Investing always looks scary I don’t wanna lose money. my monthly payments are 3k including taxes I am in NJ so property taxes on an acarage house is still high Investing can be scary. 

Focus on what the rents will look like post-renovation with 4 units instead of 2, and have a clear game plan for refinancing to pull your capital back out. 

Real estate is a relationship game.

Many even include a set monthly amount.

One thing in real estate and probably most other businesses is that most people including me don't know how to measure and evaluate risks.  

I've included an example below to help illustrate this.So different lenders have different rates (which do vary even for DSCR loans) but these are factors they all consider.See example below:DSCR < 1Principal + Interest = $1,700Taxes = $350, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $50Total PITIA = $2200Rent = $2000DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2000/2200 = 0.91Since the DSCR is 0.91, we know the expenses are greater than the income of the property.DSCR >1Principal + Interest = $1,500Taxes = $250, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $25Total PITIA = $1875 Rent = $2300DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2300/1875 = 1.23If a purchase, you also generally need reserves / savings to show you have 3-6 month payments of PITIA (principal / interest (mortgage payment), property taxes and insurance and HOA (if applicable).

Good call, Noel—licensing and insurance are critical, but in Tennessee, a contractor’s license is generally required for projects totaling $25,000 or more, including labor and materials (See Tennessee's licensing requirements).

For me, in the LTR game, it's tenants. 

There are rules and situations unique to each state and that is why you want to go with a local lender vice someone just reaching out to you telling you they can do it. 2) Better recourse if the lender screws something up: a local lender has more skin in the game so to speak as if they screw something up their name will be mud to local real estate agents in the deal.

Negotiating felt like a game of chess—except I was playing against a grandmaster, and my queen was missing.