I would place $750K in low LTV private mortgage loans yielding 12% and up and $750K in income producing real estate with short term leases than can be adjusted quickly should high inflation become a reality.

Or continue the way things are.I owe roughly 40k on the private mortgage w a $551 monthly payment.

If you are making offers to sellers like banks for REO deals or short sale offers, you will need to do so (in most cases) with your state approved contracts which are availabel from any RE agent, title company, or even your attorney.If you are making offers to private sellers, you can use any contract you wish, but I would advise that you use one your attonrey has approved for your use or use the same state apporved contracts.

I would go to eLance.com, post a broad listing of what you "think" you want, and when the replies start pouring in, you can ask more questions at that point in time and essentially get yourself a free consultation from experts.Of course, "experts" is pretty subjective, but the good thing with eLance.com is that the people all have customer feedback, so if you are talking with someone who has great feedback, your confidence level in their advice can obviously go way up (and vice versa).

Depending on your market area and cash reserves private funding may be your best bet overall to extend your reach.

You would be seeking HML,private money,or an equity lender with loan,or a partner in the deal.Most of these investments are project based.Your 200k income could be here today and gone tomorrow.If you could provide more specific info it would help.

The area I am looking at is receiving higher S8 rents than the private market...

I was a futures/commodities trader for 10+ years (private).

That would be $60,000.So in all, the development costs would be around $175,000, all of which would probably have to be cash or privately funded.Also, you have the cost of the land.

Or you could do flips or do private lending to investors, but I'd be wary about doing it in Canada given the high valuations.