Newbie to Multi-Family Investing | Where/When/How do I start?

[Amandeep Singh]

Hi folks. Wife and bring in an annual combined salary of 600k (Net). I have been earning this salary for about a year and expect it to be the baseline for 5-7 years. (My spouse just landed her first gig and is projected to start in November 2024) and we are ready to invest starting fresh in 2025 with minimal payments left on loans, etc. We rent at this time, 3k a month. No major expenses aside from the day-to-day.

I understand it is a difficult market at the moment (High interest, High prices, etc), and I have no problem playing the waiting game. We have decided to start saving, 25k-30k a month (Advised to keep this in MMA's until we're ready to use it to minimize risk) or 300-350k annually, strictly for Multiunit property investing. I have no experience in this field aside from the books and videos I've been watching (Drinking from a fire hose). I typically rely on external sources for experts in finance, accounting, and other areas which I simply am no expert in and am happy to rely on someone else.  To add to the current scope, we do not care for passive income, nor will we rely on it for at least 5 years, but need to break even or cash-positive at a minimum. The end goal is to accumulate as many properties as possible in 5 years. We will likely go part-time with work, and depend on the passive income, after the 5 year 'Investment and accumulation' phase.

- With all the provided background, where do I start?

- Should I source a consultant or some sort of assistance to devise a business plan?

- Our end goal is to use the properties to replace our current income with a goal of 35-50k in passive income a month, are these numbers and the plan too unrealistic?

- If you were in this position, where would you start, and how? Factors such as:

1. - Multi-Unit property price range.
2. - An acceptable market entry range with factors such as the property price, down payment, and interest rate considered.
3. - Do I enter immediately when I am financially ready, or should I wait until I’ve reached the projected savings allocated for this venture?

I guess I need to see this on paper so that I can visualize a clear goal and work towards it. I’ve watched multiple videos on the Biggerpockets channel and it's given me a bit more confidence. Happy to work with someone who can assist with putting a plan together. Thanks in advance for your response and/or advice.