@Michael Davisstart with a house hack

You want to have your financial house in order so you know what you CAN afford and what you SHOULD spend.

I am considering a 12 unit multifamily property in my home market of Harrisburg, PA. 

You will need to go after a strategy that has potential to work or do a house hack. 

I’m brainstorming ideas on how I can market myself to potential mentors in the STR game in order to gain experience.

Low or no down, seller financing and low or no interest with a balloon payment later is the holy grail (location, building condition, market also matter but it sounds like you have all that).

So if you buy a 5 bedroom house and rent the spare 4 bedrooms = you can still sell tax-free under the 121 (you just pay back depreciation) If you buy a duplex and rent 1/2 and live in 1/2.

I'd level up with a BRRRR, live-in flip, or house-hack before jumping into a challenging renovation.

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If I were your age, I would 100% do a house hack of some kind.