Hi Emeka, welcome to BP.

Making money in real estate requires experience and starting with no or little money makes you study harder.As much as most of us probably wished for it, getting started with a lot of money in your pocket is a recipe for disaster: the temptation is to make the deal work by throwing money at it.If you want to go into real estate go with a syndicator with a good track record.

Strip the floor to the subfloor and paint over it to stain block then just recarpet or put in vinyl to mitigate future stains. 

My vision is to keep it a while (it’s paid off) and use the cashflow to help with my kids college.  

@Matthew Posteraro I wouldn't necessarily say that it is a way to make them more hands-off by scaling up to larger properties.

.: Is it legal, per the IRS, to rent my primary home back to myself? 

What's up everybody Me and my wife are looking to buy a house out in Suffolk.

Maybe offer to split both labor and material costs, or at least find a way to make it feel more balanced.

All of this information should be available online so you'll just want to make sure you do your research. 

Most of our newer investors approach 2-3 lenders to discuss loan options.Some lenders recommend making your financing inquiries within a 45-day time period to avoid larger drops in your credit scores.All the best!