Don't touch that nest egg for personal expenses - you need that backbone. 

I would keep direct mail as the backbone of any marketing campaign, and use ppc to supplement the deal funnel.

My goal is buy a multiplex, but I think I will start with condos first, as they still have a good ROI in MTL and will give me a backbone in my investment portfolio. 

Marketing and Networking are the backbone of RE and any business. 

B class is occupied by the backbone of America working solid jobs, generally responsible with their finances, and willing to sacrifice a little and keep going when the going gets rough.Nobody can predict the future but there aren't many negatives to preparing for the worst.

Now, absolutely, being connective and responsive to the seller's needs is absolutely going to increase your closing percentage, but "offers" are the backbone of this machine, and you will never outgrow the size of that backbone.

I would have little control on the quality of tenant, cost, quality and timeliness of repairs, the timing of removing vs working with problem tenants, and timing of turnovers.I have a backbone and can say no to someone who needs to hear no. 

my first thoughts would be to create the backbone.

All in all, though I plan on RE being the backbone, it won't be the only thing that I hope to do.

We all know that the trick to any investing is to buy low and sell high; it's the back bone of every good investment.