Much of the advice I read says the best way to start investing is to live in your first home so that you can go FHA, making it a little easier to get started (lower down payment).My situation is unique in that my boyfriend just bought a house and I am living there with him, so purchasing and living in my own investment property full-time is not an option.

Nicky,I just bought a house here in Colorado and the list of information and paperwork that the lender required was quite extensive.My position was unique however since I did not live in the US at the time (and had not lived in the US for 26 years).They checked my credit, my work history, wanted 2 years of tax returns, pay stubs for the last two months from my job.

Take your time and explore options using other people's money that will cost you less than using your own retirement money. 

Doing like this is unique and creative way of getting people on your team.

I am now exploring the idea of opening a bakery snack retail store. 

5 unit is a commercial loan so you need to explore that aspect of the costs as well. 

Use the keyword tool as well as explore the learn section that is available, there is a wealth of information in the archieves. 

To me, it seems better suited to folks who are focused on retail sales, not investing, and from my preliminary exploration a lot of their training is about how to build your retail sales career (again, I haven't explored in depth yet). 

I am currently exploring stockton market and looking to invest in SFRs and also looking into mobile homes.

This will be my company's first seller finance deal, I have tons of leads that will not work with traditional wholesale methods and I have been exploring wholesaling lease options as a way to increase conversion rate.