Operating costs are known and everything is new, so reserve levels are usually tiny as there is a long time to build them up before they need to be tapped. 

@Quan TruongAs a licensed real estate agent and insurance agent in Houston, TX, you can effectively lead your real estate journey by partnering with other investors, lenders, and property managers.

I'm looking at a low cost of living area that's plagued with a housing shortage. 

Thus, it does little good to garner high cash flow from these rentals only to spend it in higher maintenance, management, and legal costs.

So many new investors that live in high cost of living areas look to the midwest or other cheap areas to invest. 

This is especially true if the property requires significant upkeep or if the heirs live far away.Owners of Distressed PropertiesSellers who own homes in poor condition and can't afford the necessary repairs may prefer to sell as-is rather than invest time and money into renovations.Landlords with Problematic TenantsLandlords who have been dealing with problematic tenants, frequent vacancies, or costly property damage might want to offload the property quickly to cut their losses and avoid further hassles.Owners Facing Major Life ChangesSignificant life changes, such as health issues, retirement, or downsizing, can motivate people to sell their property quickly.

If after the repairs were done, I would be asking my attorney if I can recover some of those costs. 

When trying to do the deal analysis on my current property, it’s asking for the purchasing and closing costs.

To be honest, your cost to get in a duplex would be right around the cost to get into a SFH in that area.

Negotiated a small price decrease due to it being on the market for 60+days and also had seller pay 3% closing costs.