My wife and I are fairly new to the real estate industry as a whole, specifically to real estate investing.  

Good to know my 10 years in the title industry wasn't a total waste!

I'm no economist, but I think that Detroit's issues stemmed from an economy supported almost entirely by the auto industry, which then shifted its operations overseas.

I have a few owners already lined up, so my goal is to remain small for several years to fully understand the industry and my market before aggressively growing the business.

I know you only need 3 classes to get licensed, but I wanted to gain as much industry knowledge as possible as well as the knowledge from the business classes.

Therein you can easily purchase all the information you want from a businesses offering property information.Sure it is tough when a person reaches a certain level in their career and changes beyond their control transform their positions into something quite different.

I was wondering if there is anyone near me that is in the real estate investing industry now or previously?

Good college town with strong industry, too (General Mills).

I was introduced to the industry several years ago, however my belief level and mindset was way off.

Virtual Assistants are a powerful tool in the real estate industry!