Need some advice, new to the game

[Christopher Vu]

Hello all,

I am currently looking into getting my first property. I currently live in Orange County, California. The market here is kind of rough, but I am looking to establish at least a home base cause my work is nearby and possibly look to invest OOS in the near future. I have been preapproved for an FHA loan with max of $765,000(single family), $980,000 (duplex), $1,100,000 (Triplex), and $1,400,000(Quadplex). I am currently weighing out my options. I have money saved up to pay the 3.5% down payment for these purchases but have been struggling to have the numbers add up. I know that I eventually want to develop cash flow, but with these purchases I would have to put money in (which I don't mind paying because it is going towards the equity). I guess my main question is for my first property in my current location would it be better for me to look for a single family (preferably 500-600k) and rent out rooms or to try and get a duplex of quadplex and live in 1 of those units? When I do the math, even if I got a single family I would still end up paying up to $2000 to the mortgage and with a quadplex with 3 units rented out it would be the same (this is assuming no vacancies, if i get stuck with vacancies then i'd hope to have extra for a rainy day haha).

If anyone is an investor in the area or has any insights from past experiences I would love to talk. Please let me know if there is any additional information I can provide to further explain my situation.

Thanks,

Chris

[Joe Homs]

@Christopher Vu I would go for the SFR for many reasons.

1. Since it will be your primary residence you are able to sell if necessary and not pay anything in capital gains after two year. Big tax advantage.

2. Go for 3-4 bedrooms that are currently renting for around $1000 each. Great for house hacking.

3. The multi is an investment and you would pay capital gains on any sale minus the portion you are living in.

4. Buy in a place you would love to live in. The multi may not be the same.

Good investing...