@KANE WHITESIDEThe only thing from a 401k perspective that can "go wrong" is that you fail to make payments in the required fashion and the amount of the loan is treated as a taxable distribution, with an additional 10% penalty for early distribution if you are under age 59 1/2.As such, you want to be very sure that you will have the ability to repay the loan, and structure your real estate deal accordingly, with plenty of reserve capital in the event you have an extended vacancy or significant repair expense.You also want to keep in mind that you put that money into the plan tax-deferred, and will be replacing it with after-tax money, so the income you receive personally needs to be a significant return on investment to offset the negative ROI equal to your tax rate that the plan is experiencing.An alternative would be to use the plan itself to make the investment in property.  

I know financial freedom is a long term goal and believe with great ambition and determination I can be financially free by age 45.

Capping all plumbing and adding a nice, big linen closet (closet space is somewhat limited given age of home.Other decision is to keep above ground, in basement oil tank or converting to nat gas.  

Together, we have a large amount of cash that we'd like to invest in rental properties, but I spoke with an adviser today who said that we may have trouble getting banks to give us loans, citing the age of my father and my lack of an income.

Condos and HOAs can be rough because the fees change, especially as the units age or if there is a repair emergency.  

With aging fuse boxes necessarily comes the questions of aging metal-armored cable, with-which comes the questions of a faulty ground contact in that cable.  

I have three siblings of similar age that I wish to invest in real estate with.

I have been studying this field and reading about it and i feel like i have the knowledge that many new assistants have and i could start selling already. but they insist that because of my age and my baby face it will be hard for people to take me seriously. i think that as long as i give top fiduciary services it should not matter what my age is or how old/young i am. what do you guys think??

This question is aimed particularly at seasoned investors near or at retirement age or investors who also are certified financial planners:Once you reach retirement age, what percentage of your portfolio reasonably should be in real estate vs. a traditional IRAs or other financial instruments? 

That can mean different things for different investors based on their experience, age, network and location.