There are really great REI opportunities in different markets - markets in the Midwest and Southeast of the country are particularly lucrative - where not only are the purchase prices reasonable for most RE investors, but the homes are turnkey (new builds or completely rehabbed homes, tenant ready, systems 10 years of life remaining on them, property management teams in place) with appreciating home value AND appreciating rent.

You could put most of your funds in the stock market and access them when needed for a HML.

Then the turnkey operator sells the property at the market value to the investor who pays market price of around $200,000.

For those who have or had section 8 investments (especially in my market) how would you describe your experience?

Plenty of investors work the Atlanta market but the ROI is better in Huntsville and Atlanta is tenant friendly.

Investing in real estate in actually starting, managing, and marketing a company. 

What strategies have worked best for marketing midterm rentals in secondary or smaller markets like Portsmouth?

While @Phillip Austin mentioned Raleigh is a higher returns its just very much a appreciation market, you will not find rentals that cashflow, so depending on your goals its a good or bad market.

From my experience, cities like Greenville, Columbia, Augusta, Huntsville, Chattanooga, and Jacksonville offer strong house-hacking opportunities with growing job markets, solid rental demand, and affordable multi-family options.

In high barrier markets, rents have gotten stronger but not the double digit growth we had seen, which was an anomaly.