Getting started: what would you do if you were me?

[Rob Landry]

Hi there, 

I'm wondering if I can get some advice from some experts on how to achieve my goals.  I'm feeling kinda stuck.

I recently went through a divorce and sold our primary residence, along with a single-family rental property my ex and I owned free and clear for several years (was a good cash generator).  Now I have roughly $100k to invest in real estate, a large portion of which I'd need to reinvest via a 1031 exchange in order to avoid the capital gains taxes.  I also have some relatives who could loan me additional funds to increase my purchasing power, and I have some investment accounts and 401k's I could borrow against for short term bridge funding.  I'm currently renting a place in Portland, Maine.

GOALS:

1 - Eliminate my negative housing cash flow by either: purchasing a multi-unit that I could owner-occupy, or one that has enough cash flow to cancel out my current rent payment.

2 - Increase my net worth by $2 million over the next 5 years, primarily by purchasing real estate.

PROBLEMS

- I'm self-employed.  It's been challenging to get financing. I may be able to get private financing from relatives.

- I live in Portland, Maine.  The market is overheated right now and it's hard to find any deals at all w/multis.  The cap rate's are ridiculous, and cash flow isn't great, certainly at offer prices.

- It's hard to find any deals (see above). I'm picking through Realtor.com, Zillow, and I have a couple agents sending me the lastest MLS listing reports, but I feel like this is a very inefficient way to find property.

- I understand the basics (NOI, cash-on-cash, cap rate, 50% rule, 70% rule, etc.) but I sure could use a mentor to help me focus and be efficient.

QUESTIONS

- I'm thinking flipping houses would be the best way to quickly amass cash that could be eventually reinvested into a large portfolio of investment properties, and I think I can do a decent job estimating costs.  But how can I find good flips, preferably that dozens of other people don't also have their eyes on?

- How do people amass 12, 30, 50 units?  It's obviously not dependent on their personal income.

- How do I get over the financining hurdle?  I have a decent amount of capital to get started.

- What would you do, if you were me, to reach the goals I've outlined?

Thanks for reading....