First purchase in Houston, looking for advice

[Tristan S.]

Hello everybody,

My wife and I moved to houston 8 months ago. I am 25 and I work as a structural engineer in a civil engineering firm.

We are at an important moment because our lease is ending in February 2016 and we are talking about buying something to live in. But we would also like to start investing in real estate. I think the best strategy for us would be to buy, hold and rent.

We have a 110k$ combined income and around 35k$ in cash. We would like to stay in the loop close to midtown or montrose and would love a two bedrooms.

What would be the best strategy? a duplex sounded like a good idea but it seems like there aren't a lot available in Houston. Is it better to try buying two different apartments? One to live in and one to rent.

Is the best strategy to get a 30yr mortgage and let the tenant pay the mortgage or to do anything you can to pay the property off as soon as possible?

I am just starting to educate myself on the real estate investing business and am really interested.

So I am asking to experienced investor out there what they think about my plan, What would you guys do if you were me?

How is houston market? What are the best neighborhood to buy in?

Thank you very much for your help.