Let me know if you or someone you know might be interested.Loan Requested:$40,000 (secured by a second deed of trust)Interest Only Rate: 8%Total Loan to ARV (After Repair Value): 76%Loan Length: 6 MonthsMonthly Payments: $267Total Interest Paid Up to 6 Months: $1,600 (plus the principle of $40k back then; if money returned earlier, it'll be however many months the money is out)Is this a good deal?

I looked up the requirements for getting a real estate license in Ohio and I am required to take these 4 classes before I can take the exam: Real estate principles and practicesReal estate lawreal estate financeReal estate appraisalI was wondering if anybody had any good recommendations for where I should take these classes.

In case you were uncertain about how weird Massachusetts law can be, our licensing classes and CE courses specifically state that using the term "walking distance" or "a short walk" discriminates against people without legs.You CAN say 1/10th mile to the beach as that's an objective fact. 

Or if I should give a guaranteed 8% of principle and we split the rental.

A more specific example is if a private investor had 135K in the deal for me to obtain the property, and I made a monthly payment to that investor for 12 months with the intent to cash out refi and pay the remainder of the 135k plus reasonable ROI... does this seem typical or is it all based on investor objective?

If you were to add $10k more to your DP (now $30k) to get $100/month more (now $500), it would take you 60 months to break even....and it would have cost you $30k instead of $20k to control the property.It's not about buying a property, and  how much it costs (principle, interest, etc...). 

My objective with this landlord policy is to protect my investment, whether there is a partial loss or total loss.

Or can one of you experienced investors see my investor objective and offer guidance?

Your funds are deposited into a trust account from which your monthly payment is then made, and the excess funds then remain in the trust account until enough has accrued to make the additional payment which will then be paid to reduce your principle.

Some people seek independence from needing a 9-5 job so their objective it to earn enough from owning, controling or managing real estate assets  to both pay all of their bills and even beyond that earn enough spendable dollars that they can use an in income on top of everything all the while building up assets which in the end they will own outright and have all the money that can come for the value of their assets in the long haul.