Hey @Augusta Owens Bigger Pockets has been so valuable to me in my own journey, so you are in the right place.Ive been hosting an investor meetup the past 3 years and it's been a great place to collaborate with the like minded individuals and collaborate. 15-25 people show up each month and range from new investors to people,e who have been investing for decades.would love to connect and get you some more information! 

Too many people, especially lately, are looking at section 8 as a bulletproof or superior strategy. 

@Adedayo Adetunji people that break into a property & occupy it are called "squatters".On September 24, 2014, three new Michigan Statutes went into effect to make squatting a crime and give landlords more options to remove them (see Michigan HB 5069/PA223, HB 5070/PA224, HB 5071/PA225).

That’s 3 months of mortgage out of pocket and can make Chas flow negative. im also curious if people have experience doing section 8 in b neighborhoods or just c and d 

People don't use Airbnb much in my area.

This will cause population growth as people look for affordable places to live.What lesser-known markets are you currently researching, and what specific metrics are you using to evaluate their potential?

You'll have a property manager do the management (so you being close to it is not needed).Yes there are risks for some people to go out of state but if you learn the techniques like I have, you'll see it's actually easier and far less risky.

For a first time investor, I definitely recommend house hacking for most people as homeowner loans are by far the best in terms of rate and LTV. 

You'll learn what contractors are good at such repairs, and eventually people will start bringing you "problem properties" with that issue.Another related idea: contact a good local realtor and ask them if they know of any on or off market properties that would be a hard sell for most buyers. 

The reality is that this isn't people crashing on the couch while we're out of town anymore.