Please note, I have re posted this question here since it is a finance question.I would appreciate any advice that someone can provide on what my best rout might be for financing a flip.

That is a gold mine when you are finally ready to purchase a rental and want to make a final analysis prior to making an offer or make a rental listing.

Also I believe the work needs to be completed in 6 months, so you wouldn't be able to take your time and learn as it sounds like you want to do.Thats not to say that they aren't great options to consider, just something to think about when making a final decision.

I don't want to make a habit of buyers dismissing me because there is never enough meat on the bone as well, so yeah - its a fine line and a numbers game.  

Many hard/private lenders can fund a deal in a matter of days where a traditional lender can take weeks to give a final approval on a loan.

Since my time is limited (working FT as a finance analyst and PT as an adjunct), I decided my first real estate venture would be through a turnkey investment property company.

just wanted to get a final head count for this sundays first meet up of RIMM (real estate meetup of madison). 

Hello Everyone,I saw an abandoned home while visiting a friend. 2 weeks later i saw a ticket on the door with a fine saying they needed to clean up the property.

It will be VERY tough to get a real estate analyst job without a finance background if you expect to make any money or actually learn anything (you don't want to find yourself doing data entry and not learning anything).

After awhile, you will get a good intuitive feel for what properties sell for, what a good deal looks like, and what is a rip off.As a last resort, if you are financing the property you will likely have a finance contingency and will need to have a professional appraisal on the property before the bank will fund the loan.