There really isn't a safe, secure way for someone to protect their interests.

In order to do this you need to have deal flow and you need to know 1) How to recognize a good, profitable deal, 2) How to put together funds quickly to buy the deal before someone else does and in such a way where you are protected and the deal is protected, 3) How to run the project so that you follow the budget and don't overspend or overbuild, 4) How to attract an end buyer or a renter and which documents to use to protect yourself and the buyer, 5) If you are going to keep the property then you need to know how to set up the property from the start to best help you in the refinance later, and 6) You need to know how you are planning on managing the property from the beginning in order to make sure it will be profitable at the end.

That is just not realistic in this current market.So in my opinion it's important to expose yourself to a large number of deals, so you can develop an intuitive sense of what's reasonable and what's not (and quickly discard the ones that aren't).And it's true that there is no way to 100% protect from fraud (and not just in passive real estate investments but even in public stocks etc.).

A home (whether primary or investment) in my eyes is considered as a savings account once you own it - a store of wealth. 

Our investment to value (ITV) in the notes we purchase is usually in the 50-60% range, a significant amount of equity to protect our position and our private capital position. 

You take out those utilities from the S8 voucher rent and the resulting NET rent is often BELOW market rents.Ask more questions to protect yourself from being taken advantage of. 

I have my eye on a large single-family residence in Bethlehem, PA, but I have yet to acquire financing.

We are newbies, and don't want to miss out on a great investment and tax savings opportunity, but obviously want to do everything correctly in the eyes of Uncle Sam.

I’m focused on growing my portfolio and have my eye on a few markets.

If not, you’ll need to resolve these liens, which could complicate the investment.Current Occupants: The family living in the property could be protected under Massachusetts’ tenant and housing laws.