I've been interested in real estate since high school, and I'm ready to make the plunge with a house hack.

Conventional real estate schools and universities are not guru programs!

Here's a list of things to track:- Formal lease application- Formal signed and executed lease specific to your state- Payment history (I recommend using online rent collection like Apartments.com, RentRedi, etc)- Maintenance requests and receipts- Accounting for all rental-related expenses (repairs, utilities, etc) The more you treat it like a business, the more helpful you are to your CPA come tax time. 

In 2023 before I invested any funds, each and every time that I spoke with their representatives, I asked as my FIRST question if Norada Capital Management had ever missed any interest or principal payments, and was always told the same thing by their representatives, that Norada had a perfect payment/reimbursement history.

Researching local job markets, schools, and even infrastructure projects can provide insight into potential appreciation and cash flow.You might want to explore markets in the Midwest or South, which often have lower entry points and better cash flow potential compared to California.

You can lean into the seasonality of the school year Fall-Spring, then list for MTR in the summer?

I made some really good connections and now the rest is history. 

Wishing I had bought a duplex or really any piece of property straight out of high school for a jump start but here I stand. 

After 12 months, you can use the rent payments as part of payment history, but only if you can show cancelled checks or payments thru a bank account - again, NO CASH PAYMENTS!

Verifying last 2 years of rental history very important!