From my perspective, when I started house hacking, I really enjoyed learning about all of the trades, but as you said-  it becomes harder to do all those things while building.  

Here's my situation, I was going to start a position as a project engineer this upcoming Monday with an annual salary of $72,000.

Start by reaching out to those bigger investors through a friendly email or message, expressing your admiration for their work and your desire to learn.

Perhaps I should start charging for my consulting time?

I think you may want to look into areas out of state, where rents are strong and prices are lower. 

This post is for seasoned investors.You are starting out and do not have a mortgage, yet.   

This is off topic but can some tell me how to start a topic in this forum? 

Both scenarios are great so you can't wrong unless you start negative cash-flowing on a property.

I have served across the U.S. and overseas, developing expertise in strategic mission planning, operational leadership, crisis management and strengthening global partnerships.I am now eager to meet and collab orate with business professionals to start building my real estate portfolio.

We are starting our business, and we will love to buy our first investment property in Detroit.