(It is very important to know what the land's surrounding area offers, such as nearby grocery stores, parks, retail, schools, public transportation/light rail, and employment centers because it will be easier to attract potential homebuyers or renters.)(3) FInd out who your City Councilperson or Alderperson is and what has she or he done to help real estate developers.

It's also easy to transport.

How far is the stores, supermarkets, coffee shop, transportation.

If you take two individual properties with similar dynamics such as cost, condition and rental potential, you can see very different results based on things like taxes and whether landlord/tenancy laws are more or less favorable.It really pays to understand the following factors:Property tax ratesProperty insurance ratesMunicipal landlord taxes (an IRA or 401k may not be exempt from certain local taxes)Local landlord/tenant laws – how easy is it to evict a tenant, for example.Local Market FactorsIn addition, you will want to look at things like neighborhood safety, quality of schools, access to transportation, proximity to shopping and recreation, and other factors that drive desirability.Investing in real estate is not really that different than any other type of investment.

If so, then yes, it would be wise to go spend a good amount of time checking out the different neighborhoods.Good areas tend to be close to good transportation and amenities.The rental market is strong there.

Ideally someone with a Property Management background/transportation/laptop/etc.

Pay particular attention to the City's Capital Improvements Plan, which might be a separate document or might be rolled into either the Comprehensive Plan, the Master Plan, Transportation Plan, or some other planning document.The documents above usually reference 10 year futures and are updated every 3-5 years.

The MD State Department of Assessments and Taxation (MD SDAT) estimates the value of a property, and the county or city is responsible for billing and collecting the taxes.Property taxes are generally used for things like public safety, sanitation, education, transportation, health services, legislative expenses, social services, recreation, and many other services extended to residents.AssessmentsThe total assessed value of a property is split into two sections: the land value and the property value.

But as you stated I was being pretty optimistic.My thoughts were the house is in a location close enough to public transportation (metro/bus) and the rooms seem a bit bigger than places that I have looked at.

They do everything too...permitting, transport, finishing, etc, but I believe you're paying a premium for this.