I am around the same age and was in your shoes earlier this year, let me know if you have any other questions and will give you my perspective not as good as some of the guys that have been in it for a while but hope I can help.

What Elbert Dockery posted makes sense perfect sense . . . essentially walk in the shoes of the people to whom you wish to sell a property. 

However, having been in your shoes, I’m now realizing that (although not easy to find) good contractors are out there who will do good work for a reasonable amount, and that sometimes spending some money will save you SO much headache and stress so that you can finish a job or turn your attention elsewhere.

This is what I would do as I think paying $100 and a little time is worth the experiment.2) a more conservative approach - find a realtor or investor nearby already doing MTRs in the area and talk to them. 3) If you can't find anyone, put yourself in the shoes of the potential audience you're trying to serve.

for starters take that 300$ investment your mother is going to hand over and go and buy a nice pair of slacks, shoe's and a long sleeve shirt.

But in Detroit, Memphis, St Louis, or Cleveland that same $250k will go a long way.I know that sometimes you need to make sacrifices when planning for your future, but if I were in your shoes I'd focus more on where I want to live versus focusing on what is the best market for a house hack.Also just curious - You say you have access to $20k for a down payment.

I know everyone in my shoes is likely asking this question to themselves, but I wanted to see if there is anyone out there willing to work with me to help identify ways I can make some progress. 

If I were in your shoes, I would check the title of the property and be sure it is free of liens or encumbrances, then I would take title through deed, then and only then, I would collect the instructions on making payments to the lender directly.I did one of these where I was able to negotiate the 2nd loan down to about 25% of the balance and paid them off and only had to refinance the first (when I wanted to) and still have this duplex years later.  

Remember, every experienced investor was once in your shoes.

Her telecommuting options are very limited, and she has no desire to leave her current job.Current Financial State:Saving $5k per month to put towards investments or extra debt paymentsHave around $110k in fixed-rated debt (all 6.5% interest or less)Have around $40k in variable-rate debt (currently at 7.95%)The Million 2.5 Thousand Dollar Per Month Question: If you were in my shoes, how would you reach my goal as quickly as possible?