We are in the middle of our 1st/2nd deal right now and thought we would open ourselves up to questions and comments while we are in the thick of things and can give some specifics regarding FHA/duplex purchase and we are both self employed at 30/35.We were living in Germany (I am a German citizen, my wife is American) prior to making the move back to Cleveland in 2013.

It is a daily challenge to navigate the local, county, state and federal governments; local Code Enforcement, Housing Authorities, Department of Real Estate, Franchise Tax Board, Secretary of State, IRS, Dept. of Fair Housing & Employment, HUD...to name a few. 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the value of Scott’s interest in any of the LLC interests listed on Exhibit B increases as a result of his active efforts, the appreciation of such assets shall be deemed Marital Propertya) Active shall be defined as exclusively engaging in gainful self-employment working toward the growth of his LLC interests listed on Exhibit B, successor LLC’s, spinoff LLC’s, or any other LLC or gainful acquisition made using premarital funds, mortgages, or other financial instruments to fund growth.

When all is said and done I'd wager that employing this strategy would net even less than just buying a multi-unit to start with. 

@Eamonn McElroy is correct, as usual.The only thing I would add is that the net income from the SMLLC that the owner receives will be subject to Self Employment Taxes, which would include social security and medicare.

We have not gotten written information about the tenant's employer and rental history.

I track vacancy, employment rates, net migration, supply/demand, etc. 

Our stupid state actually employs people whose sole job is to try to trick landlords and realtors into saying something that they can claim is discriminatory.I don't know what state you're in, but I'd advise looking into your state and local regulations so you don't get ambushed.

Truth be told, I would not have been able to do it without my business partner who was previously self-employed and was available to staff the office 9-5.

I wish I could click a box that would require anyone wanting more info to complete the basic information that we want--income, employment, etcI have found that texting my response template gets a lot more responses than emailing.