It would be nice to find a mentor if possible, especially if our personalities mesh well. 

Read my BP blog "How To Develop A Good BS Meter"!

Thank you very much for the welcome response and so far I've read several real estate books as well as many other types of books, i.e. personal development and business.  

Any other items that would add attraction to the deal.I am already doing well in the real estate development world, but I feel that there is potential in this other option.  

Nice @Matt AndrewsNo Dodd Frank in Canada either.

I have a nice chunk of capital and would like to get my feet wet with my first real estate deal.

This is a 5 Story appartment complex outside downtown.First story is commercial businesses leasing out.Second story are 4 apartments all leased, I haven't seen anything but the hallway but they look very nice.3rd 4th and 5th are gutted.The whole thing is going for about $310,000I'm guessing conservatively that the current monthly income is around $4000.

And after 30 years of a $1.1M paid-off house appreciating in an up and coming town, when I decide to downsize at the age of 65 i'll fund a good chunk of my retirement, or hand off a nice asset to my kids.If you could hypothetically take $100,000 on a HELOC and turn it into $5,000 per month cash flow would you do that?

The city has cleaned up with a partnership with the University of Notre Dame, and if you check the economy section of the paper here, you'll find over 700 Million dollars has been flooded into development of this area.

I'm a developer/ high end real estate solutions company for purchasing, selling and renting in 4 states on the northeast coast, and we are presently seeking a source for hardwood floors at discounted or deeply discounted rates.