If you need financial help, ask under the "Finance, Tax, and Legal" forum.

(I REALLY can’t stand state income taxes.  

Given the market conditions and your hard money loan, it might be wise to first calculate your monthly holding costs, including loan payments, taxes, and maintenance.

@Shiloh Lundahl Awesome, thank you ok so having that 10-20k as a buy in is important, to first getting into it.... it helps get those first deals started.... just as an aside : I am also just starting out doing finder's fee methods - with tax foreclosure overages refunds, and assett recovery / state funds refunds... so I think those can help me to get that intial 10-20,000.... it might take me some months, but I think I can get there.... that's my initial plan, at leastAnd if I can get that saved up, then that will help me break into deals....

Right now, I’m seeing max LTVs closer to 80% on purchases, though before COVID, we sometimes went up to 85%.Also, keep an eye out for lenders who promise amazing terms but demand large commitment fees upfront.

Look into local tax incentives and financing options, and reach out to local real estate groups or mentors to better understand the market.Good luck!

If someone doesn't pay their rent, then it can take over a year to evict them, and then I'd be left paying that mortgage and fees for a lawyer, etc.

Enough immediate cashflow to balance out the mortgage, taxes and insurance.

What are true returns for comparison, before or after Income taxes? 

It can be done ethically, but you need safeguards to confirm mortgage & possibly property tax payments made on-time, as well as insurance with you protected.- Also, you need a legal way to take back the deed if buyer defaults!