Maybe try to find someone like that who is just starting out and realizes that real estate is the golden goose over building their own law firm?  

I have to take a step back and realize how blessed I am.

There are hundreds of hard money lenders out there, ultimately I'd work with someone who has time to focus on ensuring you get a tailored mortgage instead of a cookie cutter solution.

Ultimately, clear communication and expectations handled in a respectful manner can avert any issue.

I envision this portfolio supporting me during my retirement years—though I still plan to work, just in a different capacity than I do today.I recently finished reading "How to Invest in Real Estate: The Ultimate Beginner's Guide" by Josh Dorkin and Brandon Turner, which has been incredibly helpful.

While these deals were successful, I realized that the cost of using hard money significantly ate into my profits.

I also realized last night (after I made my original post, of course) we could do a HELOC on our primary residence.

I realizing the duplex conversion strategy is more complex I probably wouldn't try it on my first property, just want to get a sense of what's possible in the Chattanooga market :) Thanks!

and soon realized that there was no aviable apartments in or around the same neighborhood for the price that they were looking for. if they wanted cheaper rent?

I also always keep my rent increases in line with the local market, so sometimes I'll have tenants threaten to leave sometimes, and once they do their research they realize that it wouldn't make sense at all to find another property and end up paying the same thing.