Hey @Matthew Barnett, I think you should take some time and really concentrate on formulating your goals in real estate, as your goals/big picture can largely dictate what you do.I honestly think the best ways to get started are with the BRRRR method and with House Hacking, you can do both simultaneously!

However, it doesn't hurt to ask local professionals if there is anything you can help them with.If you're social media savvy or have photography/videography experience, there could be a way for you to help local professionals (i.e. realtors, loan officers) build their brands while you simultaneously pick their brain. 

You actually get very little death benefit for the money.The money you save will be accomplishing 3 things simultaneously:1.

I just refi'd on my primary home from a VA to a conventional mortgage (to free up VA loan for future purchase) and took out a simultaneous closing HELOC.

@john Nachtigalli'm surprised this is not a bigger topic on BP, not only can Zillow get very low funding to work in cash, but can lose a lot of money in an Amazon style market share grab from realtors and investors simultaneously, hence massive cold calling and mailing operations, major advertising. so who has more credibility the huge company buying yr house, or the guy who lives down the street and says he's better at valuation than Zillow?

Get a signed lease along with the security deposit in the future.We do both basically simultaneously and that holds the unit for the prospective tenant.  

You are right, I'm absolutely not ready for this right at this moment, but that's why I've posted about it at least two months ahead of time while I'm simultaneously also reading on Land Trusts and planning meetings with the attorney.

My dilemma is I'm applying for a business loan in order to purchase the company I work for and I don't think I'll be able to get two loans simultaneously. 

@Ellen AlvarezTax breaks are good but you have to realize that you are getting a tax break because you paid out of pocket for an expense.You also want to see if the item you are paying out of pocket for is a repair or an improvement.Repairs are currently expensed while improvements are capitalized and depreciated over its useful life unless there is an election/exemption.With that said - it is good for you to make a repair to a property, get the tax deduction and simultaneously see the value of the property go up.

@Mindy Jensen, do you mind me asking, did you build your real estate portfolio before you began to balance your portfolio, or did you do both RE and Stocks simultaneously?