and it's not only not cash, it's expensive money - for it to be worth using you'd need either (1) something short term, like a flip (not recommending that here) or (2) a very high return that beats the interest rate you're paying on it.

The more you can make your screening objective than subjective the easier and more successful everything will be. long story short, I called her previous landlord to check her rental history and I was told that this applicant steal a package that wasn't hers and she denied it  even they had proof of her stealing it on the security camera other than that she paid on time every month

@Christian Artusoyes - short answer: don't start with a long distance BRRRR.the more hands-on you can be, the more likely your BRRRR is to be successful. 

Quote from @Jimmy Lieu: Quote from @Andrew Syrios: The BRRRR strategy is tough these days (I even wrote an article about it that goes into more detail a little while back: https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/beyond-brrrr-taking-advan...)In short, high interest rates as well as labor/material costs makes it hard to buy a property with debt and cash flow. 

We are comfortable living in a short-term rental until I find the right property to build a new home (as previously stated, I own my own construction company and will build my house as a general contractor). 

Cool part is that we did the exercise last month and have already been able to see traction on some of the short term goals. 

Such as short or long term rental, single or small multifamily or large multifamily, etc.?

Short-term rentals mainly cater to vacationers.

To make a long story short, I have always been interested in real estate, but I'm very unsure as to where to start.

The main thing is that a good appreciation won't give a good cash on cash in the short-term but it will be good in the long term.