What I'm trying to say is that going up to 1.5-2 hours outside of even the biggest cities, there are pockets of affordable towns/cities with at least positive cash flow (although its never been harder to find than right now, I've been waiting for 3 years for the market to make sense before buying again). 

You could get a loan from a local bank or private lender to fund it

@Robert EllisAre you leveraging construction-to-permanent loans or private funding?

My biggest advice for people would be as follows.Know why your in the real estate game, and why a specific niche.

Investment Info:Single-family residence private money loan investment.

Since you are doing new construction I would suggest making them private enough where guest have minimal interaction with each other.

I like option 2 to diversify the investments in 3 smaller rental propertires, 3/2 around 1500 sqft, in good school districts which will open the biggest pool of tenants. 

It means your house might be your biggest financial asset — and it could open up some exciting opportunities for your future.

Raising your credit score will get you far better rates personally as well as with private lenders for your LLC. 

My biggest concern with house hacking is giving up my primary residence.