Ask the realtor for the past 2-3 years of operational finances  ... s/he will either try to intimidate you away from wanting/needing them - in which case, walk away - or will provide you with a set of rosy, half-fabricated numbers {accept these with scepticism ... if you get in the territory of a deal, you will ask for corroborating information from his/her accountant or tax returns}.Once you have the financial data, take a run at analysing it, then bring it here for folks to review and assist you with coaxing the {likely} truth from the numbers.

I have a similar mindset: don't want to loose money and want to have a good experience (I'm a newbie).Is amazing the amount of info you can get by setting up a "turn key" keyword alert on the forum :)@Ali Boone / @Chris Clothier Thanks for expressing your thoughts on truth turn key investment.

In truth, it just looked like a dungeon.I've painted many a wood panel wall. 

The truth is there are probably dozens if not hundreds of people doing what you want to do right in your city.  

The honest truth is that the majority of the population of this country is priced out of investing in places like Hawaii, San Francisco, or NYC.

The truth is the houses we buy probably stink, may be boarded up and most likely have no utilities connected.

So I have made the decision to get my license and become a real estate agent, both for income and to augment my REI plans.

here is my rebuttal to your last post.the main difference and why CA investors or West coast investors will do the 1% rule or less over long periods of time are . and these are basically truths.1.

Many folks on here will say you need to leverage other folks money to really turn a profit and I am sure there is some truth in it but it really comes down to your lifestyle, stress level and long term goals.  

The sellers (if telling the truth) said she helped with lockouts 3 times in the past couple months.