These books have flipped a switch in my head as well as sparked a mild anxiety attack I've identified as the mysterious "hunger" I've heard do much about.I realize now my current job isn't enough to kickstart my portfolio to achieve my goals.

The actual cash flow is the cash flow achieved over the holding period. 

I primarily am focused on flipping homes to generate capital to invest in small multifamily rentals, and eventually move into large multifamily.I realize FNMA is a huge part of the secondary mortgage market but I wanted to get y'all's opinion on just how much these stipulations would hinder my ability to achieve my investment goals?

In your journey learning about real estate, I would advice to think about your goals and how certain strategies can help you achieve those goals.

Even with a large down payment, cash flow is not easy to achieve.

If the goal is to not work, imo, you won't achieve nearly what you envision.

No worries Angela, sounds like you know exactly what's required in order to achieve your goals.

Even just having the knowledge of local laws and regulations is a factor to consider when assembling your dream team to achieve your goals.   

I think you ought to look around a bit and compare how many people achieved wealth from vacant land versus rental property.

I have been wanting to aggressively grow our rental portfolio in order to achieve financial freedom for the last few years, but my wife is very pessimistic/conservative, wants to focus solely on paying off ALL debt first, and hates the thought of even acquiring "good" debt.