You’d hit your 2-3 month goal faster, skip the C-Class renovation roulette, and free up time for family and travel.Why rural southeast?

In Berlin, rental arbitrage has been very profitable, with average annual margins of 25-40% after all costs but before taxes, so shifting to a market where arbitrage is barely breaking even is definitely a reality check.Given your experience, would you say the best way to enter the market now is through purchasing properties with financing?

Nobody works for FREE. 

I'm looking for referrals for a custodian, tax attorney, and a CPA to set one up and advise me.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions! 

Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free).

I’ve done a lot of research on these projects, so feel free to ask any questions here.

Taxes were $1363 a year.

And of course we're in agreement on consulting a tax pro.

There's obviously quite a bit of diligence that comes after such as who the key principles are and their credentials/track record (both balance sheet and experience), the underlying real estate and thesis behind the investment & tax prep and audit procedures but as a general rule of thumb if the investor can't get past the first part which is understanding what they are investing in, passive investing is probably not for that individual.