His plans were approved by the powers that be.I was looking at adding on to a 2nd garage in Washtenaw county and the most limiting factor is the county requirement that it be at least 20 feet from the property line.

So my biggest question, for a guy that has very limited experience in the real estate, is where should I go from here?

BP,     After 2.5 years of studying all things REI through this wonderful website and searching high and low....my wife and I finally purchased and will owner occupy a two family property and can not be more excited. 

The time limit to invest is much better than 1031 (in some cased year and a half) and so on. 

There is a lot to know in advance of actually investing including studying your state landlord tennat regulations, market values, market rents, appreciation etc.

I purchased the materials to study and all that would be required is for me to sit for the exam ...

From my limited understanding HELOCs are typically whatever the current mortgage interest rates are plus 1 point. 6.125% doesn't seem too out of line.

I do not know how to limit future leverage, since I have limited cash.

https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Study-Fi...Looking forward to your thoughts in the context of real estate fundamentals and investing.

There is a limit on how much mortgage you can pay if its all in your name.