So one major repair can wipe out a year's worth of profit.

And you're right, with our low default rate and the lower price point on 2nds, buying them back is certainly an expense but not a major one.

Part of the value of the STR is that we will plan to use this property 4-8 times per year.The property is a few hours from the major metro that I live in, and is a vacation destination for lots of people in my area.

The majority of the contractors out there dont want to work for flippers .

Spending a couple of hundred dollars can reveal major issues.

Just based off statistics the vast majority of people (nevermind the vast majority of RE investors) will never replace their W2 income w/ RE income.

do this just a handful of times and by the time you're 30, you'll have a larger portfolio of rental properties than the vast majority of people.hope this helps.

My sense is grand majority of MTR's are rented from tenants not in state or in the area for a showing anyway. 

I would tell folks at the time with 30k brand new homes that Lehigh was probably one of the cheapest places in US if not the world to live everything considered US medical and fire and police etc etc and no state income tax.So here we are today de ja vu all over again with hundreds of investors stuck with half built houses and a the vast majority of all these were spec for rental purposes not to live in..

For example, if you have knob and tub or black fabric wire you'll know you'll likely need a rewire or at least a major overhaul to make things work.