He went to get his spare keys at the house and when attempting to enter the home, all the locks had been changed and someone had moved into the home, furnished it, and turned on utilities in their name.

In my spare time I sing, dance and I love whale watching. 

I am so eager to learn all I do on my spare time is try to gain more knowledge on RE.

The other thing to point out is that a lot of the people involved in all of these anchor businesses live in Katy, The Woodlands, etc. all on the outskirts...While there has been flooding all around, a lot of neighborhoods on the outskirts seem to have  been spared the worst of it.

I have a SFR property in Kingwood that was luckily spared...I was stressed all week watching the news, online and texting with the tenants to get updates.....

Having spent all my spare cash on #1, and not having the ability to get bank financing, I had to track down some private money (also a story for another day).Having built some credibility on the first deal, I found an investor and just needed to find a deal.

On the other hand, I don't have the spare capital to replace my new car, so I have insurance to cover if I'm in an accident.

The short answer is no,don't do it.You don't seem to be in the right mindset to become a member of my profession which is exactly what it is,a profession and not a hobby to pick up or put away at will.My profession requires lots of time devoted to learning both in and out of the classroom for at least 6 months to earn a license and the follow up sales training at the brokerage.It is not cheap either to get started with all the fees involved.From what you are describing about your personal life,family demands,and interests desired to pursue,I would concentrate on learning about investing in your spare time.Learn how to evaluate property for potential profits after repairs are done.Join an investment club and surround yourself with successful people who have already been through the process.Learn about hard money,gap funding,and what it takes to get the money you need when you need it.

Even in a rural (non-metro) area you can throw a rock and hit a few people with $14K to spare.  

I'll be then using my spare time there to work on my RE investment.