While the $600 per month insurance bill is hefty, I remind myself that being closer to the ocean would have meant even higher costs.One of the key lessons I've learned is the importance of timing.

But it would be nice to have access to the software and a place to basically wholesale the ones you don't want for yourself.

Don't just find out how it's all licensed and check on any historical issues with it, no you want to meet with local board members, find out how they really feel about the place and what the cities wants and plans are for the place.

It's just that there's not more than enough places for everyone to live *exactly* where they want to live.

@Matthew Paul: My dad wasn't meant to do real estate.

I just meant to say that it's our next goal to build that up, having just gone on a spending spree on fixing up both properties in a short period of time.

A couple months ago there was a guest on the BP money pod that said something I really liked, "put your risk in your ROTH" and by that he meant that if you're going to invest in something riskier that has the potential to have large returns, put that in your ROTH account because you're only taxed on what goes IN to your ROTH, not what comes out.

Maybe they meant a different context.

I apologized and said (and truly meant) I'd follow up on it and improve for the future.

That precludes smaller places.