Some of my colleagues and friends bought millions, others tens of millions, and some hundreds of millions (or Billions) during that period.Real estate is a funny game - it tends to go up, yes, but it does not always go up, and it can go nowhere for a decade or more, as a lot of apartment complex purchasers from 2021 are about to find out. 

If properties in that area tend to appreciate more slowly, especially if you can't start renovations immediately, you may sit on that investment watching potential profits get eaten away at slowly as inflation passes appreciation. 

These course providers tend to sell their customer base on  unrealistic expectations or teach the most basic of concepts which are easily picked up through a book or merely browsing through these forums.  

On the other side, the bigger companies have more experience and their numbers tend to be more accurate (not always)... as they are big companies "their costumer service" and communication is better but at the same time they "have more mouths to feed" if we need to be honest so can get a bunch of ok or good deals but I kinda doubt they will be great (just my personal candid opinion).

When looking at discounting properties to find a deal, I tend to lean into what the seller is looking for when I know I'm holding. 

Don't spend a lot on improvements as they tend to get damaged with every tenant.  

High Cash on Cash tend to be lower IRR deals, because they tend to appreciate more slowly on average.Lessons learned: your two biggest cash outflows will come from Capex and bad tenants.  

For many of us we are above board and tend to think we do the right thing but the number of vultures out there is pretty significant and its really those who this is about. 

Memphis has a pretty affordable housing market and tends to offer solid rental yields, which might align well with your goals.Let me know if you need any more info or want to chat further about this.

They tend to be cheaper than banks and easier to deal with.As has been mentioned, websites can be tricky to navigate since you don't know who you are dealing with nor what their intentions are.