As long as you're prepared to be a landlord and live next to your tenant for at least a year, house hacking is a great way to get started.

I'm looking for another STF property that doesn't need to be rehabbed (which makes wholesale properties, BRRRR properties, and a lot of "Creative Finance" properties POSSIBLE but certainly less likely to work cleanly). 

Sad times we live in just as we enter bear market today & prepare for crash of our lifetime!

If I was the landlord here are the questions I would be asking - providing these so you could be prepared if they come up:1.

The human race has historically been poor at predicting future, so it's wise to prepare for multiple scenarios.Mortgage rates in 2025 may decrease slightly if inflation stabilizes and the Federal Reserve eases rates, though they are unlikely to return to pre-pandemic lows.

Also consider contacting houses that look vacant, simply door knocking in a neighborhood that you are interested in and talking to the homeowners in a genuine way, For Sale By Owners is another potential, using an App like Nextdoor or Facebook pages/groups related to local real estate and just telling the group what you are looking for, contractors also know about houses coming on the market soon and so do property management companies, and finally garage sales are a good way to find off-market properties as people prepare to sell.To Your Success!

It might also be worth exploring creative financing to leverage that quarter million into even bigger opportunities. 

Investment Info:

Large multi-family (5+ units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $645,000

95% seller financed, 5% raised, $0 down. 33 unit mobile home park.

So better be prepared for another year at least with negative cashflow.

It may take a little bit of time, hussle and creativity to find the one for you, but it is out there.