I am leveraging a 5% down first time home buyer conventional loan for a multi unit property in North side of Chicago.

My max loan amount for a 4 unit is $800K (the rents from the units i am not living in get added to my income to fund the loan)

My intention was to leverage the max loan amount, but i am having trouble finding the perfect property. I have been looking for about 8 months

I was thinking maybe changing my criteria to a 3 unit property around $300K-$500K as there is more quantity of this type of property

1. I wanted to ask BP is it better to stick to my criteria to max out my loan (i will not have the opportunity to this program again),  receive higher cash flow, paying down principle on a larger loan etc

2. Or pull a trigger on a less expensive property 3 unit property. Start making money today. Tired of sitting on the sidelines

3. Do properties around $400K appreciate faster/more than a property that is $800K or is it just whatever the appreciation rate in the neighborhood?

Appreciation is gambling, recall 2007.  

The " Northside of Chicago" is  a large area with very different rentals:   Rogers park and Ravenwood  are quite different,  you may want to expand.

$800K for a 4 flat comes down to $200 per door. How do the numbers look for that type of investment? Share your spreadsheet, people will comment.

8 months (re) searching may have allowed you to learn a lot, don't give up

I'd suggest focusing your criteria on a per unit basis. This allows you to compare 3 units to 4 units more easily. You may also want to research the inventory for 3 units vs. the inventory for 4-units to help determine demand.