Unless you live inland a good ways and can find a multi there.I've always bought out of state personally and enjoyed it.

I've got to hand it to him, he's built an empire and he's far more charismatic than I.

You have 30 to 40 years to grow your RE empire. 

I recommend Dave Micha  with Sall and Tom Deangelo with Empire.

I would never leverage a property that tight because when something goes wrong like you need a major repair for one property and you don't have the cash then your real estate empire falls like a set of dominoes.

I’ve worked in Hammond for the past 5 years- it’s an manufacturing town with 2-4 light industrial plants (Cargill, Unilever) and also serves as the inland neighbor to BP whiting (the largest oil refinery in the Midwest).

Of course, those who have enough resources could do just fine living on their own if their home runs off the grid, has its own water supply and a garden, but not everyone can afford to set all that up on their own.Indeed it is great advice to focus on yourself, save money, disconnect from noise and build an empire.

But for me, my ultimate goal is to...more or less...run and manage empires.

I'm trying to determine if:1) I'm better served continuing to build my cash or stock positions relative to my outstanding mortgages2) for only 8% and the hassle of having a rental, is it better to plow the $40,000 down payment into stocks instead (no one can answer this of course)3) for 8% no rental is really worth itHow do you decide to expand your rental empire or not?

The knowledge you gain will be well worth to price if you intend to own and build a real estate empire.