Buying Multi Unit Property with FHA but with fixed budget

[Matt Abi]

Hi fellas,

I am new to BiggerPockets and would love to ask my first question. 

I am total newbie when it comes to real estate investment. I have a well paying FT job in the Bay area and also e-commerce business  on the side.  I am free of debt and saved about $30k.

Someone recommended me to buy a multi unit family as a long term investment and I am learning a lot about it. Right now in the Bay area, it's hard to have a positive cash flow on real estate if you buy now since the prices are higher than they used to be 2-4 years ago but rental prices hasn't gone up much. 

If I buy duplex or triplex with FHA(3.5% downpayment) I might have to spend all of my savings and even pay extra $500-$1k/month for the room I am going to live in the unit. Which is totally fine as I already pay $1500-$2k/month for rent in this area.

My biggest concern is, should I be worried a lot about recession or any situation that would bring the price of the house to be very low for such long term investments ? I don't worry too much about my job since my ecom income can support me as well. 

I am not trying to get rich quick with this investment but more of a long term plan where I could be making a positive cash flow 10 years from today or good ROI if I have to sell it 10-15 years from today.

Last question is, I can also invest my money on my ecom business that can generate 30-50% yearly ROI but I thought of using my interest free credit cards for this type of investments. What % range ROI should I expect from multi unit family investments ?

[Thomas S.]

If it does not have positive cash flow based on all units rented today, with assumed 100% financing,  it is a bad deal and you pass.

Your area is not suitable for cash flow investing.