Now, along with my wife, we are close to getting our first rental under contract.A few things that I'd recommend:Take a Dave Ramsey - Financial Peace Class (Take his advice on REI however you please)Read the book, Rich Dad Poor DadListen to all of the BiggerPockets PodcastsInteract on the forum as much as possibleAttend the meet up coming up in a few weeks.And lastly, take your time.

I just want the peace of mind that comes with asset protection and want some structure in my company.  

By the way, an eviction in my state only costs $350, so it is a nice peace of mind.

His reasons to pay off all of your debts, one at a time, are:1) Peace of mind and personal satisfaction2) You can't be guaranteed what your other investments will yield3) You can use a credit card for emergencies, rather than use your savings, which would make paying off the debts take longer4) You could realistically pay your mortgage off in 7-10 years and have more money to invest.5) Your other investments might not pay you when you need them to and you find yourself in a cash flow crunch and not able to make mortgage paymentsMy reasons for paying off all personal debts are:1) If you can buy and sell an investment house and make $30,000--why not just pay your mortgage off?

Plus, having a solid cash flow from the get-go gives you flexibility and peace of mind.

Peace!

Peace of mind. 

I'm not saying it can't be done, but personally, I like the peace of mind of not having to worry about screwing something up and having the IRS on my back.

Peace!

I have 20-30 units and every year or two I have to throw money at a tenet to leave peacefully, "cash for keys."