Assess if you have enough time for tasks like tenant screening and maintenance.Expertise: Professional managers know landlord-tenant laws and property maintenance best practices.Cost vs. benefit: Weigh management fees against potential savings and efficiencies professionals might offer.Property location: Distance from your home to the property matters.Number of units: More properties increase management complexity.Stress tolerance: Consider your comfort level with tenant interactions and problem-solving.Long-term goals: Professional management can free you to focus on expanding your real estate portfolio.

I feel like renting out multifamily is what I may be looking for with this, if done right can give me cash flow, I can hire a property manager at some point and I am friends with a lot of home improvement companies, and I could either use some money I have saved up to put a down payment or home equity loan for some % I am comfortable with and pay both off as fast as I can and repeat.

I would recommend only using a short or mid-term rental house hack for a 2-4 unit property or a house with a detached ADU for your security and the comfort of the guests, which will make it more profitable.

Seeing as we are in Idaho on Lake Coeur d'Alene it is pretty easy to create comfortable and homey space.

If I'm in your shoes I would checkout any local RE meetups happening nearby, that would be a great spot to meet some other folks in your shoes and/or other lenders who might be able to give their perspective if it makes sense to pull out money from your home rn or not. 

So...I'm I suppose to knock a wall down to increase the space for her shoes??

If I were in your shoes, here's what I would do: Start by securing a work-from-home job.

This could be a lucrative STR location that we are very familiar with and feel comfortable with the location close to our homes.

Running shoes?

Some people are not comfortable with older product.