Another thing you could do to protect yourself some is request an larger security deposit.

That seems unavoidable since supply will be greater than demand for a time.It could be a good moment for people who have cash to scoop up underpriced merchandise, but I also think the underlying strengths of lending at this point will prevent the larger panic crash we saw beginning in 2008.

I am a big fan of purchasing larger multifamily buildings as a house hacker and wish i had the knowledge i do now and would have gone for something much more expensive.

I think if you mean wholesaling in the sense of putting it under contract and flipping the contract, this can be tough for a wholesaler to pull off unless they have a lot of capital available and can show liquid assets.

I did a couple of full recourse bank loans on 32 and 78 unit properties several years ago, but have only done larger non-recourse agency and bridge debt since then.  

The stairs need to be replaced, and since I am living at the home (and plan to be for a long time), I would like to update to a much nicer/larger deck/stair combo.

I don't have enough liquid cash saved up for a full down payment but could potentially get a HELOC to cover the down payment.

@Frank LaQuaglia Mainly talking about small multi-families above like duplexes occasionally 4-units, but larger multi-families is a given they would need to be covered by the owner. 

If you do come across a unicorn multi that isn't a complete gut most house hackers run into the issue with the standard of living for their investment property and their own house are drastically different.I would suggest looking out in Delaware county for a multi, much higher inventory 3+ units, and a larger percentage of cleaner multis as well. 

In the following two options which is one offers the larger return on investment for a loan on a rental:Option 1: 20% Down ($22,200)- 5.25% APR, 20 Year Loan Term ($88,800 Loan Total, Total Loan Cost $143,678).Option 2: 25% Down ($27,750)-3.25% APR, 30 Year Loan Term ($83,250 Loan Total, Total Loan Cost $137,344).