I am focusing on suburban cities with healthy budgets and good school districts.

I to the liberty and added some healthy debate to your Bull vs Bear and Market Value doesn't matter concepts in that thread.Here is the other thread: http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/311/topics/74564#

Most of my marketing expertise I picked up right here on BP (mixed with a healthy amount of stage and sales experience).

Close a few more 350K deals and you should be able to build capital easily.Most HML's will require some skin (money) in the game.

If your skin is too thin, perhaps forum posting is not your cup of tea.

Lack of 'skin in the game'.

Perhaps a Tennessee landlord can chime in on this thread.Second, $2000 may not even be enough to pay the closing costs, and most hard money lenders will not lend without the borrower having significant skin in the game.

FHA just means the loan that you get from the bank is insured. 3.5% down, has to be in decent shape normally as opposed to a conventional loan where you typically put a little bit more skin in the game (5-10-20%).

You haven't really said what your goal is.If you have money to place without the headache then commercial triple net you can land 7 to 10% annually with mailbox money.If you only have 10k to your name and trying to hop off your first deal then be upfront with the commercial agent about your ability and resources to do a deal so nobodies time is wasted.Even if a seller ponders financing you they want skin in the game (personal guarantee,additional upfront escrow payments as reserves,cross collateralizing other properties you own,etc.)Otherwise a seller can sell off only to have the buyer run the complex further into the ground and take a bigger loss taking it back.If you take out with private money or hard money for a value add the property has to be dirt cheap because the debt service and points will eat up any return you have until you stabilize and refi out or sell.

Lenders that do not know you will likely never go for such terms (too high risk and no skin in the game from you).The other way is using a lender to fund most of the acquisition, then a partner or gap funder to supply the balance.