On 1/2 price days I spend $250 and get nice clean clothes only with retail value of around $2,000.  

How did you add value to the deal?

Plus our population is growing steadily which helps maintain property values and rental demand.

I ran the numbers and it seems i would after some value add to the property, but I'm more worried about the financing.

I took out cash from my investment portfolio.How did you add value to the deal?

However, I find the real value in the longer term appreciation that shows up in 5-10 years of the daily grind of rental properties.

Even though the nightly rate is high, the RE has such high value that the margins are fairly tight.  

My immediate goal is to acquire our first property and spend the next two years mastering the basics of real estate investment. ( Refining the Go and No property search criteria/ Learning the value of taxes and avoiding them as much as possible/ 1031 exchanges) Depending on my wife’s career orders, we may remain in Baltimore for 1-2 years, but I’m also exploring opportunities in West Texas, Sierra Vista, AZ, and Houston, TX.

Financial Highlights•Acquisition Price: $72,000•Renovation Costs: $35,600•Total Investment: $107,600•Funds: raised from personal savings and private lender How did you add value to the deal?

Buy 80% under value is a good place to start.