This is a very common mistake that investors make and it will cut into your rent and days on market by a lot.

Here's some guidance on buying your first investment property in Southern California or Columbus, Ohio:Down payment:For investment properties, lenders typically require 15-30% down payment on your first investment15% down is possible with excellent credit (700+ score)20-25% down is more common, especially for multi-unit propertiesSection 8 considerations:Pros:Guaranteed portion of rent from governmentPotential for longer-term tenantsMay be easier to fill vacancies in some areasCons:More paperwork and inspections requiredRent amounts set by local housing authorityPotential property damage concernsOther tips:Research local markets carefully - price trends, rental rates, etc.Factor in all costs - taxes, insurance, maintenance, vacanciesConsider starting with a single-family home or small multi-unitBuild a team - real estate agent, property manager, contractorsHave cash reserves beyond just the down paymentUnderstand landlord-tenant laws in your chosen locationI'd recommend talking to local real estate agents in both areas to get more specific market insights.

A common mistake I see for new STRs is making sure to fully understand what your property manager does.

This is fairly common within the industry and a way to reduce administrative costs considerably since you’re not repeatedly negotiating the base terms and conditions of the contract.

Though accidents could happen, 99% of the time these issues that most people need to get policies for are due to the lack of common sense or for someone accepting responsibility for their actions. 

I've heard from several people who thought they had an owner finance agreement signed at the kitchen table, assumed they were paying down equity only to have the house sold right out from under them.Ben,  How common is this that a seller is willing to give up their deed upfront in exchange for seller financing.  

Heck it’s common practice to make someone aware of an impending obligation.

We could sell that house by itself, but it would be sold under a land in common agreement and an HOA would need to be formed.I also confirmed with the Public Works department that a 2nd driveway can go in, with a septic designer that there's room for second septic tank, and with the public water company that they can tap into the main water line from one of the neighboring roads.I'm sure there are some more details that I would need to iron out that the code officer didn't bring up, but the high level answer I was looking for is that my town does allow selling off a second house under the LD 2003 legislation.

This is clearly a shakedown, and while I'm not a lawyer and wouldn't know what law it violates, it certainly must violate one or more laws to purposefully conceal what the correct address is in an attempt to have the LL violate housing laws, and thus profit from it.I would request a freedom of information act request, and ask for all documents related to the previous 80 cases, as there are bound to be common themes, such as "attorney claiming to have sent a letter", but all 80 landlords mysteriously never got a letter. 

Hi Antonio,The most common way investors scale their portfolios is as follows:1) A cash-out refinance on their current investment properties.