@Sam SandTo answer your question direct: Legally only 14 states requires licensing to make a business loan, so odds are you can get started where you live.

The upside is typically better returns (assuming not totally mismanaged) and management is business hours not 24 hours, typically.

In the last 2 months I've had to start the eviction process on one of my S8 tenants.

When should I start the mortgage preapproval process for our upleg?

Start by reading the Ultimate Real Estate Investing Guide: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guides/ultimate-real-estate-investing-guide/introduction2.

@ Nandish Parmar Rent to Retirement has a lot of resources for investors that are just starting out. 

I'm so glad to have found this online community and resource to help me get started on my real estate rental investment.

The reason I don't purchase new construction is that there is no room for value add, and from a pure cashflow perspective, it's harder to make the numbers work.That's why I started looking more towards multifamily.

When starting, I say "borrow as much as you can for as long as you can."

It would be at 75% LTV with rates as of today starting at 6.3%.