I think now would be a good time for me to invest because I don't have any debt at the moment, a decent amount of money saved up, good credit score, and I have access to VA loan benefits where I could get a very low down payment.

If the property doesn't meet the DSCR or the value basedon the market cap rate, your down payment will increase to bring up the DSCR orclose the gap to cap-rate value.Challenges/Lessons Learned: Just becauseyou can buy a property with a CMHC insured loan doesn't mean it is a good deal.We've seen a lot of investors agree to pay too much for the properties, and getshocked with a big down payment and low cashflow due to the low DSCRrequirements.

The house has been through two hurricanes now with no damage or flooding, so it is pretty low risk from that standpoint.

The $30 background fee is low compared to some in Maryland.

If my partner was willing to move I would rinse and repeat every 12-15 months with low down payment loans.

I have friends invested in all different parts of Philly, most with good to great success (good prices, low taxes), but you really have to do A LOT of due diligence and I would not be buying from a wholesaler or a company like New Western if you are new.

Looks like low leverage at the time, but no refinances? 

Way too low!

Most of the properties I bought are in the "high end of the low end" range, and none are on or near the water, which helped a lot.

I would not, however, bet on shipping rates staying this low over the long term.They have all the plumbing and electrical built into a centerpiece.This the sort of problem you'll face.