I focus in all new construction where full return of capital is the value. upside for single family and multifamily new construction and developments. value add at every piece of the project. hard to do that with existing inventory.

When you buy a property, you are not simply buying a property, you are analyzing a piece of a market. 

But it does have a distinct odor & I would assume taste.

its certainly a hell of a lot easier than chasing down wholesale deals.. you know the deals are there.. they are public record.. most on line.. you can go to Northwest trustee service.. you line up your private investors and do all the leg work for them.. check property check comps.. eye ball rehab.. etc etc.. then you run to their bank ( because they are busy making money in their day job) grab cashiers check and bid for them.. if you win you charge them a flat fee or you take a piece of the deal...

Sharing my experience below - Entered into a contract almost 18 months ago, after buying a piece of land.

Yes, there are many free resources out there, but books are one of many low-cost educational pieces that pretty much everyone agrees are worth the cost.Happy reading! 

A couple of pieces of advise would be these items:1.

Whether you self-manage or have a PM, either way adding another 4-12ish units won’t take up significantly more of your time if you buy right and don’t just buy pieces of crud.

The terminology between what is "Private Money" and what is "Hard Money" is very vague and these aren't even really truly distinct different options. 

But it still allows you to learn how to become successful in the STR space without having to own a piece of property.