There is always a second shoe that drops or the second hit that comes with a downturn and I think this must be forthcoming.

its difficult to walk on the beach along the waves following an others persons steps exactly... let alone to just put ones self in an others shoes.

Especially with your income compared to the potential losses you will incur at some point - and you will incur losses, it's just a matter of when and how big - that's part of the fun of learning.If I were in your shoes (and I do have some similarities, being 23 and having just bought my first place outside of LA for $425k last year,) I would take a far smaller amount of your $550k and take a bold-but-smaller-step.

Sell It Like Serhant, Crushing It, Shoe Dog, Millionaire Real Estate Investor/Agent, How Successful People Think, etc.

This is more or less how I would handle the situation if I were in your shoes and why I would choose to at least start with a M2M lease. 

(It's hard to find a 3-4 unit in a decent area in the 700k price range)  If you were in my shoes, what would you do?  

A few things I would consider if I was in your shoes.

The challenge is that many listing agents don't ask the right questions and they may just want to attempt the shoe in route to get the transaction closed. 

@Matt Smith, if i were in your shoes I would do it!

That is because if there is a title defect, even if it arose before the grantor's period of ownership, the title insurance company will pay off, and then step into the shoes of the grantee and sue the grantor under its warranties.