Alternative route I chose, I will leverage my duplex (purchased 4 years ago) equity through house hacking to have skin in the game on next flip.

Beyond the lessons from the projects themselves, building a business that’s efficient, diversified, and focused on the luxury market has been a game-changer.

The truth is, they will keep playing games and milk you for every penny they can, then they will leave the house a mess and cost more with cleaning, repairs, and vacancy.

I agree with you and @Doug Smith because I been laughed away enough to realize that aint the game anymore. 

I would get back to local real estate investor meetups so you can connect with locals to the area and kind of get back in the game slowly that way.

It’s a longer-term game, though, with higher upfront costs.I’d say spend some time researching your target area and connecting with local investors or meetups—they’re goldmines for market insights and networking.

Then you hire a coach to accelerate your learning and take you to the next level.Using a sports analogy, it would be foolish to hire a basketball coach if your intent is to play pickup games every Saturday for fun.

Keeping everyone aligned—lenders, inspectors, attorneys—prevents bottlenecks that could derail the timeline.Lastly, tackling big tasks early (like ordering inspections or raising equity) is a game-changer.

I was trying to get started, had all the information but needed to pull the trigger to get in the game. 

I have been BRRRR-ing in Milwaukee since 2009 and while it got progressively harder to find deals the game really changed after 2020.