Chicago - Equity and Credit Score enough to buy a property?

[Will Mejia]

Currently I own 2 duplexes that I rent out. I have some equity in them.

I live elsewhere and rent. I now want to buy a 3rd property perhaps a condo so the money I pay monthly goes to my own property.  But another option could be house hacking. I could buy a property with 2 units so I can live in one and pay it off with the 2nd unit.

The problem is Chicago is very expensive to buy at the moment and I earn very little from my job. So my job income would be out of the question to  to convince a bank I can make monthly payments. I have 800+ credit score and equity mentioned above as potential ways to put a down payment but I want to know if this is possible. 

Has anyone done something like this before?

Thanks.

[Carolyn Boswell]

Yes, I'd house hack. Since you have a high credit score think about starting an LLC, if you don't have one already, and apply for business funding in the form of credit cards. Let's say your highest credit card limit is $10K you could be approved for up to 5x that amount and you could use that as a down payment. Also consider using a rehab loan or FHA 203K and maybe purchase a property in a good area that need's some TLC and as long as you buy in a good area you can sell in a few years if you want.