If you can only find a single family home and nothing with a garage apartment in your price range, I would look into renting the home by the room while you live in it, if you would be comfortable with that. 

Buying a mobile home to place on your land can be a great way to generate rental income, but like any investment, it comes with pros, cons, and key considerations.On the pro side, mobile homes are typically more affordable than traditional single-family homes, meaning lower upfront costs.

You may also want to consider hiring a land use attorney or consultant to help navigate any zoning changes or entitlements needed for your mobile home park.When sourcing land, focus on parcels that are already zoned for multi-family or manufactured housing, or at least close to it, to avoid lengthy approval processes.

I did something similar but with a single family home. 

I buy my STR's for fun so that I have cool places I want to go to for my family that pay for themselves and make some money.

Hi BP family,Hope you can help. 

I can promise you that my first deal was TERRIBLE, but I lived at a reduced monthly cost to living than renting/buying a single family and that is what mattered. 

I think this discussion becomes a lot more nuanced on single family homes because they typically are situationlly turned into rentals like yours in nicer areas.

Investment Info:Small multi-family (2-4 units) other investment.

When considering single-family homes (SFH) or small multifamily properties, it’s important to analyze rental demand, local property values, and rental rates to ensure you’re getting strong cash flow potential.