I'm in the Athens area so Atlanta is a bit of a stretch to me, but I'd love to attend some meetings to listen/learn from others if anyone can point me in the right direction - especially the Athens area, as any "groups" I've found are no longer very active.

If I decide later to start a construction business (actively building and selling new spec houses), assuming this is taxed as ordinary income with social security, etc and treating the homes as inventory - if you build a house, then sell it, then spend that money building a second one, but don't sell it until the next year, then sell it, then build another, can you effectively push off the taxes as you are rolling the sale proceeds into new inventory costs / construction costs? 

My wife and I have been actively connecting with wholesalers and realtors and have found success. 

But I haven't met many successful 'self-made' CRE investors who haven't lowered their pain factor, crunched their timeline or increased their learning curve without seeking out a mentor or two on the way.

There are a few different active groups here in the Lehigh Valley.

No crime activity allowed and will result in eviction.5.

Interested in engaging in some real estate investing activities there within the 6 mos - 1 year.

In these you are purchasing ownership of a company or entity that owns real estate and not the real estate itself.However there is a hierarchy of real estate ownership that complies with 1031 treatment and runs the range from active to passive.  

In the meantime I am active in this market looking to acquire 200+ units in the next 1 to 2 years from Midtown to the Northeast.

People are seeking out places where they can get yield and cash flow.Before places like Phoenix and Atlanta used to be hot rental markets but now it seems people are buying more in places like Cleveland , Indianapolis , Kansas City , Birmingham,AL.etc The other markets are still hot even though people might not be able to cash flow well because the general economy is doing well , unemployment is half or less than it was during the recession in many of these places and people want to live in those places .