I do not want to be stuck with two mortgages and I am a little scared of being stuck in this situation especially on the brink of a market crash.

Congratulations on your arrival!!

The caveat is that it was written in the days before the big crash of 2009-2010 and it only talks about the upside of leverage, ignoring the downside. 

Renting when you first arrive would definitely be preferable as you can get an idea of which location you would like to purchase in.

If 40k is too much then explain to them why and ask them how they arrived at that number.

If rentals you still need to know absorption levels for rentals and what amenities the competition offers to arrive at a projected lease rate and how fast it will be to fill up and stabilize.I would want to know for instance that there was no rent control looking at  a project like that and that demand was high for rentals and most places were full.

Many investors got burned in the crash because of high leverage, low cash flow or none and counting on appreciation.  

Look at what happened in SF during the last crash, even ParkMerced went into default.Underwriting today is absurdly lax and I don't get how anyone looking closely at CMBS issuance can say that CMBS lenders have learned their lesson. 

Hi,On a 8-plex we are offering on, the seller utilized a 5% cap rate with existing NOI(30k) to arrive at 600k purchase price.

FHA-approved) as for borrowers who would be buying their primary with the loan (rather than renovating their primary and investing), but I'm guessing that favorable terms could be arrived at nevertheless.