buy a lawn mower and build up a decent client base...then sell the "business" to roll into real estate.

They first require you to have a website (which you may or may not have, if you do feel free to send me a link and I'll take a look) and even then it takes a bit to build up SEO authority and start getting your content shared with a wide enough reach.All of those online angles are definitely possible, but if you're wanting to start right now, I would go with some of the more direct offline angles.I would of course suggest that you keep trying to build up your online presence while you pursue deals, but getting a few initial deals right off the bat will also give you more ideas and experience that you can turn into content and leverage for SEO purposes (building your credibility).Just my 2 cents, feel free to reach out with any questions!

Most of the advice I receive is to first build up a good portfolio of properties before even thinking about paying them down.

The bottom line is, I am trying to build up some business relationships.  

I wonder how long it will take me to build up business again in a new location. 

One thing to keep in mind is that your 'mortgage' payment might not change much in a lower tax area, but the percentage of it that is taxes will be much lower (meaning you'll wind up with the same cashflow, but likely have a higher return due to increased equity buildup.) 

Or are you making enough in net revenue that you quickly build up the pot to have the next round of capital for the next property? 

Also, thinking back to your first commercial loan, how likely were you to get such favorable terms back then, or is this something that you needed to build up to?

That money came in from my W2 as well as my rental income.The way I look at it, you can build up 20K over 10 years through monthly dribbles and drabs, or you can dump 20K into a money market account one time and be done with it. 

It still would take me a long time to build up 20% of something in my area.