Greetings from the NC Triangle

[Charles Beck]

Greetings BP! I am a full-time medical research analyst by trade who is excited to learn as much as possible about real estate investing. I've been voraciously reading books, forums, and listening to podcasts for months and am at the point where I feel ready to take action towards acquiring my first property. My near-term goal is to purchase my first small multifamily property in or around the NC Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill) and work towards snowballing once my experience allows it.

So far I've spoken to a national bank and a credit union to gauge what I qualify for and can afford. When I brought up the topic of investing in small multifamily properties both looked at me cross eyed. Any insights into the local lending aspect of the process would be much appreciated! 

[Chris Martin]

Originally posted by @Charles Beck:

...So far I've spoken to a national bank and a credit union to gauge what I qualify for and can afford. When I brought up the topic of investing in small multifamily properties both looked at me cross eyed. Any insights into the local lending aspect of the process would be much appreciated! 

They were not multifamily lenders. 

Multifamily is 5 or more units, and for virtually all lenders doing origination, the minimum loan amount is $1,000,000... further, your net worth must be at or greater than loan amount. 

Don't use the term 'multifamily' around banks unless you mean 5 or more units. Duplexes and quads are 1-4 Family and are underwritten as single family. 

My straightforward take: they looked at you cross eyed because you came across as clueless.