@Michael Worley  We can certainly disagree on this, but I don't think shopping is a bad idea at all.

. - I like to visit Anodyne coffee shop or some of the restaurants (Guanajuato, Honeypie, etc.) in Bayview, but I'm not especially attracted to living on the South side, barring an exceptional deal.  

Got the verbal loan approval this morning for our VR purchase, closing in about a month!  Tons of stuff to buy & do.  5 bed / 2.5 bath on 1.5 secluded acres, will probably set it up to sleep 14.  It's on a river, ...

My husband is a very smart guy and a great handyman.

You say you hate cold calling, but now it's not as "cold" because you've already made some touches and have something to talk about.Also, you mainly want to work on listings, which is smart because that's where the money is at, but if you want to get going then work with buyers too. 

Rates are good and we've shopped around.

You ever go to the little coffee shop by Neilson's on Alamo Pintado?

Or is it better to stay where I am at and only invest in smart investment properties at 20%+ down but have less free money to invest in new properties that could possibly net me the difference anyways?

He is a complete newbie with not a dime to his name, but he's very smart and wants to start analyzing real estate.

This is very smart and you are in a great area to do this.