I would suggest brushing up on the financial, operational and due diligence aspects before even considering investing. 

Plus land, soft & holding costs.

We have some new players coming on board on the marketing end.. will be interesting to see how they mingle and disrupt the old marketing guard.As just an aside my second job after selling fuller brush door to door and was old enough to get hired was a bag boy at a local small grocery owned by an long standing Italian family.. and man you talk customer service.. and when I walk into MI offices it takes me back 45 years to those days of the owner of the grocery store preaching customer service above all else..

Auctions can be great deals when markets are soft.

Its fairly easy to estimate hard costs like materials and labor, but what often gets overlooked is soft/holding costs like utilities, insurance, taxes, permits, grass cutting, costs of funding, transportation, survey, selling costs, commissions, advertising, time delays and contingencies.Make sure your numbers are strong.

And one of the features that my applicants really seem to appreciate- since the applicant is initiating the credit check, it is considered a 'soft inquiry' and doesn't impact their credit score like a hard inquiry started by someone else.As far as what to look for on the credit report, for me it depends a little on the property and price.

The property does have some soft spots in floors that will need to be addressed as well.

So even though I LOVE how creative you're being (I find creative investing very SEXY), let's analyze the deal as a deal:ARV: $399K (your number)Soft Costs: 5% Resale commission (in case buyer walks or can't perform), 7% holding costs (high due to 18 month hold), 3% Acq & Legal (around $58K)Rehab: Roof & Cosmetics: $15K Minimum (flooring refinished, paint throughout, upgrading appliances, minor touch up)Required Profit (mine, not necessarily yours): $30KNick's Max Offer: $296KNot enough juice in this one to keep tenant buyer happy.

IE what class of property your after.Also when I am targeting in fill how I set myself apart is to have a soft pre qual with my letter so they know I am not fooling around.. and I state in my letter if you get other inquires if they cannot prove in 24 hours that they have the cash in the bank  why would you want to work with them.. they are just trying to tie up your property and flip it.. 

Your down payment will be any costs you paid out of pocket (soft costs) and the value of the land (provided you owned it free an clear.)