After a while, the ongoing time investment will be minimal, if that's important to you.

Especially when a property is bank owned, the banks seem to do minimal work.On the last one I bought, the tenant wasn't able to use the garage to park their car because the garage door didn't work.

There's no magic pill or system...you have to work.I get very frustrated with the guru get rich quick systems; they seem to lure the innocent into thinking they'll be working on a beach in Maui in a few months.

What tips do you have for minimizing your stress levels?

Right now I know of a property for sale just North of Boston, minutes from MBTA and 93 that would be a buy and hold with a positive cash flow of at least $400 as is up to $700 with minimal work.

I see very minimal vacancy rate if any especially in this area.

In that case having minimal leverage means more security.

It gives you more power and flexibility, you have checkbook control over your retirement account, minimize the maintenance cost, eliminate custodian fees, provides greater tax shelter for you personally (just few benefits, there are more - feel free to explore my previous posts).After you establish and fund the Solo 401k, you as the trustee have full control over it, simply make the offer in the name of the Solo 401k trust, write the check for earnest money deposit and then close the deal.

The minimal set of appliances for the area. 3) What type of improvements should I be comfortable doing myself vs contracting out besides electrical/plumbing/HVAC?

What is the minimal amount of money that I can use to start purchasing my first property to buy and flip???