Another teacher I know trades stocks on the side and does well with that. 

I want a specialist that's an expert, and not a jack of all trades and master of none.

I'm an electrical engineer by trade, so I think I've got a good handle on the technical content, but the wording and legal may need help.  

I often do site visits to the property and then design/draw the hvac/plumbing systems for the building.From what I gather below the following would all fall under "real property trades":"The statute lists 11 types of real property trades or businesses: real property development, redevelopment, construction, reconstruction, acquisition, conversion, rental, operation, "I believe that my line of work can be classified under "real property development", "construction", "conversion".

Don't limit yourself to targeting 8 units, as @Robert Rixer said focus on the numbers of the deal, and make sure you are comfortable with the risk/reward trade off. 

I regret almost every property I have sold early on, except the ones in rougher areas - I am glad I traded up.Your next move should be a house hack with 5% down. 

And Columbus, Ohio, isn't forecasting a bleak future.

I have about 3 years of experience flipping and building houses, as well as an associates degree in a trade, about 2 years of drywall/paint experience, around 1 year of commercial/residential electric experience, and about 3 years of landscaping experience. 

If you ever need help running numbers and forecasting to see what a value add play would look like, I've built a financial model I help investors with all the time for free that looks out 30 years (example on my website).

While its significance may sometimes be overlooked, generative AI holds the potential to revolutionize every facet of the real estate lifecycle, from transactions to property management.Decoding Generative AIAt its core, generative AI harnesses the power of data to generate fresh content or forecast potential outcomes.