Hi @Laura Winegardner, I'd have to agree with Luka, option 1 may be your best scenario for your goals. I have had many clients do the same thing, and all have proven successful for a couple of reasons:
1. Because they are living in the property, there is a larger margin for error and people seem more willing to take action instead of sitting on the sidelines, like so many wanna be investors do (this is the most important part!). This also allows you to obtain an owner occupant loan, which comes with lower down payment requirements and lower interest rates.
2. Because you are renting out part of your home, you are able to typically drastically reduce your housing expenses, and therefore you can build up your cash reserves so much faster than most people can so you can go out and buy your next property.
3. You are getting hands-on property management experience and investing in a growth market like Nashville.
As far as certain areas of town, many of my clients have found homes with walk-out basements in the Donelson/Hermitage area that work perfect for this house hack strategy. I also have a realtor client who has an East Nashville listing right now that is fully remodeled with a walk-out basement that includes a kitchen. Here is the link for the listing for reference: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1615-Stratford-Ave-Nashville-TN-37216/41085810_zpid/?
Something like this where you could live in the remodeled basement and rent out the full house would be a great introduction into real estate and really set you up for success.
