I'm now ready to dive back in....correctly. 

Again, a little more than linoleum, but last a lot longer, and depending on color choice, most scratches are hidden.But back to my original point, your tenants will be the primary driver of your success in real estate.  

And if that sounds like a lot while you are in college, you are correct.

Asking in the correct forum will get a better response.Need a spreadsheet or form?

Hi Alex,You're correct about the 2 out of 5 year rule.

It provides housing when we have limited supply, it's a good way to find tenants and make friends, and it produces a great ROI (if managed correctly) because the rental income is generally higher.

Flips and BRRRRs can work in the Bay Area if you can find a distressed property and do the renovation correctly and not overpay on rehab costs (that part might be difficult).  

@Sean Walton has the premise correct. 

And they're also correct about the difficulty in obtaining either without current income.

Those numbers do not seem correct, unless you are using terms like loan amount of $104,000 is the unpaid principal balance (which is the amount that accrues interest), and the $270,000 is the total payoff.There are two components to a mortgage statement - the first is the reinstatement amount - this is the amount to bring the loan current.