If you consistently analyze properties, recognizing a good deal will be much easier when it shows up.

Most hard money lenders will want to know about your track record - if you have no experience, partnering with someone who has a track record will likely be an easier path to approval (and likely higher leverage) than applying by yourself. 

It has come up quite a bit, still is a bit dangerous but appears to have plenty of room for improvement and appreciation.

It's easier and quicker.

Give me the horse and buggy vs a self driving car with immature software and sensors any day.My point is you should use as much technology as you can to make your life easier without going beyond its limits, and in the meantime always be on the lookout for new solutions that solve problems without creating new ones.

So, if deadline not met, we will send our people to handle.4) Vacant properties are easier to deal with, but we still require:- Owner must sign a Hold Harmless to indemnify us against any potential lawsuits relating to the work their contractor is doing and add us to contractor's insurance.--- Another lawsuit from a prospective tenant that slipped during a showing and when they grabbed the handrail, installed by owner's contractor, it collapsed and person injured.- Since we're not really in full control of the property, the Hold Harmless also indemnifies us against anything that goes missing at the property and squatters.We get asked/told to do all kinds of crazy stuff by owners, who either don't care what happens to us or haven't really thought everything through.Hope this addresses your question.

If you plan on holding, it's then a much easier task to roll it into a DSCR loan.

It may also make it easier for your estate planning attorney to line up ownership with your estate plan, assuming a CA-estate plan if a CA resident.

If you don't get access to the property before closing it can be tricky but if there are recent photos online or you can walk through before and take your own then it is much easier.

Illinois is a great market, but I agree with most that it would be much easier if the investment were closer to you.