Pros and Cons to both sides of the coin - I say find a place you know well (or have people there you trust) and develop a strategy that matches your appetite for risk vs reward! 

No risks no rewards!

@Brian Van Pelt makes a great point that will that can often be applied to to friends, family, coworkers or anybody you have a meaningful relationship with as relationships can sour just as much or more than a potentially failed investment, which is often enough for a person to avoid helping loved ones when large sums of money are involved.That being said, since you're looking at the risk vs. reward in this scenario, it could be structured in such a way that definitely limits your downside and maximizes your upside. 

No But I can tell that the best idea backup with a real property at the closing table gets Rewarded BIG TIME!

Regardless of the mentorship program, since each mentor will bring their own bias towards risk/reward profiles, your truest feedback will come from investors and whether you can spread your passion and enthusiasm for the deal to them. 

However, finding and turning around a poorly performing property and making it nice place to live for tenants and financially stable turned out to be a rewarding activity in its own right. 

You need your first deal in any market to be low risk and low reward.

Ive noticed that every time I do something that makes me a little uncomfortable, the reward ends up being greater.. and if there is no reward.. well I've learned a lesson and I could move forward with that new knowledge and be a stronger and better investor for it. 

It's all risk vs reward. 

you can balk all you want about the agents perspective but success is never handed to you in any line of work. in any industry the hustlers and grinders are rewarded and the others skating by don't last long or learn how to live on raamen noodle and juggle car payments with other debt.