Yes, sometimes there is big buys or whatever and a bit of a balance is carried but I NEVER, N-E-V-E-R get cozy with carrying a balance, paying at minimum or holding a financed balance for 90 days or more.

Those duplex's my clients bought are now trading high 400s low 5s .On the flip side my current project in Canby Oregon I am alble to negotiate 1 to 1.2% for the buyers Brokers these are 700 to 1 mil each..

., SaaS, subscription-based e-commerce). 

But that's me.To answer your question, I'm not in the business of recycling dirty money but I think it's pretty well known and established the the proceeds for criminality and the drug trade is invested in all sort of business, especially real estate.

We see this with MF investors as well, chasing the highest IRR%, which looks good on paper, but can end very differently on execution. 

Using a GC you will have less headaches as you'll have one point of contact and they will coordinate schedules between the various trades. 

These have a much higher CoC ranging from 18-30% depending on how involved you are, the property specific and its execution from a design/amenity standpoint to management.  

If i was starting from scratch, i'd probably start by developing a job skill, probably in the trades like electrician or plumber.

The 1031 exchange is designed to give you a loophole: You are not considered to be selling and buying, you are simply trading your property for a different one or ones.

If you want something more suburban, towns like Easton, E Stroudsburg, and into Lehigh Valley may still have some options less than those other areas.