Hello Bigger Pockets!

[Jeremy G.]

Hi Everyone, I am new here but Ive been watching, reading, researching for the past couple months. I am still very ignorant when it comes to most things real estate, But I have a pretty good idea of what I'm looking for what my plans are and how i'll accomplish them, But I am looking for a bit of Unbiased advice, I can not find anyone around me that is looking out for my best interests in fact everyone I know is only out for themselves, SO, I have come here in search of guidance!..

My situation, I'm a 32 year old single father of an 8 year old girl, I have a full time job making around 61k/year I have been renting a townhouse from my mother for nearly a decade, never really thinking I would have to move in fact, I assumed(like an ***) that I would just end up owning it sooner or later, I never prepared for having to move or prepared a downpayment or anything of that sort, in other words, I've been very stupid over the years. My wake up call came when my mother told me she's selling.... uh oh I screwed up. So now I have to find a place for my daughter and I to live. 

The rental market in my state is insane, median rent is around 1250/month most of what I can find is around $1500/mo, So I started thinking, Maybe I'll just get a house the mortgage wont be too much more, upon doing research and talking to mortgage brokers and real estate agents, on a 160k home with only 3.5% down My mortgage would be around 1400/month which includes taxes insurance pmi etc. This is just too much for me to want to afford comfortably. I was approved for 160k with my income and a 620 credit score and a down payment grant program of 3%. This just isnt going to work for me.

Over the past 3 months I have worked on my savings and my credit score and done a TON of research, I am now a 700 credit score and I have 6k in savings, and a much better plan. I live in the biggest city in NH and work in the 3rd biggest city in NH. everything available in the main cities is far to expensive or run down for my experience and comfortability, I also want to get out of the city because I hate the city. I've decided a multifamily in one of the surrounding towns would be the best choice for me, So i started looking into multifamily units. Again I have been pre approved for 160k and a down payment grant worth 3%. I found 2 multi family properties that I am interested in, located in a small town about 20 minutes outside of the city I work im. average rents in the town are right around 1200/month. It's a 3 unit 129k with a new roof, new windows, new flooring, My mortgage will be roughly 1200/month, if I can rent the other two units for 1200/month, then I live for free and have an extra +/-$1200/month to put away every month as well as the income from my full time job, even at 100% vacancy, my mortgage is lower than buying a single family home and also lower than renting. 

This just makes 100% perfect sense to me am I wrong? way off base? out of my mind? dreaming?

This is what I've come up with so far

asking price: 129,000

down payment: $4,515

financed: $124,485

taxes approx: 4k year

interest rate approx 4.6%

PMI approx $100

Approximate total mortgage $1150/month

Median Rent in NH and locality of property 1250/monthx2 =2,500/month in rental income approximately $30k/year

2500-1150=1350  after mortgage 1350-50%=675/month for vacancies/repairs leaves $675/month cash flow for savings/emergency fund/student loans/ extra mortgage payments, again this is not including the income from my day job.

Am i dreaming? I did find another property is is in the same town and also a 3 unit multi family over all more square footage but also 155k so it's a higher mortgage payment. 

1 more option I was thinking about on the 129k property is doing a 15 year fixed, mortgage would be around 1300/1400 per month so less over all cash flow but faster pay off lower interest.

Any advice?

Thanks!

Jeremy