiate to them. On a building that needs only cosmetic work, that often means going in under asking and buying into the equity, rather than paying for the seller’s optimism.
- Handing it off to a manager
- When you would rather own the building than run it, we connect you with a property manager we have vetted, so the day-to-day is covered and your time goes to the next deal.
Investing here, answered.
How do you decide if an investment property is actually a good deal?
We underwrite it before anything else. That means net operating income against the price as a cap rate, unit rents checked against real market comps, a full expense ratio with taxes, insurance, vacancy and management included, and an honest estimate of what a building of that age will cost to maintain. A property is a good deal when it pencils on those numbers, not when the asking price looks low next to the neighbors.
What is house-hacking, and can I do it in Salt Lake City?
House-hacking is buying a small multifamily building, usually two to four units, with an owner-occupant loan such as FHA, living in one unit, and renting the others. The tenants’ rent offsets your mortgage while you build equity. It works in Salt Lake City the same way it works elsewhere, with the lender’s owner-occupancy and property rules attached. We confirm you qualify and that the rents carry the building before you write an offer.
Can you buy a fourplex with an FHA loan in Utah?
In many cases yes. FHA lets an owner-occupant finance a two-to-four-unit property, which is what makes a fourplex a common first investment. You have to occupy one of the units, and the building has to meet the loan’s appraisal and condition requirements. We walk you through what your lender will ask for and read the existing leases, so you know the deal works before you commit.
How do you find off-market multifamily deals?
The best small multifamily rarely hits the open market in good condition. Andrew works his network across Salt Lake County to find buildings before they list and to reach owners who are open to selling without a sign in the yard. When something surfaces, we run the numbers on it the same way we would a listed property, so off-market never means unchecked.
What does it really cost to own a rental property?
More than the mortgage. A realistic model includes property taxes, insurance, vacancy between tenants, management if you use it, and the maintenance an older building actually needs, from the roof down to the water heaters. We build those figures into the return up front rather than after closing, because a rental that only works with the expenses left out does not really work.
Do I need a property manager, and can you recommend one?
It depends on how hands-on you want to be. Some investors run their own units, especially while house-hacking; others would rather own the building than manage it. When you want it off your plate, we connect you with a property manager we have vetted, so the tenants and the day-to-day are handled and your time goes to the next deal.
Bring us a building, and we will run the numbers.
The fastest way to know whether a property is worth buying is to put it through the model. Send us one you are looking at, or tell us what you are trying to build, and Andrew will run the numbers with you, no obligation and no pressure to buy the first thing that pencils.
What's your home worth?