Next, analyze deals with an investor-friendly agent. 

Handyman Contractor Insights: These will best come from interviews or referrals from social media (friends/friends of friends) that are retired contractors or tradesmen.

Some people seem to get locked in to one place they find, or a place a friend or family member is selling without really evaluating the available market.In a small town in East Texas I would think your biggest risk is a big player coming to town that can absolutely crush a smaller player. 

. ;-)Some things come to mind-do you host yourself, have a property manager or co-host, is your STVR dog friendly, do you have king beds, where is your market, do you have professional photos etc.

I will be investing more in Wichita-I love that town & made some life long friends there.

I remember a friend of mine a few years back who tried something similar in the outskirts of San Antonio.

@Derek FarmerDerek - My friend Dave Short has a Dinner with Dave meeting about once a month here in Indy.

A 50/50 split, while not uncommon in the world of flipping, is very sponsor friendly, relative to the typical syndication which will typically start at 80/20 or 70/30 splits, with a vast majority of proceeds going to the LPs, along with a preferred return that gives them 100% of the cash flow up to a certain annualized return metric.  

Another benefit: three friends renting together typically need their own policies.

First advice is always go to friends and family with this deal and try to come up with the cash to buy outright.