Reuben, that vacancy rate is merely an average. 

There are plenty of amazing markets that will give you a significant return with a mere $200k.

As much as it is a numbers game, it should not mistaken for mere gambling.

Randy Hughes has a good course especially good for the buy and hold investor, but I've taken it beyond in my rehab to resell business and wholesaling.These are the my favorite reasons:No need for double closings, merely sell the beneficial interestNo need to foreign file your entity in different states as the trust is a pass-through entity.Anonymity.Save money on transfer fees.No cost to setup a Land TrustThe list goes on and on and on.

These systems may not have been run in years, and while they may appear to function when you buy the property, often die soon after.So often a buyer merely looks at the price of the REO and think that it is a deal, but do not realize these extra costs that come along with buying an REO.

I think its great to get voted for in a thread but one person could easily become 'influential' by merely participating without really adding any value to anyone but merely spending a few minutes voting for other threads read or not.

I merely think that for the situation of the OP and given his goals, short-term strategies are the way to go.

The CapRate is merely a way to compare risk (higher cap rate would suggest more risk than a lower cap rate).

We for instance merely charge an extra $1,500 in legal fees at closing due to the complexities involved.A couple of other things that I note from your original post:If your credit is poor then many HMLs will not be able to lend to you in the first place.If you have no cash reserves at all, you face some major obstacles.

@Jared Garfield Wasn't Carlton Sheets merely a paid spokesman for Mark Haroldson?