My boss/owner of the company would not get upset and actually encourages me to get involved in various groups and organizations in town knowing it will take up some work time here in the office.It obviously costs money to take the course and exam, then I need to find a brokerage to hold my license, correct?

quick question.

I'm currently paying above payment on these two existing properties an extra $900 a month to pay down the mortgages more quickly, which could quickly be freed up as well, as they both have low interest rates so this is not really the best use of my money. 

If it takes days for them to call you back then forget ever working with them.If they call back quickly then tell them you are an investor. 

@Robert WalstonI haven't put down anything as yet...listings are going quickly here, before I can even get an offer on the table, the listing has multiple offers.Not joking, today, July 6th, received an email alert from an agent for multi-fams, texted realtor at 8am to put an offer on a duplex, she calls me 8:15am & says their deadline for offers was 5pm yesterday.

Thank you for your quick reply.  

There are always deals to be had, but as the market gets hotter & hotter, you have to be extremely picky, and usually its the sophisticated investors who can still execute on the decent deals because they have the contacts, the track record, understand the risks, can pay cash & can close quickly.

They are debt free (thank you US military) and I encouraged both to buy houses (turn key, no hacking) to avoid renting during residency. 

I'm trying to finish the SoW as quickly as possible, but I would like a GC lined up before I close mid-July.Can anyone recommend me to investor-friendly (i.e. not retail) contractors?  

Continuing on your path and buying a multi-family unit every six months to a year would get you scaled up pretty quickly in five years.