Pick up Dave Ramsey's book "The Total Money Makeover".

If you're talking owner occupied, meaning you're going to live there, it seems like choosing between those two areas is the primary consideration, then once you've picked that market you can dive down to consider specific properties.For your own personal residence, usually other life factors such as proximity to your place of employment and family considerations (spouse/partner, children, parents/extended family) are even more important than real estate investment.

History: Active Duty E6 stationed in Virginia and purchased my first home in VA utilizing my VA Loan in February 2018.

I am in contract  to purchase an MHP (on public utilities).

I knew 1031 was not an option, but looking for options to utilize the funds for real estate investment and decrease the tax hit.

How do you know the product really works when you have to get right up to the end of the guarantee before really utilizing it?

If you're doing property/investment analyses beforehand (and you should be), factor in that you will be paying rent (and possibly some or all of the utilities) to the LLC, and that the LLC should be paying you for managing the property.

I may have broken the cardinal rule by purchasing a multifamily mixed use commercial/residential property in Michigan that has shared utilities AND electric heat.

Pick your strategy  , then go after it !

Very new to the real estate world just looking to meet new interesting people and pick up a nugget or two from you along the way.