My question is this, if you wanted to use private money as a source for a buy and hold investment, how would you structure the deal?

You can get market rent from many sources.

Get the biggest house you can afford and lock in the price.

It mainly boils down to having 1 property and 2 sources of income.

I agree with Alok that it is easiest to find a mentor, but it isn't necessary.Over the years, the biggest obstacle to any new investor is themself.

My biggest advice would be to tread carefully, as there are plenty of war zones and just generally undesirable areas.

I guess my biggest question is what are some other investment options that do not involve lots of cash?

The reason some don't own even though it may be cheaper is because they have terrible or no credit or they simply do not want to own.If numbers don't work, then you either have to look via other sources (ie. not houses for sale on the MLS) or look in another area.Not everyone is flooding the market to be an investor because not everyone is willing to get into real estate.

To me that is saying when a listing comes in to you that you would like for yourself, not when you are buying from another source whether that be another agent or off MLS deal.

I am just getting started, and plan to require my full time job for ~2 years before my business has grown to where it is no longer a supplement to my income, but my sole source of income.Draw up a business plan, your intentions, and your goals.