Intoduction and House Hacking Questions (Portland)

[Ty Jahn]

Hello Everybody!

I remember being in college and telling my mom that the first house I was going to buy was going to be a fourplex so I could rent out the other 3 units then live for free. Fast forward 10 years and I'm turning 32 here shortly. Haven't purchased a property yet while having a good paying job as an engineer. Realized that I have been letting self limiting thoughts control a portion of my life and am working on breaking the cycle! I've been researching real estate investing for years now and really focusing on it over the last 6 months. It's time I get my feet wet and actually buy a place to learn first hand. I currently live in Seattle but looking at moving to Portland for a change of pace plus it's slightly more affordable (keyword: slightly). Currently looking at 4plex's or a duplex that I could convert into a 4plex within in a year. Plan on buying using an FHA loan with 3.5% down, remodeling, living in the place for a year, then refinancing to repeat the process over again next year.

I found a duplex in Portland that is currently for sale and been on the market for a little over a month for just over $500,000. Current rents in the area for a 1-bedroom are around $1,100 to $1,300 but used $4,000/month to be conservative. Looks to me like while living in it I would almost break even then when I move out I would start to cash flow plus could use the extra equity for another 4plex somewhere plus use some of my cash to buy a 10-unit complex somewhere out of state.

Since it's my first time I was hoping I could get some input from people who have done this before of what to look out for, what I might be overlooking, thoughts on this deal, etc.

Appreciate your time and willingness to at least read this far plus hopefully offer some advise.

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