Obviously, most sellers believe they are not sufficiently knowledgeable to make the sellling decisions on their own, and prefer to spend the extra 3% for help.

As of right now my credit score is around 720, would this be sufficient to get approved for a FHA loan?

However, several pockets in the area vary vastly in the type of deal you may acquire.When working with first-time rental investors I recommend looking at a few things as every investor has different needs/wants from their portfolio.

All your question is answered in basic calculator.Your question is what's difference between 3 +5 and 2+7 ; they're all good product if used intelligently can be very profitable.Fact is , 30Y above 6% rate would not have significant difference in term of balance payment compare to 10Y I/O if you sell the house in year 5.Please do note that 10Y IO and 10Y ARM is vastly different.

However if you plan on buying 3-4units, there is a trigger rule for FHA, it is called the self sufficiency test.

And the second duplex hasn't appreciated sufficiently to take advantage of the capital gains exemption yet, so planning to hold for the next few years.For this third duplex, however, I would like guidance on how to title it:1) Given that I am paying cash, and I am not totally sure I will sell this within the "2 years in the last 5 years" rule, should I just put it in a LLC rather than my personal name (thereby missing out on the gains exemption)? 

Don't get me wrong there are plenty of lazy retail brokers out there, I run into a bunch of them every day, but the vast majority of locations I see sitting for along time are simply less than desirable because of the visibility, ingress and egress, or something else all together. 

This vehicle puts you in the driver's seat, allowing you to explore the vast horizons beyond stocks and bonds.

In my opinion their data isn't significant for finding deals, but when it comes time to present an offer I don't know where you'd get sufficient data to do so other than CoStar.

Instead of focusing solely on typical tourist destinations, consider exploring areas surrounding National Parks, state parks, or unique outdoor recreation spots that lack sufficient lodging options, presenting a prime opportunity for short-term rentals (STRs).