Although its more expensive and takes more effort, you definitely get a high ROI on your marketing compared to the "shotgun" approach. 

I make a decent salary for the Bay area, have a good amount of savings and don't have many expenses outside of rent and student loan payment. 

Want to get feedback from the group.Here are the community statsMetro pop 280,000, up 12%since 2000, up 25% since 1990Unemployment 4.8%Median family income $53,000Median home price $101,00022 lots, 19 tenants, no POHAvg rent is $197, avg market rent $214 Rent includes city water, private septic, trash, lawnEstimated expenses are 49%I got a quote to sub-meter and requesting a $10,000 credit at closing so I can get that done when I purchase.

Im curious what landlords in the Omaha / Bellevue area do for utilities? Is that seperate or included, and if included how much? 

Take this all with a grain of salt, but to me when the conversation involves house hacking in an expensive metro area like NYC/NJ the bigger picture is more important than the immediate short term cash flow. 

Seems they are either very expensive or very busy these days. 

This way, our interest rate is a tad bit higher, but the properties will still cash flow well and we had enough money left over to have a good sized emergency fund in place, in case of any big unexpected expenses.

I will say most are more expensive than you'll find in Houston though so be prepared.

These are very expensive decisions to make and you want to make sure your partner in life is with you every step of the way.

Postage is expensive. :) Good luck!