Starting Out In Twin Cities

[Tim Zbaracki]

I'm in the process of getting my finances in place to start investing in small multi-unit properties in the Twin Cities of MN. It's a bit of a long story, but I had a rental property before, losing to foreclosure when I lost several thousand in a slum lord who made my family and I homeless a couple years ago (never moved into the house because of mold, but then they rented the house on us while we were out of state). The foreclosure happened in August 2018, so I know the two year point is around the corner. My credit score is around 680 (took a huge nosedive from the foreclosure), and I anticipate between my IRA, 401K, and other savings, to be around $20K by the fall. I've heard that pre-approval is important, but I wanted to see what some other thoughts are out there. I'm in a stable job, and total income is about $90k per year. I'm also working with a real estate agent, who is investor friendly. What else should I do that I'm not thinking of?