If the part-time job provides you that diversity and helps you unwind, doesn't sound like a job to me at all.

I was wondering is there certification that would help me diverse myself from others or is that done mostly by your reputation, recent work done and such. 

Hi @Aaron Xie You could:Lend some money to reputable developers / investors (can be risky if you don't know who you are lending to nor understand the specifics of the deal)Invest in a single apartment building with a 10%+ cap rate (risky if this is your first investment)Invest in several properties through a reputable turnkey provider with a blended rate of 10%+ return (most diverse and least risky in my opinion for you)Invest in a few notes via reputable p2p lending site (the most passive strategy of all, stick with debt vs equity investments)I suggest looking in the Chicago and Indianapolis areas as both of them offer lucrative returns if you focus on investing in the right micro-markets and have a great property manager in mind.I'm sure some folks from those areas would be happy to refer you some great contacts.

Newark is a very diverse city with pockets that can be good and pockets that can be very bad.

While I don’t have any real estate experience, I do have extensive experience developing and leading all types of diverse teams, setting long-term goals and building systems and processes to achieve them.

On the other hand, Kansas City is a much larger market with a diverse, modern economy, growing jobs and a growing population.

If you're buying for long term buy and hold, you need to be looking at market that not only cash flow well but have good economic and demographic trends with modern, diverse economies.

@David Robinson There were a number of factors that made Knoxville appealing for us.1- Mid/Small size city which we are more comfortable (similar to what Colorado Springs used to be) 2- Newer homes in general (i don't have expertise in the challenges associated with 100 year old SFHs)3- Diverse and growing economy (UT, Government Jobs, and Medical to name a few)4- Affordability (Turnkey SFHs are available in the low $200K in great neighborhoods)5- It seems more off the radar for investors than Memphis and Nashville which means less competitionAs for credit score, mine actually dropped from 780 to 760.

And as per the above post, it's all diversions and lies when it comes to getting status of your investment.

As far as location: Personally I'm investing in areas of high growth across several markets within the southeast for some diversity.