Investment properties take a lot of capital and even that amazing "cash flow" that everyone talks about should really be put in reserves for vacancy and repairs anyway.Learn from your current experience with your first home. 

In my experience as a landlord attorney and helping property management companies across Florida, the fees range from 8% - 15% (taking into account fees and commissions). 

It's typical practice to look at out-of-state (OOS) marketplaces in order to improve cash flow, particularly in high-cost cities like New York.

I don't know your level of STR experience, but having some would be a big help.

I'm wondering if anybody has experience with sectioning off half of the closet and locking it?

It helps you find reliableproperty management partnerships and gives you everything you need to makeconfident hiring decisions: Expert Matching: Match with professionals who meet your criteria Extra Assurance: Licenses, experience, ratings, reviews, and more that can be cross-checked with BiggerPockets members Bonus Content: Receive an essential interactive workbook: “How to Interview Property Management CompaniesHere’s how it works:  Enter your market and what you're looking for Instantly see top matches and their qualifications Connect with only those you want to interview Bonus! 

To which I turn to the most trusted community in RE.Myself and two of my business partners are looking to start our journey in Real Estate development and am looking for some advice, we have experience in owning and managing rentals so none of that is new to us...just building the thing is.We are looking to start developing duplex homes across the Chicagoland Suburbs but cannot find the right person to talk to that can give us a clear idea of where to start.

Sorry to hear about your experience. 

I can give you some advice that I learned from personal experience, and from also taking a BP course on multifamily.1) Are there any particular sub-markets within Orlando that are well-suited for small multi-family investment opportunities?

We practice "safe real estate", so this is all possible but not necessarily what will occur.This is not exhaustive and does not constitute any fiduciary responsibility, it is merely one man's opinion on a public forum.