This would give us about an extra $14K a year today to invest and as our income grows so will that number.

Are you buying a 3/1 but you currently own a 2/1?

I'm leaning toward buying a single or double family home with the intent of renting to others - not sure about short or long - i guess it depends on the deal and how it goes? 

If there was a substantial amount of extra work needed, however, I could easily see how it could get up to $3,000 or even more.

The cash flow is great, but I am looking for a lending source---private or a financial institution---to buy many more like these---they need to be in small cities though.Property management is not a problem, since they own the house and will fix it up themselves. 

@Charles Burgess To be honest with you, the chances of you buying a lot and building on it for less than the cost of buying an existing property are pretty low.

The great. thing about the 1031 exchange it is will allow you to sell in Tampa and buy any type of real estate anywhere in the US.Here's one caveat to explore however. 

Can anyone recommend any good note buying marketplace forums for buying/selling. 

If you were me, would you be looking to buy now or waiting to see how the higher interest rates and end of the pandemic (hopefully) impact prices?

Many people buy in larger cities like this because the paper cash flow looks sweet, but the reality of it, across the board right now - good cash flow equals lower neighborhood class, more variable tenancies, and tons of hidden capital expenditures.