They could offer different products for single family vs multifamily so it's a good idea to get with a lender to see what they can do that may not be your typical mortgage type.

Duplex have different zoning that may permit additional units.

Also, it lends itself to unconscious bias because we are more likely to view negatively people who are different than us.

The energy in person is different for me, and I've made some of my best connections and friends at Chicago meetups.Here is a list of the Chicago event from BP: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521-real-estate-events-...I also have a list of ALL THE CHICAGO MEETUPS that I am happy to share with you. 

You'll have far less competition as you move into the 5+ unit space where the different financing and higher prices weed out many of the first time investors feeding on $400k fourplexes. 

In that case you need to pay the difference.

So that helped.I personally wanted to be more conservative as I pretty much reach “the number” that I needed (note that what “I needed” is different from what “I wanted” or what I was expecting by default.)

Rookie real estate investor looking for some advice:I purchased a duplex in Grand Rapids, MI last October (2023).

It's always a personal choice everyone has a different perspective.   

“Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon, in the sense that it is and can be produced only by a more rapid increase in the quantity of money than in output.” - Milton FriedmanAgreed Russel.