You should be able to compare claimed sales against vendor invoices as a quick means of forensic accounting. 

I would recommend you look at that as the prices compared to Austin will be much much less.Start with a duplex or single family, do that for a couple years and then go bigger.I have done all single family so far and will be doing that for another 2-3 years.

They can both be great paths to wealth over time but you are comparing apples to oranges .

The BIG difference is that Im a true novice compared to the time and effort of wall street investing.  

Hey Matthew, I saw that you'd need to compare your options, there are plenty of places with great renter populations and high job/wage growth.

If anyone has tips on how to start, where to find deals, and/or whether I should go with a 20% down traditional loan or a 3.5% FHA loan please reach out!

Understand the fees involved and calculate the total cost for an entire year of management so you can compare the different managers.

And of course mortgage foreclosures are more expensive and take longer in mortgage states compared to deed of trust states..

if yes compare with your current lender see which route will benefit.

However, if you don't have "earned income" (as opposed to capital gains) then you cannot contribute to a Traditional IRA or HSA and deduct it from your taxable income.