Buy first home or buy investment property?

[Aroldo Villarreal]

I'm really new to RE investing. I graduated college three years ago but haven't bought a home yet, still living at an apartment. I want to get into RE investing, but don't know if I should buy my first home for myself and wait to invest, or just go ahead and invest. Also, if I do invest first, will I have a problem when I want to buy my first home for me to live in? I am pre-approved and am ready to go to start investing OR buy a home for myself, but I don't know which path to take first. Any help?

[Brian Mathews]

Maverick has good advice. Buy a duplex and live in one side and rent out the other. But before you do anything, you need to get out of consumer debt, such as student loans, credit cards, car payments, etc... Next thing is sit down and talk with your bride to be. Where is she at in all of this? Does she want to be a landlord as well? How is she going to feel living in a duplex? I can almost guarantee you that after you're married a year or 2, the duplex thing isn't going to fly with her, she'll be wanting a house and to start making babies. The point I'm trying to make is that you're still young. You have your entire life ahead of you, young men (myself included years ago) make decisions based upon emotion without thinking things through. Sit down and have an honest conversation with your fiancée first about where you want YOUR lives to go.