Starting Funds for new investor

[Anastasiia Greca]

I was wondering how much money do you need to start? I understand "The more money you have in your pocket - the better profit you ll get, the more options you ll have to chose from. But I still want to know what is the possible minimum to start.
Me and my husband want to do some house hacking. Specifically we are looking for duplex/3plex. Just the possibility to live for free is very appealing and make extra cash from renting the 3rd unit  (if it`s 3plex ) is very sweet. But unfortunately our funds are really poor. We are a young married couple, working two restaurant jobs and some more jobs on a side. Saving as much as possible. And also we have a very good credit score! So I think we can easy get a nice loan.  So I would like to know what is the minimum, on your opinion, we need to have in our pocket to start? 

[Robert G.]

Originally posted by @Anastasiia Greca:

So I would like to know what is the minimum, on your opinion, we need to have in our pocket to start? 

This is going to vary from one market to another.

Look around at multi-family properties in the areas you're interested in.  You'll need to save up for a down payment, potentially some rehab, and you'll want some cash reserves.

You'll also need to research financing options. Conventional loans may want 20% down (though you can find ones with less), but you may qualify for an FHA 203 loan, which allows you to only give 3.5% down (though you'll have a slightly higher interest rate).

Like I said, it really comes down to the cost of entry around you.  From the little I know of Michigan, I'd think you can pull it off for 15k to 20k.  But you'll want some better advice from someone more familiar with the exact region you're planning to buy in.