What route should I take?

[Tayson Neal]

Ok so I have been doing a ton of research and study and I am to the point that I want to take action and do my first deal. I am currently 21 years old and have been recently married and my wife and I both know that the sooner we get started on our real estate journey the better it will be for us later on. I am just having a hard time deciding what my beginning strategy should be. My dad is an electrical contractor, so I've  been around the construction side of things my whole life and even been apart of a few house flips with my dad, so that makes me want to maybe start that way. But on the other hand we are already getting sick of paying this much for our rent which makes us really want to do a house hack and start building equity while lowering our rent. I guess my question is just what I should do or what strategy we should start with. My wife is going to college in the town we are living in so i'd like to make this market work but its not like one of the top markets that people are investing in today so will that be bad? Any advice would be awesome! 

[Ryan Spath]

@Tayson Neal

Start with an FHA-backed house hack on a small multifamily (duplex, triplex, or fourplex).

I've helped multiple clients here in Southwest Idaho — specifically in the Treasure Valley — do this exact play. With FHA, you can get into a property with a minimal down payment (as low as 3.5%), live in one unit, and rent out the other(s). Once you factor in the rental income, both of my recent house-hack clients ended up paying less than market rent to live in an asset they own, not someone else’s.

This strategy is powerful because:

• You drastically reduce your living expenses
• You build equity from day one
• You gain hands-on landlord experience
• You’re using long-term, low-cost financing you can’t get on investment properties
• You create a path to repeat the strategy every 12 months if you want

And no — your market doesn’t have to be a “top investing market” for this to work. House hacking is one of the few strategies where the rent-to-mortgage ratio matters more than anything else. If the rents cover most (or all) of the payment, the deal works. Period.

A Practical Example in Your Market

Here’s a real-world example using 347 S Grant Ave, listed at $379,000.

Let’s assume:

• You buy it at list price
• Seller covers closing costs
• You buy the interest rate down to 6.25% via concessions
• FHA loan with 3.5% down

Estimated monthly payment:

• Principal & interest: $2,251.89
• Taxes: $2,870/year → $239.17/mo
• Insurance: Approx. $1,500/year → $125/mo

Total estimated payment: ≈ $2,696.06/mo

Now let’s look at the units:

• Main House: 3 bed / 2 bath
• Basement Apartment: 1 bed / 1 bath (this would be your unit)
• Back House: 2 bed / 1 bath

Based on Rentometer averages:

• 3/2 unit: ~$1,495/mo
• 2/1 unit: ~$1,170/mo

Combined rents: $2,665/mo

Now do the math:
$2,696.06 total payment – $2,665 rent = $31.06/month

So you’d be living in the 1/1 for roughly $30 a month.
(Some months you'd be slightly positive or slightly negative — these are rough estimates.)

*****I’m not a lender, so run final numbers with a mortgage professional, but this gives you a realistic idea of what's possible.****

This is the same type of strategy I’ve used to help clients here in the Treasure Valley build wealth early, lower their housing costs, and get their foot in the door.

We’re only about four hours apart, so if you ever want to hop on a call or need help breaking down deals in your own market, I’m more than happy to help.

You’re asking all the right questions. Now it’s just about taking that first step.