You should think through how much this will cost with architectural drawings, a good GC, etc.

House hacking by purchasing a duplex, triplex, or single-family home with extra rooms can help you reduce or eliminate housing costs while building equity.

-While rent would be more expensive month by month, the idea of being able to take my equity out of my home and also being able to reduce annual repair costs, property taxes, etc. does seem appealing to me. 

Let's say at 6% over 30Yrs will be about $960 per month(Principle/Interest) with the remaining  interest only portion $40K costing roughly $200 per month. $1500- $960 + $200 IS $340Cash in your pocket after everything roughly $1500-$1160-$340 which is not bad for a 100% financed deal(INFINITE RETURNS)Now, If you ran this analysis on a 1% deal as @Nicholas L. mentioned you will undoubtably end up in the red each month.All the best!!!

Note that legal and transfer costs are not deductible but can be added to your cost basis.

A lot of folks that build and rehab wont pay for it.. they take the position they did everything right and it benefits buyer if you want it you pay for it.its not a huge cost . 

We deducted the cost of cleaning the home, the carpet, and some other drywall and paint damage to the property. 

There's a free 7-day trial for you to poke around on those forums and learn more.

We're looking to gather info about likely cost, pitfalls, time required, considerations when obtaining financing, etc. 

What I like about multifamily is the splitting of costs.