Since you’re already networking and have some good realtor contacts, focus on narrowing down your investment strategy (like buy-and-hold or house hacking) and target markets with solid cash flow potential.

Investment Info:Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Play the long game and hold onto that equity. 

Then, in April last year, my husband and I started a business, and I temporarily put both of those on hold while taking care of my dad.

Hold on…I worked my *** off for 6 months, did the biggest deal in company history, won the award for best salesperson and it only yielded me $9,000?

Once you have completed the consolidation portion of your 1031 exchange you now own a more expensive (and probably really nice) property that it must be your intent to hold for investment use. 

Investment Info:Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Use the HELOC on cash-generating opportunities like flips, then use the cash generated to buy long-term buy and hold investments. 

@Chris Mahoo many new investors don't take the time to properly understand RE investing.1) Many are using approaches from 2010-2018 when Class A property prices were so low from the Great RE Crash that an investor could cashflow and get pretty easy Class A tenants to manage.2) If you look at what investors were doing before 2008-2010, most were buying Class B & C rentals.To make it worth while, an investor either needs to Fix & Flip or invest & hold rentals for 10+ years.- Over a 10 year period cashflow will increase as rents increase (rents typically rise faster than property taxes, insurance, etc.)- The property should be appreciating, if purchased in a good location, increasing the owner's equity/wealth.- Rents will be paying the mortgage off, increasing the owner's equity/wealth.- If you hold a rental until death, you can pass it on with a stepped-up cost basis, limiting captial gains if then sold (limited by inheritance tax limitations).Too many newbies on this site trying to replace their day job income via "passive" real estate investing w/o digging deep enough to understand how it really works.

Investment Info:Single-family residence buy & hold investment.