Duplexes a good choice for 1st Investment

[Kyle Brown]

I am looking to purchase my first real estate investment property. I am looking at duplexes so I can get income at the same time pay off the mortgage and live in the other unit. Is this a wise way to get my foot in the door in REI or would it be more beneficial if I purchased a single family home and hope to make a decent profit off it and then have a bigger chunk of money to buy other properties? I am looking to invest in the South Jersey area.

[James Masotti]

@Kyle Brown - If you can handle living next to your tenant than this is an awesome way to get started. The tenant will pay all (or most) of your PMI payments and then you can bank the rest to start putting money away to acquire more investment properties. This strategy can rapidly increase how you can utilize your capital and equity. I can only say I wish I was smart enough to do this when I bought my first property (single family foreclsoure)

James