I was drawn to this deal because it offered the rare combination of a nearly new property in a rapidly growing area with excellent long-term appreciation potential and immediate rental cash flow.

You can lend money to people (that you know and trust) who are actively operating in the real estate space or work with companies like Groundfloor or Fundrise to invest in real estate backed notes.Since it is always a good idea to diversify, I like the idea of combining your first option with the strategy I just mentioned.

Raw land is valued based on what you can do with it, combined with the demand for that use.

Ideally you're buying property below market value, bringing some cash to the table, and combining it with HELOC funds.

Limited land availability combined with strong demand does play a big role in driving prices up in the Northeast.

That will let you rapidly grow your portfolio, If you combine that with the BRRRR method, that should allow you to rapidly keep funding the new purchases without needing to save a ton of money. 

I was drawn to this deal because it offered the rare combination of a nearly new property in a rapidly growing area with excellent long-term appreciation potential and immediate rental cash flow.

Your interest in combining real estate with photography, aviation, or finance is smart and there are definitely creative ways to tie those together.

Quote from @Andrew Steffens: Love this - this combined with rate cuts will turn economy into a rocket.I am pretty bearish on rate cutes. 

I'm sure you know this, but that is a sure sign everything will go to crap and they will all lose a lot more than they could have.