Get out of your comfort zone.

In this completive market, it seems as though off-market deals is the only place to really find a "comfortable" position to be in (although completely aware that we are all in a risk filled area of investing). 

So your best bet is to put yourself in their shoes and shop around just like they would be.Also, some markets are definitely seasonal, and your market rent could change drastically from winter to spring/summer.

. —- Again I’m not saying you have to do these things; it all depends what type of investor you are and what you are looking for however it is important to understand that if you shift the responsibility of either identifying the invest property or managing or any other aspect there WILL be a trade off — in this case the turnkey company has delivered on your goal of 8-9% ROI (projected... so TBC) and in return you have traded some of the other benefits of investing in RE for the convenience of not having to do much more than to look over the properties they have sent you and funding it from the comfort of your home, office, etc. ... again if this is the goal then you are on point but if the goal is to also partake in ALL of the other benefits of RE then you should understand that and not be surprised that it’s not a ‘stellar’ investment that checks all the boxes.

Get out of your comfort zone.

If complaints are lodged against those unlicensed sales agents and its proven true not sure the penalties but i would not want to be in their shoes.

I have been listening to the podcasts and reading some of the books and am excited to finally feel comfortable enough in my vision to post here. 

In the meantime watch the BP podcasts and use the BP calculator to start analyzing deals so you get comfortable with the numbers.By this time next year I would say if you do this you'll have 10k in a bank account with an ok credit which should make you eligible for an FHA loan to buy (1-4 Units) with 3.5% down and get you started. 

Jersey City is hot right now but like I tell my clients the majority of the time I can find them deals that make more sense in Essex County but that depends on the client and what their needs are along with their comfort level. 

For example, some areas SFH may exist but the clientele that move into them have to be comfortable with the neighborhood dynamic.