I have been a Realtor for about 4/5 years now and have a decent amount of liquidity saved up (just under $100k) to be invested into my first rental property.To be honest, I have been considering buying Section8/Affordable housing properties due to their "guaranteed" rent/tenant stability. 

I understand that they can be dangerous from the perspective of historically they were predatory and people purchased properties that they couldn't afford, getting hit hard with the intro interest-only period of 5/7/10 years expire... but I see it as a flexibility option.

You may need to focus on a less expensive single family of maybe a duplex in an affordable market but a decent 4 plex will be out of your price range.

Have you checked with a good mortgage broker to double-check on your affordability?

How do you calculate the maximum you can/want to afford?

I am located in the northeast but looking to move to somewhere more affordable in the near future..

I currently have my own place I live in for free from family, so I can afford the mortgage on the single family I want to buy but don't know what type of loan to get that would allow me to rent it out without having to live in it for a year?

This market cooling has afforded home buyers and investors the boon of opportunity.

Your debt-to-income ratio, as well as how much you can put down for a down payment/closing costs will largely dictate what you are able to afford.

I want to avoid the break up and she moves out and he stays and can't really afford the apartment?