Killeen economy is heavily dependent on Ft.

If you want to remain in this market, and you want a steady source of deals (as opposed to just stumbling across one once every year or two), then I think you're going to have to invest (heavily) in marketing.  

My main questions revolve around if the equity is taxed as a capital gains and if so, how heavily. 

I am also very concerned about my property value declining as Scottsdale is such a big vacation destination and heavily investor focused.In a nutshell the HOA is requesting no vacation rentals (VR's), no subletting, no room renting, and a minimum term of 60 day rental terms.

If you'll be there a while, then I would say the personal appeal and ease of ownership should weigh more heavily than the bottom line.You may also want to play with the numbers you are using in the BP rental calculator.  

Investing with family isn't an automatic no-no, but it is something to think about very heavily.  

There are some pretty serious high-income earners here that are fairly heavily invested in RE, such as Jay Hinrich, and I'd be interested to hear their take on the issue. 

A lot of businesses are moving here to reap the tax benefits, and most of these businesses (especially tech companies in Austin) are HEAVILY targeting millennials with their work environment, benefits, etc.

@Kevin Moen Thats really helpful to read and I do look unto FCI Exchange and see how they can be heavily handled.

I have good credit and a good full time job and would like to use leverage as much as I can-are there success or horror stories about areas I should consider heavily or avoid?