If you plan to live solely off rent I don't think you can carry a total debt load greater than 25-40% of your total portfolio value.  

Another interesting thing to look at is the rally in gold.

He is worth his weight in gold!

One of my challenges might be that I'm still carrying undergrad and business school debt plus some credit card debt, so I'm still determining what financing might look like.

However, like I said, if I were to actually carry out the strategy I basically "back-of-the-enveloped" this morning, I would add some ingredient involving greater effort and greater likely profit, such as short-term rentals, to guarantee positive cashflow.Let's look at the position a hypothetical investor like OP would be in if she actually bought 13 multi-family properties like the ones I described.

If I’m looking for a quote on gold, all things being equal, I’m looking for the lowest or highest price (depending if I’m buying or selling) since gold is a commodity.  

Many many deals fall through because the owners are not willing to go the seller financing route and believe they're sitting on a gold mine.  

We do plan to require the tenants to carry their own renter's insurance, too.What did you look for or consider when selecting your landlord insurance?

Solid Gold! 

More than likely there is a clause in your PMA stating that they carry zero liability.4.