Unfortunately, upon doing some initial research (including on biggerpockets and reading Brandon's book on real estate investing), its not always feasible to invest where we reside - do you alternatives in mind?

Hi, I am looking for some information as I am brand new to alternate financing.

Don't call the large plumbing companies with the pretty trucks. 

Then you'll close your BP account and go into hiding, not wanting to admit your failures and will forever curse real estate investing as just an alternative to gambling.So people underwrite to decompressed exit caps because they want to be the guy in the first example. 

Moving forward, a better alternative than hassling yourself and your guests with damage deposits is to just purchase damage insurance through a company called Safely for each booking.

Alternatively,  you can buy multiple smaller properties in a 1031 that combined add up to your initial sale value.  

Whether you are starting an online service or buy a food truck, endless possibilities..

My alternative is renting a crappy bedroom from someone else, which seems to start at 900$/m down the drain, and leave it empty most of the time.

That said, there are alternative property types that are in lower ranges. 

If you are looking to capitalize on the market, and DTI is not an issue, price reductions are a better alternative, since you can always refinance into a lower interest rate.