It's tough and you definitely want to begin with a solid foundation of education.

It felt pretty solid, but later when my home inspector (not a pest inspector) probed with a pocket knife, he was able to dig out a little bit of wood.I looked for mud tunnels on the outside of the foundation and in accessible areas of the garage and basement.

Set up a solid foundation then worry about secondary properties after that.

Some really good deals can be found at public auctions.

Have my first deal in my sights but it needs major foundation repairs and an possible deal breaker on an otherwise great flip.  

The next 5 years for me is going to be crazy to say the lest, so far focus on my first 8 unit in 2016 and using that as my foundation moving forward.

And it is a solid foundation for the future.

I'm itching to get started, but understand the importance creating a solid foundation by not over extending myself. 

The basement has a very solid foundation and doesn't leak.

I agree about the sticker shock checking things out online but with the vast majority of properties here 100 years old, and most severely neglected, the maintenance and heating costs alone are absurd and almost every one will need a new roof, foundation work, lots of electrical work and more significant repairs that just make it a nightmare and the low prices not worth it in the long run (in my opinion and those I've talked with in the business up here).