Then when everything with my health was finally normal, my daughter graduated high school and went on to graduate college with top honors. 

It's counter intuitive however, we find this approach to be highly effective. 

You can continue to roll over for up to 5 years.If you cannot use the charitable deduction, you can sometimes sell the properties to a high income individual who CAN use them. 

HML have high holding costs.  

You can even make collateral withdrawals as you pay down your principal.But these are usually high interest, interest-only loans.

Bandit signs are inexpensive and effective, if you're in a high traffic area.

If you can't keep control of your personal finances, you are highly unlikely to succeed in real estate investing.

I'd highly suggest coming to one of the local meetups to network with other locals that are interested in doing this.

While evaluating potential investment properties these past few weeks, I have realized that the average rent in Austin is comparatively lower and due to high interest rates and property tax, the outcome is mostly negative cash flow. 

You can also build a relationship with a good local agent and ask them to run comps for you, or in certain situations like selling a high-end home to a friend off market I’d recommend just paying for an actual appraisal.