The more you know about your market the more confident you will be when you are ready to pull the trigger.

Will a rent credit trigger the Frank-Dodd Act, or qualify as some sort of securities trading?

It is easy to get paralysis by analysis when trying to pull the trigger on a RE opportunity.

Developers are notorious for pulling the trigger too late in the economic cycle...  

Are you ready to pull the trigger, to make an offer to risk some advertiseing money?

If you decide to pull the trigger on something in Memphis, let me know.

Sounds like you are well on your way and will be pulling the trigger soon, I think at this point you should have been able to conduct enough studies to determine the major challenges that exist as you define multi and single family.

Check with your lawyer to make sure anything you do is legal where you are (and doesn't somehow trigger a 1 yr lease)...Also, don't forget this is a business :)  Yes, it seems more complicated to ask someone to leave who is pregnant, but including that in the post suggests you are thinking like a friend, not a landlord.  

I am considering pulling the trigger on an offer on a B-/C+ triplex in greater Philadelphia (3.5% down via FHA loan) and was wondering if the good people here at BP would be able to evaluate where I'm at so far.

Hello GeorgeI congratulate you for even being in a position to think about purchasing an investment property but I think you would benefit more both short and long term if you improved your existing situation before you pulled the trigger on any type of purchase.First of all, your 600 FICO will make your decision as to which type of loan you want to proceed with a lot easier than you think.