Third, the typical person renting a room is not a home buyer candidate. 

While we are not immune to market shifts, we typically don't see huge bubble bursts. 

They'll typically leave behind mattresses, couches, broken furniture, rotten food, etc.

You typically offer it to your partner first to see if they will buy you out.

It generally isn't worth the brain damage of experimenting though....especially if you want to move to a new home that you will own inside of the typical lender's seasoning period.

Bonus, Overtime, and Commission income all typically need a 2 year average either at the same job or in the same line of work.

@Zach Howard some copy & paste advice below:)-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

If we get the impression they aren't committed or if they are looking for a "get rich quick" scheme, we typically don't accept them in the community. 

How much upfront costs are typically involved in a project before you know if it's a viable project to pursue? 

Look into connecting with some local investors, they typically have meet-ups often and swap stories and different strategies.