Pretty sure luck was largely in play, and the only real credit I can take is for having the cajones (or the blind optimistic stupidity) to buy all four, even tho on the day I signed the second deal, I didn't have enough money to even buy all four, let alone start the rehab, and owed the IRS about $40k.

She is interested in buying the property and is installing mini-blinds, gutters, and maybe a new dishwasher at her own expense.

Hi, Zach.Here are some other ideas:- "Portable" wireless alarm system- Motion sensor lights on exterior of home- Mini-blinds on the windows- Lights and/or radio on a timer inside the house- Park a car out front

The first couple years I bought blind without doing a title search and i made mistakes and it cost me money.

The property is being sold by the city and is done through a blind bid process without entry available to the homes.

Thankfully the last 5 years has not been a complete loss: we’ve paid down the mortgage loan a good amount and between a combination of appreciation and forced appreciation, we’ve got some equity in the property.The economic climate presents some interesting possibilities for us, but I don’t want to pursue something blindly and overleverage myself.Thanks in advance for any feedback you can give me!

If they don't, it'll be far better to have a pro-active and uncomfortable convo with Aunt now and be well served in real estate instead of embracing comfort and having harder emotions to deal with down the line.Keep asking questions where others blindly "do" and you'll be unstoppable in all things!

Well i was blind but now i see.

How about Blind Tiger for lunch next week? 

I personally have either rented houses and apartments in low income areas preferably to Sec.8 voucher tenants or owner financed them with Contracts for Deeds (the tenant/buyer has more interest at heart, since he is more of an homeowner than a tenant.)Yes, you could put a blind ad like what you stated to see what kind of feedback you get first.Good luck!