I am just out side of Elkhorn, WI and selling our property the is 5 blocks from the lake. If sold for the amount I want I will have 30k to 40k at the end. Love to keep relator out of it, but may need realtor to find a...

I am a small out of state investor with a few single family rentals in Cleveland suburbs.

Keeping the first as a rental. 

We live in Northern Florida and manage our 10 long term rentals and do flips in northern Florida and we decided not to go that route with this south Florida home after we started digging into it.  

I personally own 2 rentals in Indiana.

@Jose Saladin Purchasing your sister’s home as a live-in rental offers instant equity (~$170K), tax benefits, and landlord experience, making it a solid first step into real estate investing.

A rental in SD 1 (A -C rating) will always have higher demand (and usually higher rent) than the rental down the street in SD 2 (D - F).

I've built my entire rental portfolio off of going direct to seller and starting the cycle of 1. sourcing my own deals 2. assigning 3. using assignment fees to build capital to buy more real estate and more marketing. 

PM companies charge a lot and if you don't have multiple rentals why pay them? 

I point them to the local watersports rental company that drops boats and ski's right at the local marina.