Actually, for me, it was just a fun gamble -- Christina mentioned the tax lien to me at a REIA meeting and 2 minutes later I offered to write her a check for 50%, while Ned was just laughing at me for my lack of due diligence...  :-)We'll be all-in for $6500 or so, and hopefully we can sell it for a profit. 

And that's still a gamble.

I've had this property under signed contract since November 3 and today I get a message from the sellers attorney saying that the contract is fraudulent 

Crime rateGang activityHorrible weatherNothing to do unless your hobbies are shopping and gambling.

Betting on appreciation with a risky interest only, adjustable rate mortgage is simply gambling.

However, if you do not have unfettered access to the funds mentioned in a POF document you are essentially "renting" information - that is fraudulent.

The IRS has been giving out billions in fraudulent refunds for decades with no end in sight.

But if you're willing to take the gamble, the returns could be huge if the development does happen.  

Smart investors make their money when they buy - waiting for appreciation seems to be a bit like gambling.

RichI put lotteries, gambling and stocks in the same category, so in my mind, since equities were recommended, that would include lotteries and gambling.Like I stated before, I hold stocks and mutual funds, but with all the manipulating that occurs in the market (from the govt on down), I treat it the same as I would gambling.That article describes what main stream America buys into - that's a problem....