@Ray Gonzales Paying a bird dog at closing is a gray area.

The gray areas seem to be; who is "I"?  

I may try something cheaper but for a bit more this really gives a great wow factor over some of the other cheaper stuff.https://www.lowes.com/pd/STAINMASTER-10-Piece-5-74-in-x-47-74-in-Washed-Oak-Dove-Gray-Locking-Luxury-Residential-Vinyl-Plank/999957695

If you are looking to hold I would say in Philadelphia look at Overbrook, University City, Point Breeze, Mt.Airy and Grays Ferry.  

But having a single closing agent who is local to the area, knowledgeable, and can work with different lenders has saved me a lot of gray hairs.  

The reason for investing in real estate is to enjoy life a little more and working 80 hours/week will make you wealthy quicker, but will also make you gray quicker.I have a full time job and a side business giving tours (admittedly not as time consuming as your side-gig as a realtor) and I have to be sure to set aside time for my lady.

And your motto reminds me of Russell Gray, from The Real Estate Guy's, motto of "do the math and the math will tell you what to do."  

Grays Harbor is... tough to flip.

You receive 0% commission and or any compensation on the sale.I know SDIRAs/self dealing is pretty clear - this area seems a little gray to me.

However I have a friend there and from what I hear, the areas south of Baltimore, east of 50th to Grays Ferry may be a good spot for a buy-and-hold because of the University of the Sciences as well as Penn's purchase of the Dupont Campus.