Having a duplex is great experience owning a property and being a landlord - and that's the experience you need to get under your belt you can't get by standing on the sidelines.I don't know your area and if this is an outstanding deal, but I am rooting for you to go for it and get your first step in the door of real estate investing.

Think rust belt to sun belt (a super cycle), think east/west coast high company costs looking to relocate to Dallas to reduce employee costs and be close to key strategic transportation routes (DFW, interstates) linking coast to coast in a few hours.The long term trend of more renters has a lot of legs left (millennials, boomers), cost of a house is going up as well as higher rates so that will continue to keep people renting as well.  

If you are able to network and get some deal analysis under your belt, you could go for PML (private money lender).

By getting my license it has light a fire under my belt (partially for the amount of time and money I invested in becoming a realtor.)  

First, we took a belt sander with a heavy grit paper to the few raised spots.

Ultimately, they all say for the first one, just get one under your belt and learn from it. 

Get a couple properties under my belt to be considered a full time investor to then approach lenders with concrete proof of experience and knowledge.

Thanks @George Blower

@Zach Talke from what I’ve been seeing, you have a much better shot at partnering with someone who will provide 100% of the capital after you have a deal or two under your belt because the investor wants to see that you have some credibility before giving you their money.

@Gary Barella my experiences certainly match your advice, but the Catch-22 is that raising cash typically requires having a few successful deals under your belt first, and I can't seem to land the first few deals without raising all cash.