Does it make sense to start an LLC to hold my properties, and what are the pros and cons?

You sell your investments whenever it no longer makes business sense to hold them, not when you "need" it for tax reasons!

Bird dogging is a way to make money but its not gonna get you rich.WE have had many do some birddogging for us on the private lending side to find qualified people that need a loan and its interesting how many last a few weeks - I sense the same holds true for real estate bird dogs.

For Livermore, the activity is slower compared to the general Bay Area so you would need to be more cautious on picking the right property to flip, and the margin has to be large enough for it to make sense.

I'm currently looking at using a VA loan for purchasing a duplex to live in one side & rent the other.I'm trying to do this now too in Michigan with a 2-4, whatever makes sense.

Would be looking at Tallahassee, FL between the hospital and downtownlive), but there are a few other locations which would make sense.   

@Michael Nguyen I bought a SFH first because I found a good one that made financial sense.

We started looking at coaching programs and some of these things just seem ridiculous at 20-40 grand, and some seem more like life coaching programs as opposed to real estate programs. we don't want to syndicate we really would just like to find someone that we can bounce deals / ideas off of and have them assist in underwriting and giving us a better sense of security that we are doing the right thing.

@Jeff ShaverIt's good to see a fellow San Diegan on here.If your goal is higher monthly cash flow, transitioning to larger assets with better economies of scale (like multifamily) could make sense.

As apples to an IRA Hope that makes sense .