If a pickpocket steals your wallet, people will wonder why you would carry your wallet in your pocket.

Learn the lawsDon't use a contract "off the internet", laws vary by state and are also regulated on a federal level Learn the financing techniques correctlyDon’t skip parts of the processDon’t ever do a “kitchen table” closingUse the proper deedAn attorney can help you with the legal work, but the rest you are on your ownYour guru will not bail you out“Investing” in someone else’s deal by providing a small 2nd loan so the “investor” can pay for “cash to the seller” and for “closing costs” so he can do the deal is a very bad planKnow what problems can ariseLearn the responses and solutions to problems before they are needed Know everything there is to know about Title and what that meansKnow who a "protected class" individual isLearn the "back doors"Learn human natureUnderstand timelinesUnderstand regulation enforcement (some of these "mistakes" have a 10 year statue of limitations ( they can charge you 10 years AFTER you do the transaction) and carry hefty fines and possible imprisonmentThe court doesn't accept "I didn't know" for an answer"Know that the source of the lead plays a serious role in some states and federallyKnow how much of a "profit" pushes the boundaries to invite an investigationYou can be sued by the seller if you don’t do things correctlyYou are automatically at fault if an investigator or attorney or regulator gets involved.

If, however, there are any gaps at all in any of the above items, even a gap so small a mouse can squeeze through, that tenant will exploit it and your life just became a 7th Level of Dante's Inferno.....:)

First off, all high skill requiring items let's remove those.

Some lenders charge 5% released upon C/O, others release once that particular line item is approved by local inspection agency.

Other items, such as football equipment from the kids’ league, were destroyed in the flooding, he said.More leaks have come from the plumbing between his first and second floors, prompting him to leave his light fixtures hanging unmounted from their wires so they don’t fill with water, he said.Clusters of dead insects cling to one section of his ceiling.

Pay $2 to $4 per item.5.  

Like Thomas mentioned, leveraging your personal residence carries higher risk.

Real estate investing carries risk, but this is a calculated move.

The loan does need to be secured by the property being improved if we are talking about a personal residence and personal itemized deductions on Schedule A.