Other than that I have several people in the area that could take care of any urgent needs the tenant may have.

Please share what the 'tax benefits' of an LLC are.  

Be careful not to lose functionality to the back yard.  

It is possible to find a bank that doesn't care but you will have to do some scoting. 20% down for an investment property would be a dream, most lenders want at least 25% down, some even 30%.As for you rent is that what market rates are in the area you're looking at buying in?

I work full time in health care where i want to start building other forms of cash flow.

I've only had one small issue and I was able to call a friend and he referred me to someone that was able to help me take care of it.

@Michael Lee Thank you for the advice, it was more of a genuine question and less of an advertisement but you have made your point...

If not, take care of that first.

I have the potential of an off market deal with a neighbor of mine in Rhode Island. 

Further, just because there is an expiration date does not make it 'yours to sign' until the expiration, it is only 'yours to sign' until either the expiration or its withdrawal, whichever occurs first.As Jay Hinrichs pointed out, sign as soon as you decide the terms are acceptable.Finally Chris, what you were describing, that you had until a certain time to sign the contract, would be more of an option contract, i.e., the offer would be held open for a certain period of time, and you could enter into the contract at your option.