Looking for my first rental property

[Nicholas Zilkowski]

I have a friend that's in the military.  Him and his spouse are trying to sell their house while both stationed elsewhere.  When I last spoke with him, he said that they're just trying to break even.  It's a 2/1 BR/B 1,100 sq ft, and they're asking $69,900.  I'm trying to decide if I could buy and hold, and live there myself or try to rent.  OR something else that I heard about was some kind of contract where I can basically sell something similar to an options contract on it and maybe make a few grand.  I'm relatively new to all of this so I'm trying to jump in and take action (without shooting myself in the foot).  Any comments, questions, suggestions, concerns, or emotional outbursts would be helpful!

[Mindy Jensen]

@Nicholas Zilkowski , welcome to BiggerPockets.

First off, just because your friend wants $69 for the house doesn't mean it's worth $69. If your friend is looking to "just break even" chances are good that it isn't worth what he paid for it.

The other idea you had is to wholesale it. I wouldn't recommend that for several reasons. First, this is your first deal. Wholesaling isn't nearly as easy as it sounds. Second, your friend is involved. Friends and business don't mix well. Third, there probably isn't a lot of meat on this deal.

It's nice that you want to help your friend, but this is probably going to be a bad investment. However, I'm not familiar with the Mishawaka market.