My short-term goal is to find my first property within the next 18-24 months with my long-term goal of buy and hold investing with enough cash flowing properties to supplement or possibly replace my income and support my family's desired lifestyle.Outside of my career and interest in real estate, I enjoy spending time with my wife and children.  

To supplement that comment for the forum readers, I am viewing limited downside risk as selling the house for less than $520k to begin to take a loss.

I always knew I would get into rentals but I thought it would be when I had paid off all of our debt and our mortgage and likely when I was in my 50's so that I could supplement my income into retirement.  

I'll be focused primarily on multi-family homes but also open to SFR to supplement my portfolio.I live in Robbinsville NJ, a few miles from Trenton, NJ.

Lost income is unimportant to hobby landlords, their priority is to do as little management as possible and believe supplementing tenants rent will hold them longer and therefor avoid him having to do any work.

Most of the agents driving around in Cadillacs are done raising kids, have pensions or are supplemented by their spouse's income, and they have decades of work/life experience to help their success.

If they stay you are supplementing their rent and if they leave the new tenant would be paying market.

It makes for great supplemental income, but I have found it too unreliable to rely on as my primary source of income.

At the moment I'm looking to supplement my income.

Next, buy an investment property under the hypothetical assumption that you are the sole owner and that you can not rely on a girlfriend, wife, or roommate to supplement your payments.