I would suggest that you interview several Realtors and ask them the following questions, to ascertain if they are truly Investor Friendly, or if they are throwing you a sales pitch.1.

.), that market knowledge is extremely transparent and easy to ascertain.

Are there any rules of thumb I Should be using to ascertain if my deal is a good one or not?

Trust me, I'm an engineer too :)That's why I am able to ascertain if property is worth attention in a short glance.

XXII.DEFAULT BY BUYER: In the event Buyer should fail to consummate the transaction contemplated herein for any reason, except default by Seller or the failure of Seller to satisfy any of the conditions to Buyer's obligations, as set forth herein, Seller shall be entitled to retain the earnest money deposit, such sum being agreed upon as liquidated damages for the failure of Buyer to perform the duties and obligations imposed upon it by the terms and provisions of this Agreement and because of the difficulty, inconvenience and uncertainty of ascertaining actual damages, and no other damages, rights or remedies shall in any case be collectible, enforceable or available to Seller other than as provided in this Section, and Seller agrees to accept and take said deposit as Seller's total damages and relief hereunder in such event.

You can ascertain how often this is done by doing a search by filtering by price.