Newbie from Pittsburgh, PA

[Adam Keffer]

Hi All!  

My names Adam and I'm a new member here from Pittsburgh, PA.  

I've always been interested in REI and have since become more serious since I found the BP Podcast and Forums. There is so much useful and awesome information available! Looking forward to searching out local deals and getting my feet wet finally. If I've learned anything at all so far, it's to take ACTION and stop waiting for the perfect time to dive in.

A little bit about me...  I'm 35, engaged, and have a 9 month old baby girl at home.  I live in a townhome in the North Hills which is %100 paid off.  I'm looking to leverage the equity in my home (@$165k) to fund my first deal.  My credit is good and I have no debt, so I don't anticipate having any issues getting traditional financing.  I also have @$65k within my 401k.  I'm interested in both Single Family and Multi-Family homes as long as the numbers make sense, obviously.

Can anyone provide suggestions for financing my first deal? Should I go HELOC or Home Equity? Should I limit my search to homes less than $165k?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanks!  Super excited/eager to learn and to get my first deal under my belt!