How flexible or fluid will you really be when banks/lenders are not as eager to lend?

Until you realize that everything is fluid, you don't know the area well enough to risk your capital.

It's based on past experience of having tenants fail to have a successful lease.Yes, today you are making your $975/month rent payment with no problem, and my assumption is your month income is below $2,925/month since that would be 3x the rent, and your post is all about not making 3x the rent.So life if going fine today, but tomorrow your transmission may fall out of your car and need $2000 worth of work. 

Final thought: I think any serious investor plays all four quarters, but with a fluid strategy.

The auction companies will try to pre-sell some of the properties if they can so, the auction list is fluid.

I would suggest just getting out the newspaper and making calls for a solid hour, mark the ones you call so you don't call them again the next day but just do that over and over until it becomes natural.Don't get me wrong, those are most likely NOT wholesale deals, just sellers that you can call and help yourself become more fluid when talking about Real Estate.Just have it in your mind that you have absolutely nothing to loose.

Air is similar to a fluid, like water, and it contains waves and eddies just like babbling brook.

I use a painter's pole.Keep an extra shovel on your truck (you should keep a coal shovel on it always).Gas up all of your trucks.Make sure your washer fluid is full.

With all of the fluid private money looking to be parked in these deals from their network and the army of folks they have marketing them it is really a pretty safe business model IMO IF banks don't suddenly decide to call the notes!

RE is a fluid business, as any other.