While I do not doubt your statement is true Mark, I find it strange that in all my years of dealing with REO's, I have seen a number of times where highest and best was countered and after no counter response, magically the "other buyer" must have vanished as the bank called to state the deal was mine.Not sure how or whyt it happens, but I can assure you that it DOES occur as i have seen it first hand.

This will no doubt cost you thousands every year in extra property tax - especially in CA.

it may be difficult to collect from the tenant but with a good insurance company it may not be that difficult and it may be simpler to just have the tenant pay for that insurance, the cost is around $150 a year for the basic coverage, although I have no experience in submitting a claim for renters damages on a policy like this...I HIGHLY doubt that a tenant's renters insurance would cover damage done to floors by the renter's dog.What if the dog pooped all over the seats in the tenant's car?

Usually you go the title company to sign the papers, but often the paperwork is faxed or mailed to one of the parties to sign, so I doubt you being out of the country would be a problem.

Beyond the ethics, it really puts doubt into the minds of a buyer when they realize that they may have been duped into responding to an ad for a house that never existed.

Mike Rubin,I doubt that we will ever see the South Florida Real Estate Market collapse, like it did in 2008-09-10.A recent article in the Sun-Sentinel was about Builders coming back into the Southeast Florida Market.Here is a link to that article:http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2013-03-25/business/fl-davie-builder-20130325_1_demands-rise-townhomes-and-condominiums-parkland-golfRaymond

Well, I see you got a plug in with your site, I doubt you''ll be partying much here unless you can figure out how to deliver a few pints over the internet.....if you do, let me know!!

I doubt there is a required retention period unless you are a Realtor/broker/PM.

When doing your own tile job, first make sure you are using the correct underlayment for the job you are doing.ex. if you are tiling a shower use a mold and moisture resistant cement backerboard or greenboard.

I'm not doubting your intelligence and talent here, but even the best investors I know had many years of "background" before jumping in "full time".