So, I turned it into a traditional rental.

When you are ready to move on and into a more "traditional" single family home the rates might be higher, BUT prices might be more stable but you'll have a property that will (hopefully) cashflow and be appreciating long term.I would need to learn more about your goals and current situation to see what option makes the most sense for you.

You can find many 4-plexes for the price of one single-family home and the profits are almost exponential when compared to single family homes.I'm 71-years old, met thousand of investors through real estate clubs and I have many friends who invested in real estate who are filthy rich.

In lieu of traditional payment, he has offered the possibility of becoming a partner or getting an equity or revenue share.

If you have not, great books to read are:• Rich Dad, Poor Dad• The Millionaire Next Door• Cash Flow Quadrant • Tax Free Wealth• Set For Life• Rental Property Investing• The Millionaire Real Estate Investor• The REAL Book of Real Estate• So Good They Can’t Ignore YouYou might be able to find answers from these books as well.  

I'm currently reading Rich dad Poor dad but I was still confused but this program kind of narrow thank down. 

They require more work than traditional and are a giant pain in the *** as it seems all short term rentals are but the money it generates has allowed me to outsource a lot off my plate. 

If I want to scale my portfolio, traditional 20% down mortgages aren't going to be possible because of the property value here, so wanted to see what other popular methods are possible.2) How can a rookie investor get comfortable with buying out-of-state? 

Condos/townhomes appreciate less over time than a traditional single family home will.

Traditional financing with 20% down and a 30 yr mortgage.