The tenants we had to visit personally decided to stay and are following the rules, at least for now, we have had no complaints and the smell is no longer noticeable.

@Chris Mason is calling it a 2nd home an option, or does it being a duplex rule that out? 

Verify with a cpa they can be a wealth of information- mine are very helpful and worth what I pay and better than I am at knowing how to use the rules to my advantage. 

Two rules:1) replacement properties must cost as much as relinquished properties, which you meet2) ALL of your cash proceeds from the sale must be reinvested to avoid any tax....you can add some cash to the deal but you can’t keep any of it. 

@Mindy JensenKiyosaki has said repeatedly that he suspects it's not an accident at all that personal finance isn't taught in schools.The first rule of life: have rich parents.Sadly, my parents would not have been able to teach something they completely didn't understand themselves.But then again, I've known plenty of children born to affluent parents and very few of them were worth a tinker's damn."

There is a large shopping center there, Coyotes play near there, Cardinals Play near there, concerts are hosted there, and AZ Dbacks may be looking for a new home soon.I recommend for you to receive MLS listings for multi family homes in that price range so you can see what $450,000 would buy you. 

@Zabrina HortonWhile one can partner with their IRA or solo 401k to invest in real estate by pooling their funds in an LLC, for example, very specific rules apply including not receiving any type of commission and not using debt financing.

@Nina IbrahimbegovicIt’s their money and their risk so you gotta play by their rules .

Originally posted by @Aaron Klatt:House hacking with a VA loan is a good place to start, just make sure you have enough cash set aside in reserves for those emergency repairs.Thanks Aaron.Any rules of thumb on what should be set aside?  

For example the 70% rule for fixer upper properties.