Today, it depends on what you plan to do with the money.  

I have a high credit score, good income, and money in the bank, but I have been having a difficult time finding a DSCR lender I feel like I can trust.

Improvements are cost-effective when the cost of making them is equal to or less than the money saved on energy from those improvements.Cost Effective Test for Existing HomesImprovements to existing homes are cost-effective when they pay for themselves over their expected life span with energy dollars saved.

In your first sentence you refer to hard money and a DSCR loan.

Opportunity cost is the name of the game, in a fiat system where we create money out of thin air; Money now is more valuable than money in 30 years.

Have a planned/practiced 1-2 sentences about how you help people buy and sell real estate.Keep your expenses low, track not only what you spend (personal, and business), and track your "lead indicators"...x hours daily lead generating, # people you talked with daily about real estate, # social media posts you created about real estate topics.  

He lost a bunch of money because he overpaid for a duplex but can now only rent it as a single family.

You need to make this (product/area decision) a very diligent decision or go for lower returns (LTR) and lower your expenses to save more money to move the capital to more investments to eventually leave your current active income.

This might throw a wrench into the mix because the seller will end up making less money.

.- If someone sues the tenant for monetary damages for some other reason, and they haven't done anything illegal, their Renters Insurance puts Insurance carrier money on the table and the landlord doesn't need to be involved.- The tenant's personal property is protected (less the deductible) while they are away from home, like in their car, or when traveling.