The east side is enticing from a pricing perspective but it is extremely rough.I would also highly recommend adding Detroit to your list of potential markets.

@Basit Siddiqi is exactly right that Philadelphia / NJ has some unique reporting headaches that are often screwed up, so whoever you work with, gauge their experience working in numerous jurisdictions, or their teams access to those subject matter experts.Those in the construction world and rental world open themselves up to some substantial opportunities from a tax planning perspective, but also need to be sure they thread the needle carefully on the real estate professional rules to actually qualify for them.

Thanks for sharing a fun and interesting perspective.

these are those situations you hear about in the podcasts and the books that advertise starting with zero money.So, looking at it from a loan officer's perspective, if you come to me with your experience and your credit and the asset's number's work, then you should be able to get a 90%/100% program on a bridge loan which means you are in for 10% of purchase price for entire project cost. 

I generally think about this from the perspective of time vs. money.

Also note that from a contractor's perspective, the number one problem is flippers who are inadequately funded and who rely upon the contractors to fund their rehab.

I've never used one, so I don't know.As for insurance for tenants, again, I don't rent by the room so am not familiar with how that would work from the tenant's perspective.

Lee - How to Make Money in Real Estate Tax LiensProblem is they're all fairly generalized and talk about the basics from a global/overview perspective, whereas Tax lien certificates are all county-specific and are based on local and state rules and regulations.

There are obviously a lot more factors that go into it - real estate is always going to be a mix of the tangible property/market itself with a mix with the investor/operator including experience, risk appetite, financial situation etc.I would say however if you are just getting started in real estate - LTRs are probably (in a vacuum) the better bet as STRs are certainly more sophisticated and challenging from an investor perspective

I'll address your questions from my perspective in order:First - You sign a lease agreement in addition to the airbnb booking.