A real estate investor who went from having $1,000 in his checking account to building a 10-unit portfolio explains 'one of the safest ways' to get started in the space
If you're interested in buying property, specifically as a means towards financial freedom, consider starting with a multi-family home and"." This is a strategy in which you live in one unit of the home and rent out the other to offset your mortgage payment.
After closing in November 2018, Newton moved into one of the units. The other half of the duplex was already filled with a tenant and he immediately started earning $1,600 a month in rental income, he told Insider. Plus, a childhood friend moved into one of the three bedrooms in Newton's half of the duplex and paid $500 a month in rent.
If you go this route and intend to occupy the property for at least 12 months, you can take advantage of owner-occupied financing and get in with a smaller down payment than if you were buying a true investment property that you intended to fill with tenants. That's because lenders see investment property loans as riskier than primary home loans.