Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free).

My wife and I are based in the Southeast Michigan and are eager to dive into real estate investing to create generational wealth and ultimately escape the rat race.A bit about us: We have a combined $16,000 in savings and approximately $150,000 in retirement funds.

There is only one time we did not close on a house we had under contract with a wholesaler - this was due to a title issue, and we received our EMD back because the seller/wholesaler ultimately could not uphold their end of the contract (inability to deliver the property).  

Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free).

Make sure property is “self supporting” meaning sufficient income to produce some cash flow after operating expenses and debt is paid.If one does that, they are set up for a profitable long term hold.If one invests in a prudent manner and is never in a position where they have to sell, they ultimately win.The top or bottom of a market is never known until 6 to 12 months after the fact.I’m a long term investor - my capital is patient.Here’s a question to ponder:If you could buy a property today for $1M, knowing it’s value would drop to $950,000 over the next year but would be worth $1.5M in 5 years, would you buy it today or hope to perfectly time the market and get at $950,000?

We get in the weeds of real estate and overcomplicate it sometimes; it ultimately comes down to the "Would it be cool to live here?"

Make sure to read through the Bigger Pockets Ultimate Beginners Guide, go through the free video course, and figure out what you would like to do.

Here are a few I recommend: "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by Roberto Kiyosaki; "Set for Life" by Scott Trench; "The Unofficial Guide to Real Estate Investing" by Spencer; "The BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide" found here on BP; "The Book on Rental Property Investing" by Brandon Tuner.

https://rentalincomepodcast.com/rentals-are-the-ultimate-get...https://www.theguarantors.com/enroll-property?

It made it easy to compare quotes and ultimately choose the best option for my budget and needs.