But eventually you take the leap… you decide to go for it and you tread water until you can swim to the next level of your future.For me, I was about 20 attending a photography seminar as a store employee and the day I heard that phrase it hit me… I’m going nowhere being the employee.  

I think both need a great deal of people skills being able to deal with multiple different people with multiple different desires in the transaction and being able to balance all of that is hard work in of itself.

If you are against PM's than you might want to consider partnering with someone with strong decision-making skills.

Establishing partnerships with sponsors for real estate deals requires a significant level of trust, which is typically fostered through experience and time.

I had the exact same issue on my split level house hack.

one other idea i've been thinking about is selling the Portland rental and 1031 into a property near my mom on the east coast who is looking for a single level home. 

The skilled wholesalers in NJ have their buyers list and won't go through the hassle of putting a property under contract that doesn't meet the criteria of the buyers on that list.

In a year, assuming it all worked out and you liked it you can rpeat at same level or slightly higher priced home if you’re turning a profit.

I am studying areas (zip code by zip code) with income levels above 45k and employment rate less than 3%.

One of my mentors always says that, "Making a quick decisions is an important skill"!