Doubling 500K in flips seems risky because you might end up settling on deals that are marginal simply because you have trouble finding enough better deals.

Also, you are risking more than your $250K+ in this scenario...kind of like margin correct?

Even if you self-manage that is a cost because it takes your time you could be doing other income producing activities.When I list properties for sellers I explain that most buyers do not self-manage which is true.So the buyers will include self-management when pricing.You never want to exclude management expenses.If you self-manage when buying GREAT but if you get in their and after trying decide you want to hire a manager then you have not accounted for that cost.It is one of the most single greatest mistakes I see investors make time and time again.You want it where if everything goes right you get an awesome deal but if things go wrong you can still have a good deal.VERSUSPeople talking themselves into good deals and when things go bad they now have a marginal to losing deal they can't get out of.You don't know what the seller will take.Be conservative and throw a low number out.You can always go up later.

The gurus preach that you're not truly motivated until you have no income and have to make money, but I would argue that marginal income can also result in bad (read desperate) decisions.It doesn't sound like you are anywhere near that kind of bad decision making, but stuff happens.

Real estate is like investing on margin, even if you're paying cash.

From what I've read on here the best play is to buy low ($2-3k per mobile home), rent ready rehab and sell to make $2-3k margin.

....did anyone mention iHousing 2 available at month 12 rendering prior version (and initial investment) obsolete but only providing marginal improvement?

If that number is high enough to justify the work plus extra, that extra is potentially your margin if you were to wholesale to someone else who had the same numbers you did.

And since they don't need to make a profit they don't need the same margin as you.

If it were me I'd stay away from partnerships or joint ventures until you really knew someone after doing business with them awhile.I'm curious what kinds of margins these deals have?