Add to this the uniquely corrupt bureaucratic environment of Baltimore City, Maryland (where I grew up)--and its creaky, barely functioning housing-voucher machinery. 

Certainly the one in the store will cost more, but most people would gladly pay extra for the value of peace of mind."

@Rodolfo Canon I would second this - while I'm super new to the world of REI, I have been to a class that Chris, Charles and Joe put on and the info was great, environment was fun and it was a great way to network locally.

Less than $500 can give new owners peace of mind for a while... 

I've been running a marketing business remotely for several years, so I actually prefer the virtual environment.

Then get another quote for peace of mind and let the original plumber know you’re doing so .

But even these deals feel a lot like musical chairs... buy, force a bit of appreciation and hope someone will pay a lot more at a compressed cap rate in an interest rate rising environment 

Have the contractor to pull the permit, then you can sleep peacefully ;)

Two, more importantly, it works now in certain parts of the country because of their low capital cost basis and more importantly, the current low-interest environment, which allows them to own SFR as rentals with bare positive cash flow in lower-priced markets.

I'm new to BP and so far love the environment.