Hey @Dalton Foote - I highly suggest  using a renovation loan and house hacking a multi-family if that is possible with your current life circumstances.The 203k and homestyle renovation loans are just amazing products and drastically help you reduce your risk, in my opinion, because you are able to leverage the cost of the entire renovation with such a low down payment loan.We work with a lot of clients who use these products in Chicago, and no matter what, in the long term, they gain great equity.If you aren't able to house hack - the process is essentially the same, but just with more money down with hard money or conventional construction loan.

Leverage your existing equity to invest in smaller properties, such as a mixed-use or retail space, to gain experience and cash flow.

I'll leverage accelerated depreciation for the tax benefit in the near-term. 

I'd be happy to talk with you further about how to leverage your real estate license in pursuing your investment goals.

The cost associated with insurance for not having 20% is peanuts compared to what you potentially can do leveraging your down payment. 

Leveraging a property in todays environment of high interest rates will not get you cash flowing. 

I am looking to join a mentorship program to help lower my learning curve and until I find it, I am educating myself with books, as well as YouTube University and great advice from the BiggerPockets community.I do work full-time in a career that I love and is very rewarding, but I also know I won't attain my goals with my current job.

I’d love advice on leveraging my existing assets, navigating seller finance deals, or other tips for scaling effectively.

Rates are a bit higher but if you can leverage up to do more than 1 flip at a time, it will be worth paying the lender fees.

The intent of getting a sales agent license is to educate myself in Real Estate and create some additional income.If your relationship is such that you need to hide your license, you’d be better off with a different working relationship.