Neighborhoods to invest in is a more subjective topic as that is often dependent on the type of investment you're interested in, your price point and even the type of tenants, if that's the route your going,  that you are trying to attract.

Since this opportunity came up, I've begun to take real estate more seriously as a path to financial freedom.

This really all depends on the property type.

Think through why you even want to invest in real estate in the first place.

On larger deals, I've actually seen LTVs come down in the 50%-65% range, depending on the type of property/experience of the developer.

I've sold several homes in this area for my real estate clients too, and they've all been happy up here. 

I am thinking about doing this full time and was wondering if there was a coach/professional i could speak with to give me an honest assessment on my current real estate portfolio?

It's a great way to talk through your plans and goals for real estate with people that actually understand! 

A relative who does long-distance real estate investing told me that I have to sign the final loan document and the transfer of ownership document in person.

For a first timer, you can expect a hard money lender to provide 70-75% of the purchase price, and 100% of the renovation budget, depending on the after repair value.