3@Jay Hinrichs 100%.... a few years ago I did a JV on a ground up condo project.

Do you participate in any meet ups or REIA's?

Paying a plumber extra for an off hours call runs your bill up.

I'm looking for a little encouragement/advice on my situation.My goal is to house hack my first home purchase (because I simply don't see any other way to get into investing with my income).

fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1xMWkQcObAajE2Jnm-MvgzUzmtBFZ1DsJfmpng54xOTFdQhD4ILA3skgE_aem_dq00HGIkgh6rlSf94ILsuQ2—Several multi-million dollar expansion projects are happening in Grand Rapids right now, which will continue to drive the need for housing and purchase value up. 

Many local banks and credit unions will do a second up to 89.99% loan to value.

We could get a new car and do something fun with the money but that would just be wasting the equity we have built up...bad idea.  

There's essentially no LTR market as it's in the middle of nowhere and the town is pretty picky about keeping property values up so you don't have a bunch of trailer parks or apartments. 

Once you have a shortlist, sign up for an account with each one and test them extensively to see how they function.

Then I hang up.