I have yet to hear of any bank who would accept 10 days befor ehaving any EMD.I do like the suggestion of looking at FSBO's as you are dealing with private owners who may not have the same sophistication and criteria that banks require.

Sometimes an anchor will work, and sometimes it won't (especially whenever dealing with a sophisticated buyer/seller who's a strong negotiator).For some interesting ideas on negotiation theory, one should check out a book called Negotiauctions.

Certainly talk to a tax advisor and a sophisticated financial advisor before you take the plunge. 

FWIW, we've found proper screening to become significantly harder this year as the fraud has become far more sophisticated. 

Houston is a very sophisticated market where you will be competing with newbie/local/out of town virtual whole sellers.  

There's no good way of knowing for sure if theming would increase what I get, but I am doing fine as is.I think there's a market for a well furnished, well maintained house that provides great amenities and sophistication at a fair but not cheap price.

I would also like to build a team that will guide me in my goals of being a sophisticated investor. 

Payroll, bookkeeping, etc can mostly be done remotely.Here is a great list of questions to ask a potential accountant:http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/51/topics/70447-questions-to-ask-a-cpaAlso check out the www.NAEA.org page in your search.

I was brought in to implement an in-house Asset/Liability Management (ALM) system, which is a sophisticated way of managing interest rate risk.

Can anyone recommend a payroll software that is easy to use?