Start small with strategies like house hacking, leveraging your hands-on skills for value-add properties, and building a strong team or network to reduce risks.

I went the owner occupied route on my first 3 homes.

For example, maybe you will get to 10, 20, 30 houses and then find an owner who has a large portfolio and all of a sudden you are at a high door count and now need to hire, need to build your policy binder, and all the other stuff that comes with running a business.

If you need help with landlord laws, house backing strategies, or traditional MTR investing specific to New Jersey happy to help.

I have 6 houses and consider myself a novice. 

He was my inlaws realtor when they bought their first house, and we have used him for 3 single family home purchases.

I found an area I felt comfortable living in and I bought a house with an FHA loan.

You may be declined for not being an owner occupant, but it will still buy a little more time.

As far as PadSplit, you'll have to check city and county laws concerning the number of unrelated people allowed to live in a house. 

It seems they were non-paying tenants even under the previous owner, who likely sold the property because of them.