I'm somewhat of a beginner myself, but you are definitely on the right track by being a part of the BP community.I participated in a BP meetup in Schaumburg last month that went pretty well.

So I am looking at a couple of auctions, not foreclosure auctions, these are already bank owned and available via sites such as homesearch.com.

I need to do some title search on these.

Is an O&E rep...

From their independent appraisals and confirmation of the equity value built into the homes pricing and design, to construction banks independent rent studies and risk management analysis - they make a decision whether to participate or not.

There are several major reasons why it is better, here are few:No need for a custodian - eliminate custodian feesHave checkbook control without the use of an LLC - again savings $$ and simplicityShelter nearly $50K of your income from taxes (compare that with $5,500 if you use IRA)No UDFI tax on leveraged real estateAccess your funds tax free and penalty free before retirement if needed using Participant Loan feature.and more...

Like any system, you have to participate in it to make it work though!

If I start or reply to a forum from the app is there a way to check the box "notify me of replies"on a similar note, any way from the iPhone to view all the treads I've participated in?

I look forward to your participation here on the site, and feel free to reach out with any questions: I'll do my best to provide useful answers.

That's one of the benefits of participating in a mastermind group.

Participate in the commercial forums as much as you can and just maybe, you can pick up a remote or nearby mentor.

I would also participate in the forums as much as possible, read the BP Beginner's Guide, and other real estate books.