have strong desire to venture in real estate and have read books about real estate and the book I'm currently reading directed me to get more insights from here!

Might have to do a joint venture. 

I would venture maybe $20k total, conservatively. 

Here is a solid example you can adapt for a joint venture (there are differences, beyond just nomenclature, for a partnership and a joint venture): https://templatelab.com/joint-venture-agreement/Again, I would caution use of this document without a professional to review it.

I also was very excited about the joint ventures.

I'd still venture your online ads might be more beneficial, but NOT having physical signs means you're not getting the foot traffic. 

➡️Consider joint ventures or syndication.

I'd venture to guess your tenant is a criminal or drug addict of some sort.There's some truth in your thought but he's actually a really nice hard working young man. 

I'm now considering expanding my real estate ventures into building custom homes, but I know this is an entirely different beast between the required capital, learning curve, time committment, etc. 

I currently have a majority of my savings invested in the stock market but am looking to diversify into real estate and other ventures to achieve my financial goals.