Starting with 100k with an undecided path

[Aaron Bito]

Hello everyone,

While I'm pretty certain someone has probably asked something like this question before (if you guys have the link to the question on the forum that would be great) I have some 100k to start with rental properties. I'm thinking to start with single family homes, but in general what I see are the normal high prices for homes. While I would entertain the idea of buying a decent home with the potential of forced appreciation ( new paint job, landscaping) I live in hawaii so going to go see the property and inspecting it would be an expensive expense. I know that's not the only way to inspect a home, but I really like to see and touch what I'm working with to get a better feel of it all. On top of that, a lot of these homes are from the 1960's,70's, and 80's that are practically going for the same price as brand new homes because I'm looking in 3.5 or 4 (out of 5) star neighborhoods in states like Texas, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, South Carolina, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Kansas. So for the potential work these older homes have, for their price tag, I'd rather buy the brand new homes. I don't know if this relevant, but I also really love my job, while demanding at times, it pays me a fairly decent salary of 56k for a 24 year old with amazing opportunities to keep growing. My idea with rental properties is not to get rid of my job, so I'm okay with the slower, more passive approach which is why I'm thinking maybe new homes are the way to go? So to sum it up, I'm pretty indecisive if I should use these 100K to find a new home that cash flows decently or go with the older homes that need some work done and buy more than one, and am I even looking in the right states?

Also would love some feedback on what you guys think about folks like RP Capital, Renttoretirment, and roofstock.com. Thanks!!!