What is the best way to use my VA Home loan?

[Matthew Binns]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to Bigger Pockets, I am 22 yrs old and soon to be U.S Navy vet! My plan is to look for single family/multifamily homes, preferably multifamily, as a long term rental. My plan would be to use my VA home loan for either a duplex or triplex so I can take advantage of paying 0% down and so that I can scale up a lot quicker by having more units. I know that with the VA home loan, whatever property I decide to purchase it will become my primary residence and that I will have to stay there for at least a year. However, I will be moving back in with my parents primarily to save more money. Could I technically just claim the rental as my primary residence even though I am living with my parents and just rent out all of the units? Is there anyone that has done this before? If not, any suggestions as to what I should do as first time investor and new home buyer? Any input or guidance will be very helpful. Thank you, and I am looking forward to networking and getting to know more about real estate investing.