Your options are different if you buy it in your own name vs. an LLC.I like credit unions, because they are member owned (in comparison to private or publicly owned) and often have lower fees.

All states saw property appreciation in comparison to a year ago.

All states saw property appreciation in comparison to a year ago.Eventually affordability will become an issue but for now the market is still thriving.

Though our house was just under 2 million dollars, lower end in comparison to 10 million dollar homes nearby, one day my son and I were sitting in the pick up in front of the house we'd just built.

Kind of a meaningless comparison.  

This involves:1 - Breaking away from a home owner mentality with regards to money and investing.2 - Using "$$$" for analysis, and eliminate almost all use of "%%".3 - Learning, and following, the 2 Golden Rules of REI...to be succesfull4 - Understanding the meaning of this number sequence, 1073741824, and how it applies to REI...that's the start.

I recently bought Grant Cardones real estate book and he talks about some of the things he looks for, but I am yet to create a spreadsheet and plug in Aussie properties for comparison.

For funds that are already in your retirement account (e.g. a former employer 401k plan), rather than weighing the pros and cons of investing retirement vs non-retirement funds in real estate the more salient comparison point may be whether you are better of investing retirement funds in real estate and other alternative investments vs. traditional investments (mutual funds, stocks, bonds, etc.).3.

It depends on how cookie cutter the comparisons.

Between those books you mentioned, I agree with Aaron Wortham on the sequence.