My feeling is that it's actually one or the other, not both...Thanks so much for anyone who takes the time to share their experiences with this! 

The best thing for house hacking is to buy something you actually want to live in, it doesn't help much if you are miserable where you are living.

Second is the actual numbers for the property.

Second is the actual numbers for the property.

I should mention that off market deal I described, that's actually from a wholesaler who is supposed to know the numbers an investor wants...

Thank you for your feedback @Russell Brazil , I will definitely check into the local ordinances.I actually listened to your podcast #192 yesterday which had a ton of great info.

Lots of newbies are able to find the first one, most people know someone who knows someone who needs to sell their house, it's actually the 2nd one and beyond that's more difficult. 

I don't have any earth shattering secrets you can't find in books, but I can share actual experiences, timelines, prices, rehab costs, insurance costs, rental roles, property management and tips for how I've created a 19 unit portfolio worth almost $1M and generating over $100k annually inside my IRA, starting from a relatively small initial investment.  

@Lora BenardAs to the title question for your post...It could go either way in terms of widening the road, and it's a hard to tell without seeing the actual location.

@Matthew Dreiling out of state turnkey is definitely a viable option for first-timers, it's actually one of the REI strategies that new investors find to be the easiest transition since it is very hands off (after you do your due diligence and pick a property, of course).