The law does NOT apply to landlords:With less then 5 rental unitsThat live in one unit of a duplex and rent out the other unitThat rent out rooms in the home they occupySo, landlords can no longer state in their rental ads, "Section 8 not accepted".The reverse is also true, "Section 8 only", cannot be used.We've always recommended screening S8 tenants the same way as cash-paying tenants.Landlords waiving application fees and/or security deposits only for S8 prospects may also be violating Fair Housing.

So my question is, if you were in my shoes, where would you start if you had $150 cash with good credit?

I'd also suggest self-managing your first property to maximize cash flow and learn by doing for any future investments.

Your cash flow is positive on paper, but how will that look in reality?

Quote from @Evan Polaski: @Jamie Parker, for what it is worth, I tend to agree that you can't take the 70% rule for much of anything.  

You're netting $5k/mo and have no cash available and you're working a civil engineering job?

How much cash is ideal to have on hand when starting out?

The price points do make it hard to cash flow even with the lower interest rate subject tos. 

You need to do a cost-benefit analysis to determine if it's worth it.  

I put in total $70K and it's worth $100K now.