New member in Cleveland, OH area

[Patsy Waldron]

Hello!

I just moved to the Cleveland area from North Carolina a couple of weeks ago. My husband is a native Ohioan and he will be attending graduate school in Cleveland. I was working full-time but am currently not. I have been interested in real estate investing for a long time- it's always been a part of my retirement plans, but I did not envision it happening until I was close to retirement. However, since I have moved to Ohio and realized that (1) real estate is ridiculously cheap in Cleveland (compared to the Raleigh-Durham area), and (2) the sooner I get into the game, the longer I can benefit from my investments. So- I am now exploring buy and hold small (2-4 units) multi-family rentals in the greater Cleveland area.

I have read many of the forum threads about a variety of topics, including the Cleveland ones. I would love to connect and/or meet up with those on BiggerPockets who are in the area! I did see that there is a meet-up on Thursday, and I am planning to attend it. 

I do have one question for the community about financing: I have a good amount of money saved up that I plan on using for down payments and other costs. What are my financing options? We sold our house, so HELOC is not a possibility; I don't believe I qualify for a FHA loan, since my husband is going to be a student and I am not currently working and we don't have any regular income to show. What are some creative ways for me to finance any investments? Thank you for any insights!

Patsy