Don't be discouraged by the lower returns—house hacking is often about long-term wealth-building, and your primary residence can offset some of those mediocre numbers.Make sure you're accounting for local trends and realistic rents—sometimes expected rent growth is overly optimistic, or costs like repairs might be underestimated.

🎉 A $300/month positive cash flow is a solid start, especially after house hacking.

Since moving into another fixer-upper isn’t ideal right now, consider leveraging your $40K for a low-money-down investment, like house hacking a small multifamily or using creative financing (seller financing, subject-to, or partnerships) to avoid tying up all your capital.

For most people a house hack is a great start. 

Creative financing: Explore seller financing or subject-to deals for your next property, which often require less upfront cash and bypass traditional lending limits.You’re on the right track thinking long-term—house hacking and leveraging your duplex are great moves.

@Shay Yao, I noticed you posted on the forums a little over a year ago expressing interest in house hacking.

If you had to start over today with limited resources, what strategy would you focus on- Would you start with house hacking, BRRRR, wholesaling, or another strategy?

I have been acting as an investor with 20% down on all of them so if it were a 4 unit going as a house hack with a lower down payment that might change things.

It's a duplex in Chattanooga (technically Red Bank) and we will be house hacking for the next couple of years to build some momentum and experience.

House hacking is great.