You need to have a solid financial foundation to be successful in real estate, so I would suggest working towards that goal, and then pursuing REI.

Does anyone have a success story of starting out with $5000 and being able to build their real estate empire to a $1M portfolio?

It will also show how people can be just as successful no matter what way they analyze. 

I am in Louisiana and have found a property that was foreclosed from an unopened succession. 

I hope the best for your success and you continue to stay plugged in.

Much success!

Wishing you success.

Clicking the image anywhere on that page does nothing and following the FAQ link suggests that hovering over the image reveals a link to edit it, but alas, for me, it does not.I've tried these methods on both the Dashboard page and the Profile page with no success.

It's completely feasible to achieve enormous levels of success investing out of state - but keep in mind that when you get involved in a deal that is not local you're losing some control, and your visibility & oversight of the deal is dramatically diminished.Unless you're buying a turn key or getting into a PPM or some other commercial investment vehicle with a group that is managed and regulated, you may want to consider keeping it local until you've gained the experience and knowledge, and developed the out of state relationships necessary to be successful from a distance. 

You’ll find many stories of those who have been successful investing while on active duty.