Real estate is fundamentally a very long-term play.

it would be the same exact thing with a HELOC in that once you paid it off hopefully you have some money left over which you could consider is pre paying interest on your next HELOC. but nothing changes the fundamentals of the fact that if you're borrowing money the rate you pay for that money including fees is your cost   for that money

I’m scouring the country looking for a similar case or a legal expert with experience with whether such information is "private" and members who legally obtain it can be forced to keep it secret, or whether a fundamental First Amendment right to free speech might apply, especially where an owner has never signed any confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement before or after buying in.Thanks!

Prices are high, expenses are high, and rents are modest so the strategies that can get you enough to live on, to give some examples, might be student housing, higher risk cities with low house prices and poor economic fundamentals, or starting with buying a multi-million dollar portfolio requiring hundreds of thousands or a million+ of down payment. 

@Daniel M Gibson sticking to fundamentals and your "gut" is always the best course.Unlike 99% of the investors on this site, my take is that investing for cash flow is a bad idea...it creates a jaundiced view of how things work...meaning that investing is about controlling assets as wisely as possible...not immediate cash flow.I use seller carried loans routinely because I'm in for the long haul (and I don't need rental income to survive)...as long as the purchase price makes sense, I could care less about income...the concept is debt paydown and future equity.

I have my thoughts as to why Richmond has strong fundamentals and economics and is poised for steady rent growth.

Always buy in areas that have good economic fundamentals.

I am looking into wrap around mortgages and lease option and trying to understand the fundamentals of how to pitch it to a potential seller and get a contract.

DC is a fantastic market with great fundamentals. 

I just look at the fundamentals and often just trust my gut.