“ cash flow returns” almost always compare horribly to a simple bank CD after you deduct for insurance, prop taxes< vacancy, capex, prop management (or your personal time.) etc etc etc. 

Yes - it is far more work than a silent investor in a syndication... but I want the control, so find it personally more rewarding.  

We used $100k of private money and the rest was personal cash.

Little did I know it would take decades to ripen :)3. bought a foreclosure sale .. traded the house for the 3 acres the person who owned the house. 

Work with your commercial lender/insurer/lawyer/personal banker and see if they know of any interested parties.4. 

Until you see the property in person the numbers are completely meaningless unless you have a working relationship with that listing broker for years.

And then you can use that information to start to develop your own personal due diligence method: Crowdstreet.com, 1031 Crowdfunding, Akr7, Finresi etc.

I found this one https://www.titlesearchcourse.com/faq/ its 69$ and the person who created it also has a youtube and specializes in tax foreclosure properties which is what i do.

I've seen landlords live in blissful ignorance for 5-10 years due to dumb luck, then their world comes crashing down and they lose everything.I have a book, there are some in the BP bookstore, or you can check out one of my personal favorites, Every Landlord's Legal Guide by NOLO.

Personally I would defer this question to someone with design experience, not sure I have seen too many on here commenting.You could do something neutral but remember especially with the rug if it is light color it will likely run quickly.