Quote from @Tove Fox: I live in California and am interested in purchasing my first investment property in an A or B neighborhood in one of the above states, ideally under $300k.

Living in the Pacific Northwest, where the “Big One” could strike at any moment, I’ve been gradually selling off my portfolio to exit the market and safeguard my capital.

I currently live in chanhassen but own rentals and have a few flips going in the rochester area.

.: I live near Nice France half the year.

While I do not live in ID, I'd love to connect you with one of the best agents out there.

I happen to live in AZ in the winter and MI in the summer. 

Living in one unit and renting out the others allows you to deduct 75% of expenses like mortgage interest, property taxes, insurance, and shared repairs as rental expenses, while the remaining 25% applies to personal use.

Real estate is easy to get into, but hard to earn a living. 87% of all agents quit within two years because they don't make enough money.

The FHA rules/regs (in particular the FHA self-sufficiency test) are applied the same across all markets, and I know for a fact that in rural communities across the country, and big cities that are not particularly desirable places to live, it's not a deal-breaker, I am not commenting on those areas. 

. :)This is especially true if you rely on furnishedfinder.com as your primary lead source (which you shouldn't, but that's another post) as when you make that connection with a prospective resident, you are selling yourself as a landlord as much as you are the property as a place to live.