The 4 unit I am buying the seller wants to move to Florida SUPER bad and is carrying back a 2nd mortgage for me.  

@Ramada Evans your approach, not doing your own research and just asking a bunch of strangers for general advice, has a high probability of ending badly. 

Get super familiar with your location of choice and work with people who have your best interests.

I was already tired of using public transport, plus when the weather was bad the way to work took up even more time.

In 2017 we started our journey with long-term buy-and-hold investment properties in the Memphis, TN area after selling a property that we were losing money on every month in NOVA that we purchased as a primary residence in Jan 2007 (talk about all-time bad timing) and then had to move with the Navy in 2009 (2nd all-time worst timing).

However, you will need to find a seller that is willing to do this and it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a professional help guide you through this process.

A close friend of mine worked with a client who snagged a few acres just outside of town near the North Platte River.. it didn’t show up on the usual listings, but popped up through a local contact who’d been hinting at a seller looking to keep things quiet.You mentioned it’ll be a three-year timeline.. that’s actually not a bad window.

This one I feel the least bad about.

Quick context: I placed a tenant in one of my units after thorough background checks and collected security deposit + first month's prorated rent via Baselane (bad move!).

It's great that you know what you are interested, but YouTube can be good and very bad.