I would disagree with number 2 - in this environment, heavy rate buydowns are a common tool in the toolkit for lenders and borrowers to make deals work and are in no way indicative of "not being well-capitalized"

As for Portland its downtown while business wise has been really hurt.. and its started with theBLM riots ( or should i say peaceful protest) that and those nice Antifa folks fire bombing things destroyed many many business's the inner city real estate is nothing like back east. but they have got to get a handle on the homeless.. 

The legal structures they set up for me were confusing until they sent me a block diagram showing how everything works at which point it became very clear.Only thing I wish they had was a "users manual" that explains what to do at each stage of the process; that would have been simpler than all the emails I sent which they happily answered.Overall it was a very positive experience and the peace of mind it brings is well worth the money.

House hacking is a great start, with duplex properties offering flexibility and a comfortable living environment.

All, I consider myself a beginner in real estate investing, but savvy in business/finance. I have a RE LLC with each property in an RPT.I own 3 LTR SFHs in North FL that I acquired pre/during-COVID. Estimate there is ...

Today’s environment will “thin out the herd.”

Target rich environment. 1.  

One of my cabin's is up on a knob off a mountain in the Smokies so different environment than you but the issues are probably the same and they all revolve around winter, albeit I am guessing yours will be much worse than ours.Mild scenario is where guest are at the cabin and a snow/ice storm hits while they are at the cabin.  

And you risk the boy friends and baby daddy's.. that's your risk.And of course kids are rough on houses I don't care what environment they are raised in.. 

Look for markets where the environment for landlord is good, prices are reasonable and growth is positive.