Make sure their enthusiasm for your potential investment isn't mainly due to their enthusiasm about a quick profit.  

Be careful that you are not overestimating their enthusiasm because it can be a big, and I mean HUGE, strain to do what you are proposing.

Admire your enthusiasm and planning, you are looking at different aspects of real estate. you need to run all your numbers, the main one that will help is your Cash on Cash, which is what Greg and i have been saying, the less you put in and the more cash flow you make the more money you will actually make based on what you put into the property. ( just throwing numbers here as an example, no calculations) if you buy 2 properties, one cash and one with a loan - $50,000 each, the cash one flows $400, the loan one flows $200, you now have $50,000 tied up in one house making $400, where as for the loan you can now buy 4 houses with 25% down, each making $200, that's $800 a month your making - so you would have $400 more than just owning the one home. now IF houses appreciate, would you want to own 1 or 4 ?

@Nicholas Covington I love the enthusiasm in your response and if you ask me you hit each and every point I was trying to make, spot on!

Just making a point that it doesn't necessarily bring enthusiasm if you're thoughts are elsewhere. 

I am just starting myself and hearing your enthusiasm is pushing me more.

It's been so long since I had similar enthusiasm, dreams and hope for the future. 

@Christopher Smith - you’ve got a lot of great things going for you. 1) time 2) enthusiasm 3) a stable government job and 4) a military network filled with current and future camaraderie.I’m assuming you’re going to transfer every two years while you’re active duty, so the best thing you can do for yourself is to gain skills you can use when your income is higher and you can VA loan a house hack.

WOW...no offense, but to all the people that are on bigger pockets that Josh and Brandon have helped, I would have expected more enthusiasm and happiness that they're doing so well.

I'm trying to take a systematic approach with REI, to counter newbie enthusiasm with pragmatism while not letting "analysis paralysis" affect me.