FHA - Maximize Low Down Payment?

[Garrett Woetzel]

Hello, BP. First thread posting, so don't be too hard on me! 

I am looking to invest in my first real estate property in the next few months, and I hope that this property will be one of many to come. My plan is to use a few FHA loans on duplexes over the next few years, until I am tired of moving once per year!

My original target price range for a duplex was about $150k - $225k, but because I was having some difficulty finding properties at that price level that I was interested in living in, I began to up my search to something in the $300k range. I was initially reticent to moving up my price range, but as I began to think about it, I realized that I will only have 2-3 opportunities to make 3.5% down payments on properties, and as such, it may make sense to make this low down payments on expensive properties. The 16.5% delta (between a 3.5% down and a 20% down) on a $150k purchase vs. a $300k purchase is quite large. 

So, my question is this: what are the downsides to this strategy? Might this severely impair my ability to attain financing in the future? The obvious upsides are that I have a better living situation, I am building more equity through a more expensive property -- both through equity pay down and likely appreciation, and I am likely setting myself up for better tenants in the future. 

I'd love to hear some thoughts/critiques on my thought process here. I want to make sure I am not missing something fundamental. 

Thanks in advance! Aaaand sorry for the long post.