You might be able to look for #2 and #3 and do 2 at the same time.

This will save you time and effort, as you won’t have to travel long distances to manage different properties or handle tenant issues.For your first investment, I suggest starting with 2-4 unit properties.

My first bet of advise to you is to read Gary Keller's The Millionaire Real Estate Investor.

Additionally, develop some real estate metrics so that you may measure markets evenly and objectively. 

Quote from @Yianni Hahalis: I'm looking to move to Cleveland within the year and get my foot in the door with real estate.

Having worked with 1,000's of investors to Broker the properties I sell in my local market, and having worked with dozens of Property Managers, Turnkey Providers, Agents, Property Management Software Companies, Lenders, Inspectors and various other investment real estate vendors to market their products and services on my show, the one thing that stood out to be was the CEO Zach's obsession with the biz.In real estate we've get a lot turnover, a lot of flameout.

@Stephen MageeRecommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

I wouldn't consider buying real estate if I didn't have $160K cash in hand.

Opportunity to build a quality portfolio exists at any time and in all kinds of markets. 

I’ve been so focused on real estate investing that I sometimes forget to consider the bigger picture.