15% on a single family home and 25% on 2-4 units if you're using conventional (Fannie/Freddie) financing.

Investment Info:Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment.

If you're willing and able, I do recommend the "house hacking" strategy which is just a fancy name for buying a rental property and living in one of the units, because you'll get very favorable financing - an owner-occupied fixed-rate 30-year mortgage.I'd also say, analyze that property as if you won't live there and it's a pure rental, and make sure the property is still cash flow positive if there's a tenant in your unit because then you'll know if it's actually a good investment.And when you analyze it, include payment of a property manager in your #s because if you don't, and doing so would make it go cash flow negative, then you've just bought yourself a job because you literally can't step away from managing it without losing money.

5unit is probably manageable.  20 unit is work I would think. 

To grow a portfolio (ie #'s of units) requires a lot of capital.

Maybe even college housing.I would think that maybe splitting it into two units might be more profitable.

In the event that he moves out in a few years, I would turn the unit into a rental.Questions:1) Since I will be renting to a family member, do I still need to create an LLC?   

I don't think 5+ units gets you to where you want to go. 

The roof and our unit's furnace replaced 5 years ago. 

Investing in  2-4 unit properties within the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex would be ideal but I am also interested in other potential deals, that fall within the 2-4 unit range.