Owner Occupied vs. Out of State for First Deal

[Hannah Smith]

Hi all! Happy New Year!

I am fairly new to BP and have been researching and saving in anticipation of buying my first property this year. I currently live in Raleigh, North Carolina / The Triangle Area and consider my market decently expensive with lower returns than I could perhaps obtain elsewhere.

Does anyone have any thoughts/comments with regard to purchasing a property in the Triangle that is owner-occupied (myself) and renting out part of it and eventually converting it into a full rental that I no longer live in OR investing out of state with the potential for higher returns?

If the property is occupied by me I can have a very low down payment and a great rate. If I buy out of state I know I'd have to put down more money but it might be a better investment in the long-run. I've been looking at properties in the Triangle for several months now and cannot make the numbers work from an investment perspective. 

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated. Thanks all. 

[Tiffany Alexy]

House hacking is awesome if you can find something that works.  I started in college with a 4 bed/4 bath unit which worked out great.  Lived there for a few years, converted it to a full rental, rinse and repeat.  Of course not everyone has the willingness to live in student housing.  I was in grad school and then working (and still in my young 20s) so as long as I had a place to sleep and take showers I was pretty much set.  It's a lot tougher when you're in a serious relationship or have a family, so do it while you can.