However, I do have a great job in San Diego and am not necessarily counting on the cash flow for income (playing the long game with equity accumulation), although it certainly would be nice.

Using seller financing, partnering with a private lender, and other creative ways to finance your deal will help you close on the property without having to put any skin in the game.

@Wei Jie Chin yeah, lots of lenders are not familiar with many things we do as real estate investors...it's part of the game with what we do. 

I feel I have to be overlooking something right in front of me but I’m struggling on deciding if the 20 year is worth it based on the additional  immediate funds I will have access to or if I should play a longer game with the 30 year.

They're stable, less work is required, but what's your end game?

I want advice on my game plan to see if I’m in the right direction and to get some insight.

Home runs look cool, but singles usually win games. 

Everyone has a different strategy but parking cash in a property for little to no return is not my game.

I decided this was enough for me to at least get in the game.

I'm new to the RE game as well but I like that strategy to build capital and leverage that to buy more properties.