I live in California, but being the market it is, I want to invest outside.

I am interested in looking at out of state investment opportunities as the high cost of living in NJ really does make it very investor friendly at the moment. 

I’ve lived and invested in Texas and think it is great.But your local market anywhere in the U.S. is the best place to invest.  

I've been dabbling for the last year or so in the residential world doing side projects, helping friends and family with renovations on their personal homes and managing my own live-in flip. 

I always do current home inspections to see how they live today and if I can't (e.g. they're moving in from out of town) I'm probably not going to rent to them.  

We live in Austin, TX and are looking to expand however NWA has become quite overpriced and as such we are looking into the midwest and are particularly interested in Columbus OH, Milwaukee, Kansas areas.

The property would be a multi family that me and my wife would live in one unit and rent out the rest.

The didn't live within their means, accrued a lot of debt, and it eventually resulted in them not paying rent and being evicted.Consolidating debt reduces their payments so they have more money available, but it doesn't automatically teach them to live within their means.

I’m not looking to make a living making phone calls, but without a budget, you gotta start somewhere.Your first sentence says it all. 

You could either de-convert the basement before purchase, buy with plans for de-conversion, or leave it as non-living space.