Multi to single family First time home buyer

[John Armando]

Hello BP Team,

I'm trying to get a feel for what everyone's experience has been going from a low-down payment multi-family first time home buyer property to a single-family residence (would the single family residence still qualify for low-down options as it is essentially "trading up"). I know there are a lot of options, so looking for what other people's experiences have been.

In short, my fiancee and I are looking to buy a multi-family with low down to conserve our capital. We hope within a year (~ 1 year to meet owner-occupancy requirements) we would purchase a single family home to start our family. With this strategy, we would be able to house-hack for the first year, learn hands-on about being landlords, and be able to acquire a multi-family for little down.  

Is it possible, and what mechanisms from your experiences have worked, for using low-down options for both purchases? We have enough liquid to purchase one of the properties at 20-25% down if necessary, but would like to keep our liquid assets intact. 

Thank you for your guidance.