Nice job acquiring the first deal.

That is why most of them just let us do our jobs. 

Look into factors like vacancy rates, local job growth, and tenant demand to pinpoint promising markets.Once you find a property, work on running the numbers carefully—factor in purchase price, rehab costs (if applicable), property management fees, and reserves.

You will require many properties to completely replace your income, which could become a new full-time job to manage.

You'll potentially increase your stress, fail to replace your lost income, and possibly lose part or all of your investment property equity.Focus on replacing your job and stabilizing your finances.

Avoid.The majority of the Mexican developers are honest and do a great job but people need to do a proper due diligence, including knowing who they're dealing with.

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.

Considering some SFR properties in Cahokia / Cahokia Heights, Illinois and looking for some recommendations on inpsectors in this area that do a good job looking at multiple properties

If your student loans are only 3-5% interest, that's pretty good so I think it's okay to pay those off over time.It sounds like you're making good income with your current employer and there is room to grow, so I'd plan to stay with that job until you can pay your high interest loans off and save enough for a down payment for your first property.

I understand equity and cash-flow are related, but what I mean is that I don't need the cash flow right now as much as I'd like to build a strong portfolio that can cash flow even more later on.I've owned a single-family rental for 4 years, but on mulitple fronts I felt like I've done a poor job self-managing it, so this Fall I picked up the Turners' book on managing rentals and that's what led me here to Bigger Pockets online.