First Post: Single Family or Multi-Family?

[Jose Robles]

Hey everyone this is my first post and I would love to get some feedback on purchasing a single-family vs a small multi-family for my family's first investment. Some back story: my wife and I are renting now and only recently got into a better financial situation where we are paying our debt down. We have two boys, 7 years and 4 years old, and in 8 weeks we are being blessed with our 3rd boy! I am conflicted because I believe we should have a single-family home to act as our 'home base' with our growing family. A multi-family (if done correctly) would start our journey into cash flow and real estate investing experience but because we are using our VA loan we would have to live in the property for a year before we could do anything with it. I feel like I am too close to the problem to make sense of it. Any recommendations?

[Brad Hammond]

Hi, @Jose Robles congrats on your the newest member of your tribe!  We are expecting our first kid in about 12 weeks.  I think you are going to need to weigh all the pros and cons and device what you are willing to sacrifice.  For example, are there properties in your price range that you would live in within the school district?  Also, I would analyze the properties you can afford and see what the cash flow (or other financial metrics you want to use) is after the first year or two.  That might help you decide if it's worth it to uproot everyone for this endeavor.