We like the short-term rental idea because we could stay at the property ourselves when we want - summer break, spring/winter breaks, etc.Our budget will be right around $1M or less ideally, and we would like a short distance to the ocean.How likely is it that we could find a property as described above and have it cover or come close to covering the mortgage? 

🏡 Real Estate Market Report (Single-Family Homes)📊 Mortgage Rates:30-Year Conventional: 7.10%30-Year VA: 6.45%💰 Median Sales Price:October: $485,000November: $484,995December: $484,500📈 New Listings:October: 1,959November: 1,498December: 1,175📅 Median Days on Market:October: 22 daysNovember: 24 daysDecember: 29 days📦 Months Supply of Inventory:October: 3.3 monthsNovember: 3.2 monthsDecember: 2.7 months🤔 What Does "Months Supply of Inventory" Mean?

Even if you rent at a break even or slight loss, if you could have 3 years of rental income offsetting your mortgage while realizing 3-6% appreciation, could be worth it, especially if you think appreciating for this area will exceed national averages.

Our mortgage brokerage works with real estate investors all across the country who face these same decisions regularly.

Credit score shouldn't be the primary driver of tenant approval, because if they could qualify for a mortgage they probably wouldn't be renters.

You are looking at this through the lense of cash flow, don't forget you are also paying down the mortgage and might see some appreciation, so equity growth might be more than cash flow.

We are experienced and have never involved anyone in our projects and have never used a loan outside of a conventional mortgage.

I taught myself Spanish, I already know the construction crews in the area, the realtors, the communities, the land, I have someone managing the property, I have a maintenance crew… I already did an incredible amount of the work involved in finding a deal and turning it around through reconstruction and proper management.

You lack the proper perspective.

Once you graduate and have a steady income, consider house hacking as a beginner-friendly strategy—buying a small multifamily property, living in one unit, and renting out the others to offset your mortgage.