I have also recently aqcuired my NYS Real Estate Salespersons License in an effort to expand my real estate horizons.

Some more details belowGoals: Medium term appreciation (10 year horizon) with minimal or some cashflow to keep in case of some emergency repairs etc.Type of property: Single Family or Smaller Multi FamilyType of rental: Long Term but open to Short Term rental too (if the area has companies that can manage the AirBnB.

In terms of tracking the investment performance, would you separate the two investments and track returns separately or keep them on the same horizon?

You're chasing upside without concern for mitigating your downside.A single family home in an upscale and strong demand neighborhood like Beverly Hills is like a blue chip stock in your retirement portfolio.I understand that it does not appreciate as rapidly as a growth stock and I also understand it does not yield dividends equal to a more speculative growth investment, but, when the markets turn, which they always do, It's more likely to retain it's value and provide you a hedge against the risk of more speculative investments.I'm suggesting that by abandoning a solid and less risky investment in order to put all your eggs in a more speculative basket you're giving yourself a better chance of a larger income stream and perhaps better short term appreciation, but you are also risking all of your equity in a more speculative market by buying in less solid markets.To me a smarter, safer move would be to retain a solid blue chip asset that pays for itself and perhaps also pays for the additional equity you could borrow against the asset (new loan or credit line), and then re-invest that borrowed equity in more speculative investments if you wish to generate additional cashflow.If you've outspent yourself and need to generate cashflow quickly for another reason we haven't discussed here I understand that sometimes decisions must be made on a shorter time horizon.  

We have several JV partners we are working with now but we are looking to reduce some costs, broaden our horizons and establish a few new relationships with some money groups.  

I look forward to broadening my horizons through networking.

I add to your list of tasks building up my war chest to take advantage of some great buying opportunities on the horizon.

I am also a noob with my first buy & hold in the horizon.  

Not to say people won't make money there it's comparable to gambling IMHO unless your horizon is 20+ years.

Without going into much detail, time horizon can also greatly skew IRR one way or another.