So I would be leery of lowing the 2.5X just because that does not leave a lot of margin for the unexpected events that life throws. 

@Trevor Asay, you're close to a 16% margin, which is pretty standard for flips.I think a 90-day turnaround is too optimistic.

If it looks like I can definitely up rents within the year to get it over that margin, I'll take the risk getting it below that 10% threshold. 

Also brokerage is a much much lower margin business than real estate sales.

Ive read a lot about the BRRR strategy which involves gettting a house under market value with some cosmetic issues.. remodeling it and  then taking out a cash out refi loan assuming you will get a good margin for the new value of the house after remodeling. 

@Scott Simpson, that margin is too tight for me.

I'd stay away from asking people if you can shadow them for a day which benefits absolutely nobody because a lot of it would be responding to emails, making phone calls, pouring over spreadsheets and figuring the margin on a deal which to someone else who is new would not be the most exciting thing of all time.

I took a lot of heat in several online forums for my asking price.... and in the end Ive got two great tenants that are respecting our properties, paying rent (on time too), have JOBS, and a credit profile that indicates they will actually be able to afford AND continue to PAY.It takes time - dropping your price will open the doors to more marginal candidates... screen as usual (consistent too).

You'll also have higher fees the first few times, so you'll need to buy something with better margins. 

As this is my very first time doing anything like this, I would rather be a bit cautious, over build, and perhaps reduce my margin slightly than try to do this on the cheap, and maximize profit, only to get burned by the rental business and have to deal with the headache of doing this all over again in less than a year or two.