Fundraising for Downpament on SMF

[Victor McGlothurn]

So I'm really having trouble getting started. I thought getting pre qualified meant they would take some baseline financial info and give you a ballpark number. I found out today that isn't the case. The only access I have to listings are what I can find online (which are upwards of $325K).  I'm also having trouble understanding how people are getting properties not using a lot of their own money. 
I'm already paying a mortgage on my current house and I also have a family that I can't/won't leave to househack a second property. That means that the loan would have to be conventional which would require a 20% down payment and I know that you can't use loans for your down payment and I don't know enough people around me who would gift me enough money for it either. I thought I had done pretty solid research and everyone makes it sound so simple to get started but it really hasn't been. 

I have a growing family so anything related to FHA/house-hacking is out and all the DP assistance programs I've found for my state only give about 5-7%. I think I would have to secure a brand new loan but I don't have the money for it and you hear all the "rags to riches" stories in real estate but it's never explained how that person got there. This task is getting more and more daunting and I don't want to quit before I start but it's starting to feel like I'm boxed in and may not have a choice. You get all excited and motivated to do something great because it's supposed to be "easy" to start but this has been rough. I need all the help I can get