Strategy Question

[Jen Borst]

Hi, all!

I'm brand new to investing, and I'm going to be a buy-and-hold passive income-stream kind of investor (am not going to be quitting my day job any time soon, but sure would love to retire someday). I have a hefty mortgage on my primary residence and will be using yet another conventional mortgage to finance a multifamily purchase within the next 6 months. The thought of that horrifies me, but it must not be too bad--I was just pleasantly surprised to find I qualify for a loan that's significantly higher than the price range I've been shopping in.

So now I'm trying to determine whether it makes good sense to carry more debt to go in big for more units, better neighborhoods, higher rents or to just play it safe, borrowing less/buying cheaper, maybe starting with a duplex to get my feet wet. It's probably a subjective thing I'll have to decide based on my stomach for risk, but I'd really appreciate thoughts/experiences/advice from people who've been there and done that.

Thanks all very much in advance,

Jen