and yes if the buyer wanted this property.. the second they got the counter and if it was acceptable they should have signed it.. then get it acknowledged and then they are in escrow... if they wanted out I am sure there was a due diligence period.. this is the type of mistake folks only make once its a learning curve however the buyers agent should have told the buyer they risk losing it by sitting on the contract to the very last second. this is why in hot markets you see sellers and buyers make offers with ONLY hours to repond.. offer comes in at 1pm and they require a response by 5pm.. giving days to respond is nice but it does set you up for what exactly happened

For me (and I'm the first to admit I don't know half of what I hope to know some day...and I've made and will continue to make mistakes) but for me I would much rather buy a 40 unit Apartment building with gross rental potential $30,000 or more and deal with the costs of managing it and the expenses associated.  

They might find the one thing you missed to save you from making a big mistake. 

Mahalia Kennedy with Appalachian Realty is excellent- fairly new on the scene, but backed up by some 20+ year investors who mentor her, and the only realtor I've ever worked with who returns calls and emails and hasn't yet made a major mistake on a contract. 

@Jon KellyAll bank owned properties are listed with an agent and provide a commission to a buyer agent as well.If you plan to make an offer on a listed property (whatever it may be), it's a great opportunity to start interviewing agents as you are bringing them business.Many people just go to the listing agent on a listed property and this is often a mistake.  

Is it a mistake to start alone?

(his attorney once called me to ask if he could pay the rent via paypal in small increments - i said "no thank you") I made a big mistake relying on my realtor when bringing this guy in.

Financial mistakes in real estate can really throw you a curve ball and set you back several years in your real estate investing career.

We're changing from an all bills paid model to a RUBS, but still, that would have been a huge mistake.  

Form some type of corporation or an LLC that will protect you personally about deft problems or other business mistakes.