We would prefer to jump into the market with a duplex, triplex or quad as our first purchase. 

As we all know, you are really paying for the commission in the purchase price. 

However, achieving success in this space requires more than purchasing property—it takes strategy.

I've personally found the bulk of my Chicago purchases off the MLS.

The substitute of collateral was more of a scenario where you sold for $155K, and instead of paying off the $88K loan in your scenario, those funds stayed at the title company and were used on a cash purchase happening nearby in date. 

After years of focusing on my career and building financial stability, I’m ready to dive into real estate investing and start creating passive income and long-term wealth.My short-term goal is to purchase my first duplex or single family rental. 

I purchased a single family to rent out the rooms and it sent my finical plan completely off course because I was not as ready as I previously thought.

I'm considering purchasing a condo or a small SFH in the Oceanside/Carlsbad area as an investment property and renting it out on a short term rental site like AirBNB. 

Quote from @Srikanth Kumar: Hi Everyone,I’m relatively new to long-distance investing and am exploring the purchase of multifamily properties in Cleveland.

What this leads to is higher purchase prices but also higher rents in these areas.