So I’m trying to decide if it would be better for me to use my money to pay down my current loan, knowing I’ll definitely not be able to fully pay it off by the time I move, or to put my money towards buying my first invest property.

One lender advised me it's better to negative cash flow if I can afford it and still do 20% instead of 40%.  

Even if you have to travel a couple of hours, you have a much better chance of finding someone.How to approach a mentorOnce you've found a likely candidate, it's time to reach out and ask.

you MIGHT be able to use a commercial loan, possibly even an SBA loan.. but a private lender might work better. is the seller open to creative financing?

We are looking for ways to improve and do better next time.

What market performs better for you at this point?

I can get diversification, and know I will average better returns long-term with a REIT index or stock market index fund.

Now that if I do end up hiring a CPA, I'll have a better understanding of what's going on.

Hi Lewis, no better way to build wealth by utilizing the loans available to you especially VA loans.

Better safe than sorry...