Namely, Canyons, and would like to explore picking up a vacation rental to use and generate some cashflow.

Currently Generates right at $400k cash flow. 

Also, be sure to include a Lead Generation Magnet.  

I also advertise on my MLS, plus my website generates about 5000 visits a month.

Looking to buy software that help me as a startup business generate more leads, I'm looking for great software like text blasts, call blasts, and direct mail campaign.

And I knew that real estate was and is the most effective vehicle for generating residual income and long term wealth.How did you balance your time and what financial aspects did you review prior to taking the plunge? 

Your message makes sense, The most common way to make progress toward a second property is to make the first property one that is a duplex or triplex, so you can live there and rent part of the property out to generate income right from the start, basically paying your mortgage.

You probably handled it the best way using a generator,, neighbors are nice with long extension cords.. we did a flip, and storm knocked power out, low area and basement sump was out because of power, and generator's were hard to get.. water was terrible,, and threatened the furnace,and water heater but we managed to hook up to neighbors generator for a couple hours a day to run the sump. power was out for 4 days and the rain just kept coming. yard was like a mud bath.

So, it's time to start generating passive income and move towards financial independence.In terms of where I'm at in the process, I've read a bunch of starting material, including the UBG (thanks for the resource) and am going through the podcasts.  

If that were you only way to make a move, then MAYBE but given that you have $30K in savings being generated in the next 12 months, why not do that.