Even in the same city, I've had some that are responsive and helpful, others that are combative and difficult, but most are slow and bureaucratic.While I will take Section 8 tenants, I generally try to avoid them.   

A lot of forum members are very knowledgeable in their respective fields related to real estate investing, whether that is real estate sales, wholesaling, flipping, rentals, lending, self-directed IRA and Solo 401k investing, or tax and legal guidance.Discounts on some products and services are offered to BP members: https://www.biggerpockets.com/perks/proIf you haven’t been to it already, you might want to check out the BP blog: https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/The site has quite a few tools that can be helpful for new members.

I found a local lender who offered a pretty interesting product (at least from the standard stuff I've seen)First Time Home OwnersOnly 5% DownNO PMI3.75% InterestIncome Limits Waived for the Area we are LookingProperty we are looking at is asking $399k but we believe $350 is much more fair.

Builders often will provide free “upgrades” if their sales are slow, but not lower price, to keep their comps up. 

You really don't have to do this to many times before the monthly cash flow puts a big grin on your face.Perhaps I prefer this method because of the low stress/slow pace it allows me. 

A lot of forum members are very knowledgeable in their respective fields related to real estate investing, whether that is real estate sales, wholesaling, flipping, rentals, lending, self-directed IRA and Solo 401k investing, or tax and legal guidance.Discounts on some products and services are offered to BP members: https://www.biggerpockets.com/perks/proIf you haven’t been to it already, you might want to check out the BP blog: https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/There are a few self-contained guides that you can access here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guides

So far, all the PMs I’ve talked to are hard to reach and/or slow to respond.

It is a product they offer for those unable to utilize the VA loan, however after calling them for the second time to verify that I would qualify they stated that it can only be used for secondary properties but not rentals.

@Tim Ivory, Sorry more bad news.  1031 is only an option for properties you have purchased with the intent of holding for productive use. 

When it comes to furniture you should get quality looking product but that doesn't mean you have to spend a ton of money on it.