But I quickly realized that saving up to buy more rentals all by myself was a much slower process than I would have liked. 

I went through the painful process of switching servicers to Land Home.Joe was patient and flexible as I was fairly new to note investing.In the end, I left Land Home for another servicer only to come back to Land Home 6 months later when that servicer went out of business.No servicer is perfect, however I will say that the more time you put into building the relationship with your servicer the better things become.

For those reading I would like to take the opportunity to get into the logistics of why it is necessary for me to do it that way.The general process for selling investment real estate at Holton-Wise is through our daily email offerings.

@Drew PoniewazAs George indicated, location is generally not the primary deciding factor when selecting a provider for a self-directed IRA or 401k based retirement plan.This is a very specialty field, with a handful of providers.There are about 3-4 dozen companies that act as custodians, basically processing the investments you direct them to execute on behalf of your IRA account. 

Can anyone offer their thoughts on the process from, collecting the first year upfront, or if you use the money that the people put down to start the escrow account.

Could I ask how involved was your process of investing, how much did the RE agents help in all the process (finding properties, negotiating price, arranging inspection, paperwork, legal, etc) or was it mostly work you did on your own?

One major benefit from that will also be the ability to utilize one management company and if you ever do visit the properties it is an easier process.

What is the process like for those that have gone through it?

Our work included all planning, political, and community interaction and management of the political process, hiring and management of the design team, hiring and management of the brokerage companies to sell the sites, and negotiation and successful sale of the projects.

If it is toxic black mold, the remediation process is very involved.