@Kristin Caras having grown up in an area with a lot of active duty folks, I am familiar with this conundrum.

As an active out of state investor, I like the idea of knowing that at least I can reduce my overall investment risk by having the eviction laws favor the owner rather than the tenants.

I am now in my early-30s after having served just shy of 12 years on active duty in the Marine Corps.

I have a client who wants me to list their industrial lot valued at 1.1M, another client who is actively looking for a doctor's office here with a budget of 2.2M and another client who is looking for a office building for around 650k. 

@Tom KellerI can speak to what I know which is Multifamily.The beauty of Multifamily syndication, which is a turnkey model for the Equity partner/s, is the team aspect of it.A syndication team allows you (Active or Passive) to work in your field and continue to make $ while the team of operators run the asset/business.  

As more and more tourist income comes from non-gaming activities at least it's less dependent on gambling.  

Read books on investing in real estate, listen to the podcasts, attend webinars and stay active on the forums while connecting with other investors in your area and pick a niche.

But I guess at that point you are done actively building your wealth via expansion.

Does anybody know a good property manager in South Bend (I am active only in Indianapolis)?

You'll get a wealth of REI knowledge and learn how to take full advantage of Bigger Pockets (including how to connect with other Florida investors).Listen to the podcasts , get active on the forums & set up key word alerts to be notified when people are discussing topics you're interested in.