I don't think you need to buy at 70% of a discounted value, rather, I would recommend that you buy at a wholesale value, 50-60%, in an area of town that you know, through some help with a realtor and MLS data, that the rents and values have not dropped as much as in other parts of town.With gas at $4 a gallon, it does not take a rocket scientist to figure that if there are more jobs downtown, people will want to live closer to downtown.

I'm 29, a computer scientist by day and totally addicted to this site after discovering it a few days ago.I've been interested in real estate investing for the past 10 years or so and I've finally decided I need to stop wasting time and get involved.

I suspect you buy them in bulk for pennies on the dollar then re assign them and make a profit selling them ( does not take a rocket scientist to figure that one out).So from an investors stand point.

It wasn't that long ago that computer scientists though driving a car was a task that would be impossible to automate.  

Then a precedent will be set and all sorts of those transactions will be dug into.To quote a favorite movie of mine: Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize negative cash-flow (I'm in a cash-flow market) is dangerous.

It's not rocket science, and I don't rent to rocket scientists.

I retired at 34 from my job as a data scientist (to be fully transparent, I still managed my properties which averaged 5-10 hours a month).

My last post about my start in real estate got a decent amount of traction and I'm looking to continue providing some value to those starting out.I'm a former data scientist and my superpower on teams is underwriting so I'm sharing tips / advice / perspectives on this niche skillset.

My gf is a scientist and I'm an attorney and we are renting here while looking to find our dream home.