The reason I recommend this is because you'll be in talks with people, you'll get told no a number of times and feel really crappy when things don't work out for you.

But, I suggest you work out something as stiffing an agent may cause other problems, like reporting the deal to a lender, not saying they would, but it's happened.You can usually work out a payment based on what is actually paid, at 6% o a $5,000 payment you might pay $300.... when it closes the get the rest. :)

If so, can this deal work out somehow?

I do like to work out, though I don't do it as much as I could.

Perhaps someone of the forum will have some insight that could make it work out for you.

I am primarily interested in the hold & rent strategy, as I have a day job that I actually enjoy and would like a more hands-off approach to my investment... for now at least... if things work out with REI, I might consider doing that full time later.But anyways, I'm glad there is a forum on the web where a REI newbie like me can learn and connect.

Your credit rating doesn't come into play at all in this scenario and you don't need a secondary loan from the bank.With any business dealing, especially one with family, you should consider and discuss with the parties involved what happens if things don't work out as well as projected.

I would advise looking into several different options and then making a decision.Friends/Family, Borrowing against 401k, Private Investor/Equity Loans, etc...9% seems typical but you could probably find better rates if you have a little time to research.We usually range between 7% and higher for Unsecured Loans & 0% and higher for Secured...Let us know what you find and how things progress - Fun to follow along to see how things work out!

Aaron Yates, if you're set on allowing it, by all means, it might work out, if it doesn't it will be a learning experience, in fact, I bet it will be a learning experience in any case.

As much as I would like to be able to purchase something that I don’t have to live in, I know how important just getting my first investment off the ground is and this just may be the easiest option for me (not to mention if I could work out a duplex where I ended up with free rent that would let me build up my cash reserves a lot more quickly).