I’m not sure how investors are managing their properties from a different state when it seems to be impossible to find a reliable good property management company in Cahokia, do you have any advice or suggestions on this?  

Sidenote: if borrower is paying P&I and investors receiving interest only it gets more challenging as you are receiving dribs and drabs of principal back every month which is impossible to deploy but you are still paying investor interest on it. yup drag on the fund will drag you down.

Every single new investor wants to say it was easier “back then” or “it’s too hard/impossible today” so they don’t have to start today.

Yes if you're still employed with that company it can be difficult if not impossible to make 401k changes...

But sure as heck not impossible, it just takes a commitment to learning a very complex detailed facet of business and regulations. 

Almost impossible to obtain a line of credit7.

It isn't impossible but as @Jimmy Lieu mentioned, there is a steep learning curve.Depending on your liquidity, out-of-state buy & hold rentals could be your best bet if NYC investing is out of the picture.

It's next to impossible to accumulate this many hours.

Real estate for the last four years was betting on red or black but the ball was fixed to win as it was nearly impossible to lose.

Lake side homes are more desirable for short term rentals in this area but not impossible to accomplish.