I get the same property sent to me multiple times and it just blows my mind. 

Keep in mind, while this is a local destination, it's a small town and not a *ton* of competition.  

I have been trying to keep an open mind while but I see a good amount of value in long-term rentals of SFH and multi family units.

Even when I travel, the tenants don't mind a bit of a delay.

Quote from @Michael Klick: Quote from @Jonathan Greene: HELOCs are fine, but keep in mind that you really only want to use 50 percent of less (each) of your available equity just so you aren't creating a problem that you can't solve later if the value of your personal residences fluctuates.If you both have W2 jobs though, have you looked into getting qualified together and just getting a loan, 10 percent down each?

Just keep in mind again these people are working and trying to make money so try not to be a time-suck for anyone.

Montgomery Metropolitan Housing has a reputation of being difficult to work with and are slow to pay at times r so I have heard.One thing to keep in mind is that even with section 8, you still get to set your criteria that tenants need to qualify for your unit. 

@Caleb Brown Thank you so much, I'm really trying network and be relationships with like minded individuals get the help I seek.

Also I find it kind of humerus were 15 years ago when i joined BP the FI number was 5k to many up to 10k  now its 15k and up.. ( which is realistic in my mind I never thought 5k was realistic. 

In my opinion, the easiest path to investing in real estate is house hacking a 2-4 unit multi-family property.You have the right idea of getting around other like-minded investors.