@Charles McCabe It could be construed as weakness.

-Ideally they need fix up, probably because of weak management.-5 or more units.

both had weak flooring, that felt spongy, one significantly near the kitchen sink.they rehabbed the rest of the houses great, but didn't address the floor?

I have likely reviewed and underwritten 100+ offerings over the past year and routinely see red flags and deal breakers...inexperience, mis-aligned deal structures, weak offering materials, aggressive assumptions, background check follow up items, under-capitalized sponsors, etc...but the deals still get funded.  

Medical bills is one thing, and a landlord will be more amenable to help someone who has some chronic condition that left them broke.

My landlord friend says if the evidence is weak, then it can get thrown out. 

I asked my banker about self storage and he said it gets weak in a down turn.. as in people will just walk away from their stored junk..now to be fair I owned a small self storage building 45 units with 7k of commercial on top.. and we did pretty good but I also had a captive audience..

I am trying to collect some of your opinions on regards my investment dilemma.I found a good deal, and I am about the purchase and small building divided into 4 apartments in Portugal.and as far as you know, every property has a weak side, in my case, it is a 40° road to get to the building.the place is in an urban area (Porto) and located 500 meters from a beautiful river. 

You  have  good reason to worry that 50% up front puts  you in a weak position. 

*Insert long winded personal story here*, and now I'm 49, chronically ill and exhausted, but finally in a position where, if I can figure it out, I think I could start some real estate investing.