@Jesse Wixson,Purely my opinion...Investing for appreciation is speculation (read: gambling). ...and equity doesn't pay the bills. 

@Pat Brown,Investing for appreciation is known as speculation (read: gambling).

If I was Jim, I would tell Richards Building Supply to produce an agreement where Jim gave them the right to put a lean, and also advise them that a lawsuit for damages will follow if they attempt to fraudulently pursue this otherwise.

But, if you never buy and enter contracts that you always assign, the fraudulent dealing becomes obvious. :) 

If the title is clouded (liens or encumbrances) or it turns out they didn't have the right to sell it, you have no recourse with the grantor short of fraudulent behavior.

You should be shooting for at least $100 per month per door in real cash flow.Of course none of this takes into consideration the appreciation game/gamble or amortization, however, if your goal is income, you need to be fully educated on operating expenses and all other costs associated with owning rental units.

How about the old and occasional appreciation misspelled as "gambling".

@Ray Johnson I don't want to gamble.

bad business practice from the get go... if you want to list and sell real estate you might want to get in the profession were a listing agreement gives you 2 to 6 months to sell something and assures you get paid.. instead of going into contract with no ability short of finding someone to assign a contract.. its what gives wholesalers such a bad name in the industry. not to mention a seller can back out at anytime since you went into the contract with fraudulant inducement. you may want to rethink this some.. the landscaped is littered with those that try and blow what little cash they have and end up never doing a deal.

Last question would be if there was any way i can protect myself from fraudulent work from contractors, if so what would be the best way