Just as an aside, both plan to keep their owned real estate and lease it to the business buyer.I like that because it makes the business much easier to sell.

Sometimes tenants bite, sometimes they don’t, but it’s worth a shot.Owner Move-In: If you’re planning to live in one of the units, you might be able to legally take it back.

We just gave our tenants notice that we are planning to move into the rental they are leasing from us.  

I’m at the very beginning of my REI journey and I would love some guidance on how I can best optimize my planning, research and saving phase (which I’m dedicating 2025 to).

I am currently 36 years old and planning to start my real estate investing journey this year.

I had a similar strategy with my first few house hacks: buy in great A & B Chicago neighborhoods....get by with minimum cash flow, and wait...What's your plan for the next purchase Michael?

Mom’s estate plan should probably address this separately from you. 

--> This is my plan.

Renovations that truly add value-like modern kitchens, open floor plans, and energy-efficient upgrades are making the difference in selling faster and at top dollar.Financing & Interest Rates: The higher cost of borrowing has made tight budgeting more important than ever.

With the exception of building a trailer on the property (these are hard to finance), this sounds like a good plan AND if you are using it for your business AND your business pays more than 50% of the rent (if you have more than 1 tenant), then this is a more financeable property in the eyes of banks and credit unions as it would be consider a commercial "owner-occupied" property.