Should I Start Out with Multi-Family First??

[Adam Scheetz]

I bought a primary residence Single-Family in 2010, Rented it in 2015 [sole landlord], and Just sold it in 2018 FSBO. That's the extent of my 'hands on' experience. Having said that, In pursuit of experience and growth, would it be wise to forego the traditional Single-Family Flip or Buy & Hold rental and instead go straight for the Duplex, Tri-plex, Quad, etc? Here's my thinking.

The cash flow, ROI, and potential margins from Multi-Family seems to consistently outweigh that of single family- from what I've calculated- without a great increase in investment total or difference in sale value. Mindful of the fact that I'd like a way to generate income to reinvest and grow and I don't know anything about buying and selling REO, notes, tax-liens, and all the other seemingly 'quick-turn profit niches out there , is Multi-Family smart to start with?

As always,

Thank You!

[Michael Dang]

I've reflected on my journey and starting with a very small Multifamily property is sound.  You'll learn a lot.  From there you can scale at a faster pace once you've gotten the experience.   Learn to underwrite/analyze it conservatively and you'll be ok.  Just don't underwrite this one property, but a good number of properties to fully understand the process and get a better feel for what a good deal is acceptable for your market and you.