2.) looking for advice on how to deploy 600+ thousand dollars into real estate and start receiving the cash flow from it without having to pull the 401(k) out and swallow the tax ramifications.I currently own 13 units and receive healthy cash flow from all of them, but I am looking to increase my cash flow so I can ease into the next phase of my life which includes work of a different kind but not doesn’t having a 9 to 5 job.Thanks in advance!

If you are working with a reputable company, then you buy the property, hold the property and look up 7-10 years down the road and have a home that has increased in value and a debt that has been reduced by your renter.   

There's a sucker born every minute.The best way to build wealth is to increase earnings, reduce expenses, save, and invest wisely.

This has become increasingly problematic  with rising material costs and more burdensome building codes now present in most municipalities. 

I don't know how much the $ impact is of your rate increase, but how much are you increasing rents?

In many of the C-class neighborhoods, rental rates are exceeding the expenses for investors.As of April 2024, the median price of a home in Ohio was $238,700, which is a 4.7% increase from April 2023.

My motivation is to increase my financial literacy and diversify into real estate.I have rented all my life and seek to become a homeowner/ investor to help my family and make their lives easier.

Well owners who already had section 8 tenants in place didn't want to spend $5, $10, $15k or more upgraded a unit that has a tenant in place just to maintain the rents they had (or have a slight increase) so a lot of section 8 approved properties stopped taking section 8.Right after COVID though, it seems that section 8 has lowered their standards a bit.

Increase earnings, reduce expenses, save, and invest.

Running detailed cash flow projections, factoring in their management fees and expected rent increases (you can use some of the great BiggerPockets Pro tools like the calculators to do this!)