House hacking is an awesome choice for starting out—it’s a great way to cover your mortgage while gaining landlord experience.

I am looking to connect with local investors in the southern Ohio area to learn from and work with.Which part of southern Ohio are you referring to?

In reference to that Carl family that'd say that nonsense on this board.

With strong demand and guaranteed, government-backed rent, Columbus is an excellent choice for investors seeking reliable cash flow.

A final choice would be to rent the primary in a few months, reside in a rental for several years, sell the primary, and purchase another SFH for rental and a SFH residence as a new primary.Is this a viable place to begin investing?

@Josh WellsRecommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

Do you check Landlord references?

Does he have references you can talk to?

When people don’t have the optionality of another remote work job, they are going to have no choice

The right choice not only depends on the property, but the investor as well.