After I had a few of those properties by the time I'm 25-26, I would use a 1031 exchange to hopefully trade those into an apartment complex where things would really get rolling.On the other hand, I'd like to get started as soon as possible and have a potential private money lender offering to lend up to 80k to get me started in real estate (I know this individual very well and they have a lot of faith in me, they can see how passionate I am about it).

just to clarify, when I say smaller deal i meant $1MM below and larger I meant $1MM to $3MM (what I'm focused on). so even at that larger scale (to me), i'm still mostly dealing with individual sellers instead of companies. 

Assistant access is for individuals that are employed by the agent.

Absolutely nothing in real estate is written in stone and even if you are basing your figures on the house next door still buyers are individuals and your deal has to stand alone individually.

Hello All,
I am a newbie to real estate investing and need guidance on where to start. I currently live in the SF Bay Area and already own one rental in the Bay Area. I have just inherited another sfh that Is ...

I've been looking at REITs on an individual level, forgetting that there are companies like Vanguard out there offering funds with multiple REITs.

Awesome post, I hope many of those individuals who were on the edge actually took your advice. if they did they are looking at nice appreciation.

Also, if you are buying individual units you want to see if there is an HOA & learn how that will impact your investment.

You could also do a wholesale campaign to target motivated sellers for apartment complexes which gives you first access to offmarket deals. 

Instead, build a relationship, start a productive conversation with these vendors and solve this problem