Looking for advice on searching for investors

[Joshua A Kloos]

Hey Bigger Pockets! 

So, I am just wrapping up my first real estate investment deal. I purchased a duplex exactly a year ago for $209,000 and it is closing tomorrow at 12pm (fingers crossed) for $248,650. 

Because I did an FHA loan, the property realized an ROI of almost %150. Of course, not counting the 7K in repairs I put into the thing. Also, not counting the AA tenants I had to evict because they were no longer AA and started begging on street corners for money. Story for another time!

At any rate, I recently moved from MN (my duplex's location) to Florida to transition from a maintenance job (plunging toilets for tenants got real old real fast) to a sales job selling roofs. My ultimate goal is to make a career out of being a real estate investor and a 40k/year maintenance job was just not cutting it. However, because of my now commission only job, I am in a bind if I want to re-invest my money into another property. The mortgage companies usually want to see two years of consistent commission history before they will approve you. 

I've come to the conclusion the best route forward is to scale up and go straight to commercial properties (4+ units). Obviously, I do not have $250K liquid cash to put down on a deal - so I am starting the process of figuring out what its going to take to round up that kind of money. 

I'm planning on meeting with an accountant next week to pick their brain? Maybe I'll meet with a lawyer too? A real estate agent? Really am not sure how to go about looking for a deal I do not have the cash on hand to purchase. 

Has anyone been in this position before and if you have, please tell me your life's story ;) 

Thank you all for your input! I am looking forward to this conversation.