Let them go there and pick their own contractor from the list that Home Advisor supplies. 

I had a condo that we bought for 55K and sold for 155K ish, with that I bought 2 SFH in East Mesa at 180K each (picking up some debt), I had to fix them up a little but they are now worth 220-240 each. 

But you must pick a sector within that.

I also have an interest in stocks and have finally picked up a small nest egg to throw that way.

Sarah Taylor I go to the RPOA event every February (highly recommend it and it’s free) and a few of their classes that apply to me.

My wife, Brittney, is close to finishing her real estate classes in order to register for the California exam.

@Jonathan Roszkowski Yeah with your skill set in IT you might look at the "Silicon Slopes" in Utah, or even some cities in Texas like Austin, but because it would be your primary residence as well you have to pick a city that you would be comfortable living in.

Of course, these require you to physically pick up the money.

I also suggest selecting one area of real estate investing that picks your interest the most at this time and learning as much as possible about it before investing.

My point is pick the right property class for your budget (probably SFR), invest in the right neighborhoods if you want a good PM, and be prepared to move super fast (no analysis paralysis).