I spend money on postcards, distressed lists and a website.

You spend a giant pile of money before you make a dime of revenue.

Is spending thousands on a sprinkler system worth it or do I have other options? 

Hope to spend more time here in retirement.

So many "investors" bury themselves in complex, expensive situations to protect themselves from some unknown threat to their non-existent business.Figure out if you have any shooting skills (or even enjoy the game) before spending money on $600 Nikes or an indoor basketball court. 

While it most probably WON’T withstand legal challenge, the borrower would have to spend money to litigate it.  

An appraiser likely isn't going to spend time giving you much feedback in advance (unless you have a connection or they are super slow).   

So your super basic P&L may look like: $30,000 Rents-$3,000 insurance expense -$9,000 interest-$3,000 taxes-$8,000 operating expenses-$14,000 depreciation ----------------$7,000 loss on paper for the year  so negative taxable income But remember- $14k of that (depreciation) was something we didn't actually spend money on- so cash in bank at year end would be $7,000. 

Stop hanging out with your deadbeat buddies who spend all day drinking, talking sports, and otherwise wasting away.

By the time I retire, I want to have enough rental properties to have financial independence to enjoy my hobbies and enjoy spending time with my family and watch my children grow up.