Need guidance on the best way to start
Hi everyone!
I've been lurking around here for quite a while, and am finally in a position to make a move... but I don't know which way to go. I'm hoping to get a bit of advice from more experienced investors to point me in the right direction.
A bit about me: I am 30 years old and live in Houston, TX. I bought my first rental at 24 years old, made a ton of mistakes, and somehow made good money off of it still! YAY! Then life happened. I had to sell it 3 years later, and should have used the money to buy more property. But I made a critical mistake, and used the funds to get licensed as a Realtor instead. I've finally got my feet under me again. Now a married homeowner, with an 8 month old baby girl, and a small bit of money in the bank. Husband works 50+ hours a week, and we are paycheck to paycheck. Any money I've made from being an Agent, I used to pay off nearly all of our debt and pad our savings. We are now pretty much debt free. I need to make a better life for my daughter - one that doesn't involve her not knowing who her dad is, or not having enriching life experiences because we really can't afford it.
Financial situation:
$80,000 equity in homestead <-- But the market peaked last year, and is at a plateau now. Average DOM is 65+ days... Strong buyer market.
$30,000 in the bank for investing <--- I would prefer to not max this out though.
Credit score >800
Debt obligation/month $700 plus $1450 PITI
Annual Income before tax - $50,000
Short term Goals: To generate $2,000 residual cashflow per month in the next 4-5 years so that I can put my baby girl into a good school and have a little extra cash for trips/breathing room. (am I aiming too low/high??)
So, what do I do? I was looking into maybe selling the house and moving into a Fix and Flip for 2 years etc.. But I'm not sure how the timing for that would work? (ie. Where do I live if my house sells before we find the right deal or how do I pay for 2 mortgages??) Also, considering a HELOC to buy... a rental (BRRRR)? I just need to get the snowball rolling again... Thanks so much to everyone at BiggerPockets for all the education and help!!