24 y/o Newbie from San Jose, California

[Cliff J]

Hello Bigger Pockets Members,

Some of my concerns have been ironed out by reading through this forum but i thought it was time I introduced my self. My name is Clifford and I am 24 years old with zero background in real estate. I currently work in IT and now have a some money to invest with.

My current goals are to simply real life monopoly. I like the concept of renting out places and having a "steady" income/profit. Thus i have set my goal to buy a place then rent it, rinse and repeat.

My main concerns are
[1]How to invest in RE when you cant afford anything nearby (SF BayArea)
[2]How much should you start with for a down payment 20% or 3.5%? (REI Goals)
[3]Where do you find a Real estate agent? - i feel like a horse in a race with blinders without a finish line since I subconsciously block out most adds.
[4]Choosing a location/ budget: Should you spend more on a better location so you hopefully have better tenants? - I will just wait longer so i have the right amount for the Down Payment.

thanks,
Clifford