That being said house hacking is still an incredible tool and just because you don’t cover the full 100% / can’t quite cash flow positive you are still mitigating the vast majority of your families biggest expense while getting into an awesome business, building equity, having a shot at appreciation etc!

I studied for two and a half years about everything to do with real estate investing, I became a BP Pro member (shout out to everyone who contributes to BP, the wealth of knowledge here is incredible and truly helped me figure out where I wanted to invest), I read tons of real estate books, and had been saving every penny for years to build up my cash to invest.

It worked enormously well and I was able to deliver some pretty incredible returns. 

There has been incredibly strong job growth here since the last recession and there is a great diversity of jobs, as well.

@Kyle Spearin because of my credit score and college debt, I was drawn to some of the creative methods of purchasing rentals I read about on “Rental Property Investing with Low to No Money Down”.

At the same time we've found MFH in a bit not as nice areas of Oakland (less maintained houses, not as new renovations, etc) but the prices have been incredible compared to the more desirable areas.

I know COVID-related temporary modifications DO NOT impact your FICO score, but are lenders taking note of COVID- modifications. 

If you haven't listened to the Bigger Pockets podcasts yet, they're an incredible starting point!

I have pet parrots who are incredibly sensitive to the toxic fumes given off from cooking teflon pans, and am concerned that the ventilation in certain homes may bring my tenants fumes into my own living space.

I do not waiver from that number, and I do not waiver from my criteria (credit score, income reqs, etc.).EDIT: I realize now that your question is more centered around how to know you're getting a "fair price," and that's based solely on comparables.