I separated from the military, took a 4 month break, built a completely custom motorcycle and then went to work temporarily as an automotive mechanic for a GM Chevrolet Cadillac dealership in my hometown.

If you find a real estate agent that is a Military Relocation Professional (MRP) they should be able to get you in touch with local lenders to get your loan pushed through.The major national lenders that give out VA loans most often have often have crappy loan officers that are way out of the loop.

I am from the East Coast but lived all over when I was in the military.

Hello,
My name is David, and I am currently an Active Duty in the U.S. Army serving overseas. I do not have any prior real estate experience, but my goal is to learn how to retire from my 9-to-5 job within the next 5...

Unless you have a job that forces you to move every few years (like the military) take the 30-year fixed.

We have a really close family friend that is a contractor in a great rental market (Low cost of living, multiple universities, low unemployment, retirement destination, and military base close by), and another friend who is an electrician in the same market.

I grew up in Angleton which is about 45 minutes south of Houston so markets i am looking at are southern areas around Houston to be close to family(being away for 6 years for military we are desperate to be close to family again)

I am a realtor and active duty military so I don't have a ton of time but I can pay myself the BAC or just not take one as a discount on a property.

You are paying the commission for the access to the MLS and the effective marketing to all the buyer agents looking.Kinda after the fact, but you should get some sort of "system" or "protocol" in place to remotely manage your property(ies) since you will be regularly PCS'ing as a military officer. 

Being a military town, it has high demand for rentals.