Constantly manage bookkeeping and cash flow to make sure you stay on budget and/or make adjustments when (not if) things come up to stay on track.  

Stay active, keep learning, and get advice from people or pros you trust.Good luck!

Had my inspections done a month or two ago and they checked about a dozen items per property that had to be corrected and told us the properties were deemed "uninhabitable" until then and no one could stay in them.

The help I have provided with a few home remodels has consisted of kitchen and bathroom layouts, flow and functionality, fixtures and finishes of the home, all while trying to stay within budget.  

Stay focused on your goals, and best of luck on your journey in real estate!

Our lease on the rent house i'm staying in currently will be up 02/01/25 and I want to begin building my portfolio and not continue to rent. 

PS I can also tell you who to stay far away from in that market :)

UPDATE:Yes, we are moving forward and the numbers on the purchase price, and terms of the deal, stay relatively the same (in the big picture).We opted to pay the agent out of our pockets.

My main concern about actual house hacking for a few years in a row is that we don't want the kiddos to have to change schools once we relocate up there.I'm thinking about getting an appreciation-oriented duplex/triplex in a pricier market with good schools that we could stay in for several years, and saving for an actual cashflow property that'd we buy as an investment property instead of a house hack.

This is also the best thing, because many out of state investors find it confusing and stay away, which keeps our returns much higher and wards off Wall Street investors from buying up swaths of houses, which we've seen in other markets.As an STR specialist, keeping up with zoning and regulation statewide is a huge part of my job.I also host monthly short term rental events for local investors, monthly webinars, and I also often get furnished, turnkey off-market STR properties.