I did mitigate the risk by building a team of A-players and getting a coach with lots of experience to be my "insurance policy" but if I'd do it again I'd get a partner to share the load. 

These are likely the big players in the area and well connected.

Succeeding at making investments in this technology will require an investor to know what players are involved.

They have relationships and know the players to be able to maneuver in the space better than you can when you have no information, but what is that worth?

I am still to conservative to do one here in PDX  we just don't have the market for it.. it drops off drastically after 1.5 and really it drops off at 750k.I did buy a big home in 04 from Jerome Kersey the B ball player it was 10k sq feet on the Willamette river.. it was moth balled and sat stagnate for 2 years.

: Sothebys and the big name brokerages have consolidated a lot of the small players.

He's a legit player in that market.

However you traditionally find more sophisticated and experienced players in commercial...that isn't always the case however more so than single family investing.

Actually, they left a DVD player, and while showing me the place demonstrated that it works . . . in the player was a personal DVD porno.

These are cash-only deals, too small to interest the major players, but the bank owner (or short sale owner) is very motivated to unload it.I'm looking at a 50-unit prospect now that looks to be $10k/unit all-in, with $500/mth average rent (75% of units are 2BR) and tenant paid gas/electric.