To be clear I am not saying buy bitcoin and these are just my own personal observations. 

Even though the distance would be a lot farther to travel than initially investing in another Chicago neighborhood, I know the tenant laws are a lot more relaxed out in the suburbs, the average price of property is much lower, and it just feels like a smoother entry point than a large city in general.I'm very interested in multi-family properties to begin my real estate journey and have worked on putting a team together, so I am getting closer to actually acting, not just observing.

Had you posted primarily about note buying, I would not have replied at all because my only exposure to that is the PPR note class and observations from the class the notes appear to sell for market value or above.  

From my observations, on market deals almost never make sense for flippers.

@Robert QuirozHi Robert,Just an observation... you have "higher cash on cash returns" under all cash deals - it depends on how you view that.  

Most municipalities have different mix-use categories which dictate the precise commercial use that's allowed.A few additional observations on mix-use assets and how I approach them (1) they are generally more difficult to finance than multi-family assets so expect lower leverage terms even if the property performs just as well if not better than a multi-family property and therefore price this into your acquisition (2) I focus on mix-use assets where at least 80% of the income is generated through the residential component.

That's been my observation.

I have personally observed that being an active investor grows your money much faster as well.

I observe investors dismissing so many properties that fail to meet this arbitrary standard but perform far better than properties that pencil as "1" properties" on an excel spreadsheet. 

@Jay Hinrichs always has some helpful tips/advice/observations.