I'd highly recommend house hacking in your local market since you're in one of the highest cost of living areas in the US, especially if you're renting currently and planning on staying in the area for 5-10 years.It sounds sexy to go out and invest out of state for your first property.

I've lived in central Texas for 44 years and never have I replaced a roof less than 20 years old.

I currently live in the Bay Area, but I’ve decided to start investing in the Jackson County/MO area.

I'm hoping to do an FHA 203(k) within the first half of this year and eventually rent it out after living in it for about 2 years.

I used to live in Louisville KY and now I am in Tampa Florida. 

@Benjamin Goodman gives a good example referencing live in flips. 

I too live in Asheville, so Sapphire was closer than Cashiers and Highlands.

It wasn't fun living an hour and a half from work and play, but absolutely worth it.If one is starting with relatively low living expenses, cash flow can be extremely powerful towards reaching financial freedom.

Hey @Spencer Cuello, so you will find most of us aren't fans of arbitrage.I see you listed NYC so you know that you can't do a STR in the city unless you live there.IE: You need to be onsite, living in the same unit you are going to rent.As per usual...

Hopefully you already worked this out.Aside from HML, there's also an option to do a live-in-flip, where you live in the house for a year and renovate it slowly.