I am all about making money in real estate and creative investment vehicles, but this is a good forum to state a reminder to all Sellers:  DO NOT agree to a blanket Buyer "or assigns" on the Purchase Agreement.  

There is a specific category where you can find many discussion on this topic:https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/51-tax-legal-...Checkbook IRA LLC is a vehicle which can give you checkbook control over your IRA, depending on your investment strategy it might be good option for you.A truly self-directed Solo 401k option that Alina mentioned above is even better alternative, however it is not for everyone.

Here is a list of lender who specialize in this field:  https://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/2810/50272-lis...The bottom line is this: Solo 401k is powerful investment vehicle but you misunderstanding the use of it.

I am very interested in using real estate as an investment vehicle and I want to get started early.

Last night I got a call from a tenant who saw his neighbor's child stomping all over the hood of his truck and has done quite a bit of damage.  He had suspected something was going on so the day before had put up a se...

You may not personally benefit such as by drawing income from the rental personally, nor may you inject value into the IRA through the provision of goods or services such as performing work on the property.Basically, you get to be a fund manager and deploy your retirement savings into an asset class you know and understand with these vehicles. 

Jon,You can certainly setup a vehicle such as you propose. 

The rest goes towards our mortgage or vehicles and we carry no credit card debt with a combined $14k we owe on both of our vehicles.We are now looking to start purchasing rentals to expand our portfolio.

Right now, your retirement plan most likely has minimal choices to invest in (some stock funds, bonds, ETFs if you are lucky) so you are rather limited in choosing an investment vehicle that will help you reach your goals.From first hand experience, I can tell you that getting a solo 401k was rather easy and I have checks that I write to pay for properties free and clear or to put a down payment if I want to get a loan.

Basically I saw real estate as a vehicle that could deliver me to  the life I want to live, the business ventures I want to pursue, and the lives I can affect.