Duplex or triplex as first home

[Tenzin Lhanzey]

We have been pondering the idea of house hacking.  Ideally a duplex or triplex ~ live in one and rent the other unit/units.
where do I even start?  I feel like everyone now days wants to house hack. Will I even find a place in Minneapolis?  I feel so overwhelmed by all the information. 
Ideally we want to have a place by April.

[Jeff Schemmel]

@Tenzin Lhanzey a duplex is a solid place to start; there are dozens on/off market in minneapolis.  Look at a few each day online, or catch up with an agent who knows their stuff and househacked to give you some pointers.  Analyze the property's income potential and expenses and see how it shakes out while you live there and when you eventually move out.  Stick to areas you're comfortable with, and try to steer away from other people's "deal calculators"; you'll overwhelm yourself.  Just keep it simple with this... "What's coming in, what's going out, what's left?"  Take it one question at a time and build out your analysis in a spreadsheet of your own.

While you're doing this, speak with a mortgage lender or two who know investing.  The right lender will be able to advise you on what options you have after getting some info from you and taking an application.  This costs you nothing, and it will be your first real action step in the process.  Once you know you can get a loan, then it's time to start hitting the streets and making it real.  Partner with an agent, who hopefully you've found by this point, and get into some duplexes for real.  This part will really make it real for you, and you will pretty quickly have an idea whether this is right for you.  Have a good dialogue with your agent, ask all the questions, and make sure you're transparent about what you're liking/not liking about the properties.  Take great notes, and bring those back to your analysis.

When you are getting closer to the right property, get informed about what an "offer" looks like, so when the right one is there in front of you you are ready to take action.  From there, your agent should advise you through the rest of it.