Ben, I'm not in New Bern but have toyed with the tiny home idea too.

Point #1 - foreigners can't own property - unless you're married to a nationalPoint #2 - you can own a condo - without being married to a nationalPoint #3 - you can Airbnb your condoPoint #4 - condos start around $38,000 upwards to $190K.I've toyed with the idea of offering a service to foreign investors as an American "with boots on the ground" to make sure their investment is properly setup. 

I was toying with the idea of taking the transfer, buying a house (or multi?)

I toyed with it for a while but figured out pretty quick:1.

@John LeavelleI've toyed with the idea of a HELOC but don't want to mix business and personal. 

Can you buy a house now, if "no", why not change it to "yes"? 

Thank you.You wrote: "after I moved out and rented out the place it might be around -100 a month", but, that doesn't include your negative cash flow from where you next move to!Yes

You can assume I'm laser focused on this goal and can compromise and hustle. 

Tenant agrees not to place into any drain lines of the Premises any non-approved substances, such as cooking grease,sanitary napkins, diapers, children’s toys or other similar object that may cause a stoppage.

Only making 5,000 dollars feels like a defeat but it made me realize that I need to develop a laser focus on what I hope to accomplish.