Moi aussi, any endeavor that I've pursued in real estate was with my own funds first to learn the ropes, not only until got the comfort feeling and proving it worked then opened up slowly to other investors.  

Quite a few of the rent controlled units there, have tenants that were there since childhood so buying them out could become quite the costly endeavor.

Much success to you in your real estate investing endeavors.

He's always had that 'hustle', it just took him some years to apply it to legal endeavors like motorcycles and car audio, haha.   

Happens every day and there are countless stories on this board with both successes and failures in the endeavor.

Still finding success in my latter endeavors but am looking to leverage my knowledge & experience in the construction industry and get into real estate as this has always been my end goal. 

I keep getting told that costs too much, but I would affirm, if the loss of cash flow to properly finance the risk of your endeavors is too high, then it’s probably not a good deal, and look for a better deal.

Any tips as I start this new endeavor are greatly appreciated!

Good luck with your endeavors and welcome to BP!  

Marketing is a full time endeavor.