We were college roommates and life long friends.

It's far less comfortable day to day having roommates vs your own side of a duplex, but it would allow you to own an asset in a more desirable neighborhood that will likely see greater appreciation over the long term.I hope that helps.

Some of them get creative and get roommates, have to find a part time job to supplement their income or move to a less expensive place though that can be hard for long time residents as all of their support is in the area. 

You can find on google different leases for a room that you can make and have your roommate sign. 

The Deposit shall beheld byLandlord as security for the performance of Roommate's obligations under this Lease pursuant to section 14@Khalid Bryan Yes its fully executed.

if you don't mind roommates, consider a house hack to off set the mortgage costs. if you do that, get leases signed by those roommates as it'll help your financing picture for the next property as you'll have shown the ability to operate as a landlord.  

Unless you have a lot of money for a downpayment, it's highly unlikely you'll break even while living somewhere (especially in CA) unless you're willing to have a lot of roommates. 

One model I’m seeing investors doing is the rent by the room strategy / padsplit.IF done right, you can turn a single family home to function like a multiplex - increasing the cash flow by double, even triple oftentimes.Has to be the right property of course / layout / characteristics to minimize drama and conflict between roommates / tenants since it’s a longer stay than STR and spaces are shared but with the right set up and systems in place in can be extremely effective and super profitable.You can easily switch from STR to MTR since it’s already furnished and just make a few tweaks.I can definitely help you put some ideas together or connect you with some investors I know doing it in Jacksonville FL. 

Might be worth creating a CoLiving/roommate situation for a year to really stack some cash for the next opportunity. 

Our current residents who are AWESOME (rent always on time, take great care of property) now have a situation where the downstairs roommate is moving out but the upstairs group wants to stay (lease is up July 1).