I'm moving to Piscataway New Jersey for grad school and will be there for 3 years. I want to house hack while I'm there rather than paying rent. I'm looking at multi family places and I'm getting excited about moving. I'm looking at units on listing apps and Craigslist using the 2% rule and will have my contractor go with me to look at places when I have decided on a few to look at. My question is, what am I missing??? I'm trying to stay out of flood zones and looking at taxes and rehab costs. This will be my first multi family so I'm nervous about making mistakes and I'll be a full time (20+ credit semesters!) so I won't have much time to correct mistakes. I'm retired military so I will have income while I'm going to school and my wife and I will be renting out our house in DC (added headache?) Just looking for any major pitfalls to avoid as I take the leap into landlord.

Hi Joshua, looks like you're off to a good start so far.  I'm an investor and realtor in the Central NJ area.  I'm open to providing you with assistance with your search and I can provide you with some resources.  Feel free to PM me and Happy New Year!

@Joshua Hilliard You might want to consider using your VA to purchase a 4 unit. I'm not sure on Piscataway, but the loan limits on VA and FHA in DC are over 1.2 Mil since we are in a high cost of living area. That means you can purchase a residential multi with a very cheap loan. If you have a lot of equity in your DC home, you might consider selling and buying a larger commercial multi near campus. I would also line up some property managers if you are considering renting the property. It will be difficult to manage your property out of state.