I am a computer geek by training, but I am interested in generating passive income so that my family can have financial security and the opportunity to travel and have adventures (without the day job). 

hey fellow investors hope all is well , I am fairly new to real estate investing. as i was driving for dollars I found a lead for a house with a motivated seller.

Listen to the seller and clue in on the reason they are selling.if she won't call back or answer your calls, send a nice letter apologizing (if you think you have some to apologize for) or just something saying "thank you for your time, i would still like to talk to about the sale of your home"....maybe a thank you card for her time and consideration......a gift card or offer to sit and buy her a cup of coffee...... again trying to resolve any issues that may lead to you closing this deal....you worked hard for this lead (i presume) dont just give up!....

Don't buy Zillow leads!

In announcing plans for the center earlier this year, they described the new operation’s objectives this way: “Modernizes the Army for the future… will integrate the future operational environment, threat and technologies to develop and deliver future force requirements, designing future force organizations, and delivering materiel capabilities.”The Futures Command center is expected to lead innovation for the Army’s top six modernization projects, including improvement to its tactical missile system, combat vehicles and helicopters, defense teams and weapons.Army officials indicated they were seeking a high-tech, creative culture for the location, rather than a traditionally structured Army post.

We need to leave some messages under the podcasts leading to Bigger Pockets.

I have a propensity to take the risk if there is a greater reward and I am looking to generate returns for a longer-term time frame of 5 - 7 years.How would I go about making my investment decision to deploy this 30k purely as an investor?

If you are ever interested in doing any private lending let me know, we have more leads (we mainly stay in the Nashville market) than we can finance.

If you have lower return targets than I do, then perhaps there are lots of properties that generates ok returns. 

Why not buy the house youd like to live in with the land at a price point you can afford and then generate as much extra income as possible from the land.