In turn they will help you find off market deals as well.

high interest rates have hurt cash flow and long term rentals are still a great investment... they're just not going to throw off rental income in the first few years of ownership.

Spent a summer weekend hunting for on-market deals on days off with a realtor.

I was in national construction for 5+ years I'm not afraid of a small contractor who's ripping you guys off 

It hasn't been long enough to see how those that are ordered back to the office or are laid off will react.The question is "what is the change in real numbers of government employees in D.C. as a result of decisions made by the administration in 2025".

The idea of getting a duplex seems great, but I am having trouble finding anything on and off market.

Give you a cool place to visit (and potentially write off).

To be clear, you are not paying off the 80K mortgage.

@Fabio Cattolico"if I could get an out of state property for a great price and the numbers seem promising, wouldn't it be good to start off like that if I'm in a place where buying is unaffordable?"

Because after purchasing the new rental for $700K that leaves them $300K initially, so take $260K to pay off their mortgage, and still enough left to cover a good chunk of the taxes owed.