First Deal Targets with $30–45KIn Indy suburbs like Greenfield, Beech Grove, parts of Westfield:Small SFHs: $150–200K range, rent for $1,200–1,600/mo → solid cash flow, easy to manage.Duplexes: $200–300K range, each side rents for $1,000–1,400 depending on area → better cash flow, small learning curve.You’d likely put 5–10% down with house hack financing or 20–25% for a pure rental.

I also have 2 units in a concrete building. the only changes i had to do, change the smoke alarms from battery to powered and networked and an emergency light on stairs for units more than 1 story.

This is purely psychological- but you have to sleep at night.  

Thanks, everyone, for taking the time to respond to my query—I really appreciate it.Here’s my current thinking—please correct me if I’m wrong:Unlike single-family homes, where emotions often influence buying decisions, duplexes are typically evaluated purely on ROI.Property prices for duplexes likely won’t go that high because they need to make financial sense for a commercial buyer.

If you’re just starting and want to invest while moving from Staten Island to NJ, you’ll want to first decide if you’re aiming for a place you’ll live in (house hack) or a pure rental.If you’re open to living in the property, a multi-family in NJ is one of the fastest ways to get started.

This was a key milestone in our real estate journey, marking the shift from owner-occupied purchases to acquiring pure income-producing assets.The home was in a stable neighborhood with strong rental demand and required minimal work to get rent-ready.

I have a few clients that are inadvertently pursuing this strategy - but it is more about business decisions and swapping to larger properties.To do so purely for tax purposes, especially on a one year turn around schedule, assuming the standard 4-6% commissions, legal fees, real estate transfer taxes, etc - nevermind the headache of finding a suitable replacement property in the correct time frame, exchange fees, more cost seg fees, etc - this gets to be fairly expensive. 

It was our first purchase as a pure investment property without the need to live in it, allowing us to focus entirely on cash flow.

As far as a checklist, make sure the home is safe, locks work, smoke detectors are not expired and with new batteries, no safety hazards that may cause or open you up to liability.

I actually prefer to have properties I don't see regularly—it forces me to view them as a pure business and investment, with no emotional attachment.