Saving for first property

[Shannon Nacpil]

I'm contemplating ways to raise the funds for my first rental property. I'm super green right now, and still in the information gathering stage. While my husband and I both have decent middle class incomes, with 2 kids and a house, there isn't a tremendous amount left to save, and it feels like a big mountain to climb. I was just notified that both my husband and I will not be receiving any match this year to our 403B's due to COVID19. For this reason I was considering reducing our contributions down to the bare minimum this year, and putting the money I would normally contribute aside for a rental investment. Does this sound like a logical plan, or is this unwise??? Additionally, would anyone mind sharing how much they saved (and any strategies for doing so) for their first investment rental (downpayment and upfront costs as well as how much they set aside for cash buffer). We will be doing this remotely and looking in areas where we can hopefully find more affordable homes.