Looking to invest not sure where and thoughts on my strategy pls?

[Remon Rasho]

Hello, and thank you all for your time reading my post and weighing in with your opinions. That being said I'll try and be brief. 

My goal is to purchase a Duplex in CO., IL., and or WI as early as March of 2023. Living in one unit while renting out the other. With a plan to (potentially) purchase a truck and pull-behind trailer to live in for a year or so while we traveled the US a bit. 

We'd travel to A.) see the country and B.) learn of the RE. opportunities that exist outside our basic/brief exposure to RE investing so far. Or if we don't do that.. the goal would/could be to "hopscotch" from one property to the next as we build our portfolio.

The challenge is both my wife and I work remotely (and she does hold a Realtor Lic. in CO, (and in IL*)) so great (fiber preferred) internet is a must. 

I want to find a property that is logical*** (meaning people are moving there, the local economy is strong, rentals make sense and aren't over-saturated, etc.) and my wife is in love with the thought of short-term rentals. I believe a mixed portfolio doesn't just make sense, it'll be the strategy moving forward, but...

The question is... where makes sense to go first?

>>Read further for context<<  

I am looking to invest in a duplex, but I am unsure which state/town/county makes the most sense. I'm not open to the South as I'll (potentially) be living on one side of the  Duplex while renting out the other side. 

1st Choice would be IL. (Mchenry county area/NW Suburbs) as I've owned/lived there in the past, we have a ton of family in the area and eventually.... the goal is to turn our "side" of the duplex into a short-term rental to A.) allow us to move onto the next property/chapter of our lives and B.) we have a ton of family in CO. (where we currently live) who would also benefit from visiting IL from time to time for family/friends as well. 

My concerns are that my wife hates IL. and loves CO. and we're living in CO now. (*Western Slopes) also, the new laws going into effect in IL. are kinda crazy to me.. I wouldn't have any police help for squatters and/or other violent crimes (unless I'm mistaken). But if we can find a duplex that makes sense and we can tap into the short-term market... IL would be great.

2nd choice would be WI. (Lake Geneva/close to IL.'s NW suburbs - specifically the McHenry county area) would be a good second choice for all of the above-stated reasons, but we've never lived in WI., so it's an unknown for us (just as most of the states would be).

3rd choice would be CO. (thinking the front range - i.e. Denver suburbs, Colorado Springs, etc) would also be a great option as we have our eldest daughter who lives here and our youngest daughter still lives with us and has mentioned moving out to the Denver area... if she did, investing in a surrounding area makes some sense to us; however, CO is expensive as heck and I'm almost certain a (viable) duplex would exist in the area. (side thought... The Grand Junction area of CO. would work as well***)

Spelling it out... my strategy would be to save the 5% I'd need for a conventional loan (if I can't get an FHA loan) to purchase the first duplex (I don't have 20% for anything right now), living on one side to fulfill the loan requirements that we live there for "x" period of time, and to save up for the next property (move into our RV or pull-behind).

My thoughts are to rent out one side of our Duplex as a long-term renter (needs to cover the mortgage + "X"% for profit with the Short-term side bringing in profit ($10K per year min is my hope/am I dreaming?) 

The goal is to purchase our first Duplex next year in 2023 with our 2nd property (and if we can get a 3rd property as well) in 2024.. We want Duplexs to start so we can live in them at first.. fix up anything that needs fixing and learn from the process. 

This is the plan thus far, but ultimately we want to leave our 9 to 5's (ASAP) to transition to being RE investors full-time. 

Any advice, tweaks, or criticism would be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you, everyone :)