What to do in the 6-8 months before purchasing a home

[Caleb Graham]

Hi everyone! First time using the forums :)

I'm a 25-year-old software engineer looking to leverage the power that real estate and more specifically, house hacking, provides. I want to absorb as much knowledge as I can before I jump into the world of real estate investing.

Would love to get people's opinions on what the best use of my time would be in the next 6-8 months before I attempt to buy a duplex. I've read a few real estate books (including BRRRR), I keep up with the market, and I've been doing research into multifamily homes in my target market, but I'm a bit unsure of where to go from here. Does it make sense to be getting preapproved for loans this far out? Should I be running numbers on potential deals in my target area as practice?

For various reasons, I won't be able to buy until spring 2024 and I want to be as prepared as possible.

Thanks in advance!