Therefore, I want to solicit creative ideas from the community on how small investors can help these families by providing affordable housing while growing our investment portfolios?

This will give you a clear idea of your budget and make you a more attractive buyer.Continuous Learning:Stay Informed: Real estate is an ever-changing field.

My wife and I have been also mulling the idea of when we build the duplex of living in one and renting out the other while we sell our home we are currently in as well and build our dream home.

I’ve thought about this idea with my electrician, since the home has to be required I think that might just be easier.This helped.

It may be a good idea to have some face to face conversations if possible before you spend any money on deals. 

If you're wanting to create a fund that brings in private investor capital to use to create and hold mortgages, meaning holding them as assets on your balance sheet, that's a different beast. 

@Justina SirohmanHave multiple contractors bid a property for you and this will give you an idea of how much things cost. 

QUESTION 2: What are some basic "ideas/thoughts" that i should consider?

This method cost you nothing.This is a good starting point to build investment capital while you learn.If you plan to buy and hold or rehab and flip, then you will need either investment partners on conventional funding sources. 

The court found Landlord was holding 2 months of security when the law only allowed 1 month after the first year.