I’m having a hard time finding a great price in a great location and I just can’t seem to pull the trigger on anything.

EDUCATE YOURSELF - yes, it will take time, but will lead to a selection that better meets your expectations & avoids potentially costly surprises!

Also, focus on 2 years of job/income stability.Class D Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, all cashflow with little, maybe even negative, relative rent & value appreciationVacancy Est: 20%+ should be used to cover nonpayment, evictions & damages.Tenant Pool: majority will have FICO scores under 560 (almost 30% probability of default), little to no good tradelines, lots of collections & chargeoffs, recent evictions.

HELOCs are specifically helpful in this case so long as you are consistent with paying it back in a timely manner for the next transaction.

Many DSCR programs require an investor to have a mortgage history- there are some DSCR mortgage programs that will work with investors who are renting- some refer to them as first time home buyers (FTHBs)- DSCR loans are only for investment properties where the owner isn't living there. 

It will save you time and effort. 

A great way to get started if you currently have a W2 job is to buy a house hack like a duplex or a fourplex where you can move into one of the units and continue to rent/manage the other units.

Home warranty programs charge a trip fee every time you file a claim, and they use that fee to compensate the vendor.

Have asked a question or 2 on here but have disappeared a few times. 2024 was a busy year for me.

I torn that thing to shreds a long time back: https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/2015-05-06-2rule-die-horr...The 1% rule used to mostly work as a "pre-filter rule of thumb" as you say.