@Donald Bryant People ask this question numerous times on BP and I will continue to ask the same questions in response. 

I have seen numerous conversations here and on member profiles showing “I have flipped 150 homes” but then you look closely and see these homes all sold for $50k or less.

On the investor side, I've seen activity from numerous out-of-state buyers (mostly California) snatching up high cash flow rentals in often dicey areas.

Do you feel house hacking is a good strategy to get your feet wet? 

It has proven *incredibly* difficult to find any insurance company that will insure the property, much less at a reasonable premium.I have checked with numerous companies over the course of a week - Lemonade, USAA, Progressive, All State, Wawanesa Insurance, Hippo, Liberty Mutual, Mercury Insurance, Amica, etc.

For example the dozens of folks that have guaranteed they will lease my unit with cash in hand "tomorrow", the numerous contractors that have said they will arrive at X time for the emergency plumbing/heating/electrical work, or the tenants who say they'll have the money in by X.

Thanks to BP and numerous books I finally felt confident enough to take the plunge and buy a triplex.

Numerous homeowners in the area employ the buy and rent strategy, like you had mentioned, and it works out nicely for everyone.

Take 4 courses a semester to maintain full-time status (there are numerous benefits to that status), get a RE license as soon as possible, and start making networking inroads.

We have inherited numerous tenants living in properties with an oral lease with the seller and have bought properties where the tenant names were not even completely documented-- all they had was a first name and an oral lease (jodi, apt. #1, 375.00, tommie smith, apt #2 ) We have tenants where the original lease holders have moved out and left adult children who never signed a new lease.