House Hack vs Renting

[Anna Urbina]

Hello all

  I will be moving soon and I am weighing my options between either renting or buying a town home, condo etc. I live in Southern CA and would like to be closer to work if I could (SB, Ventura). The idea of house hacking came to mind, but was hoping to get some additional insight. What would I need to look for? How would it work if I wanted to rent the additional rooms, or, if I need to move again, rent out the property, cash flow etc. I have been saving with hopes of buying out of state multiplex and would like to continue to save money for that and maintain lower living costs.  I should also mention I will not be putting down 20-25%.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank you