@Taylor Cook - Lots of good information from all of the posters. 

My business partner and I purchased a 4 plex property in Grand Rapids Michigan.  

Toward the end of my time in the Army, I switched again to Information Technology.  

Destin is a great market to purchase a property in, and like already mentioned you would do well to live in the place first and then rent out as a STR later on.

This is very helpful info for my next purchase.

Quality absolutely matters in purchase transactions, and cheapest isnt alwasy best.Last point, a good lender will take time to understand your situation and goals and will work with you to identify a strategy and timeline using your available options.

Then I purchased from Amazon, Wayfair, Etsy, and Costco.

As an aside, we purchased using a bird dog.  

The area you purchased might not be high in demand.  

I purchased my first investment property in NC (previously properties were in California).