houston is probably similar pricing to Columbus Ohio but way worse zoning laws. we take 20% on top as a GC and a guaranteed fee agreement. our contracted new construction projects recently:Single family new build spec home: 1513 square feet with 3 beds 2.5 baths 1 car attached $275000 approx $182 a square foot if calculated using heated square feet which means our cost is $145 a square foot. 3 unit / triplex new construction: 2008 square feet 2 bedrooms 1 bath per unit or total 6 bedrooms 3 bathrooms with 3 off street parking spaces. contracted build cost $395,000. no garage on this and better economies of scale with shared roof, slab, etc. $192 a square foot hard cost with our cost running approximately $157 a square foot. 

If the only MFH options you're finding are in areas you're not comfortable with, it might be worth focusing on a duplex in a better neighborhood.Saving up for a larger property later is a valid approach too, but keep in mind that real estate tends to appreciate over time, and waiting might make it harder to enter the market later.

It means you may need to be a better hunter or understand ways to add value.Good luckI claim you eat crayons.

I think starting out I want to work in the Indiana Area until I get a better grasp of all this. 

You also want to look for these like/kind properties that have sold in the past 3-6 months within a .25 to 1 mile radius.This comes with practice so the more you do the better you will become at it. 

Hi Andrew,- If you were in school before Oct 2023 we can use it for employment history - If you were employed for 2 years in the past this should also work (with explaining the gap)- We can do a Non-QM one year employment full doc with no PPP that is better priced than DSCR (but not as good as conventional)Hope it helps 

This gives much better diversification protection across geographies, asset types, strategies, investment subclasses etc. versus putting all the eggs into one basket.The downside is that it's not for everyone, and a person has to be comfortable with turning over control to someone else.

(Someone mentioned 5, that's not very many if you're just learning/ But five woudl be better than none).

I didn’t know that, but now I understand the risk better. 

It all depends on what is going to give you guys a greater return in the long run and be better in time allocation.