You can always do it with your own IRAs, however your employer's 401(k) may or may not have such an option.

There just aren't a lot of options in my area, and my kids need to live close to their dad. 

If you are just starting it sounds like house hacking may be an option for you. 

I grew up in WNC and still have family there so that is an option and even have placed offers on cabins in WNC to make an STR but nothing has panned out yet for something like that.

Option 3: Find a better investment at this time.Stop thinking of yourself as a real estate investor and start thinking of yourself as a well rounded investor.Pay off your mortgage: Your money is not working for you when you spend it on liabilities like a personal residence.Buy Rentals with little/no cash flow: You are speculating what a rental will be worth in 20-30 years.

Given that I recently created a Series LLC here in TX, and there still doesn't appear to be straightforward options in this regard, I figured I would bring it up again. 

+1  Real Estate Investing Data and How-to Guides - This here shows that you can filter to Multi family but I don't see it as an option as well.

This is one of the options I was considering as well. 

Or you can try and lease option it, but be sure to mentor your tenant all the way to get pre-approved, otherwise you have an 80% chnace they won't be able to buy it. 

I’m particularly curious about:Financing Options: What types of loans or funding sources work best when scaling quickly?