I did not do this step as I already knew what to expect .. they would further position you, sell you, invoke that greed within you, then have you sign on the dotted line and pay them.

If you treat this like a hobby, it will eventually cost you a lot more than you want to pay.

You pay a down payment, closing etc.

@Chris Seveney basically treating it as a sale of assets and having to pay capital gains.

I always am amazed when someone selling a $600,000 house brings me a listing agreement where they agreed to pay a stranger $30,000 to list their house for sale and they didn't even read the agreement much less spend the $250 to have a lawyer tell them that yes, if they sell it to their cousin during the listing period they still have to pay the $30k.

It gives you one property that can potentially pay for itself while putting a roof over your head and giving you experience as a hands-on landlord.

@Gp G. going to guess your current PMC is charging you a flat fee for finding a tenant.If so, who's going to pay an agent that brings a tenant via the MLS?

If you are living there you can keep the 4% rate.If you are not living there you can rent it out to pay for the property taxes. 

An IRA would pay a small tax on such unrelated debt-financed income.

Is it worth paying their annual subscription fees and do their 30-day rent guarantee mean anything if they aren't refunding the payment?