Essentially a syndication....

I also grew up in cupertino when Stevens Creek and Hwy 9 were still gravel and 280 was not yet built :)  I worked for a syndicator in the late 80s and we had projects in the foothills and did the last phase of Lake Wildwood.. 

Unless you are using your own money, then you shouldn't have a problem, however, if you are enlisting an investor or a lending company, and there are plenty to choose from, don't go with the ones who do the lowest interest.

How do you become a broker for hard money lending? 

While we need massive reform in lending and solutions for home affordability, that ain't it. 

Remember that if you buy 5+, typically that is going to be commercial lending and that can be tougher to sell on the exit. 

Both would be fine as long as they're able to lend in the state you're looking to invest in. 

Keep in touch with your lending partners for each one so you can understand whether you need departure residence income to qualify for the next or not.Finally, if you're investing with a Significant other, I recommend considering a "leapfrog" strategy where you buy one, then your partner buys the next, and so on.  

@Gustavo Delgado I've looked at stocks, bonds, REITS, limited partnerships, and syndications, and have invested in all of them.

By doing this we qualified for a larger mortgage because we could use the rent from the other tenant to qualify and there are better lending programs when it’s “owner occupied”.