This info is based off of comparables in the area, so I know the agent was correct in his assessment.

The housing market is on the expensive side compared to the rest of the nation.

I have found some pretty good sites with comp prices ( compareable rates of homes in the area ), and foreclose, bankruptcy, listings, which I think are pretty good..

Being a bit more experienced than some the BP is interesting to me because it highlights different markets and different strategies compared what I might hear about on other sites.For what ever reason specific communities form and people have certain styles or focus on certain markets.

Not knocking degrees, ( I have a BS, a Master's + a graduate certificate) but you're comparing apples to oranges.

it's that "work" that makes the difference in ANY INVESTMENT.i'm not comparing ANYONE here (especially myself) to this guy - i'm just going to use him as an example because he's so well known - WARREN BUFFET does not invest without doing "the work" that enables hime and his team to make incredible investments.

-rent price: this is where comparibles come in handy for the area-margin: rent minus monthly costs.

lot going on in this post.first, no way will you get a 5.5% on a non occupied investment property.(2) you *may* end up with positive net income on the property without having the mortgage writeoff - this means a visit from the tax man. as an investor, the "write offs" or tax deductions you will receive, if your business entity is structured correctly and your CPA knows what he/she is doing and you keep tabs on it, will far exceed any write offs you will earn anywhere else...look at it this way...IF...you HELOC...taking 100k out of your property...now you've got 100k to invest in an reo or other distressed property - CASH...real estate is about leverage...but with the CASH purchase, it frees you up to do many different things down the road...IF...you "buy right" (below market value > 30%) - combined with the CASH purchase, you'll create a return on your investment that is EXCELLENT.if you took an arbitrary 100k (from anywhere, say it grew on a tree) and you stuck it in a savings account earning 5% (which is a lot for a savings account)...compare that to the 20% return you'll get off the monthly cash flow from a good rental...not to mention depreciation..and future leverage options available to you through this investment...the returns just compound.now this all deserves a qualifier...we don't know the specifics of your current home, your finances, what you owe on it currently, other debts etc.all that must be taken into account.

I get all the information I can from the seller and I figure what I think all the numbers would be from my experience, and then I compare the two and come up with my "numbers" to figure off of.

Find comparable sales (you're doing this)2.