You’d have to look all the way to Nevada to have no state income tax, lower property taxes and insurance, no weather related issues and a young property base.

HOWEVER, your upfront fees will be hefty thanks to the loan level price adjustments (LLPA) on a 90% second home.

To earn passive income through REITs, investors can purchase shares through a broker or online investment platform.3.CrowdfundingCrowdfunding platforms allow investors to pool their money with others to invest in real estate projects, typically with lower investment minimums than traditional real estate investments.

Usually it's capped at 50k at 5% ; lower than current interest rate. 

Many investors from California are investing in the mid-west because of the yearly cash returns making more sense in these lower priced markets.

You can also refinance and get into a I/O Interest only to lower payment and increase cash flow until rates take a steeper drop.

I say the general public because there is a way to get an even lower rate but it involves a personal relationship with a private money lender.

For a triplex built in the early 1900's (I'm assuming if it's in the city) in a lower income neighborhood, you should likely be at least $250 for both maintenance and capex per month.

You can do both.What is your risk/reward level?

Background:In the Class Action Complaint (linked below) the Judge accused the NAR of fixing prices and states, "For decades, home buyers across America have been unwittingly paying too much for, and receiving too little from, services offered to them by real estate agent members of NAR.Despite agent representations (which NAR permits and encourages) that such services do not cost home buyers anything, home buyers in fact pay a hefty cost for these services—namely,  supracompetitive commissions at levels fixed by the Defendants, which in turn lead to higher home prices paid by buyers...as part of their membership, brokers must also agree to follow NAR’s rules, practices, and guidelines.