Thieves, vandals, squatters, kids, animals, bugs all of this equals damage to the home and no one is there to monitor any of it.

Make sure you ask for references, and monitor the quality of their work with smaller jobs before trusting them with anything large if possible.

Thanks @Nathan Paisley As a NJ investor, what keywords do you monitor?

Assuming you do the due diligence and find a good property that cash flows and you monitor your property manager so that your tenants are happy, pay on time and your home is maintained, your golden. 

I don't see much value in monitoring these monthly.

It can also give you a better idea of the potential condition of the inside if there are pictures and the previous listings were semi-recent.Also, make sure to monitor the listing, depending on where it is in the foreclosure process (or how long its been since), they may grant access within a certain time frame of the auction.

As a multifamily appraiser, I am trying to think outside the box and come up with a service for multifamily owners (most likely targeting properties with 20 units or more).A current idea I have is to provide a "value monitoring system" that would initially provide a complete "as is" appraisal, then keep an owner informed of their property's position in the market on a quarterly, semi-annual or annual basis.

Michael, all good points here by everyone.Make sure you do check out our local meetup, you can meet experienced flippers and maybe people looking for lending too.My only advice is this: as much as you think you know by being behind the monitor, about profits, comps, and estimating repairs by pictures, you will have a rude awakening in the real world with zero flipping experience.  

I monitor the L.A.

It's complicated if you haven't thought about it but easy if you're monitoring it all the time.