I always seem to be holding my breath when we get to that point/

Don't hold your breath waiting for the bank to agree with your lowball offer (which needs to be ANOTHER $5k lower than if you found it yourself, because of your ethically obliged fee)...

Hello @Amy ZemserTake a deep breath and relax.  

Taking a field trip to the local assessors office, where he is cordially referred to as "sir", watching as he shakes his cane and mutters a few choice words under his breath at the new whipper-snapper in the zoning office.  

We receive it and transmit it; we find it and lose it; we store it and leak it; we conserve it and spend it; we are breathe it in and we breathe it out; we hold it in and we let it go; we are more of who we are when we have a lot of it and less than we can be when we have only a little.

Or in the same breath, am I just wrong in my figuring all together?

In my opinion the best recipe for success is to make this a lifestyle, you need to eat, sleep, breath real estate and never back off.

Don't go postal, please.The advice I give to my fellow investors who get jittery is to take a deeeeeep breathe and hold it, then let it out sssllllooooooowwwly, sssssssssssssssssssssss.

Since I live, work and breath in CA, my statement was CA usury law based.

Make sure the closing agent does not breath the numbers that apply to you to anyone, there is no reason to say any number out loud if you have buyer and seller in front of you, so instruct the agent to keep their mount shut!